RGE 50 celebrations kicked off with a three-day celebration in Medan, Indonesia. It was in Medan where a young Sukanto Tanoto started his entrepreneurial journey under difficult family circumstances. Five decades later, RGE manages a successful group of world-class resource-based companies with over US$18 billion in assets and 60,000 employees.

Reconnecting with the past, moving towards the future

Over three days, nearly 400 senior employees and their spouses from various business groups around the world participated in enrichment workshops, a uniquely Medan night festival and a gala dinner. New ties were forged and renewed with alumni and friends across the group. Through various activities, everyone reconnected with the group’s past and future.

An exhibit and hour-long documentary featured the storied history of RGE and how it overcame many challenges through the years. From the small spare parts shop in Medan, the group has expanded its business into pulp & paper (APRIL and Asia Symbol), palm oil (Asian Agri and Apical), specialty cellulose (Bracell), viscose fibre (Sateri), and energy (Pacific Oil & Gas). Business groups operate in Indonesia, China, Brazil, Spain and Canada. Today, the Group seeks to be one of the largest, best-managed and sustainable resource-based groups, creating value for the Community, Country, Climate, Customer and Company.

At the enrichment workshops, employees renewed their understanding and commitment to the RGE core values of Complementary Team, Ownership, People, Integrity, Customer and Continuous Improvement. They also participated in brainstorming activities to discuss how to embed and live out these values across operations in daily mindset, behaviour and action.

The exhibit also featured winning photos from the RGE core values photo competition.

The Medan celebrations culminated in a gala dinner at Uni Plaza where RGE President Mr Tey Wei Lin reminded everyone to remain true to the core values. He said, “The core values have brought RGE to where we are today. It is not just a set of slogans but something real for all of us. We have the responsibility to uphold them, to develop our people and never rest on our laurels. Today must be better than yesterday, and tomorrow, better than today. A solid foundation has been laid. We will grow and build upon it in the many years ahead.”

Throughout August, celebrations took place in various RGE locations in Indonesia, Singapore, China and Brazil – each in its own unique ways but all in high spirits and energy!