An Iron Lady In A League Of Her Own
LONDON: Where once her social media pages were filled with pictures of awards and accolades, of travels and conferences all over the world, there are now images of mouthwatering dishes from Dapur Aiman, her son's new venture that took off during the Covid-19 pandemic and ensuing Movement Control Order period.
At least, that is what the social media pages of Sherene Azura Azli, the former chief executive officer (CEO) of Malaysia Health Travel Council's (MHTC) is telling us.
Since leaving the government agency entrusted with the responsibility of curating the country's healthcare travel scene in January this year, the doting mother is now promoting the budding chef's debut in the culinary world.
"I'm taking a rest," she said when asked what's next for her after helming the health travel agency for six years.
During her tenure, Malaysia was crowned "Destination of the Year" for healthcare travel from 2015 to 2017 with a highly commendable mention in 2018 by UK-based International Medical Travel Journal.
In addition, LaingBuisson, a healthcare research specialist based in the United Kingdom, had in 2018 ranked Malaysia eighth out of the top 25 medical travel destinations by value. Malaysia has indeed made a name for itself on the global stage.
From a relatively young player compared to others in the region, Malaysia emerged from being the hidden jewel of Asia for healthcare travel to being a strong industry player within Southeast Asia.
"I would not trade this journey with MHTC for anything in the world. The last six years have been fulfilling, exciting, exhilarating and very rewarding," admitted the mother of two, whose impressive curriculum vitae (CV) shows a proven executive management track record and over 20 years of experience driving marketing growth in various industries.
Sherene's list of awards and accolades is equally jaw-dropping. They include the Outstanding Leadership in Healthcare Travel, Global Health Awards; Most Media Savvy Personality (Woman), Asia Pacific Healthcare & Medical Tourism Award; Most Admired Leader of Asia Award, Global Herald's Global Business Symposium; Leadership in Promoting Malaysia as Medical Tourism Destination, Icons of Healthcare Award; included in the 50 Outstanding Women in Healthcare list.
Although Sherene's name has become synonymous with MHTC, she first carved her own path with TalentCorp Malaysia where she was the general manager. She started corporate life with Telekom Malaysia (TM), where for 15 years, she held high-level positions such as vice- president of Group Marketing and vice-president of Strategy and Business Development.
Now, with time on her hands, Sherene reflects she is seven years off the mark she had set for retirement.
"I wanted to retire by 40 so that I can enjoy life doing things that I love, doing some charity work. Now, I have exceeded the 40-year mark, I guess this is the time to look at the plans that I had. After six years, I could use my experience, knowledge as well as my exposure in international branding and marketing that we have done to be used elsewhere," she said.
Sherene admitted that she is drawn to risk.
"I am a risk taker. If there is no risk and it is safe, I am not drawn to it," said Sherene of her various ventures involving the corporate world and agencies that had taken her around the world.
So, what makes this woman tick?
At the tender age of 17, fresh out of Maktab Rendah Sains Mara (MRSM) in Kuantan, Sherene spent her formative years in Dublin, Ireland pursuing accounting, finance, research and marketing.
"Instead of doing A-levels, I was asked to take the Irish Leaving Certificate. I eventually chose the University of Limerick in Ireland to do my Bachelor's of Business Studies in Accounting and Finance."
The choice of studying in Limerick was done with careful deliberation — a location three hours away from Dublin and more importantly, no Malaysians nearby. That was Sherene's recollection of pushing herself out of her comfort zone, where she could meet and deal with challenges herself.
In 1995, the TM scholar took a year out to work with Irish Telecommunications Investment, Telecom Eireann. Although an intern, she ended up doing the work of a research manager, giving her a bigger role and experience.
Sherene, who was recognised as one of 20 "Fast Track Executive Talents" at TM, was groomed to become one of the youngest leaders of the organisation, gaining
a place with the group's leadership team.
"My career started with TM and I was asked to be in the cost management unit," she said.
Not the traditional accountant, she was soon learning about satellites, fibre cables and programming "so that when they write programming, they are writing what I wanted", she said.
"I'm a little OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder) in that sense. I invested my time to do all this," she admitted.
However, the feeling of not getting enough exposure and not giving her 200 per cent saw her seconded to TalentCorp, where she found her calling in nation-building work, a passion she carried through to MHTC.
"I had a dream that if I were to become a CEO, I wanted an organisation which would be family-oriented, anchored on the right intention with the right cause," she said.
When Sherene left MHTC on Jan 15 this year, she left behind a team she called her "family", who helped her place MHTC where it is today.
"I couldn't have done without them," she said, adding that the support of her own family was the combined winning factor. Prior to her departure, she also let it be known that she would always be on call whenever they need her.
With a thirst for knowledge and a spirit to explore the unknown, it won't be too long before Sherene emerges as the face of another organisation and bring it to the international stage.
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