Seizing the Climate Moment: The role of Business in Greening the Economy

Jennifer joined Swire Hotels in September 2008 as Director of Sales & Marketing at EAST Hong Kong after a string of appointments in the hotel industry including the position of Front Office and Events Management at the Shangri-La hotels. Subsequent to that, Jennifer began her sales career at the Shangri-La Shanghai where she was engaged for six years. Upon returning to Hong Kong, she joined Langham Place Hotel where she continued to develop her expertise in the field of Sales and Marketing and widen her leadership experience in many ways. In 2013, Jennifer was appointed as General Manager of EAST Hong Kong. In addition to overseeing the daily operations of EAST, she has become the key leader in driving Swire Hotels’ sustainability development vision, working with both the EAST and The House Collective properties to not only bring awareness to our impact on the environment and inspire more sustainable practices amongst the team members, but to also implement a plan to make each property more eco-friendly.

She is a strong believer in continuous learning and the attainment of personal fulfillment from her career.

Patrick Gantier is the General Manager for Mars Wrigley Asia, responsible for 20 markets across South East Asia as well as South Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong. His remit covers all segments in Chocolate, Gum & Mints, Fruity Confections and Pet Nutrition, the latter primarily for the markets in North Asia.

Patrick has been in senior management roles with Mars Inc. for more than a decade across five different assignments in Europe and Asia Pacific. In these roles, he has successfully led culturally-diverse teams in accelerating performance of both top and bottom lines, solving complex business and industry challenges and embedding critical, value-creating transformations.

Patrick is also recognized for his leadership, stakeholder management and employee engagement skills. As a result of his approachability and his ability to work across diverse cultures in both emerging and developed markets, Patrick has consistently built great places to work with an emphasis on inclusion and diversity.

Prior to Mars Inc., Patrick spent 12 years with Bel Group, a French-family owned company who is a leading player in healthy, dairy and fruit snack categories. He worked in senior marketing roles in large, diverse markets, including France, Central Europe and the USA. During this time, Patrick built a strong track record in managing local and global brands as well as building engaged and cohesive teams across geographies and functions.

Patrick holds a Master’s degree in Marketing from Sciences Po Paris and has taken executive education from Harvard Business School and the Center for Creative Leadership. He is currently living in Hong Kong with his family.

Sandeep Nair is President of Emerson Commercial & Residential Solutions, Asia, Middle East & Africa.

Emerson Commercial & Residential Solutions, one of the two Emerson business platforms, helps ensure human comfort and health, protect food quality and safety, advance energy efficiency, and create sustainable infrastructure. With a regional footprint of 10 manufacturing locations, 5 R&D centers, 30 sales offices and over 7300 employees, Emerson Commercial & Residential Solutions is well positioned to serve the diverse and growing markets in Asia, Middle East and Africa. Our vast product portfolio covers HVACR compressors, systems, controls, monitoring systems, professional tools, home products, and sensing devices.

Prior to this role, Sandeep was based in the US, as the President of Therm-O-Disc Inc, for 4 years and as President of Fusite, a business unit of Emerson Electric for 4 years. Prior to these roles, Sandeep was President & Managing Director of Emerson Network Power India for 9 years.

Sandeep started his career in manufacturing and has over 25 years of experience in global and functional roles. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and a postgraduate degree in Management from the University of Bombay.

Charles Goddard imagines and builds the Group’s flagship initiatives, the purpose of which is to catalyse progress on key issues of the day. He works closely with partners on themes ranging from ageing and longevity to ocean health, focusing particularly on healthcare, the Anthropocene and the blue economy. Based in Hong Kong, Charles was previously editorial director, Asia, at the Economist Intelligence Unit, director of research in Asia, and managing director of the Economist Corporate Network, a peer network for senior executives. He is concurrently executive director of the Group’s World Ocean Initiative.