Customer-Centricity Becoming More Important in Times of Adversity

HONG KONG, CHINA – Media OutReach – 9 July 2020 – Creating
a seamless, consistent customer experience across physical & digital space
is more important than ever as online shopping prevails. Recognising local
organisations which demonstrate excellence in consumer care, the
9^thGS1 Hong Kong’s
“Consumer Caring Scheme” awarded 93 local enterprises for delivering
their service promise. A total of 46 companies won the “Consumer Caring 5
years+” and “5 years” Award, showing their commitment to consumer care for 5
years or more in a row.

Consumers’ online spending has become all time high
today. As companies are placing greater emphasis in expanding their
omni-channel offerings, they are also striving to meet or even exceed their
service promise for convenience, value and experience. According to the survey report
“Tapping Into Smart Retail” jointly published by GS1 HK and KPMG, 45 percent of
C-level executives rank strengthening the customer journey as the top priority,
showing that businesses are betting on better user experience as a way to
retain customers, especially those from online, who are price sensitive and
have an ever-increasing choice of e-commerce providers.

“As
more consumers are shopping across multiple channels, commerce can mean
everything from a store, a smart kiosk, a website to an app, which has made it
more difficult for companies to maintain consistency and fulfilling customers’
demands. Only by continuous improvement in operation efficiency and fulfilling
commitment by delivering excellent services, can a company differentiate itself
from today’s cut-throat business environment.” said Anna Lin, Chief Executive
of GS1 Hong Kong.

Consumer
Caring Companies are those which can keep their pledge to offering the finest customer
journey. Judged based on seven core consumer caring values, including consumer
care, sincerity, commitment, product quality and safety assurance, service
quality, understanding consumer behaviours and caring for employees, the
winners are evaluated through on-site visits and consumer survey, in accordance
to the internationally-acclaimed scorecard based on the Efficient Consumer
Response (ECR). This year’s winners have all showed the effective use of
international standards, information technology, and the optimisation of operation
management to improve business processes to enhance consumer
satisfaction. (Please refer to the
Appendix for details)

“Congratulations
to the winners who have successfully uphold the motto of ‘consumers first’,
they are all role models of the industries in driving product and service
enhancement, bringing benefits to both brands and consumers,” said Anna. “No
matter what channels your business use to engage customers, exceptional customer
experience always champions in the end.”

For details, please refer to our website: https://www.gs1hk.org/industry-recognition/consumer-caring-scheme/overview.

Appendix

List
of recognised companies of Consumer Caring Scheme 2019

(in alphabetical order by brand or company name)

About GS1 Hong Kong

Founded
by the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce in 1989, GS1 Hong Kong is the
local chapter of GS1®, a not-for-profit, standards organisation that develops
and drives adoption of easy-to-implement global standards for business to
uniquely identify, accurately capture and automatically share vital information
about products, locations and assets. Headquartered in Brussels, Belgium, GS1
has over 110 national chapters in 150 countries.

GS1
Hong Kong’s mission is to empower business to grow and to improve efficiency,
safety, authenticity and sustainability across multiple sectors and facilitates
commerce connectivity through the provision of a full spectrum of platforms,
solutions and services based on our global standards. We provide a trusted
foundation for accurate, sharable, searchable and linkable data. Our EPC
standard lays the foundation for IoT, powering a range of IoT-based services
and applications. We are helping industry to meet the challenges of
omni-channel commerce and create a seamless customer experience. By engaging
with communities of trading partners, industry organisations, government, and
technology providers, we are fostering a collaborative ecosystem and aiming for
“Smarter Business, Better Life”.

Currently,
GS1 Hong Kong has around 8,000 corporate members covering close to 20
industries including retail consumer goods, food and food services, healthcare,
apparel, logistics as well as information and technology.

For
more information about GS1 Hong Kong, please visit www.gs1hk.org.

HAMBURG,
GERMANY – NEWSAKTUELL – 9 July 2020 – For 24 years the SPREE FLUG
has been flying passengers and freight throughout Europe in commercial air
traffic. Its strengths are its reliability, flexibility and professionalism.
Absolute priority in flight operations is the safety of passengers and their
satisfaction. The company’s quality assurance system meets the highest
standards.

Gold Standard Air and Logistics – Josip Heit – New York 07.07.2020

GSB Gold Standard Banking Corporation AG and SPREE FLUG – Airbus A320 Neo CJ VVIP – Josip Heit – New York USA – 07.07.2020

Their
aircraft are stationed at Berlin-Schönefeld Airport, the future BER (Berlin-Brandenburg
Airport “Willy Brandt”), and at Leipzig Airport. However, they are
hardly ever to be found there, as they rotate throughout Europe as part of an
“open base operation”, here especially for GSB Gold Standard Banking
Corporation AG, whose C-level-Managers also travel around the globe during
times of the coronavirus pandemic for their customers. SPREE FLUG focuses on
short distances to its customers, as flight requests have to be processed
promptly and, in line with the dynamics of the business, realised quickly.

The basis
for the success of this system is the independence of the operation from third
party providers in the planning of flights, which is especially appreciated by
Josip Heit as Chairman of the Board of GSB Gold Standard Banking Corporation AG
as a cooperation partner of SPREE FLUG, against the background of which
aircraft have currently been purchased which SPREE FLUG includes in its charter
portfolio. The procurement of flight permits, selection of flight routes,
preparation of flight schedules and all documents and records necessary for the
flights are comprehensively realised by a dedicated Operations Team (OPS)
within the company.

This enables
the airline to respond quickly, efficiently and cost-effectively to enquiries
and short-term changes, which ultimately reflects in customer satisfaction and
their booking decisions and is of essential importance, especially in the
current coronavirus pandemic. Customers of SPREE FLUG are cared for all around,
be it in the choice of the hotel, the pick up from the place of residence or
hotel to the airport or even in the organisation of the personal security of
the passengers.

And if an aircraft is required for the selection of the destination, which the
SPREE FLUG does not have itself against the background of the tonnage, no
problem. The aviation company has a worldwide network of partners who keep the
desired aircraft in stock, no matter if Airbus, Boeing or Global Express. The
necessary aircraft is organized so that the customer can travel to his
destination – reliably, punctually and relaxed, as owner and chief pilot Paul
Häusler assures the Chairman of the Board of GSB Gold Standard Banking
Corporation, Josip Heit.

The
employees in the SPREE FLUG team are highly motivated and technically competent.
When selecting the personnel, SPREE FLUG attaches great importance to strength
of character, loyalty, outward appearance and correct appearance towards the
customers in addition to professional qualification. SPREE FLUG invests a lot
of attention and the necessary time in the development of younger colleagues,
just like in a football team, where the next generation is often the seed for
success.

The fleet of
the SPREE FLUG Luftfahrt GmbH consists of aircraft which can fly to any place
on earth. Paul Häusler and Josip Heit rely on the latest technology for their
aircraft. The aircraft in the business jet sector of the Brazilian manufacturer
EMBRAER meet these requirements. They are innovative, powerful, reliable and
meet the highest standards of comfort. Apart from that, they can be operated
economically and also environmentally consciously, which is in the interest of
SPREE FLUG Luftfahrt GmbH.

For two
years now, the airline has been successfully operating the Aircraft type PHENOM
300 E, among others. Further aircraft of this type will be added in the current
year. In addition, it is planned to strengthen the fleet with the aircraft type
PREATOR 600. These aircraft are manufactured by EMBRAER and delivered brand new
to SPREE FLUG and GSB Gold Standard Banking Corporation AG. The SPREE FLUG will
then be able to fly destinations for the GSB Gold Standard Banking Corporation
AG within a radius of 7.400 km, so that routes like Berlin to New York will not
be a problem.

The time
under Corona is certainly a time with special demands. For Executive Aviation
it is a time of new possibilities. In this respect, travel by business people
in executive positions is becoming more individual. The time factor and
travelling in an environment where the risk of infection is minimised is
becoming more significant against this background, which is why tomorrow it
will be “We are ready to take off!

FWD most awarded insurer for third consecutive year with revolutionary products and tied agency strength in the spotlight

HONG KONG, CHINA – Media OutReach – 9 July 2020
– FWD Hong Kong (‘FWD’) was the most awarded winner in the insurance sector for the third
consecutive year at the Bloomberg Businessweek Financial Institution Awards 2020
(the “Bloomberg Awards 2020”), bringing home a total of 11 awards, comprising
three Excellence Awards and eight Outstanding Awards.

For
the third consecutive year, FWD has become the most awarded insurer at the
Bloomberg Businessweek Financial Institution Awards 2020, bringing home 11
awards which include 3 Excellence Awards and 8 Outstanding Awards.

FWD
has won 7 awards, which include 3 Excellence Awards, in the product and service
categories with its suite of innovative, easy-to-understand and relevant
products.

FWD’s
Tied Agency bagged 3 Outstanding Awards in the Recruitment, Training and
Development, and District Achievement of the Year categories.

Seven of the
awards went to several of FWD’s life insurance and health protection products
and services, highlighting the company’s commitment to developing innovative
solutions that push beyond established boundaries.

FWD also
stood out for the outstanding performance of its highly motivated, well-trained
tied agency force, as well as for the resounding success of its FWD x “The
World of Studio Ghibli’s Animation” sponsorship campaign.

Ken Lau, FWD Managing Director of Greater China and
Hong Kong Chief Executive Officer, said, “These
awards, bestowed upon us by some of the most highly regarded voices in the
industry, go a long way towards recognising FWD’s relentless and successful
efforts to change the way people feel about insurance. I am very proud of what
all our teams have achieved in recent years, from identifying yet unmet and
often complex market needs, to structuring revolutionary, easy-to-understand
and relevant products, recruiting and nurturing exceptional talent, and
actively engaging with the public through exciting and interactive
initiatives.”

FWD’s winning
entries include:

• All-round, one-stop health management service PREMIER THE
  ONEcierge, which provides priority access to over 100 top-tier hospitals
  across Asia; and MINDcierge, an innovative mental health support service
  that offer counselling services in both Hong Kong and Mainland China,
  clinched two Excellence Awards between them;
• Crisis OneCover, a revolutionary critical illness protection
  that covers multiple bases from prevention (such as health screening) to
  comprehensive treatment options, and rehabilitation support during
  recovery, won two Outstanding Awards in the Critical Illness and
  Innovation Product categories;
• MediSaver (Supreme), a medical insurance with savings capabilities
  that offers cover up to age 100 (age next birthday) for just 20 years of
  premium payment, as well as double protection against three common crises,
  bagged an Excellence Award in the Health and Protection category;
• Regal Fortune, a life insurance policy under which the
  guaranteed portion of death benefits will increase by 5% annually from age
  80 (age next birthday) of the insured, up to a maximum of 150%, to cater
  to the legacy planning objectives of high net worth customers, claimed an
  Outstanding Award in the High Net Worth (Product) category;
• FWD’s four Government-certified plans under the Voluntary
  Health Insurance Scheme (“VHIS”), which cover a wide range of medical
  needs and circumstances, were also recognised with an Outstanding Award in
  the Medical Care category;
• Finally, FWD’s Tied Agency bagged three Outstanding Awards in
  the Recruitment, Training and Development, and District Achievement of the
  Year categories, while the company’s sponsored FWD x “The World of Studio
  Ghibli’s Animation” which took Hong Kong by storm last summer won an
  Outstanding Award in the Integrated Marketing (Branding Promotion)
  category.

Table:
List of the 11 awards won by FWD at the Bloomberg Businessweek Financial
Institution Awards 2020

The above information does not contain the
full terms and benefits of the respective policy, key product risks, and major
exclusions. For details, please refer to the respective product brochure and
policy provisions (For VHIS products, the materials are downloadable at https://www.fwd.com.hk/en/protect/health-accident/vhis/.)

About FWD Hong Kong & Macau

FWD Hong
Kong offers life and medical insurance, general insurance, employee benefits,
and financial planning. Its life insurance and general insurance operating
entities have been assigned strong financial strength ratings by international
rating agencies — FWD Life Insurance Company (Bermuda) Limited (incorporated in
Bermuda with limited liability) is rated “A3” by Moody’s and “A” by Fitch; and
FWD General Insurance Company Limited is rated “A” by Fitch. FWD Macau provides
a suite of life and medical insurance.

FWD Hong
Kong & Macau is a part of the FWD Group, the insurance business of
investment group, Pacific Century Group. FWD Group spans Hong Kong & Macau,
Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines, Singapore, Vietnam, Japan and Malaysia.

By creating fresh customer experiences
with easy-to-understand products supported by digital technology, FWD aims to
become a leading pan-Asian insurer that changes the way people feel about
insurance.

For more information about FWD Hong Kong & Macau please visit WWW.FWD.COM.HK and WWW.FWD.COM.MO.

About the Bloomberg Businessweek Financial Institution Awards 2020

The Bloomberg
Businessweek Financial Institution Awards are hosted annually by iconic finance
magazine Bloomberg Businessweek/Chinese. In 2020, 10 judges from the industry,
government and academia assessed submissions from the banking, insurance and
securities sectors and ranked them according to three criteria, namely market
performance, growth and development, as well as business strategy in the past
year.

SINGAPORE
– Media OutReach – 9
July 2020 – We live in the age of digitisation where technology continues
to enhance productivity and efficiency across multiple aspects of life.

Today,
smart homes are a reality thanks to the immense array of home living solutions.
For home appliances manufacturer
Whirlpool, smart living includes a combination of independence and
self-care alongside technology-backed home solutions. 

With
staying at home as one of the many new norms born out of recent health measures,
Whirlpool has ramped up its efforts to democratise smart living for homeowners
in Singapore.

Smart Tech Across Multiple Aspects of Home
Living

Not only is
a smart home furnished with technology-backed home appliances, but these
systems should save energy and money as well as reduce the risks of electrical
hazards. 

Whirlpool
has tapped on automation and equipped their appliances with 6th Sense
technology that innovates to provide intuition and simplicity of use to help
homeowners enjoy a better quality of life. 

Today, with
quality as the cornerstone of their brand, Whirlpool’s Everyday
Care range consists of cost-effective home appliances which have
been carefully manufactured to give homeowners a peace of mind with superior
performance and ease of use even as they stay home more in the new
normal. 

Everyday Care channels innovation into daily living. With
heightened durability, functionality and ease of use, Whirlpool’s mission is to
empower people by freeing up their time, to let them make the most of it and
enjoy it at best.

Optimising Home Cleanliness with Technology 

For
Whirlpool, a smart home is a clean home.

This year,
the home appliances manufacturer unveiled Freshcare+ – a new line of hygiene
care laundry solutions. Freshcare+ keeps laundry bacteria-free and fresh for up
to 6 hours after the washing or drying cycle ends and saves busy homemakers the
hassle of having to unload their clothes urgently as they juggle household
chores and elderly or childcare. 

Similarly,
their technology-backed dishwasher lets fatigued homeowners take the load off
with an intricate Sani-Rinse function to keep all dishes spick and span by
getting rid of 99.99% bacteria.

Their
built-in ovens have also been enhanced with superior pyrolytic cleaning
performance for effortless dirt removal by turning food residues to ash for
easy cleaning. Not to mention their ovens also incorporate a one-of-a-kind Cook
4 function which lets users cook 4 different dishes at once without having to
disrupt the unique taste and flavour of the ingredients.

Healthy Bodies and a Healthy Home 

In the age
of digitisation, home innovations should make our lives easier and our bodies healthier.

Whirlpool
presented a range of state-of-the-art refrigerators that maintain 12 Days of
garden freshness. Powered by a 6TH SENSE® IntelliSensor and SealFresh
technology, their refrigerators keep all items in the most optimal environment
for absolute freshness.

This way,
homeowners can enjoy garden-fresh groceries in the comfort of their own
homes.

Smart Living with Simple Acts of Care

“Whirlpool
has a 108 year history of leading through challenges and we are leveraging our
leadership position to support our employees, consumers and communities during
this difficult time while driving our business forward,” mentioned
Whirlpool Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Marc Bitzer.

Beyond
building smart homes, Whirlpool’s Everyday
Care initiative seeks to empower users with smart technologies. In
educating and making technology-backed appliances accessible for all, Whirlpool
aspires to build smart cities across the globe.

“Our
strong performance in the first quarter reflects the hard work of our
employees, our relentless focus on delivering on our commitment to consumers,
and the resilience of our business. Our fixed cost discipline and strong
liquidity position enable us to weather this crisis and emerge in a position of
strength.” 

For more information, please contact Rodrigo
Salamoni, Director of Marketing by emailing rodrigo_salamoni@whirlpool.com.

SINGAPORE – Media OutReach – 9 July 2020 – Microsoft today
announced a set of new features in Microsoft Teams that make virtual
interactions more organic and engaging, supporting the global shift into a more
hybrid model of work, learning and life.

With the new
Microsoft Teams features, users can enjoy greater connectivity, reduced meeting
fatigue and more inclusive meetings, all while saving time. These features —
including together mode, video filters, live reactions, touchless meeting
experiences and more — start rolling out in preview today and will be fully
available later this year.

“Over the last few
months, we have worked with experts across virtual reality, AI, and
productivity research to better understand the future of work. These findings,
published here, have been useful
in guiding us to design these new features. Our research has shown that many of
us feel less connected since moving to remote work, hence we want to bring a
more human element into online meetings. We also want to streamline their
experiences across apps and devices, with technology like AI to save time and
improve overall well-being, which is of highest importance during this time,”
said Rosalind Quek, General Manager, Modern
Work, Asia Solution Sales at Microsoft Asia.

Enhancing connection
between users and reducing meeting fatigue

• Together
  mode: Microsoft Teams will
  now have a new meeting experience that uses AI segmentation technology to digitally place participants
  in a shared background, making it feel like they are in the same room with
  everyone else in the meeting or class. The mode makes meetings more engaging,
  and helps users pick up on non-verbal cues that are so important to human
  interaction. Together Mode with auditorium view is rolling out now and will be
  generally available in August.
• Dynamic View: Building
  on the meetings enhancements announced
  last month, the dynamic view allows users to personalize the view to suit their
  preferences and needs. This includes the ability to show shared content and specific
  participants side-by-side. 
• Video filters:
  Before joining a meeting, users can now use filters to adjust lighting levels and soften
  the focus of the camera to customize their appearances.
• Reflect
  messaging extension: Employee well-being
  is critical in ensuring productivity — this new feature allows managers,
  leaders and teachers to easily check in on how their teams or students are
  feeling through questions in an online poll. This will be available in the
  coming weeks. 

Making meetings more
inclusive, engaging and effective for teams and students

• Live reactions: Users can now react during meetings using
  emojis, supplementing non-verbal cues that can be difficult to notice in online
  meetings. Microsoft
  is also bringing PowerPoint Live Presentations to Teams in the future,
  enabling more audience engagement.
• Chat bubbles: The Chat feature has become a lively space
  for idea sharing without interrupting meeting flow. Chat bubbles allow all
  chats sent during a Microsoft Teams meeting to appear on the screens of all meeting participants, making the chat more central to the conversation.
• Speaker
  attribution and translation: With
  speaker attribution, everyone knows who is speaking. Live transcripts and
  translations, available later this year, provide a way to follow what has been
  said in more than one language.
• Interactive
  meetings for more than 1000 participants: Microsoft Teams meetings can
  now support 1,000 participants, and up to 20,000 participants to watch a
  presentation or discussion.
• Microsoft Whiteboard updates: Whiteboard in Microsoft Teams will soon be updated with new features
  including faster load times, sticky notes, text, and drag-and-drop
  capabilities. These will enable team members without access to a touchscreen to
  participate in whiteboarding sessions.  

Helping users
streamline their work and save time 

• Tasks app: Tasks app in Microsoft Teams provides a new unified view of tasks across Microsoft To Do, Planner and
  Outlook, whether a user is on desktop, web or mobile.  
• Suggested replies: Microsoft
  Teams
  chats will now include suggested replies, using assistive AI to create short
  responses based on the context of the previous message. This feature will roll
  out this month. 
• Touchless meeting
  experiences: As some people return to physical workspaces,
  touchless meeting experiences in shared spaces are more important than ever. Microsoft Teams now allows people to join meetings and share
  content to meeting room devices from their own mobile device or PC, with the
  same capabilities available on Surface Hub later this year. The Teams mobile app
  will also include a new room remote, with additional meeting controls,
  and voice commands to join and leave a meeting or call someone from their
  address book. Another experience will allow users to wirelessly cast to
  any Teams Room, collaboration bar or Surface Hub device, enabling seamless
  ad-hoc and in-person collaboration for people in a shared space.

To get started on the preview, users may log in to their personal Microsoft account on the Microsoft Teams mobile app,
available for download on the iOS or Android app store. General availability of the new features is slated for later this year.

For more information, see here to find out more about these new
features.

About Microsoft

Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT” @microsoft) enables digital
transformation for the era of an intelligent cloud and an intelligent edge. Its
mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to
achieve more.