Edna Claudine Leong Helps Seniors Embrace A New Lease Of Life
RSVP Singapore’s executive director leads the non-profit organisation centred on purpose-driven volunteerism.
Edna Claudine Leong was on cruise control. She had carved an enviable career in the banking world after decades of hard work, and had a steely, determined reputation with a knack for getting things done. Nothing fazed her. But unbeknownst to her, a malaise of indescribable magnitude had started settling in.
“It felt meaningless,” Leong says. “Your KPIs would increase 25 percent every year to hit a target revenue that only benefited the bank. I would break my back and endure so much stress just to reach it. But to what end?”
She had become a self-professed mercenary. The straw that broke the camel’s proverbial back came in her final banking job. At that time, she headed the Indonesian market, with dozens of bankers reporting to her. Local knowledge was important, so the bank hired several Indonesians to join by tempting them with attractive compensation packages. Naturally, they accepted and brought their families to Singapore with them to start a new life.
Banks, however, have short memories. It didn’t matter what you had accomplished before. There would always be another higher mountain to climb. These new hires were set ever-increasing targets with no wiggle room, and two consecutive quarters of nonperformance meant immediate termination.
“Since they were not from here, they had no client base, but they had to hit the ground running. It’s almost impossible. I had fully grown adult men crying in my office when I had to let them go. Their families were here, and they quit their jobs in Jakarta to come. Not only did they have to go back without a job, but they also had to return the allowance given to them to help them settle down in Singapore. It was insane,” says Leong, recounting that period.
The façade had cracked and Leong was finally gazing into the abyss and seeing what it stood for. She submitted her resignation and took a long sabbatical. Nine months later, she returned to the corporate world as a recruiter specialising in high-level banking positions. However, Leong couldn’t shake off that malaise. Life, she felt, was more than just a spreadsheet of numbers.
Other roles followed: CEO of the nonprofit Financial Planning Association of Singapore; country manager of the profit-for-purpose WealthAsia Media Limited; principal consultant of a social enterprise; and more. Though these positions provided her with the purpose she sought, she knew she could do more with her skill set.
Leong finally found it with RSVP Singapore. A non-profit organisation founded in 1998, it engages seniors in purpose-driven volunteerism. “I’m still a fixer at heart. With RSVP Singapore, I can improve processes and raise funds to take the organisation to the next level,” she says.
For two years, she led communications, partnerships, and fundraising before becoming executive director. But beyond her daily responsibilities, it is the people she meets who propel Leong forward.
One volunteer, in particular, made a massive impression on her. “She is a retired 76-year-old who plays basketball and cycles 20km every day. Afterwards, she volunteers at another organisation dedicated to children before coming to our centre,” says Leong.
Finding a purpose in life can sometimes consume a person’s entire life. It took some time, but Leong has finally found meaning in hers. Several corporate offers have come Leong’s way over the past two years, but she’s declined them all. She’s been searching for home, and she’s found it.
Art director: Ed Harland
Videographer: Alicia Chong
Photographer: Mun Kong
Photographer’s assistant: Hizuan Zailani
Hair: Aung Apichai using Kevin Murphy
Makeup: Keith Bryant Lee using Laura Mercier
