Veteran public servant Mr Clarence Ti appointed NUS Deputy President (Administration)
Mr Clarence Ti will be the University’s new Deputy President (Administration) from 12 May 2021.
Mr Ti, who is currently the Principal and Chief Executive Officer of Ngee Ann Polytechnic, will oversee the University’s administrative policies and functions, specifically the University Health Centre, NUS Information Technology, Office of Legal Affairs, Central Procurement Office as well as the Office of Risk Management and Compliance. He will also assist NUS President Professor Tan Eng Chye in the University’s transformational efforts in the area of organisational excellence.
Mr Ti succeeds Mr John Wilton, who had served as NUS’ Deputy President (Administration and Finance) from July 2018 to January 2021.
“NUS is a truly forward-looking organisation that is constantly making bold changes to prepare itself for the uncertainties and challenges that lie ahead,” said Mr Ti.
“On my part, I love working with people to creatively manage transformation and change, support innovation and entrepreneurship, and adopt new technologies. With this clear alignment of values with NUS, I’m excited about taking on this challenge and working with the University’s dedicated staff members to continue their good work."
Two decades of public service
Mr Ti has a wealth of experience in the public service, having served for more than 20 years.
He has been Principal and Chief Executive Officer of Ngee Ann Polytechnic since May 2014, where he led the polytechnic in expanding innovation and entrepreneurship programmes, in adopting emerging tech such as data and AI, and in promoting service learning.
Before that, he was at the Ministry of Finance, where he was Chief Executive of Vital, the shared services arm of the Singapore public service. Vital provides HR, finance and payroll services, and serves some 80,000 public servants in over 100 government agencies.
Mr Ti also served at the Ministry of Law where he was Director for Strategic Planning; the Singapore Land Authority where he was Director of Land Business Management; and the Singapore Economic Development Board, where his roles included being Head of Strategic Planning and Director of the San Francisco Centre.
Mr Ti sits on the boards of the Civil Service College, National Institute of Early Childhood Development, and the Action Community for Entrepreneurship. He had also served on the Future Economy Council of Singapore.
He holds a BSc (with High Honors) as well as an MSc in Electrical Engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in the US, and an MBA with distinction from INSEAD.
NUS President Prof Tan expressed the University’s thanks to Mr Wilton, who brought immense passion and professionalism to the University. “Under his leadership, NUS embarked on major new initiatives covering finance, human resources, procurement, risk and compliance, legal services, health services, as well as organisational transformation.”
Mr Ti is well placed for his NUS leadership role given his public sector experience of more than 20 years, with the last 10 years in the top position of two public service organisations, said Prof Tan.
“My NUS colleagues and I look forward to working closely with Clarence to develop an even more efficient and forward-looking administration to ensure that NUS continues to be nimble and resilient in a post-COVID world,” Prof Tan added.
