Hey, I'm Jovan
I'm a Maverick, a Hustler, and a Changemaker
Jovan has vast experience in launching & consulting for both for-profit and non-profit enterprises. In his previous roles, he has led special projects and built business units from scratch to profitability. More recently, he was also involved in venture capital, teaching, and research.
Today, he spends most of his time in:
- Pushing the knowledge boundaries of innovation and sustainability as he works towards earning his Ph.D.
- Changing the global narrative of innovation for the good with Restorative Innovation and the RIGHT Foundation.
- Building the next trillion-dollar company, TRIA, to fundamentally shift the global food services industry towards a more sustainable pattern of consumption, and eventually, enabling the sectoral players to achieve zero-waste.
- Actively volunteering his time to empower and nurture aspiring entrepreneurs and leaders of tomorrow.
Jovan earned his first degree in Innovation and Entrepreneurship from the University of Adelaide, and his Master of Science in Management from the National University of Singapore.
Selected Publication:
[Invited Book Chapter]
Tan J. and V. Cha, "Innovation for Circular Economy", chapter 29 in L. Liu and S. Ramakrishna (eds), An Introduction to Circular Economy, Springer Nature, 2020 (forthcoming)
Making a Difference
The most challenging, yet meaningful & impactful work I'm currently involved in
Building the Next Game Changer
Chief Evangelist, TRIA
TRIA is a leading food packaging company that puts the people and planet first. At TRIA, we take a hands-on full-stack development approach - from design to prototyping and manufacturing - to empower our clients to achieve their customer experience and sustainability goals. This approach led us to serve more than 100 million meals a year with notable clients like Old Chang Kee, Tim Ho Wan, CRAVE, 4Fingers, and SATS. It also allowed us to receive leading packaging design awards such as the Gold Pentaward and Singapore Packaging Star Award.
Besides providing sustainable foodware, TRIA is also known for its Bio24 system, a world's first closed-loop solution that turns disposable dining foodware and food waste into farm-ready compost in just 24 hours. It is an elegant end-to-end solution that enables the global food services industry to achieve zero-waste.
As the Chief Evangelist, I fervently champion the company's cause, support its growth efforts, and advise the CEO on key strategic issues.
Expanding the Knowledge Boundaries
PhD Student, National University of Singapore
My research interest is in innovation and sustainable development. For my doctoral thesis, I am developing a comprehensive decision support model capable of rapidly computing the life cycle analysis and costing of any newly introduced innovation.
The success of this model will enable organizations to have greater visibility on the impacts of their innovations and empowers them to make strategic decisions, such as to revise their production, engineering, and logistical processes before they commit resources to manufacture and distribute the aforementioned innovation. I hope this model can be a catalyst for organizations to introduce more sustainable innovations that contributes to the betterment of our society.
Changing Mindset, Encouraging Action
Co-Creator, Restorative Innovation
Founder, RIGHT Foundation
Restorative Innovation was co-created by Professor Virginia Cha (INSEAD & NUS) and I after we discovered a distinctive pattern of growth for innovative solutions that are designed to do good across our health, humanity, and the environment.
The Restorative Innovation model encapsulated our insights and illustrated the possibility of introducing innovative solutions that can generate profits, scale, and do good, all at the same time. That discovery led us to firmly believed that our work can greatly influence and change how business leaders and the public think about innovation. Therefore, we establish the RIGHT Foundation to make the world a better place with Restorative Innovation by advancing its body of knowledge and proliferating it globally. The RIGHT Foundation is a registered non-profit think tank in Singapore.
Today, Restorative Innovation is being taught in leading Singapore tertiary institutions and the foundation has hosted, participated, and spoke on Restorative Innovation at no less than 20 global events and conferences. We have also published numerous articles, papers, and were also recently invited to contribute a book chapter on Restorative Innovation for an upcoming textbook on the Circular Economy by Springer Nature.
Shaping the Next Generation
Advisor, STEAM Platform by King Mongkut's University of Technology Thonburi (KMUTT)
STEAM Platform of Transformation, piloted at the King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi (KMUTT) during 2018 in Bangkok, provides an experiential learning and training program on knowledge convergence, circular mindset & strategic communication skills and leadership and entrepreneurship. The STEAM program fosters youth leadership, especially in the Asia Pacific region, to accelerate the transformation of today’s Linear Economy towards the emerging Smart Circular Economy. The STEAM training program involves understanding technological innovation, strategically communicating innovation, and the practice of innovation.
As Advisor to KMUTT's STEAM Platform, I advise the leadership team on key subjects concerning youth entrepreneurship, engagement, and leadership in innovation and sustainability.
Fostering an Entrepreneurial Community
Chairman, SAFRA Entreprenuers' Club
Members of the SAFRA Entrepreneurs' Club (SEC) are NSmen who are either aspiring or active entrepreneurs. Our mission is to empower them with the knowledge, skillset, and connections to succeed as entrepreneurs. We organize a variety of activities for our members to learn and network from one another, and with industry veterans. We also have an Entrepreneurs' Marketplace, which is a low-risk platform for our members to roll up their sleeves, get their hands dirty, and try hustling. The marketplace is a safe environment for our members to explore and decide if entrepreneurship is something they wish to pursue.
As Chairman of the SEC, I work with my fellow committee members to steer the club towards achieving our mission and serving our members to the best of our abilities.
In recognition of my service and contributions, I was also presented with both the "Outstanding New Volunteer Award" and the "Individual Commendation Award" in SAFRA's 15th Award Ceremony.
Defining the Industry
Committee Member, Technical Committee on Food Services, Food Standards Committee, Singapore Standards Council
Together with the rest of the Technical Committee, we advise the Food Standards Committee on the strategic direction and provide the technical expertise, experience, and views in relation to the standards under "Food Services" including its possible outcomes for stakeholders, e.g. industry, consumers, etc.
We also appoint Working Groups (WGs) of technical experts from key organizations to draft, review and promote standards [International Standards (IS), Singapore Standard (SS) and Technical Reference (TR)] and develop and facilitate the use of standards in a specified area.
