Chan Yuen-hing, Johnny, is the founder and managing director of Noble Jewellery Limited, which is engaged in medium to high-end jewellery design, manufacture and export. Mr Chan is responsible for overall direction and administration of the company, its products and services.

Noble Jewellery, founded in 1980, has developed from a local retailer into an international wholesaler of jewellery items, which distributes to Japan, Middle East and the USA, and employs over 500 workers.

Its prime objective is the “search for excellence” in customer satisfaction. To achieve this, Noble offers life-time warranty to its VIP customers on all items sold.

Noble is currently in the process of automating its production lines to reduce manufacturing costs and improve quality. It embraces the latest technologies, including a computer aided design software programme which translates designs into plastic moulds using a fully integrated prototyping output machine. Noble is the first jewellery manufacturer in the PRC to apply such technology.

In 1999, Noble became the first jewellery manufacturer in Hong Kong to be accredited with ISO 9001.

Judges’ Comments:

- Market oriented and focused

- Knows business very well, a typical HK industrialist from scratch to success

- Modern management

- Diversified into new markets, satisfies his customers by quality control and adding value

Lam Tai-fai is the managing director of the Peninsula Group of Companies which includes the parent company in Hong Kong as well as its subsidiaries in the USA, Thailand, Australia, UK and China.

Graduated in 1981 from the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Mr Lam joined Peninsula Knitters Ltd the same year as a management trainee. He became managing director in 1991 after ten years of dedication, excellence performance and leadership.

Since 1991, Mr Lam has aggressively expanded the company’s core business in both manufacturing and wholesaling. He has taken strategic decisions that have seen local production capabilities increased and new overseas offices and factories established. Today, Peninsula Knitters Ltd employs over 10,000 staff worldwide. Production output has been increased to 12,000,000 pieces annually. Mr Lam has also developed a very successful high quality and fashionable label “Belford” and marketed it in the US where it is sold in major prestigious US department stores. Today, the company is recognised by its customers to be a quality manufacturer providing value added service and a leader in its field of product development.

Apart from a successful career, Mr Lam dedicates much of his time to various social, sporting, educational and charitable activities in HK and China. His immense contribution includes setting up a HK$5 million educational fund with the HK Polytechnic University to nurture the training of more professionals for the fashion and garment industry. Mr Lam has been awarded a Hong Kong Polytechnic University Fellowship this year and he is the president of the Scout Association of HK (Kowloon region) and the HK Amateur Handball Association.

Judges’ Comments:

- Business sense, stress on basic training

- Strong in operational management

- Dedication and determination to contribute to society

- Practical, persistent

Luk Wing-tong, Patrick, is the managing director of Legend Jewellery Co Ltd. Established in 1992, the company is engaged in the design, manufacturing and trading of jewellery. Mr Luk’s responsibilities include managing the company’s daily operations, strategic business planning and product and technological development.

In 1995, Legend entered the US market with a new line of coloured stones called Tanzanite. Today, Tanzanite is the best-selling coloured stone after sapphire in the US, surpassing the sales of ruby and emerald. In 1997, by combining pink, yellow and light blue sapphires, Legend developed its trend setting “pastel colour” design.

Mr Luk firmly believes that product innovation, adopting the latest technology in the production process, placing an emphasis on customer focused and offering choices are important factors leading to Legend’s success.

To improve productivity, Mr Luk enhanced the invisible setting techniques in 1996. He is currently working on new polishing techniques known as “belt furnace brazing” and “stream-liner filing”. Legend has a monthly production capability of 35,000 assorted pieces of jewellery, ranging from rings, pendants, earrings, necklaces, bracelets, and bangles.

Legend’s sales turnover has increased steadily over the years, as have its profits. The US market accounts for 85 percent of its revenue, other markets include Europe, Middle East and Asia Pacific. The company expects to expand its workforce from 540 to 800 employees by 2001.

Judges’ Comments:

- Practical, macro view, diversification, risk management

- Rose from scratch, confident in traditional industry

- Good marketing sense and strong US market penetration, wiling to adopt technology

- Good product innovation and cost control

Under the leadership of Mok Kei-sum, Albert, Carven Circuits Ltd is a Hong Kong based manufacturer of high-quality printed circuit boards. Carven was established in 1989 with only five employees and has grown to an SME of 75 employees.

As an export-based manufacturer of printed circuits boards (PCB), Carven’s products are used in the automotive, telecommunication and equipment industries. The company keenly focuses on product quality and achieved ISO 9002 accreditation in 1996. In 1997, it became the first QS9000 certified PCB manufacturer in Hong Kong.

Mr Mok believes that IT should play an important role in business management and has developed Carven a modern digital factory management and control system, which is incorporated with artificial intelligence, and has served to enhance decision making and increase productivity.

As a learning organisation, knowledge management is successfully employed to help Carven position itself as a service leader providing total customer solutions.

Mr Mok is a leading advocate of environmental friendly business practices: Carven was the first in the PCB industry in Hong Kong to recycle water, and the first to recycle etchant in 1997. It was also Hong Kong’s first ISO14001 certified PCB company.

Combining his concern for quality, productivity and the environment, Mr Mok has seen his company receive numerous awards from the public, and this year it won the Hong Kong SME Gold Award for the “Best managed SME”.

Judges’ Comments:

- Excel in environmental protection, value-added knowhow and staff motivation

- Good business sense

- Firm belief in HK

- Impressive innovation on technology and processes

- Very focused, sticks to his vision

Ng Cheung-shing is the founder, chairman and chief executive officer of Computer & Technologies (C&T) Holdings Ltd (listed on HKSE in 1988), which provides advanced computer software and system solutions for companies and governments. He is responsible for C&T’s business development, corporate strategy and the overall management of the group.

Mr Ng founded C&T in 1991, by which time he had spent many years in the IT industry. Success came quickly, when in 1992, C&T won major contracts with various Exchanges in China to provide solutions for Automatic Order Matching and Execution Systems (AMS).

Mr Ng continues to steer C&T to success throughout the 1990s, concluding contracts to design and implement IT solutions for enterprises, telecommunications services providers and government organisations in China and in HK. Recently, the company built the application software of Electronics Service Delivery (ESD) infrastructure and the Internet based Electronics Tendering System (ETS) for the HKSAR Government. The Government is now using ETS to post tenders and receive bids electronically to and from suppliers.

C&T employs over 400 IT professionals, 90 percent of whom are university graduates. The Group achieved tremendous sales growth in 1999, and in the past few years has seen the steady growth of its mainland operations.

Mr Ng also devotes considerable time to community services and charitable activities. As one of the many examples, he made a generous donation to the Shanghai Jiao Tong University to design and build China’s first digital library.

Judges’ Comments:

- Excellent software market knowledge, commitment to industry

- Determined, persistent, has vision

- Pragmatic, extraordinary successful story

- Willing to participate in community service

Tsang Chi-hin, Vincent, is the co-founder and CEO of Proactive Technology Holdings Limited. The company is engaged in the design, development and sale of value-added telecommunications and computer telephony products and was listed on the GEM board of Hong Kong Stock Exchange in May 2000. Mr Tsang manages the strategic development of the company and its day-to-day operations.

Mr Tsang co-founded Proactive in 1992 with three technical staff in Hong Kong. Since he became CEO in 1994, Proactive has developed and introduced many innovative products, including a series of integrated computer telephony voice messaging products and telecom switching service nodes.

With an emphasis on technology development, Proactive’s business has expanded to overseas and currently employs over 80 members of staff, of which 42 are engineers. Last year, Proactive’s investment in R&D reached HK$3 million. Later this year, it will establish R&D centres in Australia to capitalise the growing market opportunities in South Pacific regions.

Proactive has a broad customer base and has offices in Shanghai, Singapore, Sydney and Taipei. The company has been profitable since 1993, and its financial performance has gone from strength-to-strength.

Judges’ Comments:

- Macro view, leadership in telecom (switching system) and regional marketing

- Quick response to seize the market niche

- Focused in R&D

- Good product innovation

Wong Wang-sang, Stephen, is the founder and chairman of Skyworth Digital Holdings Ltd. The group is engaged mainly in the design, manufacture and sale of digital colour television, digital audio and visual products and communication products. He established Skyworth in 1988. Today it operates a production floor area of 120,000 square metres and employs 4,600 employees. Mr Wong takes responsibility for Skyworth’s strategic planning, general management and marketing.

Mr Wong believes R&D is the key to Skyworth’s success. The R&D division of the group comprises 21 engineers in Hong Kong and 421 in Shenzhen. The company has pioneered a succession of television innovations for the mainland market, including multi-system television, super woofer sound system, and NICAM signal reception.

Skyworth is one of the most popular brands in the PRC and is the largest television exporter in China. Its mission is to be the technology leader in its field. Skyworth has won numerous awards in Hong Kong and China in recognition of its technological achievements and popularity with consumers, including the HKITCC Technological Achievement Award granted by the Hong Kong Industrial Technology Centre Corporation. The company is listed on the Main Board of Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2000.

Judges’ Comments:

- Big business, good brand

- Continued efforts to improve technology, quality and competitiveness

- Typical entrepreneur start-up

- Entrepreneurial and goal oriented