Yeoh Tay Boon

Yeoh Tay Boon is an experienced academician with deep specialisation in Malaysian hospitality education, bringing a rare combination of academic leadership and hands-on industry practice to the field. His career spans senior roles including Dean, Head of School, and Deputy Dean across several leading hospitality institutions, where he has consistently driven curriculum development, facility set-up, and programme accreditation under the Malaysian Qualifications Agency framework.

Prior to his academic career, he built a strong operational foundation in food and beverage management with international hotel brands in Singapore. He has also led a pioneering teaching hotel initiative and maintains active engagement with the broader industry as an external programme advisor and assessor across several universities, as well as through hotel service audits and executive training programmes for hospitality groups across the region.

Yeoh’s combination of academic rigour and practitioner experience reflects the depth of expertise that strengthens hospitality education and training standards across Asia. His insights support Asianhotelier.Org’s mission of developing the next generation of hospitality professionals across the region

Dato Sharifah Halimah Syed Ahmad

Dato’ Sharifah is a strategic and results-oriented leader with over 30 years of experience in operations, complemented by 12 years in higher education. She served 33 years with the public-listed HICOM Holdings Berhad/DRB-HICOM Berhad Group, including 18 years as Chief Executive Officer across two subsidiary companies. Her career reflects deep exposure to corporate planning and a strong track record in organisational start-up and development, underpinned by transformational leadership and a proven ability to develop and execute business plans that consistently exceed expectations.

She brings expert knowledge in leadership and management, with particular strength in aligning organisational objectives with broader industry direction. Her capabilities extend to learning and development, supported by a solid grounding in market research. As a highly accomplished and persuasive communicator, she is recognised for her exceptional interpersonal skills and her ability to build strong, lasting relationships across diverse stakeholder groups, adapting readily to changing demands and navigating time-sensitive, challenging circumstances with confidence and skill. Dato’ Sharifah maintains a strong network with key stakeholders across educational and professional bodies, both locally and internationally. She serves as a Council Member of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport Malaysia (CILTM) and is active within Global Women in Logistics and Transport (WiLAT). She is the Project Representative of the National Taskforce of APEC Women in Transportation (WiT) under the Ministry of Transport, driving diversity and leadership within Malaysia’s port sector, and participates actively in the Port Centre of Excellence (PCOE), anchored by the Johor Port Authority, which links academia to industry. She is also an EXCO Member of Badan Iktisas Malaysia (BIM) and Treasurer of the Malaysia Women Graduate Association (PSWM).