Lee Shin Cheng

Tan Sri Dato' Lee Shin Cheng (zh-cp|c=李深静|p=Lǐ Shēnjìng is a Malaysian business magnate who's heavily involved in the plantation industry.

Tan Sri now heads IOI Group, one of the world's leading operators of palm oil plantations, refineries and related manufacturing activities. His Rotterdam refinery is the largest palm oil refinery in Europe. His plants produce specialty oils, metallic stearates and fats that are used in soaps, detergents, cosmetics and food additives. He is also a leading real estate developer in Malaysia: projects include townships, shopping malls and resorts.

He grew up northeast of Kuala Lumpur on a rubber plantation, where his father ran a small Chinese food shop. He left school when he was 11 to help support his family, selling ice cream on a bicycle for four years before returning to finish high school. He interviewed with one palm oil plantation for a supervisory job, but wasn't hired because he didn't speak English--important then because Europeans still ran most of the plantations. (Some 20 years later he took over that company; Dunlop Estate) Instead, at 22 he became a field supervisor at another palm oil company. That is when he started to develop his hands-on managerial style and home in on what it took to maximize yields. In those days palm oil was used in detergent as well as for cooking.

By 1982 Tan Sri was in control of a small company and used it to buy a listed gas outfit, Industrial Oxygen Inc. Two years later he set out to create the palm oil industry's blue-chip player. In 1995 he changed the name to IOI and today he and his family--he's married and has six children--own 40%. That's helped make him Malaysia's 4th richest and world's 349th richest person; FORBES ASIA puts his net worth at $3.9 billion. His two sons and four daughters all work in the business, with his eldest son, 40-year-old Dato' Lee Yeow Chor, serving as an executive director.

In recognition of Tan Sri's immense contributions to the evolving needs and aspirations of the property industry in Malaysia, he was bestowed the singular honour of FIABCI Malaysia Property Man of the Year 2001 Award. In February 2002, he was conferred the Honorary Doctorate Degree in Agriculture by Universiti Putra Malaysia in recognition of his contributions to the palm oil industry. He is also active in providing his advice and guidance to a large number of industry groupings, associations and social organisations. He serves as, among others, a Board Member of Universiti Putra Malaysia, the Adviser to the KL & Selangor Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry, a Council Member of Malaysian Palm Oil Association (MPOA), a member of Malaysia-China Business Council, the Honorary President of Association of Eng Choon Societies of Malaysia and Federation of Hokkien Association of Malaysia. In addition, he also provides scholarships and educations grants to outstanding and bright young students via Yayasan Tan Sri Dato’ Lee Shin Cheng.

References

* [http://www.ioigroup.com/ http://www.ioigroup.com/]
* Wiki on IOI Group
* [http://members.forbes.com/global/2007/0618/030.html Article from Forbes]