Our Circle event, Meet the Experts for How to Keep Going When The Going Gets Tough (Part 3) will be held on Wednesday, 4th December 2019.

You are NOT alone! These experts will guide you through the tough patches!

Suzanne Liu-Duddek, S. Liu & Co

Meet the Expert Suzanne Liu-Duddek, of S. Liu & Co

Suzanne is a Chartered Accountant (Australia) and a Certified Public Accountant (Practising).

Suzanne has 33 years of audit and tax experience. She has been running her own firm since 1995, and has 12 employees. Her firm provides Hong Kong auditing and taxation services to small and medium-sized businesses.

Prior to setting up her own business, Suzanne worked as Deputy Manager of KPMG Hong Kong, where she was responsible for leading a team of audit staff to service banks, fund management companies and other multi-national corporations. She also worked for the Audit Department of PwC Australia, providing auditing services to multi-national clients.

Suzanne will give advice on cashflow management, downsizing, cost cutting as well as utilising the new Government tax measures during this challenging time.

Janine Manning, Janine Manning Ltd.

Meet the Expert Janine Manning, of Janine Manning Ltd.

Janine is a succession strategist and personal branding coach for professionals and entrepreneurs intent on taking the next big step. Based in Hong Kong, she has over fifteen years of global business experience in marketing and public relations and ten years of coaching and facilitating corporate and private clients in Australia, New Zealand, United Kingdom and throughout Asia.

Her programs balance in-depth self-discovery with practical laser-focused action to shape clarity, confidence and consistent wins. She is both challenging and supportive and is known for her no-BS style. An experienced panelist and moderator, Janine has also delivered presentations on personal branding, executive presence and communication excellence to audiences across the globe.

Janine holds a Bachelor of Commerce from Curtin University of Technology in Australia, a PCC Certification with the International Coaching Federation (ICF), a Lambent International Coaching Certification (ICC, EQA EMCC), certification as a Neuro-Linguistics Programming Practitioner, Integrative Enneagram Practitioner; and is a Certified Walking Tall Personal Branding Associate.

Janine will be able to speak to the challenges an entrepreneur may face when dealing with issues such as loss of motivation or needing to make a difficult decision that they are too emotionally invested in.

Tayma Page Allies, Tayma Fine Jewellery

Meet the Expert Tayma Page Allies, of Tayma Fine Jewellery

Tayma is a business owner with 30 years experience in the retail industry that sells luxury goods, which is typically one of the hardest hit sectors.Her experience dealing with the 1997 financial crisis, SARS in 2003 and the financial meltdown of 2008 will give us an invaluable real-life insight on how to keep going when the going gets tough.

Born in Malta, Tayma Page Allies grew up in the Caribbean and West Africa. Her background is as diverse as the gemstones that she personally sources. It was the rich and vivid cultures of her childhood that ignited her love of colour and bold designs.

In 1990, Tayma organized the first fashion show in China for a French fashion house, and at the same time, she discovered that she had a flair for designing jewellery. What originally began as a passion for redesigning her existing and rather small jewellery collection, grew into a career as Tayma’s friends fell in love with her designs, and commissioned her to make pieces for them.

Tayma has a renowned reputation as Hong Kong’s leading gemstone collector and connoisseur, and she has started researching and writing articles and poems for publication. Throughout her career as a jeweller, Tayma has championed the Hong Kong goldsmith and gem setter, and to this day Tayma still takes pride in collaborating with and supporting local See Fu.

Joshua Han Miller, OKAY.com

Joshua Han Miller of OKAY.com

Joshua is the CEO and a director of OKAY.com, a disruptive prop-tech company that is improving the real estate brokerage industry. Amidst a highly competitive yet inefficient industry, OKAY.com has become one of the most successful agencies in Hong Kong with plans to continue to expand within Hong Kong and to other markets.

OKAY.com has built an award-winning platform to empower its agents with smart search technology and other automation tools, which in turn makes the property search process far more efficient for OKAY.com’s clients. It has also created a unique incentive structure for agents that fully aligns their interests with home seekers and property owners. The combination of superior technology and incentives has led to OKAY.com’s rapid growth and client satisfaction scores that surpass many of the world’s leading consumer brands.

Joshua started his career in finance and was a Vice President with Morgan Stanley where he spent 8 years working in Hong Kong and New York. After a brief sabbatical in Norway he then transitioned to real estate with his family business, Asia Pacific Properties – a dedicated corporate real estate and relocation company serving multinationals, with offices in Hong Kong and China. APP acquired OKAY.com in 2011 and changed the business model, with Joshua becoming CEO in 2012.

Joshua will give advice on rent negotiations with the landlord for both commercial lease (office) and residential lease and provide information on what to watch out for regarding signing a new office and residential lease in the current climate.

Patricia Yeung, Howse Williams

Meet the Expert Patricia Yeung of Howse Williams

Patricia has focused on employment law since qualifying as a solicitor in 2011, and her experience in employment matters is now widely recognised in Hong Kong. Patricia heads up Howse Williams’ employment team, which consists of two partners (including Patricia) and three associates.

Patricia regularly advises employers and senior executives on both contentious and non-contentious employment matters. Her practice covers a wide range of work, including drafting employment contracts, handbooks and policies, terminations and advising upon the enforcement of post-termination restrictions and confidentiality obligations. She and her team frequently advise on the employment aspects of M&A deals and business transfers. Many of her clients operate in the financial services sector, and she frequently negotiates exit packages in relation to high-level employees of banks, brokerages and insurance companies. Patricia also advises upon the employment issues arising from discrimination and harassment, personal data related matters and immigration issues (including prosecutions). She also has experience in assisting employers and employees during the conduct of internal investigations and discrimination/harassment complaints.

Patricia has an in-depth knowledge of the Labour Tribunal, having assisted parties involved in Labour Tribunal proceedings for several years. She has also represented both plaintiffs and defendants in both District and High Court actions involving substantial claims for unpaid bonuses, enforcement of restrictive covenants and claims for injunctive relief in Hong Kong, including applications for injunctive relief. She also advises clients on licencing issues and regulatory investigations involving the SFC and the HKMA.

Patricia will help you navigate the legal ramifications and options with regards to hiring, firing and restructuring your staff in order to keep your business profitable in uncertain times.