Dominic A/L Francis
Workplace: Bukit Leelau Palm Oil Mill
Studied At: University of Malaya
Course: Mechanical Engineering
Year Joined: 2016
Dominic obtained a scholarship from Yayasan TSLSC in 2012 during his first year of studies and graduated as a mechanical engineer from University of Malaya in 2016. He excelled in both academics and extra-curricular activities during his time at university.
Among his finest achievements was successfully leading a group of 19 committee members to organize Student Leadership Convention 2016, a national level convention involving all Higher Education Institutions in Malaysia. The event was attended by 36 distinguished speakers and 150 delegates. He also represented Malaysia in 2015 for a youth exchange program at Seoul, South Korea organised by the Ministry of Youth and Sports Malaysia. Dominic represented his university in 2016 for the Offshore Technology Conference held in KLCC and also presented a paper entitled `Enhancement of Efficiency of Conventional Sterilization Process in Palm Oil Mil’ in Enginius, an Engineering Conference organized by University of Malaya. He was a student facilitator for his university’s orientation week in 2014, Deputy Director of Residential College Indian Cultural Night, and also the Director of Residential College Futsal Competition.
Dominic has a passion for football, dancing and video editing. He is currently registered as a Graduate Engineer with Board of Engineers Malaysia (BEM) and is a director of project management for LEAD Malaysia. He is currently serving his bond as an Assistant Manager at Bukit Leelau Palm Oil Mill.
Our team caught up with Dominic to find out what he has been up to since joining the Group. Here’s our chat with him.
How did you benefit from the Yayasan Tan Sri Lee Shin Cheng Scholarship?
Scholarships mean a reward for the past, opportunity for the future, and motivation for the present. This scholarship means the hard work has really paid off, especially from my family who have supported me from the beginning. YTSLSC scholarship allowed me to attend a top institution like University of Malaya, and for that, I’m forever grateful. My scholarship has given me such peace of mind as I don’t have to worry about paying fees, I have been able to pursue many amazing opportunities. Besides, it also empowers me to approach my education with confidence.
How would you describe your role in IOI Group?
As a recipient of IOI scholarship, I started my first job here in Bukit Leelau Palm Oil Mill as a Cadet Engineer, and am now holding the Assistant Manager post. Working with IOI has been very challenging as time goes by. I managed to acquire new knowledge and skills related to Palm Oil Milling Industries. Besides gaining experience in operation and maintenance of power plant and boiler as well as related machineries, I am always further enhancing my management skills. Initially it was difficult for me to accommodate myself with this new environment as I was growing up in the middle of KL city and never experienced estate life once in my life. Slowly I learned to manage and work along with people here. Even though rural life is a bit challenging, I am working hard to gain experience and to excel in my field. As how I say to myself every day, “No matter what life throws at you, keep soaring high.”
What do you like most about the job?
I get to do what I am passionate about, mechanical engineering specifically machineries. I also have the good fortune of interacting with so many different personalities on a regular basis (extroverts, introverts, optimists, pessimists). Being an Assistant Manager helps me in understanding the current challenges being faced in management side, it gives me an opportunity to study the organizational climate and the setup in which we are working, gives me an opportunity to work with teams in order to achieve organization vision and mission. This job also requires constant learning. There's always something new to do, and new techniques to apply to solve problems better. The rate of learning has increased over time, which is remarkable.
Life Slogan
Life doesn’t give what you WANT, but what you DESERVE, so don’t give up and keep on trying.
Things you can’t live without?
The things I couldn't live without fall into two categories, material and emotional.
I couldn't live without my family and friends; my passion and happiness; prayers, travelling and football. Not a day goes by where I am not grateful or appreciative of or for something most days many things, and many times. Therefore I cannot imagine my life without these two amazing aspects of it, and I definitely do not see how I could live without them.
There are also some material things that I feel I couldn't live without, though I'm sure if I had to then I would cope! My cell phone, internet and car!