See Ning Seah, Product Manager, Digital Design & Development, GovTech, Singapore
By Medha Basu
Women in GovTech 2018 Special Report.
I am with GovTech’s Government Digital Services team, and we collaborate with other government agencies to deliver apps which improve the way citizens and public servants transact with the government.
I have tried out various roles in the team: from being a software developer to a product manager, and now a business analyst. I am very grateful for each person that I crossed paths with while trying out all these roles. They have taught me different things and allowed me to savour the unique taste of each role. But I must say that every role is equally important in ensuring the successful delivery of the product and no one person is able to accomplish all of that alone.
I'm currently part of the Moments of Life (Families) team. MOL (Families) is a mobile app that is targeted at parents with children up to six years old. One of the key features allows parents to apply for both the Birth Certificate and Baby Bonus for their child in one digital form, which helps "new" parents save time when registering for the birth of their newborn. Although what users experience is just the filling up of one form, the thought and effort behind the scenes that were put into the implementation is so much more and it couldn't have been made possible without every role playing their part responsibly and diligently.
What has been the most exciting thing that you worked on in 2018?
I would definitely say that it is joining the MOL (Families) team, because I got a chance to try out a new role as well! I feel very thankful to be given the opportunity to try out different roles within the division and this transition gave me lots of chances to try out new stuff, view things from different perspectives, and pushed me to do things out of my comfort zone.
If you were to share one piece of advice that you learned in 2018, what would it be?
Working in a dynamic environment, I feel that we should always keep an open mind, because we will never know what might happen next. While history and experiences might have taught us to look out for certain signs, it doesn't necessarily mean that history will repeat itself. Viewing from different perspectives might open your eyes to other opportunities, which might not be a bad thing after all!
What are your priorities for 2019?
I'm still new in my current role, so I would focus on improving myself so that I can contribute more to the team in this role and deliver more value to the people who are using the app. Work aside, I would also want to spend more time improving my baking skills!
What is one skill that has helped you the most throughout the course of your career?
I feel that being sincere and treating people the right way is something that I always try to do. Relationships are very fragile yet crucial, therefore it is very important to build and maintain them. And working with people in a comfortable and happy environment also makes me happy! Anyway, who knows that one of the people you are working with now might become your boss one day!
Coffee, yoga, music... what powers you through your day?
People! Working with the young (and young at heart) people in the team gives me the energy to push through the day. Coffee doesn’t work very well anymore (oops). Hiccups occur every now and then, fatigue sets in, but seeing how passionate the people are in the team, it gives me the energy to push myself a bit more and keep going. I'm very fortunate to be in this team that I'm in, and seeing everybody working hard towards the same goal. This is the best kind of adrenaline!