Another ex-Chief of Defence Force is appointed at top leadership position at Royal Golden Eagle MNC

Former Chief of Defence Force has been appointed managing director at resource manufacturing conglomerate, Royal Golden Eagle. He is the second ex-Chief of Defence Force from Singapore to have joined the multinational corporation (MNC).

Lim enlisted in the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) in December 1990 and rose through the ranks in the coming decades. He succeeded Ravinder Singh as the Chief of Army on 21 March 2014 before replacing Ng Chee Meng as the Chief of Defence Force on 18 August 2015.

Lim stayed on as a senior military advisor in the SAF after stepping down as CDF in March 2018, according to his LinkedIn profile. Besides his service in the military, Lim was also a member of the Administrative Service. From 2006–2008, he briefly retired from active military service and served as the Director of Higher Education in the Ministry of Education.

Confirming that Lim joined the organisation earlier this month, an RGE spokesman told the national broadsheet: “Mr Lim has proven experience in leadership and managing large and complex organisations. His appointment is part of RGE’s ongoing process to recruit high-calibre talent to meet business growth needs.”

Lim joins another former Chief of Defence Force, Bey Soo Khiang, at RGE.

Bey enlisted in the SAF in 1973 and served as the Chief of Air Force before assuming the post of Chief of Defence Force on 1 July 1995, replacing Ng Jui Ping. While serving as the Chief of Defence Force, he was also appointed as a member of the board of directors for Singapore Technologies Engineering and Singapore Airlines Limited.

After retiring from the SAF on 1 April 2000, Bey joined Singapore Airlines as Executive Vice President Technical and was promoted to Senior EVP Technical & Human Resources two years later.

During his time in SIA, Bey served in the following positions: Chairman of SIA Cargo Pte Ltd; Chairman of Silkair Pte Ltd; Chairman of Singapore Flying College; Board Director of SIA Engineering Company; Virgin Atlantic Limited; Virgin Atlantic Airways Limited; Virgin Travel Group Limited.

Bey is also an active board member in the Sentosa Development Corporation. In early 2010, he assumed the post of Senior Executive Vice President for Marketing & Corporate Services. Bey left SIA on 28 February 2011 and was appointed as the Vice-Chairman of RGE Pte Ltd in March 2011.

Founded in Indonesia, Singapore-based RGE boasts assets exceeding US$18 billion (or S$24.4 billion). It manages a group of manufacturing companies that produce resources like pulp, paper and palm oil from locations all around the world.