WOMEN in traditionally male-dominated fields such as engineering, construction, finance, and telecommunication (telco) industries often face a difficult hurdle.
Aware of such factor, Samantha Hui Wai Woon, a 35-year-old female director and shareholder of HB Infrastructures & Technologies Sdn Bhd (HBIT) – a 75% owned subsidiary of HB Global Ltd – has embarked on her own mission to transform the male-dominated telco industry.
“My passion in the business is mainly due to my father’s influence who has operated the telco business for more than 20 years,” she told FocusM.
“I have a close relationship with my father from whom I pick up a lot of industry knowledge. It wasn’t until my father’s health status turned red that I officially took over his business in 2015.
“To be honest, it was a difficult start given the male-dominated industry. There are many perceived stereotypes about women but eventually, I have managed to convince my counterparts and clients that I am the woman for the job.”
It takes a lot of courage and passion for women to succeed in a male-dominated industry yet Hui aspires “to put a dent in the men’s club.”
In 2021, she was invited by Bursa Malaysia’s Main Market-listed HB Global to be one of its directors and shareholders for HBIT in view of her dynamic leadership. Indeed, Hui has managed to steer HBIT to greater heights by focusing on products and services in civil infrastructure construction for the telco industry.
Prioritising local players
HBIT is today one of the key local players that offers services to test the readiness of base transceiver station (BTS), usage of fibre pulling and telecom implementation (TI).
Aside from that, the company is also involved in the manufacturing of telco pole where telco towers are in the planning and testing stage.
“We work with local partners for the fabrication works and dealing with professional parties such as private equity (PE) consultants to design and endorse the telco structure. This is vital to ensure that the structure is safe and competent,” Hui offers a glimpse into her role.
She emphasises collaboration with local partners in her quest to transform the telco industry despite the perception foreign expertise being sought after to implement telco-related projects.
Hui draws parallel between her own experiences as a woman in the industry with that of local players who are often being overlooked for jobs with foreign players being favoured due to quality perception.
“I think it is important for us as local industry players to collaborate among ourselves on bigger projects,” she stressed. “There are always a perception in terms of quality and services but just like how I believe in gender equality, I think it is important for local players to be offered such opportunities.”
Indeed, HBIT is a well-known local player and have the likes of Dynamic Telecommunication Sdn Bhd and OCK Setia Engineering Sdn Bhd as their clients. Both companies are main contractors for well-known telco operators in the country.
5G opportunities and challenges
Looking forward, Hui is excited over the prospect for HBIT, especially with the planned rollout of the 5G network in Malaysia.
The Government has announced that Malaysia will proceed with its 5G roll-out via its Single Wholesale Network (SWN) model operated by Digital Nasional Bhd (DNB). In this regard, the Government has agreed to offer 70% of equity holding within DNB to telco companies with the Government holding the remaining 30%.
With clarity of the structure for the business model, Hui expects to see more installation works in the pipeline in anticipation of the nationwide 5G rollout.
“We are expecting more jobs and installation works in the coming years. We have also participated in some of Maxis and NFP (network facilities provider) sites that are involved in the construction of the telco infrastructure for the rollout of 5G,” she envisages.
Amidst the strong demand for its products and services, HBIT has set a target of RM3.5 mil in revenue for this year as well as a 15% growth in 2023. Aside from that, the management has the ambition to achieve a gross profit margin of 28% and 33% for 2022 and 2023 respectively.
While the outlook for HBIT is exciting with the rollout of 5G nationwide, Hui cautioned that the growth ahead is not without risks and challenges especially given the current inflationary environment.
“One of the key risks is the rising commodity prices that is hurting our margin. This is as we engaged with our main customers based on a fixed pricing contract and with the surge in prices, this could have a deteriorating impact on our year-end profit margin,” she added.
Mitigating inflationary challenges
According to Hui, HBIT has taken proactive measures to mitigate the risk. Some of the key measures undertaken by the management include a better mix of products and services. This includes a focus on manpower supply services.
Aside from that, Hui added that the management is in constant communication with its clients and have a mutual understanding of the current cost issues.
“Our cordial relationships with our clients will enable us to review the contract price issue. Given our track record, most of our clients understand the situation, hence this helps to ensure the supply chain within the telco industry remains healthy,” she enthused.
Hui further foresees the inflationary environment as an opportunity for HBIT to win market share. According to her, HBIT stands out as a competitive local player to gain a firm foothold in the industry.
Aside from the rising costs, another challenge faced by HBIT is the labour shortages issue, especially in the post-COVID world.
“Labour shortage issue has affected the industry regarding the delivery on work. We are not exempted from these challenges but I am glad that we have widened our vendor database at a much earlier period, allowing us to engage with sub-contractors for installation works,” she opined.
“On the other hand, we are also seeking suitable new team members and providing proper in-house training as part of our contingency plan.”
With an exciting journey ahead, Hui will undoubtedly have a busy year as she aims to drive a seamless vertical integration in the entire telco value chain. Her rise in prominence within HB Global, a main market-listed company on Bursa Malaysia, is also another exciting path to look ahead. – April 4, 2022
