Taking on a newly formed role

Cheng Wen joined OCBC Bank in March 2018 as Vice President, Tax, within the Group Finance Division with over 10 years of experience as an external tax consultant. The role was newly created to develop and roll out pricing transfer arrangements for OCBC Group.

From 2019 to 2021, the role of the Tax team transformed from one of reporting and compliance to one of being a business partner to the business and support units, OCBC branches and subsidiaries. This helped put a “face” to the name of Group Tax Advisory and assured partners of the dedicated support they have for tax advisory matters.

Empowered for success

Over the four years that Cheng Wen has been with OCBC, her journey has been fast-paced and hectic. She and her team rolled out the major transfer pricing arrangements for OCBC Group, transformed the team into a “client-focused” advisory team and introduced new tax controls requirements. Along the way, Cheng Wen received numerous service excellence awards for her outstanding work.

Cheng Wen attributes her success to the autonomy given by her boss who believes in empowering people. This allowed her to grow quickly into the role, gain confidence and work more effectively. In the process, she has developed great working relationships with overseas colleagues and with other divisions in the Bank which her team supports.

Chairing the Finance One Taskforce

In 2019, before the pandemic struck, Cheng Wen was appointed as chairperson of the Group Finance One Taskforce. One of the events organised by the Taskforce was a sports carnival in Malaysia between the Group Finance teams of Singapore and Malaysia. The carnival was like a mini bilateral Olympics comprising a variety of sporting activities. Cheng Wen herself loves sports and wishes she can play tennis, badminton, basketball and other sports every day.

Organising the carnival was a fabulous experience for Cheng Wen to get to know many people in Group Finance in Singapore and Malaysia. And what better way to get to know people than through sports! She also demonstrated her leadership and ability to work with a diverse set of colleagues across all levels within the organisation. The sports carnival was a great success. I guess you want to know who won, right? Malaysia boleh!

Continuing education

In 2021, opportunity came knocking as Cheng Wen’s boss asked her to look for an Executive MBA programme as the Bank had decided to sponsor the bulk of the cost of her continuous education. This was evidence that the Bank recognised her work and was willing to invest in her growth and career.

After evaluating several possible programmes, Cheng Wen applied for and gained admission to the Executive MBA programme at INSEAD, one of the world's leading and largest graduate business schools. The opportunity allowed her to learn from a global and diverse network of fellow students and educators, further enriching her experiences.

Cheng Wen encourages everyone who is eager to work in an autonomous and empowering environment to give OCBC Group Finance a shot. She guarantees it’ll be the ride of your life!

“I’ve had such an enriching experience and have grown so much in just four years by pioneering a newly formed role, chairing the Finance ONE Taskforce and embarking on an EMBA!”

Tan Cheng Wen
Vice President, Group Tax Advisory