ICT People

Leading change in the people business

In the public service for 35 years, Ms Tan Sor Hoon has led many leading-edge ICT initiatives in Singapore. Her passion in driving digital transformation in citizen services delivery has reaped numerous awards, boosted Singapore’s reputation, and made life easier in some ways for Singaporeans.

In a world plagued by COVID-19, contactless yet secure clearance at Singapore’s checkpoints is a felt need and timely innovation that will be realised someday soon. To enable seamless, secure and paperless immigration clearance is the vision of the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority’s (ICA) New Clearance Concept (NCC), built on technology developed by HTX, the Home Team Science and Technology Agency.

Among the many HTX project leads and teams involved in this multi-phased project, is one of its chief drivers, Director Tan Sor Hoon, who helms the Immigration and Checkpoints Programme Management Centre (ICPMC) at HTX.

(Photo: Tan Sor Hoon)

Though Sor Hoon has already left GovTech early this year, she aspired to continue leading the team with “kampong spirit” in HTX and contribute towards the successful completion of the next transformation journey for ICA, namely the NCC and a new integrated Services Centre by 2023 to complement its revamped e-Services.

Sor Hoon with fellow HTX leads and senior management – CE Chan Tsan (in HTX t-shirt, standing next to Sor Hoon), DCE (Development) Ng Yeow Boon (extreme right), DCE (Operations) Chen Yeang Tat (in white shirt, next to CE) and ACE (Programme) Tay Yeow Koon (in purple shirt, behind CE) – at the HTX Launch Party on 3 Dec 2019 (Photo: Tan Sor Hoon)

Sor Hoon (extreme left) with the team in IC PMC at HTX’s official launch, where the NCC’s contactless clearance is being showcased (Photo: Tan Sor Hoon)

For her many significant contributions through the years, Sor Hoon has just received the Public Administration Medal (Silver) National Day Award 2020. This is another feather in the cap for Sor Hoon, who has won numerous ICT leadership awards, including the Chief Information Officer (CIO) of the Year Award at the Women in IT Awards in 2019.

Sor Hoon has received several CIO awards over the years for leading-edge ICT initiatives (Photo: Tan Sor Hoon)

Asked what kept her in tech work, she said, “I do not do it because I think I am better at it. I do it because I like and enjoy technology, and it gives me a sense of fulfilment. It is my passion. I must be M.A.D, to do the things I did, but it is precisely the desire to ‘Make A Difference’ that has kept me going all these years. I also believe that we are put in our position for a purpose, and that we have a duty, to others, to do our best. If I may sum up what I have learnt over the last 35 years in riding the waves of change, it is to remain steadfast in what we do. Stay humble, be grounded and have faith. Above all, work hard and work smart.”

I spend time talking to users to understand what works and what doesn’t. It is people-oriented work that I enjoy tremendously – not just meeting internal parties but also external suppliers and partners, to understand what they need, and how we can ensure that our ICT applications work for them and help make life a little easier for all.

On her latest award in public administration, Sor Hoon said, “This award may have my name on it, but in truth it belongs to everybody who has supported or worked with me to make it a reality. The award is a reminder of the hard work my team and I have put in. It motivates us to achieve more success in the future.”

She said she is fortunate to have a team of committed officers at HTX with positive attitudes, who can deliver despite being new and overcome the challenges to support the large portfolio for ICA. This portfolio, she said, comprises close to 100 development projects as well as Infrastructure and ICT equipment located at ICA HQ, more than 30 immigration checkpoints island-wide, and more than 40 overseas missions in various countries and strategic partners like Institutes of Higher Learning and hospitals.

Sor Hoon’s ICPMC and Cap Sustainment team at the HTX Launch Party (Photo: Tan Sor Hoon)

Sor Hoon has spent the last 35 years – first at the Ministry of Defence then GovTech and now HTX – leading teams of public servants to bring about some of the most impactful ICT transformations to make life easier for Singaporeans.

Her extensive accomplishments include creating APPLES, one of the first online platforms in the world which accepts photograph attachments and online payment for passport applications; iCollect, a self-service facility for the secured collection of important government documents; eIACS, which enables more than 3 million Singapore Citizens to clear immigration at the checkpoints via the automated gates; and BIKES, which is the world’s first automated immigration clearance facility for motorcyclists.

The award-winning iCollect is the world’s first self-service facility that automates the collection of important government secured documents. It uses biometrics innovatively for identity verification, and leverages RFID technology combined with intelligent robotic arm mechanism for document retrieval. (Photo: Tan Sor Hoon)

Imbibing the Government’s vision for Singapore to be digital to the core, and to serve citizens with heart, she sees her ICT leadership role as that of constantly challenging conventional practices and simplifying processes for better service delivery to citizens. Not wanting to be just a “pen and paper” man, she said, “I spend time talking to users to understand what works and what doesn’t. It is people-oriented work that I enjoy tremendously – not just meeting internal parties but also external suppliers and partners, to understand what they need, and how we can ensure that our ICT applications work for them and help make life a little easier for all.”