Dennis Wu: Integrating Green Technology into Business

Dennis Wu, CEO, Allied Sustainability and Environmental Consultants Group (AEC Group)

The extreme weather conditions due to global warming have posed serious threats to the sustenance of lives and the long-term economic prosperity of a nation. The need for greener technology has become imminent and pervasive. As green transformation is making headways, there is a concerted push on the business houses towards using safe and sustainable solutions, which can roll in profit yet mitigate the real-time effect of greenhouse gas emissions. 

This shifting trend in technology has greatly inspired some entrepreneurs, who induce a strong sense of morality and sensibility into business. They took this as an opportunity to transform society for a greater cause. Dennis Wu, the CEO of Allied Sustainability and Environmental Consultants Group (AEC Group), is such an eminent business personality, who has leveraged competition by integrating green innovations in Finance and ESG. 

Before being sworn in as the Chief Executive officer and Executive Director of AEC Group, Mr. Dennis Wu had spent a long stretch of his career spanning 20 years in the finance industry. Here, he had to prove his caliber in handling diverse roles, from being the accounting supervisor to staff accountant, which demanded unique capabilities. Nonetheless, he was always driven by an unrelenting passion to bring about a viable change in society by strengthening the green finance network. Eventually, Dennis was appointed as a non-executive Director of AEC Group in November 2015 and was re-designated as an Executive Director with effect from July 2020. Later he was promoted to the post of Executive Director and the Chairman of the Responsible Investment Committee. However, his exceptional contribution to the staggering growth and success of AEC Group, awarded him with the honor and responsibility of the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of AEC Group, effective from 1 July 2022. 

Winning challenges

None can stop you from living your dream as long you possess the right blend of determination, perseverance, and inquisitiveness. Mr. Wu was deeply influenced by the “DECARBONIZATION” programs initiated to tackle carbon accumulation in the atmosphere. This new-age technology verges sustainable solutions as a measure to curb environmental degeneration. But this strategy can be intimidating as it entails a trajectory of opportunities and challenges. Hence to deal with the complexity of the process, Mr. Dennis set on to uplift his knowledge and acquire the specific skill sets crucial to managing sustainable finance. 

He did GRI Professional Certification Program, TCFD, in sustainable Finance, from Cambridge Institute for Sustainable Leadership (CISL), 2020. His knowledge and expertise have enabled him to scale up growth through sustainable development. Mr. Wu’s avowed interest and unabated enthusiasm to preserve diversity through carbon neutrality programs, made him participate in the Net Zero Readiness Framework development as World GBC Asia Pacific Net Zero Collaborator, outside Hong Kong, post which he established his Greater Bay Area Carbon Neutrality Association in the country.  

Paving the way to a greener world

AEC Group (“AEC Group”; stock code 8320. HK), is the concrete manifestation of its leader’s vision to bridge the gap between economic and environmental resilience. The company specializes in providing professional consulting services toward transforming society and creating a sustainable future. Their services are impartial, independent, and innovative. The company has emerged as an award-winning firm pioneering eco-friendly, and state-of-art services and solutions in sustainable green building. It has been accredited with an extensive portfolio spanning Hong Kong, mainland China, and the Asia Pacific regions. 

The company focuses mainly on five major business areas, including (a) Green and Healthy Building; (b) Acoustics, Audio-visual, Lighting, and Theatre Planning; (c) Environmental Consultancy and Sustainable Design; (d) Green Finance, Sustainability Strategies, and ESG; and (e) Smart and Green Internet of Things (IoT). AEC Group is developing new services providing advisory services on sustainable financing, investment management, capital raising, and real estate in the Asia Pacific area. It is the first company to be listed as a sustainability and environmental consulting services provider in Hong Kong. 

Their ESG portfolio covers many different industries, such as: 

• Property
• Manufacturing
• Financial Services
• Agriculture
• Construction
• Solution Provider
• Food & Beverage
• Supply Chain
• Travel Agency
• Pharmaceutical Industry
• Retail
• Oil Production

The pool of clients benefitted from AEC includes property developers, property owners, government departments and public organizations, architects, designers, contractors, etc., with whom the company has established long-term and stable cooperative relationships through continual development. Most of their notable projects include (i) residential buildings including public and private housing; (ii) commercial buildings including office buildings, plazas, data centers, and mixed usage buildings; and (iii) public usage buildings and infrastructure including academic buildings, a government complex, district cooling system, football pitch, public library, public transport interchange, hospital, and swimming pool.

On-the-mark leadership approach

The inner disposition of an ideal leader gets reflected in the way he curates his thoughts into action and charts out a path that could motivate us to rise above our limitations. At AEC, Mr. Dennis Wu exhibits an impeccable leadership style where he believes a leader not only dictates others to follow in his footsteps; rather he must practice what he preaches. A leader inspires people with his activities and ideologies. His statement encapsulates his idea of a true leader, “A leader must walk the talk along with a clear vision and mission”. The entire team of AEC Group strives towards building a sustainable community that would as well ensure commercial success for all the clients and stakeholders. For Mr. Dennis Wu, the satisfaction of his customers is paramount. He succeeds when his clients achieve their sustainability goals and this is instrumental in building the strong foundation of his progressive and reliable business at AEC Group. 

Work culture

The corporate culture of AEC set on higher goals of creating excellence through customer satisfaction. To assure this, Mr. Wu has devised a set of regimens that comes in five modules. They are ‘Excellence’ in delivering top-notch solutions to customers and setting the benchmark in creating values, ‘Integrity’ that promotes strong work ethics and zero tolerance to corrupt practices, ‘Clients’, who are the prime revenue drivers must be treated with utmost priority. Understanding and empathizing with the client’s customer base is the key to running an organization successfully for a long time. Mr. Wu considers his ‘People’ to be the lifeblood of an organization. The entrepreneur targets holistic growth for each of his employee, which he ensures through mutual respect, recognition, and appreciation of talents.  Finally, being a sociopreneur, Mr. Wu strives to protect and conserve the ‘Environment’ by offering sustainable solutions and services.

Awards and Accolades

The company has made a global impact as a frontline organization in sustainable development. Throughout its journey, Mr. Wu and his army at AEC Group have been felicitated with many prestigious titles and awards. Some of them may be enumerated below:

• ESG AWARD 2022
• The 3rd APIGBA Awards
• 2021 HKAEE
• Caring Company Logo 2015-22
• Industry Cares 2022
• HKCT Business Awards
• BDO ESG 2022
• Green Building 2021
• Women in Sustainability Leadership Awards and many more

Future roadmap and message to aspirants

Allied Sustainability and Environmental Consultants Group, since its inception, has been marshaling resources and expertise toward building a carbon-free, green environment that uses the Green Internet of Things (IoT) and smart technologies. Mr. Dennis Wu expresses his desire to expand the network and strengthen its base in Asia Pacific Region and Greater Bay Area. As a leader, he is determined to step up the Decarbonization process in the days to come. 

While sharing his nuggets with the business aspirants, Mr. Wu upholds professionalism and self-development as a means to achieve leadership goals. At the same time, the leader recognizes teamwork and inclusiveness to be the prerequisites of a successful business venture.