• As Sunway celebrates its 50^th anniversary in 2024, we pay tribute to the man behind the brand, Sunway Group founder and chairman Tan Sri Sir Dr. Jeffrey Cheah KBE AO, who never settled for mediocrity but tenaciously pursued his dreams driven by his core values of Humility, Integrity and Excellence to build a sustainable future for all.

Visionary leader, entrepreneur and philanthropist – Sunway Group founder and chairman Tan Sri Sir Dr. Jeffrey Cheah seems to possess both the golden touch in business, and a heart of gold.

Tan Sri’s corporate achievements today are especially meaningful given that the road to success was not always a bed of roses, especially in the early days.

“When I shared my vision of an integrated township, the banks did not understand what I meant, they thought I was crazy. So did my friends. I did not have much money, I did not have a brand – I was just Jeffrey Cheah,” he said.

While Tan Sri had his share of critics, he never forgot those who stood by him in the bleakest of times, when he was on the verge of bankruptcy during the 1986 recession and the 1998 Asian Financial Crisis.

“It is at those times when you discover your inner strengths and who your real friends are. During these two crises, we owed the banks a lot of money on clean basis with no security charge. We could have run away. Instead, I went to the banks and gave them my word that I would repay every cent if they would just give us some time. I believe our core values of Integrity, Humility and Excellence made the difference. The banks took me at my word and trusted me to deliver,”

“In addition, HSBC stood by us during the mid-80s recession, and I’ll always be grateful. HSBC was my biggest banker then and until now we are very good business partners. I am also thankful that our stakeholders trusted us and supported us through the difficult times,” he said.

Tan Sri also credited his staff for their pivotal role in Sunway’s survival then.

“I was also fortunate to have a team of highly dedicated and smart colleagues who helped design and implement plans that enabled our Group to emerge even stronger. These challenges also brought home to me the importance of not just a talented team but one with the right attitude and values.”

Sunway City Kuala Lumpur is Malaysia’s first green-certified smart sustainable integrated township, and a tangible reminder of Tan Sri’s foresight and visionary leadership that steered Sunway’s growth through multiple financial downturns and even the COVID-19 global pandemic.

With perseverance and grit, along with a dedicated and competent team, Tan Sri succeeded against all odds to bring his vision to reality – transforming an abandoned tin-mining wasteland into Malaysia’s first integrated, green sustainable township, Sunway City Kuala Lumpur.

Today, Sunway is a leading diversified conglomerate in ASEAN with core interests in property, education, healthcare, hospitality, and construction, among others. With 13 business divisions, including three public-listed companies with a combined market capitalisation of RM42 billion, Sunway has a business presence in 50 locations worldwide, as well as a 20,000-strong workforce.

For his extraordinary achievements and services to education, healthcare and community enrichment, as well as his lifelong commitment to nation-building and sustainable development, Tan Sri is the first Malaysian to have been conferred the Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (KBE), which carries the title “Sir,” by His Majesty King Charles III of the United Kingdom.

Tan Sri Sir was named Putra Personality of the Year at the Putra Brand Awards 2022.

Tan Sri, who was appointed Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) by the Prime Minister of Australia, one of the country’s most prestigious and highest recognitions conferred to a non-citizen, for his contribution in deepening educational links between Malaysia and Australia, was also named Putra Personality of the Year at the Putra Brand Awards 2022, celebrating him as an outstanding individual with creativity, perseverance and persuasion that has significantly contributed to advancing the nation through education, nation-building, philanthropy work, and his deftness in running one of Southeast Asia’s leading conglomerates.

For Tan Sri, achieving the pinnacle of corporate success is not his raison d’être; but as a means to continue giving back, and in increasing measure, to society.

“I firmly believe that each of us should have a higher purpose in life. For me personally, that purpose is to give back to society in an impactful way and building a better world,” said Tan Sri, who is the first Malaysian and the second philanthropist in Asia to have been named four times as Forbes Asia’s Hero of Philanthropy – in 2021, 2019, 2015 and 2009.

Tan Sri’s growing list of accolades over the five decades – through education, philanthropy, sustainable development, leadership, business, entrepreneurship and culture – highlights his commitment towards excellence in all his undertakings. These achievements were recently recognised with Tan Sri’s EY Asean Entrepreneurial Excellence award win at the 22nd EY Entrepreneur of The Year 2023 Singapore awards.

The honorary award recognises outstanding entrepreneurs leading successful businesses that contribute to the economy and community in Southeast Asia, inspiring business communities to achieve excellence in their industries.

“This award is for my Sunway and Jeffrey Cheah Foundation colleagues whose dedication, resilience and hard work have made a positive impact and a lasting difference in ASEAN and beyond. Sunway Group will be celebrating our 50th Anniversary in 2024 – and this award serves as an early ‘birthday present’ for everyone affiliated with the brand and the foundation,” he said upon receiving the award.

A heart for education

Despite his success, Tan Sri is not one to forget his roots in the small former tin-mining town of Pusing in Perak, where he witnessed first-hand how poverty had deprived his friends of avenues for progress in their lives.

Tan Sri, who graduated with a business and accounting degree from Victoria University in Melbourne, Australia, vowed to make quality education accessible to everyone irrespective of their background.

Sunway’s first educational institution, Sunway College – founded in 1987 – pioneered the concept of twinning programmes in Malaysia to enable local students to pursue quality education at universities abroad.

When Sunway College began to thrive years later, investment bankers tried to convince Tan Sri to list Sunway Education Group – the education arm of Sunway – on Bursa Malaysia, as they had estimated a public listing worth several billion Ringgit then.

“It was tempting. I am a businessman, after all,” he conceded.

A man of principle, Tan Sri turned down the dizzying levels of valuation due to his conviction that education should be a not-for-profit endeavour.

“I became convinced early on, when I was growing up in the small town of Pusing in Perak, that education offered the best route out of poverty and misery. And not just any education, but quality education. I came to believe as well that the provision of quality education must be a not-for-profit venture to make it accessible and affordable to as many qualified young people as possible,” he said.

Inspired by Harvard University’s founder John Harvard’s endowment in the 1600s, he established the Jeffrey Cheah Foundation in 2010 by gifting his entire equity stake in Sunway Education Group, valued at several billion ringgit today, to the Foundation in perpetuity.

As the largest education-focused social enterprise in Malaysia, the eponymous foundation owns and governs Sunway Education Group and its learning institutions, with all financial surpluses at the education arm ploughed back into the Foundation for research, scholarships, grants, expansion of facilities and recruitment of top-notch faculty.

Tan Sri is currently working towards setting up a large endowment fund to ensure Sunway University’s survival and growth, in perpetuity, modelled after the likes of Harvard, Cambridge and Oxford universities.

“The success and growth of Sunway enabled me to realise my lifelong dream to establish a Foundation dedicated to making a positive impact on society. JCF has awarded more than RM670 million in scholarships as of 2023. It is my goal to award several billion Ringgit in scholarships during my lifetime. In other words, the longer I live, the more I will give!” Tan Sri said.

Committed to making Sunway University ‘the Harvard or Cambridge of the East’, Tan Sri acknowledges the strength in international cross-collaborations, partnerships and lifelong learning.

Sunway has forged active partnerships with top universities such as the University of Cambridge and University of Oxford in the UK, Harvard University as well as University of California, Berkeley; and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the US, to facilitate knowledge transfer and bring world-class expertise to Malaysia. Tan Sri is also a member of the Global Advisory Council at Harvard University, which assesses the effectiveness of Harvard’s existing global resources and capabilities to ensure the university’s continued global leadership in higher education and research.

“I have always believed that to be the best, we need to learn from the best and work with the best. These collaborations with top institutions around the world enable us to bring cutting-edge research and world-class knowledge to Malaysia. It is my firm belief that the destiny of a person, society and nation is shaped by quality education and ethical values,” he said.

Tan Sri has received 12 honorary doctorates conferred to him by leading universities in the UK, the US, Australia, Malaysia, and Cambodia for his accomplishments and contributions to society, including an honorary doctorate of Philosophy for his leadership in health education network and sustainability from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) in 2021 as well as an honorary doctorate of Education from Universiti Malaya in 2016 for his contributions to the community and the cause of education in Malaysia.

Tan Sri was awarded the UK-Malaysia Business Personality Award by the British Malaysia Chamber of Commerce (BMCC) for championing ties between both countries through collaborations with the University of Cambridge, the University of Oxford and Lancaster University.

Monash University’s School of Medicine and Health Sciences was named after Tan Sri, in acknowledgment of his contribution to Monash University Malaysia and Malaysia-Australia bilateral ties.

Locally, Tan Sri works together with the government to raise the standard of education in Malaysia, through his appointments by the Ministry of Education in the Higher Education Council of Malaysia (1996), the education panel to review the nation’s education system (2011), and the Putrajaya Higher Education Task Force (2015-2017) to transform the higher education of Malaysia.

Building a better world

Just as the founding of Sunway was rooted in sustainability, Tan Sri endeavours to integrate sustainable development throughout the organisation, ensuring that the company walks the talk of becoming Asia’s model corporation in sustainable development.

Committed to advancing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, Sunway has pledged to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050, and reduce its residual carbon emissions by 45% by 2030 from 2010 levels, based on the strategic framework of decarbonisation, resource management and pollution control.

Integrating the UN-SDGs into business practices and decision-making processes with environmental, social, and governance (ESG) targets, Sunway Group became the first corporation in Malaysia and among the first in Asia to introduce an internal carbon pricing framework into its businesses to advance the net zero agenda.

Under this framework, Sunway drives sustainability by guiding the management of its emissions Groupwide. In addition to penalties for failing to meet decarbonisation targets, the Group is also introducing a proactive incentive programme in 2024 that provides monetary rewards to businesses that achieve renewable energy and waste diversion targets.

With elevated canopy walkways, dedicated free shuttle service and Malaysia’s first elevated Bus Rapid Transit (BRT-Sunway Line) system, Sunway City Kuala Lumpur is a transit-oriented, low-carbon “15-minute city” where people can easily navigate all essential services and business premises within a 15-minute walk or bicycle ride.

Sunway City Kuala Lumpur serves as the model of what a sustainable city looks like.

Taking a holistic approach, Sunway is also integrating sustainability into supply chain by accelerating the reduction of Scope 3 carbon emissions – indirect greenhouse gas emissions from upstream and downstream activities – through sustainable initiatives involving both suppliers and tenants alike.

As part of Sunway Group’s continued commitment to nation-building and advancing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, it has pledged US$20 million to the United Nations through the Jeffrey Cheah Foundation.

Tan Sri Sir with Prof. Jeffrey Sachs at Sunway University.

This fund has since financed the development of the Jeffrey Sachs Center for Sustainable Development at Sunway University, as well as the establishment of the Asia headquarters of the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network (UN-SDSN) in Sunway City Kuala Lumpur.

One of only three such global centres, the UN-SDSN Asia headquarters in Sunway City Kuala Lumpur works on continent-wide sustainability solutions for Asia, with the New York City office covering the Americas, and the centre in Paris overseeing Europe and Africa.

In 2021, Sunway launched the Sunway Centre for Planetary Health at Sunway University to advance the sustainability agenda in a holistic manner throughout the region, translating academic discourse on planetary health into actionable solutions.

Tan Sri’s dedication to sustainable development was further underscored by his appointment as a member of the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network (UN-SDSN) Global Leadership Council, chairman of the UN-SDSN Malaysia chapter, as well as co-chair of Mission 4.7 in 2020 – a global initiative to highlight the critical importance of education in advancing the UN-SDGs.

“Sustainable development is vital to the future well-being of our nation. Everything that we do is about the future generations. That means acting as responsible stewards of the planet and promoting socio-economic goals. We pursue this mission through various avenues at Sunway Group and all of our affiliated entities, be it commercial enterprises, philanthropic endeavours and collaborative partnerships with world-renowned institutions,” he said.

A nation-builder

His Highness Tengku Amir Shah Ibni Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah Alhaj, Raja Muda Selangor and Tan Sri Sir at Southeast Asia’s largest single-day meal packing event at Sunway Pyramid Convention Centre, held in partnership with international hunger relief agency Rise Against Hunger.

CSR is in the DNA of Sunway, as Tan Sri is a firm believer of ‘teaching a man how to fish instead of giving him a fish’. This is evidenced by Sunway’s commitment to nation-building through the provision of quality education and long-term, sustainable CSR efforts.

“I believe that there is a distinct difference between charity and philanthropy. Charity essentially is about giving a handout to those affected by circumstances. It is an immediate relief but only provides a short-term solution. Philanthropy, however, is more about giving a hand-up to allow people, and even nations, to realise their full potential, even if it takes a longer time,” said Tan Sri.

In recognition of Sunway’s CSR efforts for the B40 communities and alleviating the plight of Malaysians during the COVID-19 pandemic, Tan Sri received special recognition from the then Prime Minister of Malaysia at the Department of Social Welfare’s 75^th Anniversary Celebration in 2021.

No one is left behind in Tan Sri’s vision for sustainable development in Malaysia, and this is reflected in Sunway’s strategic CSR partnerships with NGOs to ensure that the UN-SDGs – such as equal access to healthcare services for all – are cascaded to all segments of society.

Underscoring this, Tan Sri was appointed as the co-chair of the Malaysian AIDS Foundation (MAF) Sustainability Advisory Committee to integrate sustainability into the NGO’s operations in 2022, marking Sunway’s long-term partnership with the organisation to eradicating HIV/AIDS in Malaysia.

Sunway has committed RM1 million annually to cover the running cost of three flagship programmes under the MAF-Sunway HOPE Borneo Project, which aims to provide healthcare access to the marginalised in Sabah and Sarawak.

Since 2002, Tan Sri has assumed the role of deputy-president of the National Kidney Foundation; Sunway too has been actively partnering with the NGO to raise awareness and expand access to dialysis in Malaysia. Tan Sri is also the founding trustee of the Malaysian Liver Foundation.

For his nation-building endeavours, Tan Sri has been honoured with the Asian Leadership Award by Asian Association of Management Organisations.

A voice for diversity and inclusion, Tan Sri is the founding chair for the Malaysian chapter of the 30% Club, which seeks to achieve at least 30% women on boards of public-listed companies in Malaysia.

Walking the talk, 40% of Sunway’s board of directors are female, and the company continues to empower women in the workforce through initiatives such as leadership development, flexible working arrangement, childcare subsidies and dedicated mother’s rooms.

Recognising strength in diversity, Sunway’s Diversity and Inclusion Policy, Code of Conduct and Business Ethics Policy emphasises the company’s commitment to creating a culture that values and respects differences, with zero tolerance for discrimination.

For promoting inclusivity and equitability as well as showcasing excellence in various fields, Tan Sri received the honour of being the first non-Muslim recipient of the Hunayn Ibn Ishaq Unity Award at the Islamic Excellence Awards 1441H/2020AD.

Not one to forget his roots, Tan Sri upholds his Hakka cultural heritage as the president of the Malaysian Hakka Association from 1997 to 2004, before he was appointed as permanent honorary president to the Federation of Hakka Associations Malaysia in 2012, for his contributions to the Associations.

Leading by example

Tan Sri’s visionary leadership and contributions in various fields of industry has earned him the respect of industry leaders throughout his career.

He is the first non-Malay Honorary Member of Kuala Lumpur Malay Chamber of Commerce, as well as a recipient of the ASEAN@50 Lifetime Achievement Award by ASEAN Business Advisory Council Malaysia – the latter for his contributions and achievement in Malaysia, ASEAN and beyond.

The Malaysian Institute of Management has also recognised his remarkable contributions by granting him the title of Court of Emeritus Fellow in 2017 – the highest grade of membership accorded to outstanding individuals who have contributed significantly towards the field of management for a host of industries in the country.

In the business sphere, Tan Sri has also been conferred Honorary Fellow by the Institution of Engineers Malaysia, Best Chief Executive Officer for Investor Relations (Mid Cap) by the Malaysian Investor Relations Association, President’s Award by Malaysia Institute of Planners, as well as the Prominent Player Award by Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) Malaysia, among others.

The secret to Tan Sri’s leadership success is plain for all to see – his unwavering commitment to Sunway’s core values of Integrity, Humility and Excellence.

“These values have served me well in both my professional career and personal life, serving to amplify my conviction that every individual must have a higher purpose in life. For me, that purpose is to contribute towards nation-building and creating a more progressive, sustainable, inclusive and brighter future for all under the Malaysian sun. I trust that what we are doing here at Sunway Group and the JCF will inspire others to contribute more to building a better world,” he said.