Educator by Day, Dad by Night

I avoided speaking at all costs.

Speech impediment. Paralyzing fear. Zero confidence.

Now I teach others to do the very thing I once couldn’t.

✅ Advise Fortune 500s on AI-driven marketing & sales
✅ Organize CMO Roundtables that bring Asia’s top marketing leaders together
✅ Lecture at top universities across Asia, helping students find their voice

What changed?

Not talent. Not timing.

Just this: I kept showing up. Even when I was scared.

I share this because too many students and professionals still believe confidence is something you’re born with.

It’s not.

It’s built - through repetition, reflection, and real-world reps.

If you’re building yours, I’d love to hear your story too.

P.S. If I could turn my biggest fear into my career - you can too.

Joe Escobedo

I taught 50+ masters students at Singapore Management University 

How to cut their job search time in half using AI.

75% of resumes never reach a human (they get read by the Terminator). 

Instead, I share 3 proven approaches:

1) Use AI to decode the job description first. 

Match your resume bullets to its exact language. Then score for ATS fit before you hit send.

2) Your LinkedIn headline is not your job title. 

"MBA Graduate | Open to Work" is invisible. "Helping B2B SaaS companies 3x pipeline with AI-powered marketing | CMO-track | SEA" gets found.

3) Keep outreach under 75 words. 

Reference something real about them. One specific ask. Read it aloud. If it sounds robotic, rewrite it.

One student rewrote her resume bullet live during the session. 

Before: "Responsible for marketing campaigns." 

After: a specific number, a target audience, and a result tied to revenue.

Remember, 70%+ of jobs never get posted publicly. 

The people who land them sent a good message to the right person at the right time. 

AI makes that faster. It doesn't make it automatic.

Joe Escobedo aka JoeGPT

AI Marketing Advisor, CMO Roundtable Host, Trusted by 25k Leaders, Author (How to Get a Job in Asia)

"Joe, everyone knows you," my friend teased. 

I laughed it off. "No they don't."

Three seconds later, a young woman walked up to our table.

"Are you Joe?"

I nodded.

Her face lit up. 

"I was one of your students in your Boston Consulting Group (BCG) class."

Then she said something I wasn't ready for.

She still remembered my class.

And she informed me she'd just been promoted to Managing Director of a social enterprise (AMGD Global) here in Singapore.

(Why are all my former students trying to make me cry hehe.)

I don't know how many students I've taught over the years. Thousands. 

Maybe more.

I don't always know what lands. 

Most of the time, you just show up, give everything you have, and they walk out the door.

You teach into a void and hope something sticks.

But sometimes, years later, someone crosses a restaurant to find you.

And you realize the void was listening the whole time.

To every teacher, trainer, mentor, and coach reading this... keep going.

You have no idea who you're shaping.

(Thanks to all the people that made this magical moment possible Yvonne Tan, Mei Lee, Julie Wang, and Nadhrah Alhadi...so proud of you!)

21,000 followers.

When I started posting on LinkedIn, I genuinely thought my mom and two classmates were my entire audience. (Hi Mom.)

So hitting 21,000 feels worth a small celebration, and some completely useless-but-fascinating facts about the number 21,000:

🔢 21,000 hours is roughly 2.4 years. About how long it takes to truly master something, according to the "10,000-hour rule people" (give or take).

🌍 21,000 years ago, the last Ice Age was still in full swing. Humans were already hustling, just with fewer LinkedIn notifications.

✈️ A Boeing 747 cruises at about 21,000 feet before reaching full altitude. Still climbing.

📬 More practically: this community is now bigger than many mid-sized towns in Asia.

What I've learned from 21,000 of you: 

B2B professionals across APAC are hungry for practical, no-BS insights on AI, marketing, and doing business across cultures.

That's exactly what I plan to keep delivering.

Thank you for being here. 

The best posts are still ahead (at least I hope so).

Being competent is not a career strategy. 😭

I used to think if you did good work, people would notice. 

Then I started running workshops with mid-career professionals and kept hearing the same story: reliable, capable, even indispensable.

And still invisible when promotion decisions got made.

Sat down with Dawn Fiona C., Alex Loh 劳星裕, and Debbie Yong on The Financial Coconut to unpack why that happens and what to do about it.

We covered:
- 5 real scenarios where capable professionals get overlooked
- How AI has shifted what effort and expertise actually look like
- What leaders evaluate when deciding who's ready for the next level

Especially worth it if you're an introvert or someone who'd rather do great work than play office politics.

🎧 5 Things No One Ever Taught You About Getting Ahead at Work ▶️ Link in the comments

Big thanks to Cheryl Lau for inviting me and producing everything!

Are young Singaporeans redefining success, or just burning out faster?

Cheryl Ng did both before she turned 20.

Study Instagram at 17. Quit from burnout. Return in Poly. Sleep 2 hours.

Breakdown. 

Eight hours of sleep. Better grades. Better focus. 4.0 GPA. 

Advocate for mental wellness while staying ruthlessly ambitious.

Her story isn't unusual in this part of the world. The pressure to perform is real, it's early, and it compounds.

What shifted for Cheryl:

- She stopped measuring herself by titles and output
- She used the goal gradient effect to build habits that didn't rely on willpower
- She reframed AI and uncertainty as tools, not threats

The students and executives I work with across APAC are hungry. 

That's not the problem. 

The problem is most of them have never been taught that rest is a performance variable.

Cheryl figured it out at 20. Some people never do (including me for many years).

At what age did you start treating recovery as part of the job?

(Link to full episode in the comments)

$50,000 in prizes for founders solving one of Asia's biggest challenges.

Asia is ageing fast.

That's what the SUSS Entrepreneurship team is trying to fix with Pitch for Good.

Having partnered with the team and have watched this come together over many months. 

The team has built real pathways for winners: 
- testbedding opportunities
- up to 50,000 in cash prizes 
- flight sponsorship for non-local founders

Grand Finals: 26 August 2026 
Deadline to apply: 17 May 2026

If you're building in ageing-tech, eldercare, or social innovation, this is the one to enter.

Tag a founder who should know about this.

#PitchForGood #Geronpreneurship #Singapore #SocialInnovation #SUSS

A roundtable costs around $10,000+ per session. 

Most companies waste that budget before the invites go out.

I was talking with a CMO last week. 

She was direct about what she actually wants from an executive event: ❌ no sales pitches
❌ no product demos
❌ no awkward cold-table seating

What works in Singapore is a 
✅ room of 10-14 people
✅ a facilitator who can move a conversation 
✅ a topic that ties back to your target audience's KPIs

The value is in the conversation, not the slide deck though. 

Sponsors who understand that get referrals. 

Sponsors who don't get a room full of people checking their phones.

If you've hosted or attended a roundtable in APAC recently, what made it worth your time?

The best marketers aren't the ones who know the most tools.

I've noticed this across every workshop I run in SE Asia. 

The person who walks out with the clearest plan is rarely the most experienced in the room. 

They're the one who came in knowing exactly what they don't know.

That gap — between digital activity and measurable ROI — is what the High-Impact Digital Marketing Masterclass is built around.

8 & 9 April, JW Marriott Kuala Lumpur. 

Topics:
- AI-powered marketing and automation
- Content strategy for lead generation
- Paid advertising (Facebook and Google)
- Conversion rate optimization
- Data, analytics, and ROI measurement

✅ HRD Corp claimable. 
✅ Past participants gave it a 9.5/10 average rating, which I'm told is unusual for a 2-day program.

If your team is spending on digital marketing but struggling to show what it's producing, this is the right room.

Contact Azmina: +60123500766 / Eugene: +60109154521.

Will AI steal my job (or my spouse)?!

I get asked this question a lot. 

For my upcoming Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS) (B2B Digital Marketing class), I plan on flipping it around:

- What does AI do better than you? 
- What do you do better than AI? 
- Where do you need each other?

AI wins on speed, synthesis, pattern recognition. 

It can read 10,000 customer reviews and find the three things nobody said out loud. 4 seconds. Not 4 hours.

Humans win on judgment that requires context, relationships, and knowing when the data is lying. 

You can tell when a client is unhappy even though the NPS score says 8. 

AI can't.

The jobs disappearing aren't the ones AI can do. 

They're the ones where people refused to learn how to work alongside it.

The spouse question though? (Still figuring that one out....)

AI is making your employees lazy (or lazier, in some instances.) 

Here's what's actually happening inside most organizations right now:

Someone needs to write a proposal.
They prompt AI. 
They get something 'decent.'
They copy and paste, then send it.

No real thinking. No real creativity. No judgment applied. 

Just a prompt, an output, and a deadline met.
Multiply that by your entire team. Every day. For 12 months.

And you wonder why they're not getting results.

The problem isn't the tool (*insert shocked GIF*). 

It's that nobody taught your people how to use it without switching their brains off.

The AI "gurus" will tell you to move faster. Automate everything. 

I'll tell you something different: 

The most valuable thing your employees bring to work is their judgment. 

Their creativity. Their ability to think.

AI should sharpen that. Not replace it.

If your people are using AI as a crutch instead of a weapon, you're not transforming. 

You're just getting busier and staying average.

Aquila Clean Energy APAC

Aquila Clean Energy Asia Pacific (APAC) is an energy platform that funds, develops and operates clean energy assets including solar PV, wind power and battery storage. Through developing and managing clean energy assets, we are committed to advancing the energy transition towards a more sustainable future. 

Aquila Clean Energy APAC is part of the broader Aquila Group, an investment and asset development company focused on generating and managing essential assets on behalf of its clients. By investing in clean energy and sustainable infrastructure, Aquila Group contributes to the global energy transition and strengthens the world’s infrastructure backbone. 

Currently Aquila Group has EUR 14.6 billion assets under management on behalf of institutional investors worldwide and a 16.6 GW clean energy portfolio.

Senior Corporate Communications Manager

Refiine

Founder

I launched Refiine in May 2020 to help companies and individuals define, refine and grow their brands and enhance their communications. In addition to consulting on brand strategy, I craft targeted communications for internal and external audiences including blogs, newsletters, emails, announcements, web copy, press releases and corporate narratives in collaboration with founders/senior leadership and client-side marketing and communications teams. Since the launch of my business, I've helped multinational, entrepreneur and SME clients grow their brands and engagement.

Brand Strategist and Communications Lead

Tech Data

As Head of Communications, APAC, I led regional internal and external communications including M&A, integration and change management communications. Heading corporate and executive communications, and through creating engaging presentations, webinars, videos, panel discussions and transformation communications, I enabled stakeholders to understand and embrace corporate and regional strategy, business priorities, value propositions, brand identity, and organizational changes. I had an integral role in Tech Data's internal communications transformation and launch of Social Chorus, an innovative, social-focused colleague communications platform. As part of the global communications team, I achieved 90% Social Chorus employee adoption, surpassing the industry benchmark of 50% within the given timeframe.

Head of Communcations, APAC

PrimeTime Business and Professional Women's Association

PrimeTime is a Singapore-based NPO whose mission is to help every woman reach her highest potential.

As a member of the Board of Directors, I headed strategic efforts to grow the community including establishing a dedicated membership team focused on the retention of members. Applied a data-driven approach to performance tracking and community engagement; converting data into insights and opportunities to improve engagement and communications.

Membership Director

Responsible for tracking and engaging PrimeTime's vibrant 300-member strong community of business and professional women.

Membership Deputy Director

Identified, initiated and nurtured mutually beneficial partnerships with corporates and vendors.

Partnerships Operations Lead

KeyNote - Women Speakers Directory

Keynote Women’s Speaker Directory is a Singapore-based NPO whose mission is to bring diversity to the speaking stages of the world. 

Conceptualized and created all branding and content requirements for Keynote’s inaugural online Global Summit (Speaking up for a Better World). Promoted meaningful engagement with Keynote’s flagship event (Equity in Action) and the International Women’s Day 2020 event through targeted social media outreach. Developed high-impact, on-brand copy for publication across digital channels – driving 30% growth in the LinkedIn follower base within less than 6-months.

Content Marketing Lead

Ace Hardware International

Responsible for growing sales & profitability in all channels across four Asia markets (Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia & South Korea). Created win-win strategies with partners across the region and collaborated on product marketing, merchandising, promotions, pricing, customer engagement & inventory positioning. Successfully project managed projects with third party stakeholders and vendors. Responsibilities also included international event hosting & coordination including logistics, agenda & itinerary, networking and workshops. I grew the business 38% during this period.

Senior Regional Sales Manager

Responsible for growing sales in all channels across 6 Middle East & North Africa markets (Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Afghanistan, Libya, & UAE). Conducted competitor market research and led store audits with the aim of creating meaningful, actionable recommendations on maintaining franchise brand standards. Was SPOC bridging the gaps between HQ and regional partners and collaborated cross-functionally with operations, logistics, supply chain & customer service to exceed commercial goals.

Regional Sales Manager

Transmed

At Transmed as Sales Manager I led foodservice restaurant sales in the UAE with a team of four. I was also responsible for new hire onboarding as well as ad hoc training and coaching on territory development, customer prospecting & relationship building. Other roles included Sales Executive where I managed 70 accounts and collaborated with product management on marketing, product launches and brand penetration. Was promoted within 18 months.

Sales Manager

SUNDANCE EVENTS

As Sales Executive I led outbound sales including generating leads, cold-calling, and managing the sales pipeline. Built and grew client database and collaborated with creative team on conceptualizing events.

Sales Executive

Dubai International Film Festival

As part of the Guest Relations team, I completed flight, transportation and hotel bookings for guests of the festival, including VIPs, and was in charge of delivering exceptional guest service at the event.

Guest Relations Department

Toronto International Film Festival

Note: Worked on the 2005, 2006 and 2007 Editions of the Festival (July/August to September, annually)

I'm passionate about storytelling, including unearthing stories, and finding creative ways to tell them and feel great purpose helping businesses & people communicate their value more impactfully. 

Adept at leading the strategy and execution of results-driven internal and external corporate communication campaigns, I've also led executive communications, and supported M&A, transformation and change management initiatives.

My experience working with global MNCs across Asia Pacific and the Middle East & North Africa combined with my commercial background gives me a unique approach to communication challenges. 

Prior to my current role, I founded my bespoke consultancy firm, Refiine, where we served diverse clients with individualized support in defining, refining and optimizing their branding and communications.

Kelly Weber

Great place branding requires a location to do two things at the same time: look in the mirror and see who they are and look out the windscreen at who they're becoming.

I was in Dubai last week and it's a place that clearly does both. Their taglines and social media campaigns over the years are proof. Easy to remember, regularly refreshed and always reflective of an evolving Emirate and its ambitions.

Before I left Singapore, a friend told me to enjoy "your Dubai" - and it made me chuckle because she knows how much I love my former desert home and it (coincidentally) also referred to a social media campaign they ran for years. #MyDubai invited everyone who lived there to share their lives and, in a way, lay claim to their home. 

From 2020 to 2025, the UAE's "Make it Happen" captured something true about the culture - a place wired for possibility, where the entrepreneurial spirit is encouraged, supported and celebrated.

And then there's "Only in Dubai." A phrase I've caught myself saying so many times without even thinking about it. When a tagline is something people already say and it resonates, it's like it rings true at a cellular level.

Their latest, "Find Your Story", feels like a natural evolution. An invitation rather than a statement. And my friend hit it close to home with her well wishes without even intending to.

Great place branding isn't just about being seen, it's about being felt. Dubai gets that and it shows.

Which place do you think does a good job aligning their branding with the experience of being there?

Pictured below: Looking out of the rear window of the Dubai metro onto the track and Sheikh Zayed Rd. 

#Branding #Communications #Marketing #Storytelling

I was at the PRCA APAC conference today and one of the panel questions was: what skills do today’s newest talent in our industry need to bring to the table?

It’s a question I always find interesting because there’s often a long list of things people expect young professionals to know. Sometimes because they had to do/know those things themselves.

But the world our young pros are entering isn’t the same one many of us started our careers in.

For me it comes down to three things: curiosity, critical thinking and reading.

Why curiosity? Because everything is changing so quickly. Curiosity is what keeps you learning and adapting.

Critical thinking, because everything these LLMs and AI tools produce isn’t necessarily good. As communicators we need to be confident that what we put into the world won’t harm, mislead or create unintended consequences. You can’t do that without questioning and challenging what the machines produce. 

And reading, because you can’t write well if you don’t read. Reading is how you digest information, understand your role, your industry and what’s happening around you. No one else is going to fill that gap for you. AI can’t yet be implanted into our brains.

Another question from the audience was how we help develop those skills.
One panellist suggested job shadowing and spending more time with senior stakeholders. Helpful ideas. But it also reminded me that the fundamentals of coaching at work haven’t really changed.

We still need to explain why we do what we do, and how. No amount of AI will change that.

So I’m curious how others are thinking about this. How are you supporting the current generation of talent when none of us has a crystal ball about where this industry is going?

Thanks to Tara M. and her team for organizing a great day and to all the panellists and speakers for the insights and ideas they sparked.

#PR #Communications #Talent #GenZ

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The Battle

Joe Escobedo

Kelly Weber

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The Battle

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Kelly Weber

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Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Joe Escobedo's LinkedIn Performance

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