SEREMBAN (Sin Chew Daily) — The 2014 Sin Chew Business Awards roadshow has come to Seremban. Other than senior managers providing a detailed account of the awards, two senior speakers were also invited to speak on foreign currency trends and how businesses could cope with the GST.

The talk was held at the Negeri Sembilan Chinese Chamber of Commerce & Industry. Among the speakers were Grant Thornton Malaysia senior executive director Seah Siew Yun, partner Desmond Tan and Sin Chew Business Awards working committee chairman Lenny Cheah.

Seah Siew Yun explained to the audience the difference between various tax categories such as standard-rated supply, zero-rated supply, exempt supply, out-of-scope supply and disregarded supply.

She reminded the participant that while GST could sound simple, it would nevertheless affect the operational cost, cash flow and software involved in a business.

Cheah, who is also the sales and marketing general manager for MCIL Multimedia Sdn Bhd, said Sin Chew Business Awards is one of the most trusted and coveted award events in the country targeting mainly small and medium sized enterprises, although some of the non-SMEs would also be invited to take part.

Participation is either by nomination or invitation. Any SMEs registered in Malaysia can take part in the awards. Registration fee is RM1,500.00.

The 2014 Sin Chew Business Awards will be divided into eight different categories, namely: Lifetime Excellence Achievement Award, Business Excellence Person of the Year Award, Business Sustainability Excellence Award, Retail Excellence Award, Product & Service Quality Excellence Award, CSR Excellence Award, Property Excellence Award, and Young/ Emerging Business Excellence Award.

Cheah said SMEs could make use of this platform to enhance their brand acceptance and market confidence.

Meanwhile, Grant Thornton Malaysia partner Desmond Tan was explaining the selection criteria of 2014 Sin Chew Business Awards.

The second Sin Chew Business Awards is organized jointly by Sin Chew Daily and MCIL Multimedia Sdn Bhd, both under Sin Chew Media Corporation. CIMB Bank is the exclusive sponsor of this event.

Among the supporting partners are the Federation of Chinese Associations Malaysia (Hua Zong), the Associated Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Malaysia (ACCCIM), Small Medium Industry Association of Malaysia (SMIAM), Malaysian Retailer-Chains Association (MRCA), Persatuan Usahawan Maju Malaysia (PUMM), Branding Association of Malaysia, the Malaysian Institute of Corporate Governance (MICG), Junior Chamber International (JCI) Malaysia and JCI Kuala Lumpur Mandarin (JCIKLM). Grant Thornton Malaysia is the auditor of this event.

Negeri Sembilan Chinese Chamber of Commerce & Industry is the regional supporting partner of the event. The other event partners include Fine Paper Takeo Sdn Bhd, Skynet and Setia City Convention Centre.

The Sin Chew Business Awards 2014 is now open for registration and nomination. Closing date is June 15. The award presentation ceremony is expected to be held in late September.

Further information please visit the official site of Sin Chew Business Awards 2014: http://www.sinchew.com.my/sinchewbusinessawards2014.or call 03-79658888.