Letter to Shareholders
Group President and Group CEO

Dear Shareholders,

The education industry continues to expand globally: this provides new opportunities and it also attracts competition. To respond to this, we focus to build our capacity for growth and our capability for quality performance. This will ensure our long term sustainable growth with value. It will also achieve our vision “To be a trustworthy global provider of education services.”
We are delighted to report that for the financial year 2009-2010, HELP International Corporation (HELP) has succeeded to yet again improve its financial performance. Our revenue and profit have increased year-on-year.

Financial Performance

For the financial year, HELP’s revenue and profit after tax was RM105.2 million and RM19.1 respectively compared to last year’s RM96.6 million and RM15.45. This represents an increase of 9% in our revenue and 24% in profit after tax.
Our Earnings Per Share (EPS) was RM0.206 (based on 88.7 million shares) and out Net Asset Value Per Share (NAVPS) was RM0.80.
In 2010, HELP undertook a three-for-five bonus issue which increased its share base from 88.7 million shares to 142 million shares. This expanded the  shareholders’ base for interested parties to participate in our growth. The exercise has proven to be successful: there is an increase in the number of shareholders in our company, and there is also increased trading activity. More research analysts now report HIC and there are many institutional investors that indicate investment in and partnership interests with the group.

Expansion, Differentiation, and Internationalization (EDI)

Our EDI involves the innovation of new facilities, new partnerships, new programs, and new markets.

New Facilities

By 2016 the HIC Group will have 6 campuses: 5 in Malaysia and 1 in Sydney. This is to prepare for a target population of 20,000 students around 2018.

The existing Pusat Damansara Campus (Campus 1) will renovate to upgrade some of its facilities, particularly to cope with staff expansion and the use of new teaching technologies. The Pusat Damansara Campus is well located in the high middle income class area. It has excellent access and will be further enhanced by the proposed new MRT transport linked with the rest of the Klang Valley.

During the past year, HELP also completed the acquisition of the purpose-built HELP Residence, a 21-floor hostel for our students. It can accommodate about 900 students. The property is located in a prime part of Kuala Lumpur and the acquisition price was RM50 million to be paid over five years. The Residence currently provides a yield of 8%.

HELP College of Arts and Technology (Campus 2), formerly HICT, is now relocated at Fraser Technology Park in metropolis Kuala Lumpur. The city location is strategic as it is also part of the urban redevelopment zone of the Sungei Besi area. It also has a large student catchment area and is part of the new MRT hub.  Besides the business and pre-university courses, the focus of the business model in this campus is on professional, commercial, vocational and technical programs. This includes culinary entrepreneurship, animation training and production, beauty and health care, and the leisure and recreational driven courses.

Our proposed new campus (Campus 3) in Subang 2 is expected to start construction in the third quarter of 2011. The architectural designs have been finalised and we are now in the process of appointing the contractor. We have already received the development order. This will be an iconic campus, ecologically focused, and with a well thought out learning ambience. It is part of a larger integrated township development and it therefore benefits from many complementary facilities.

On 23rd February 2011 we signed an MOU with the Naza group, a Malaysian conglomerate which has a large automotive business, to have a 50:50 JV ownership of The College of Automotive and Transportation Management. NAZA has ready-made facilities in Kuala Lumpur and Kedah to start a college campus (Campus 4).

As part of our expansion in Southern Malaysia, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed in October 2010 with developer Seri Alam Properties Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of United Malayan Land  Berhad which will build and lease a campus (Campus 5) to us in Seri Alam, Iskandar. The focus is on vocational programs, including automotive and transportation management, and hospitality and tourism management to cater for the Singapore market. The campus is located near Johore-Singapore Causeway.

The formalization of the ELM College in Sydney (Campus 6) is still being processed.

New Programs and Partnerships

HELP is very well regarded for its psychology, business, finance, accounting, and law programs. We are normally the first choice among students for these programs.

At the same time, it is also important to identify new programs to serve the growing demands arising from the rapid expansion of the Asian economies. Because of demographic, social-economic and technological changes, the demands of the work place and industries for various academic, technological and professional skills are changing. We have thus introduced new programs and innovative learning models for this.
We have identified the cultural industry, including ‘edutainment’ (education and entertainment), culinary entrepreneurship, automotive and transportation management, criminology and forensic studies, beauty and well being, and cleaning science and technology  as some of the new growth segments.

HUC and HELP CAT have planned to set up the Centre for Creative Cultural Arts. On 9th December 2010, HELP signed an agreement with Fuzeinc from Hollywood and its partners to provide Fuzeinc with animators trained at HELP CAT for their production of a new animated series called Chop Chops. Fuzeinc was founded by Hollywood veterans, notably Edward James Olmos of  Battlestar Galactica fame. The other founders are Michael D Olmos (Edward’s son) who is a director and producer, and Nickson Fong, a well known visual effects director in Hollywood, who has worked on projects such as Shrek, and the Matrix Trilogy. Animation courses and production for commercial advertising and marketing will start in mid 2011.

The hospitality, tourism and culinary industry will continue to grow in Asia; this is driven by life style changes, accompanied by rising per capita income. We have thus started to build core competency and partnerships in this area.

Thus, in November 2010, HELP International Corporation created a new partnership with Institut Paul Bocuse in Lyon, France. This institute was founded by Paul Bocuse, a world renowned three Michelin star chef. The institute will provide HELP with its expertise in French culinary and will also jointly offer programs with HELP University College and HELP CAT. This is the first three Michelin star program in the country.

Complementing this is our partnership with Normandy Business School (Ecole de Management de Normandie), France, in tourism and event management, logistics management, and business studies. NBS is a world renowned institution and has a long history of scholarship.

On 23 February 2011, HELP entered into a MOU with the Naza Group, one of the leading automotive companies in Malaysia, to establish a 50:50 joint venture to establish a new automotive and transportation management college. The College will include courses in automotive engineering, environmental and logistics management, and the business and economics of the transportation industry. A main objective is to professionalize the development of this large sector.

As part of our push into online learning, we are working with Pearson to provide technical support and up to date content for our programs. We aim to commence recruitment onto our new programs by end of 2011.

HELP also completed an investment into Swiss-based online learning company Bridge 2 Think AG. B2T offers its services and content to over 80 corporate institutions worldwide.

During October 2010 HELP management visited 10 UK institutions of higher learning. We discussed various collaborative endeavours. Some of the new partnerships will start the courses in the third quarter of 2011.

One notable development is the joint degree of Bachelor of Psychological Sciences between HELP and Flinders University, Australia. This is recognized by the Australian Psychological Association. This is a first in Malaysia, and probably in Asia. The Department of Psychology in the Faculty of Behavioural Sciences is highly regarded in Asia, and increasingly in the UK and Australia, for its research, teaching quality, and outstanding graduates.  HELP has a large post graduate program in psychology.

The HELP Business School is in a similar position as the Psychology Department. Many of its students have outstanding results in finance and accounting and are much sought after by the private sector. Working closely with CPA, ACCA, and ICAEW, the Department has produced accounting graduates who have no difficulty in securing jobs with the Big 4.  Collaborating with the University of Queensland, we have produced numerous first class graduates in finance and accounting who are on the Dean’s list.

For 2010, we have also expanded our own degrees: this includes courses in early childhood education, Master of Accounting and Finance, Graduate Diploma in Accounting, and a number of Diploma Courses. Our tie-up with Waterloo University, Canada has created a large cohort of actuarial science students who would complete under the Cooperative Program in Canada. Waterloo is ranked as one of the best in the world for computing, mathematical, and actuarial studies.

Our association with many top universities for our students to benefit from credit transfer and dual and joint degrees, or studying their degrees in Malaysia, has expanded options and diversified our partnerships to access the best: this includes, among others, LSE, UOL, UQ, ANU, Melbourne, Flinders, Institut Paul Bocuse, Normandy Business School, Northumbria University,  Cardiff University, and Guangxi University of Nationalities.

Students’ Achievements

This year marked another great year for our students. Our students have done remarkably well in terms of scholastic results and winning recognition awards and scholarships. This includes the HELP’s high achievers in the Deans’ lists in overseas universities, getting First Class Honours, being selected to do higher degrees, and excelling in other endeavours. 

One of the strong points of HELP’s graduates is their employability.  Our students are employed by multinational companies, including Google Fortune 500, GLCs and Universities. Many are also successful entrepreneurs and professionals in a wide range of industries and services.

In particular, the following graduates of HELP are much sought after: business, finance and accounting, psychology, law, HELP is the largest centre in the world for the London Edexcel A-Level program. In the recent examination, we have produced good results: 345 students sat for their A-Levels last year and 111 achieved straight A’s.

Since the establishment of the A-Levels Department, a total of 49 students received the Edexcel World Awards for perfect scores in the following subjects: Accounting, Chemistry, Biology, Mathematics, English Literature, Law, Physics, and Further Mathematics.

The HELP Foundation Certificate Program is growing and is now recognized for admission into an increasing number of UK, Australian and US universities. It is also franchised overseas.

Staff Development

To support our expansion plans and to nurture high performers in the HELP Group, we have established a number of staff development programs. This includes competency training which is served by the Centre for Teaching and Learning and the Centre for Worklplace Performance. It is our HR policy to support pipeline leadership development and academic upgrading. We thus subsidize our staff with financial incentives, including scholarships from partner universities and paid leave. To date 11 staff members are sponsored by HELP and partners to pursue their PhDs, and more than 25 are pursuing their Masters at HELP and other universities. Staff are also supported in their research and conference participation.

Corporate Social Responsibility

During the year we have awarded financial incentives to students worth about RM 18 million. These are mainly fee waivers. The criteria are based on needs and merit.

We have also been actively engaged in various CSR related activities. These are explained in the Report.

HELP’s Achievements: 25 Years

On 6th October 2010, HELP was awarded the KPMG Shareholders Value Award for the year 2009. We were ranked 43rd overall amongst all listed companies.  The Award recognizes the economic performance of HELP for its shareholders.  It was the only education institution in the list. 

HELP is also proud that it was selected by the Minority Shareholders Watchdog Group to be included as one of the top 100 companies for the 2010 Corporate Governance index. HELP was the only education institution chosen.

We are proud to be given these two accolades as they suggest HELP has two vital attributes for a quality corporation: to deliver economic value and to manage with strong governance. The corporate credibility of HIC is strong.

HELP was founded on 1st April 1986. 2011 is HELP University College’s 25th Silver Jubilee year.

For the next five years, our positioning, differentiation, and branding is to focus on achieving our Six P’s:

1. Offering a learning experience  with desired outcomes:  to be preferred by students
2. Producing outstanding graduates with holistic attributes: to be preferred by employers
3. Managing an organization that nurtures personal development: to be preferred by employees
4. Leading a community that cares: to be preferred by the community
5. Sustaining a trustworthy team that provides synergies: to be preferred by partners
6. Growing a sustainable social business enterprise that delivers value:  to be preferred by investors

We believe that our “Mission: to help people succeed in life and to live a life of significance through education” provides the purpose and values, drives our competency and demonstrates our conduct in creating a culture of performance that is needed for sustainable success in our unique model of a Social Business Enterprise.

We have succeeded because of your trust and faith in our conviction.

Best wishes

Datuk Dr Paul Chan and Datin Chan-Low Kam Yoke