The three-year partnership from 2018 to 2020 will see Schooling and DBS get their feet wet by reaching out to next-generation Singaporeans through a series of community activities and social media engagements to encourage and influence them to overcome their challenges and forge their own paths to success. Just like DBS, Joseph Schooling is guided by a strong sense of purpose, passion and a spirit of excellence. Sim S. Lim, DBS’ Singapore Country Head said, “Joseph Schooling’s journey as a young boy with a dream in his heart to do Singapore proud as a swimming champion is one of unwavering purpose and dedication. As DBS traces our roots back to 1968, it was our commitment to financing the industrialisation of a newly-independent nation that has brought us to where we are. Today, we are recognised as one of the safest and best banks globally. As we turn 50, we are excited about the future and we believe that like Joseph, all of us have that spark in us which can be ignited as we press in and work towards achieving our dreams.” Joseph Schooling said, “I work hard every day to make Singapore proud and think about what it means to be Singaporean. To me, DBS is what a Singaporean brand should be and it is an honour to work with them. They serve their customers well, they’re true to their roots, they’re ambitious and work hard every day to make Singapore proud. That’s why I took the plunge with DBS and made them my partner of choice.” As a purpose-driven organisation, DBS believes it can make an impact in society through the investment of time and its efforts in the communities it is present in. It is this strong sense of purpose and commitment to excellence that has spurred DBS to greater heights. Schooling added, “Since winning Singapore’s first Olympic gold medal in 2016, I’ve been overwhelmed by the love and the support that everyone has shown me. In the last two years, I’ve achieved more success but also tasted defeat. From the highs of victory to the lows of defeat, I dig deep to train even harder as I set my sights on 2020[1]. Together with DBS, I want to inspire the next generation of Singaporeans through my journey to not just work hard but live life to the fullest.” Preparing for life after swimming – diving into a wealth of opportunities When Schooling hangs up his swim cap as a professional swimmer, he will also be a graduate with a business degree from the University of Texas. Armed with a major in economics, Schooling also harbours ambitions to work in the wealth management industry. To help kick-start his journey in wealth management, DBS will explore opportunities to work with Schooling to arrange for internships and mentoring sessions when they can coincide with his professional swim training schedule. The bank is familiar with what it takes to support professional athletes transition into their corporate career and has experienced mentors to come alongside employees trying to balance sports and work excellence[2]. Since 2014, DBS has collaborated with Sports Singapore and is a partner of the spexBusiness programme[3]. Most recently, DBS partnered Nanyang Technological University to launch a new Applied Wealth Management track for undergraduates who are interested in pursuing a career in wealth management. The banks also runs Southeast Asia’s largest hackathon recruitment programme - DBS Hack2Hire. It is the first such recruitment drive in Southeast Asia which uses a hackathon to identify and hire the best emerging technology talent in Singapore. Lim added, “We take pride in having a diversity of talent from different backgrounds and disciplines. Their varied experiences, knowledge and expertise are what drives our high performance and ability to make banking simpler, faster and better for our customers who interact very differently with their bank these days.”DBS was recognised by Aon Hewitt as the ‘Best Employer in Asia Pacific’ for the second year running in 2017. The Bank was also the first company to be awarded ‘Best of the Best Employers’ by Aon Hewitt in three markets – Singapore, Indonesia and Taiwan – in the same year. [1] Summer Olympic Games | Tokyo 2020[2] These athletes include Goh Jun Wei (kayaking), Jolynn Wong (dragon boating), Oon Seng Wei (softball), Sean Lee (sailing), Suzanne Seah (canoeing) and William Tan (softball).[3] The spexBusiness programme is a customised scheme that seeks to develop athletes’ careers by partnering with companies to offer various forms of employment opportunities including internships, apprenticeships, job placements and flexible workplace practices for Team Singapore Athletes.
