SEA Games 2015 Blog

Suhailah’s Story
Suhailah Kariman
Special Projects Executive, Clients & Markets and Team Singapore netball player (retired)

As an athlete playing netball, I had the chance to compete in several international competitions representing Singapore. Each competition experience left me in awe and I understood the hard work required for an athlete to succeed.

But I could only get a distant and naive sense of the behind the scenes work that goes into making an international sporting event a success.

It was being on the Deloitte engagement team for the 28th SEA Games that truly opened my eyes to the magnitude of effort, coordination and collaboration required by all the different stakeholders to create a successful Games.

I remember feeling very excited when I was asked to be part of the Deloitte SEA Games engagement team, supporting team leader Thio Tse Gan in delivering the best of Deloitte to the Games committee. Sports have always been one of my passions and to be offered the opportunity to be involved in one of the most prestigious regional sporting events was one challenge I was eager to take on.

My responsibilities for 28th SEA Games ranged from assisting the project management team in terms of service delivery, carrying out risk management duties, to managing the sponsorship activation and coordinating the Deloitte corporate volunteer programme for the Games.

The journey has been thoroughly enriching and I feel privileged to have been able to work together with some of the most talented and passionate individuals I have ever come across. As a service provider, it is always heartening to see our work appreciated by the client (in this case, the SEA Games committee) but it was the relationships forged over this experience that is most memorable - from the strengthened bonds within the working team, to the new friends made through the volunteer programme. I think we all had lots of fun too!

One of the key moments where I felt immensely proud to be part of the Deloitte family happened when I was working on-site during the SEA Games period. I was approached by passers-by and various volunteers who would point to the Deloitte logo on my working shirt and enquire about our organisation, commenting that they see our logo everywhere and were curious to know more about what we do and why we chose to be involved in the Games.

I immediately beamed with pride and gave my colleagues a mental pat on the back for the good job on the Deloitte branding at the Games. But, more than that, I was very happy that our presence at Games allowed our brand to reach out not only to the business community but the rest of Singapore, and members of the public are starting to hear about us and wanting to find out more.

I also believe that Deloitte has created a positive impression through the values we displayed as we carried out our duties as engagement team members, athletes and volunteers, such as tenacity, discipline and integrity – all of which are equally important in the games arena and in the workplace.

As a former Team Singapore netball player, I too can relate to these values. I started playing netball in primary five and was later scouted to join the Singapore Sports School as part of the pioneer batch, where my team and I trained twice a day, ten times a week.  I followed the natural path set for me because of my sporting aspirations and joined the combined schools team, and later the national team when I was in junior college. I was in love with the sport, in particular, the adrenaline rush that comes from playing against international teams.

My time on the netball court has also taught me that success and improvements are achieved from exercising positive habits that are honed every single day. Of course, having played the sport competitively from secondary school all the way through to university, I had to learn how to manage my time and juggle my various commitments.

There are no short cuts. By persevering through challenging training sessions, I have gained mental strength and the ability to push myself safely past what I think are my limits. Life as a sportswoman has taught me that the things I can achieve are limitless as long as I am dedicated and determined. These lessons helped me through my time as a national athlete, and they will do so now in my professional career.

Suhailah