Lessons from leading a growing business

Text: Sadia Roohi

For Carolyn Choo, navigating uncertainty has been both a reality and a responsibility.

The alumna of Nanyang Business School is the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Worldwide Hotels, Singapore’s largest homegrown hotel group.

Since joining the family business in 2002 during the SARS crisis, she has led its transformation and regional expansion. Today, the group operates seven hotel brands with 41 properties and more than 8,600 rooms in Singapore, alongside 11 hotels in key gateway cities in Australia, Japan, Malaysia, South Korea and Thailand, with over 2,500 rooms. 

She was also named EY’s Entrepreneur Of The Year for Hospitality Services in 2025, and featured in Tatler’s Most Influential Singapore 2025 and Forbes Asia’s Power Businesswomen 2023 lists. In recognition of her leadership and contributions to education and philanthropy, Carolyn was conferred the Nanyang Alumni Achievement Award 2025 by NTU.

Carolyn Choo, CEO and Managing Director of Worldwide Hotels, reflects on the lessons that have shaped her career.

In a rare opportunity, she will be speaking to fellow alumni at the upcoming Alumni Learning Day on 14 March 2026. Her opening plenary, “Shaping the Future: Lifelong Skills and Resilience for Every Stage of Life”, will feature other outstanding alumni, including Senior Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office Mr Desmond Tan, and CEO of Keppel Limited’s Infrastructure Division Cindy Lim. Alumni can look forward to practical, actionable takeaways drawn from the speakers’ professional journeys.

Ahead of the March event, Carolyn shares her reflections on leadership, learning and navigating change.

Q1: When you look back at your career so far, what has helped you keep going, especially through periods of uncertainty or change?

What has kept me going is a strong sense of purpose and responsibility. I stepped into the family business during the SARS crisis, when uncertainty was the norm rather than the exception. In those moments, clarity of purpose mattered more than certainty of outcomes. I focused on what needed to be done: stabilising the business, supporting people, and making decisions with a long-term view. Having a mentor really helps give that boost of confidence and support. I also learned early on that resilience is not about having all the answers but about staying grounded, learning quickly, and moving forward with discipline and humility.

Q2: Many professionals worry about staying relevant as roles and industries shift. What has helped you navigate those moments personally?

I have found that relevance comes from continuous learning and openness to change. Industries evolve, technology reshapes roles, and assumptions that once worked may no longer apply. What helped me was staying curious, investing in my own development, and being willing to unlearn as much as I learned. Equally important is listening: to colleagues, customers, and younger team members, because relevance often comes from understanding perspectives beyond your own experience.

Q3: Were there times when your priorities changed as your career progressed? What prompted those shifts?

Yes, my priorities evolved as my responsibilities grew. Early in my career, the focus was on execution and proving capability. Over time, it shifted towards building teams, culture, and systems that could sustain growth beyond any one individual. Personal milestones also played a role; becoming a parent made me more intentional about balance, perspective, and well-being. These shifts reminded me that success is not just about scale or results, but about building something meaningful and sustainable.

Q4: For alumni at different stages of their careers, what do you think matters more than we often realise when it comes to building a career that lasts?

What often matters more than we realise is character; how you show up in difficult moments. Skills and credentials open doors, but integrity, resilience, and the ability to work well with others determine how far you go. A career that lasts is built on adaptability, relationships, and a willingness to take responsibility when things are uncertain. It is also important to define success on your own terms rather than relying solely on external benchmarks.

Q5: What do you hope alumni will walk away with after hearing your session at Alumni Learning Day?

I hope the alumni walk away feeling reassured that careers are rarely linear and that uncertainty is not a setback, but often a catalyst for growth. My wish is for them to reflect on their own purpose, stay open to learning at every stage, and recognise that sustainable success comes from aligning professional ambition with personal values and well-being. If they leave feeling more confident about navigating change with clarity and resilience, that would be meaningful to me.

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Assistant Professor Paul Victor Patinadan

For alumni who are feeling stressed out, Dr Paul Victor Patinadan (left), an Assistant Professor with NTU’s Psychology Programme at the School of Social Sciences, will speak on ways to maintain wellbeing in today’s working lives. He will explain the concept of wellbeing to alumni. He said, “Most contemporary workplaces subscribe to what researchers call a ‘culture of silence,’ where strong expressions of emotion or discussions about personal lives are frowned upon, unwelcome, or restricted. However, breaking this culture of silence has been observed to promote significant healing, especially after the traumatic experiences a person may face in life.”

Hear from industry leaders, subject matter experts and fellow alumni and gain actionable insights to help you thrive in the modern workforce. Find out about Alumni Learning Day 2026 and register now.