KNAV, an international grouping for legally independent accounting firm and consulting practice, has made its latest 2 high profile partner hires in the Singapore operations. They had engaged the services of Mr. Wayne Soo as well as Mr. Ethan Ong. KNAV has a global presence in many locations. Some of the countries with KNAV operations are Canada, India, France, Netherlands, Switzerland, Singapore, USA and UK. KNAV offers 3 main categories of business services. The first is audit and assurance.

KNAV has a strong audit methodology that is relevant to the business in the areas of financial statement attestation and compliance and internal control audit. It relies on risk based audit methodology to perform an effective and efficient audit. Its audit process also involves understanding various business controls and testing those controls for effectiveness. It has a strong focus on maintaining healthy client relationship while providing top class services. KNAV utilizes the modern tools and information analytics and is able to keep up with the modern times from support given by various software vendors such as Thomson Reuters.

Another key business service offered by KNAV is in the area of tax advisory and tax preparation. KNAV is staffed by highly experienced tax partners leading the tax practice and is able to provide a global tax view for companies' tax needs and queries. KNAV attempts to provide tax solutions to companies from across different industries and will execute those solutions effectively for the client. KNAV tax professionals are well versed with different tax code from multiple jurisdictions.

The final key business service is on the area of business advisory. There are 4 sub business segments. First would be business valuation practice. KNAV will be able to assist in valuing a company's assets and liabilities to provide a meaningful fair value for any business concern that will be useful for any potential acquisition deals. The second would be strategic advisory. KNAV can draft out a comprehensive strategic review plan for the company wanting to implement process improvement procedures and tailored solutions can be offered to better manage the company's operations. The 3rd area is investment banking. KNAV has investment banking professionals ready to execute fund raising documentation. Underwriting services, security offerings are part of the expertise provided by KNAV. The final area is concerning accounting advisory. KNAV has in place a team of competent accounting professionals well versed with latest accounting standards and local GAAP for various jurisdictions. They can ensure your financial reporting obligations are in accordance to companies act and global recognized accounting standards. Accounting is a dynamic topic with constant updates and changes and companies can benefit from KNAV's expertise.

Mr. Wayne Soo is a qualified chartered accountant in Singapore. He is also a Qualified Fraud Examiner and has Fellow membership in six international accounting bodies. Mr. Wayne Soo has immense wealth of experience in the areas of audit, having served for many years with Big Four professional services firm. Other areas of expertise include due diligence, forensic audit and corporate advisory. The client profiles include large local corporations and international companies.

Singapore and India has good economic partnership and trade between the 2 nations have been synergistic. Cross border deals are happening at and increasing pace and volume between the 2 unique jurisdictions and KNAV has to keep abreast with regional developments over at Singapore by roping in talent in order to serve their clients effectively. Many businesses have vested interest in both India as well as Singapore with multiple transactions happening across the countries every day. Managing Partner for KNAV, Nishta Sharma expressed delight in making 2 Singapore partners and will continue to push forward for global integration.

The behavior of consumption and also the online conversations shape the volumes of business transaction. Social media plays it because of the boom of mobile devices and the increasing connectivity of consumers in the Asia-Pacific region. One thing that seems to have no end are the new ideas to create new applications or opportunities to secure new information. It also happens as new solutions to solve the challenges of the constantly growing region cities, the exact calculation of revenue from a new business opportunity and even detect bottlenecks in the supply chain.

The panel member and Harvard Business School visiting professor Tom Davenport said companies that take advantage of this power that big data and analysis have the opportunity to make right decisions, get insights and carry out the necessary adjustments more rápidp strategy their competitors. It is a significant advantage since the market lives in constant change. This type of insight allows companies to realize a significant improvement in its services or products, whether for an individual consumer or a market, may help prices when needed or adjust marketing.

The Singapore Management University in partnership with some institutions, including Carnegie Mellon, held many top jobs using big data in Singapore to conduct experiments in real time. An example is that in shopping centers, consumers can find kiosks with product offerings with special prices to suit them with data that were pickup through the cell phone them. It is possible through the identification of preferences and shopping patterns.

Of course, there are challenges in a diverse region where there is the implementation of large data analysis because real data may have a limitation, especially in emerging markets. However, the panelists believe that the explosion of mobile phone use becomes a current source of unlimited data and has the functionality for many purposes. The data relating to the purchase that is obtained using mobile phones have been used to contribute in determining credit points in a market, and other such data were used to understand and map the traffic patterns in more congested cities.

An executive who wants to deploy these significant data in Asia need to hire people who have high levels of skills in analytics and mathematics and that most of the time we understand that this talent is very rare in today's market, as well as in most world organizations also.

The Universities as SMU created a specialized focus in developing these skills. Panelist Steven Miller, vice chancellor and dean of the School of SMU Information Systems, warned that companies have the need to expand their concept of analysis since they want to make use of these significant data in innovative ways.

"It is not only a person who has a Ph.D. in statistics. This is an individual who has a real understanding of the information can provide to the business," said Miller. "The real problem that exists today in organizations is that the scientists go to until a limited point and business leaders over there, and there is no communication between them. It is important to discuss what is possible because this is crucial to innovation."

Davenport said that this experiment that big data offers can be explored aggressively by companies in the next decade. Big companies will run a relentless series of tests for various markets and segments, and thus will allow customers that they explore different value propositions. Big Data will also conduct a comprehensive analysis of the most accessed social media in this way large enterprises can understand how the various networks of people tend to influence each other when making purchases. Asia-Pacific has the key to the future with this kind of experimental innovation, mainly because it is a diverse region and constantly changing.

Davenport also said that most reputable companies are heading for constant experimentation and carry out thousands of small experiments. It is a culture change for many organizations, but the results will be amazing.

It should shock nobody to find out that, once again, Singapore has topped the list of best places in the world in which to do business.

The Economist Intelligence Unit has been compiling this list for decades and, in the last 7 years, Singapore has been its leader.

The rankings take a number of important factors into account, including politics, openness, efficiency, speed, taxes and the job market.

Despite its small size, Singapore's laws are perfect for people looking to make big investments. The government does all it can to remove the red tape that so many other nations see as essential to managing their economies. This means foreign investment can be done without the tedious bureaucracy demanded elsewhere. Meanwhile, low corporation taxes ensure investors get the most of their money, without having to break off a large chunk for the local authorities.

While Switzerland, Sweden, Denmark and Sweden all found their way into the top ten, the surprising absence of some of the Eurozone's richest countries from the top ten speaks volumes. A mixture of fall-out from the economic crisis, endless bureaucracy and strict taxation all make the EU a frustrating place to do business, and there is no place for even heavy hitters such as France and Germany in the top ten. The UK, whose capital was once the engine of the world's economy, doesn't even make the top 20, only appearing in 21st position, one spot ahead of Malaysia.

Now after Brexit followed by Donald Trump we will soon need a total revision.

As Jim Rogers, famous US investor who recently moved to Singapore, puts it:

"If you were smart in 1807 you moved to London. If you were smart in 1907 you moved to New York. If you are smart in 2015 you move to Asia. Singapore 40 years ago was a swamp with a half a million people. Now, it is the country with the largest foreign currency reserve per capita of any country in the world. It's got the best education in the world, the best health care in the world. It's astonishing to come to Singapore and see that everything works. Singapore is going to be the financial centre of Southeast Asia, probably Asia and likely to be one of the financial centres of the world."

So, what is it that makes Singapore such an attractive prospect for business people like Jim Rogers? Well, this list is a start:

Singapore is rated 1 by the EIU and the World Bank for ease of doing business. Its economy is considered the third most globalised in the world, plus it is the third richest nation according to Forbes.

Corporation tax is a mere 8.5% up to $300,000 profits and stays flat at 17% for everything above that. There's also no capital gains tax, no inheritance tax and no estate tax.

It's got a superbly well educated, hardworking labour force.

It's very politically stable, with the highest quality of life in Asia.

It's extremely safe, with a focus upon peaceful living and law and order on the island.

It is a very multicultural society, with a hugely diverse population, yet has never suffered any of the race-related unrest issues that are common in many other multicultural countries.

The Singaporean economy is now one of the most influential in the world, attracting huge investment from all over the globe thanks to its free, open and very tax-effective business laws. There is simply no more pro-business place to do business and, as more companies wake up to this fact, expect even greater concentration on the South East Asian state in the coming years.

If you are new to Singaporean business and want to get involved, then the sooner you do so the better. With more and more western companies looking to make a profit in Singapore and more and more western business people looking to work in Singapore, the best opportunities may not be there for long.

For those concerned about stepping into an unfamiliar business culture, then this guide will help. Here we run down the most important things to keep in mind before you start doing business in Singapore.

A westernised business culture, with an Asian hierarchy

The good news for those coming from a western business background, is that the Singaporean market-place is very much a westernised culture, despite its position in South East Asia. Unlike, say, China or Korea, where westerners constantly run the risk of embarrassing themselves by pursuing a deal with too much enthusiasm, the structure of how deals are struck in Singaporean business will be fairly familiar to anybody who has ever sat in a New York, London or Berlin boardroom. That does not mean, however, that there are not certain Asian-style workplace traditions that need to be respected – there very much are. Happily, however, they are a little easier to follow than in many other Asian nations.

Hierarchy remains a key part of the way companies are run and, like in the aforementioned Chinese and Korean economies, the senior management will make the first and final decision on everything – dissent is generally not expected or accepted. There is, however, a degree of tolerance for private debate, so long as it is reasoned and clear in its intention, though this should only be done in closed, one-on-one meetings and not in front of the whole team.

Similarly, it is considered very rude and unprofessional to get a junior member of your company to contact a senior member of a Singaporean company. Status is important here, and there is an unspoken rule that only those on the same levels will deal directly with one another. Age is a big part of this too, and the Asian tradition for respecting your elders and deferring to their experience over your youthful vigour is firmly in place here.

In fact, showing and gaining respect is really the key to how business gets done on the island. You will only build up a powerful network of business contacts by showing that you deserve their respect – through your professionalism, your usefulness and the respect you show to others. Losing face is very damaging in Singaporean business, whether it is due to your failure in a business deal or your poor personal behaviour.

Underlying all of these rules is the perhaps most important fact of all about Singapore, which is its incredible multiculturalism. The fact that this population of more than 5 million people is made up of a mix of Chinese, Indian, Malay and Western people means what is expected, culturally, in one company will differ in another. It might sound strange, but reading up on the background of the company with whom you wish to do business or for whom you wish to work will be essential to understanding how to behave.