"We need to have dreams and make effort to realise our dreams."
Dr Peter Yuen Chee-kit had been a student keen to “search for why” when he was studying for his bachelor’s degree in engineering and master’s degree in business management in early years. This inquisitive spirit prompted him to pursue further study and he finally completed Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) at PolyU in 2007. The DBA programme brought together professionals from various sectors and world lecturers, and through this platform, he had continued to “search for why”. He did not expect to find answer for every question, but by holding discussions and through exchanges with his peers, he further polished his critical thinking capability, which he finds valuable for life.
The electro-acoustic product company he founded is at the frontier of technology, with operations spanning across 20 countries and regions, and hiring more than 10,000 employees. To effectively manage an international business, which involves many unforeseen risks and challenges, has never been an easy task. As experienced as he had been, Dr Yuen chose “crisis management” as the theme for his doctoral thesis. He made use of the opportunity to consolidate his years of experience and discover new perspectives, with a view to better equip himself for challenges in the future.
According to Dr Yuen, PolyU is a very “down to earth” university, and the courses it offers closely tie to the needs of society. The DBA programme, for example, is the first professional cum academic programme at the highest level of business education offered in Hong Kong. As a member of PolyU, Dr Yuen very much agrees with its motto “To learn and to apply, for the benefit of mankind”. He believes that if the industry and the university work together on scientific research and development of new technologies, it will create a mutually beneficial situation for all parties, namely the industry, society, academia and students.
In 2019, Dr Yuen sponsored the setting up of the "PolyU - Innovation Technology (HK) Audio and Speech Signal Processing Joint Laboratory", aiming to develop new products and provide opportunities for students to participate in research. He chose his alma mater to be the host of the laboratory because of its uniqueness – with the engineering faculty to provide perfect hard core and rehabilitation sciences as research support. This strong combination not only helps students master professional knowledge, but also facilitates the transfer of research deliverables into new electro-audio products and services, bringing benefits to people in need and society as a whole. Committed to caring for the underprivileged and advancing industry development with technology, Dr Yuen is moving one big step closer to his goal with this joint laboratory.
Dr Yuen encourages young people to follow dreams. “We need to have dreams and make effort to realise our dreams.” He recalled that in his younger days, he took up different types of jobs to enrich his experience and expand his network before he gradually built his own business and fulfilled his dream. “If one has no dream, one is no different from a salted fish,” he quoted from the King of Comedy Stephen Chow Sing chi. Dr Yuen is very positive about the future of the engineering and industrial sectors. He will continue to collaborate with PolyU. Apart from setting up the laboratory, he will provide students with more research and internship opportunities. By doing so, he hopes to encourage more young people to join the industrial sectors after they graduated.
Publishing date: September 2021
