Lim Siong Guan: The Best Is Yet To Be

Lim Siong Guan — The Best Is Yet to Be offers powerful insights into Siong Guan’s past, his reflections on the present, and his perspectives on the future — especially on how to survive and thrive in a world shaped by “unknown unknowns.”

Yet this is not simply a book about Siong Guan. It is about what he believes readers will find useful as they contemplate their own futures and strive to become the best they can be.

Through personal reflections, interviews with those who know him well, sharings from colleagues, and media features, readers gain a glimpse into Siong Guan’s humble beginnings and his distinguished public service career spanning five decades (1969–2019). Throughout, one consistent focus emerges: his deep commitment to Singapore’s future and the people he serves.

The book explores how Siong Guan excelled in school and in his career with a curious, searching mind and a heart grounded in empathy and service. Never driven by fame or fortune, he pursued opportunities over money and sought always to serve rather than be served.

Having worked closely with Mr Lee Kuan Yew and Dr Goh Keng Swee — key architects of Singapore’s founding years — Siong Guan witnessed firsthand how innovation and creativity transformed Singapore from a struggling start-up nation into a global success. He believes that Singapore’s continued survivability will require the same clarity of vision, coupled with even greater innovation and creativity.

If Mr Lee Kuan Yew brought Singapore from Third World to First, where does Singapore go from here? Drawing on 50 years of public service, Siong Guan offers thoughtful perspectives on how Singapore can continue to grow as a home of opportunity — a nation where truly, the best is yet to be.

 

About the Author

LIM Siong Guan Siong Guan is an Emeritus Professor of the National University of Singapore and a Distinguished Practitioner Fellow of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy. He instructs on leadership, change management and future thinking. He is also a Senior Fellow of the Singapore Civil Service College.

Siong Guan was the Group President of GIC from 2007 to 2016, and Advisor to the GIC Group Executive Committee until 2019. GIC is the fund manager for the foreign financial reserves of Singapore.

He was the Chairman of the Singapore Economic Development Board from 2006 to 2009. The Board is the Singapore government's lead agency for planning and executing strategies to enhance Singapore's position as a global business centre.

Siong Guan served 37 years in the Singapore Civil Service, from 1969 to 2006. He was the Head of the Singapore Civil Service from 1999 to 2005. He has been the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Defence (1981–1994), the Prime Minister's Office (1994–1998), the Ministry of Education (1997–1999) and the Ministry of Finance (1998–2006). He was the first Principal Private Secretary to then Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew from 1978 to 1981. In every appointment, he introduced innovative policies and practices which enhanced the drive, capacity, capability and performance of the organization.

Siong Guan has co-authored two books with Joanne H Lim. The first was The Leader, The Teacher & You — Leadership Through the Third Generation, a book on leadership and national governance. It won the Singapore Literature Prize for non-fiction in 2014. The second was Winning with Honour in Relationships, Family, Organisations, Leadership, and Life, a book on winning in life and work. He has authored a third book, Can Singapore Fall? Making the Future for Singapore, based on three public lectures he delivered as the fourth S R Nathan Fellow for the Study of Singapore.

Siong Guan co-founded Honour (Singapore), a charity that seeks to promote the culture of honour and honourable behaviour for the well-being of Singapore, in 2014. He is also the lead independent director of Wilmar International Ltd., a leading agri company in Asia and Africa, and a Senior Advisor to Insignia Ventures Partners, an early-stage technology venture capital firm focused on building great companies in Southeast Asia.

Joanne H Lim is the founder of The Right PerspectiveSG, a consultancy specialising in writing and strategic communications. Joanne was awarded the Singapore Literature Book Prize (Non-Fiction) in 2014 for The Leader, The Teacher & You. She is the author of a children's book, Meme the Monkey Wins in Life, and also co-authored Winning with Honour, a book on success in life, family, and work.