Honorary University Fellows
Ms Wendy Gan Kim See is an executive director of Pacific Century Premium Developments and has served as head of sales and marketing at Swire Properties Limited.
Ms Gan holds a BA (First Class Honours) from HKU, a joint EMBA from Northwestern University in the US and the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and is an alumna of the Harvard Graduate School of Design. She received a Diploma in Surveying from the College of Estate Management in the UK.
As a marketer, her campaigns have received top honours at various awards including the HKMA/TVB Marketing Excellence Award for three years, a MAXI Award from the International Council of Shopping Centers and the Hong Kong Institute of Surveyors’ top awards in property marketing. In 2011, Ms Gan received the “China 100 Outstanding Female Entrepreneurs” award endorsed by the All-China Women's Federation.
Ms Gan has been an alumni leader at HKU for the past 17 years, and has served as, inter alia, Chairman of Convocation and Member of the Council and Court, and has personally participated in a number of significant committees and reviews. She has chaired several fund-raising committees to support the University and last year established the “Anissa Gan Scholarships for Arts Students Worldwide Exchange”.
Ms Gan is a member of the Board of Directors of HKU School of Professional and Continuing Education and an Honorary Director of the HKU Foundation. She is a member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, the Hong Kong Institute of Surveyors and the Real Estate Developers Association of Hong Kong.
Ms Gan has served as President of the Rotary Club of Queensway and the Hong Kong Chapter of Soroptimist International supporting philanthropic projects in Hong Kong and China.
Citation delivered by Professor Douglas KERR, Dean of Arts
Ms Wendy Gan Kim See is an executive director of Pacific Century Premium Developments and has served as head of sales and marketing at Swire Properties Limited.
After graduating with a BA (First Class Honours) from HKU, she joined the Swire Group as a Management trainee, and while building her career with the Group, also obtained a Diploma in Surveying from the College of Estate Management of the University of Reading in the UK, becoming a qualified chartered surveyor in 1995. Indeed her career is a shining example of the versatility that comes from studying in our Faculty of Arts.
She also holds a joint EMBA from Northwestern University in the US and the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, and is an alumna of the Harvard Graduate School of Design.
Ms Gan is responsible for many impressive property developments in Hong Kong, not least of which is the transformation of an unlikely residential project on the South side of the Island into the internationally recognised Bel-Air luxury residences by the Cyberport technology hub.
Today, she heads development projects throughout China, Japan and South-East Asia for her company, Pacific Century Premium Developments.
As a marketer, Ms Gan’s campaigns have received many awards, and she is a member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, the Hong Kong Institute of Surveyors and the Real Estate Developers Association of Hong Kong.
Ms Gan has been an alumni leader at HKU for the past 17 years, and has served as Chairman of Convocation – the youngest on record. Ms Gan is also a long-serving member of the Council and Court, and has participated in a number of significant committees and reviews, including, inter alia, the Ad Hoc Task Group on the Review of University Governance and Management, the Campus Development and Planning Committee, and the Committee for the selection of Professional and Administrative Staff. She is a member of the Board of Directors of HKU SPACE and an Honorary Director of the HKU Foundation.
During her undergraduate years, Ms Gan’s talent and potential were spotted by the University’s Honorary Graduate and former Convocation Chairman, Dr Mary Rodrigues, who took her under her wing and became her mentor. In gratitude Ms Gan has carried on this tradition and served as a mentor in the HKU Mentorship Programme, guiding and nurturing the next generation of undergraduates.
Last year, she established the “Anissa Gan Scholarships for Arts Students Worldwide Exchange” in memory of her beloved sister.
Mr President, Wendy Gan may be said to be responsible for ensuring that you are able to travel – and most importantly, arrive – in style. I am referring to your car. The President’s car proudly bears the licence plate ‘HKU 1’. And it does so only because of the generous support of Ms Gan. It is thanks to her, Mr President, that the Hong Kong man in the street can see you coming.
In today’s world, Ms Gan is remarkable in that she is as professionally authoritative, experienced and influential as she is personally affable, modest and unpretentious.
HKU is fortunate to have such an alumna, and we are grateful for her loyalty and support to the University.
It gives me great pleasure, Mr President, to present Ms Wendy Gan for the Honorary University Fellowship, in recognition of her contributions to Hong Kong and academia.