An experienced legal professional with 23+ years of leading, controlling, and managing the entire spectrum of corporate legal functions for multiple organizations, Prema Sivasoathy, is the Director, Legal of TRX City. She has been successfully leading the legal department of the organization for 11 years. Briefly, on the current organization, TRX City is under the Malaysian Minister of Finance Incorporated and its role transcends beyond ordinary property development; for the transformation of real estate projects to create catalytic economic impact for Malaysia. It is the Master Developer of Tun Razak Exchange (TRX), a 70-acre development in the heart of Kuala Lumpur that is envisioned as Malaysia’s International Financial Centre. Launched as a strategic economic enabler for Malaysia, the TRX project started operating in 2019, with the opening of Menara Prudential and The Exchange 106.

This year, HSBC Malaysia and Affin Bank group relocated their HQ to TRX. Prior to her current role, Prema has been associated with projects related to corporate and independent power production, construction, real estate development, enterprise risk management, regulatory compliance, healthcare management, and the telecommunications industry. Additionally, in her current role, she is actively involved in strategic management advisory. Her core expertise lies in drafting various types of legal documents in various stages of a project cycle including financing, strategic advisory, risk evaluation, and reviewing mergers in business with a high level of negotiation skills. With a vast understanding of corporate law, Prema is efficiently managing projects at TRX City and leveraging her ability to understand the details to exercise great communication to ensure both the client and the organization are on the same page. Below is an excerpt of Women Entrepreneur’s exclusive interview with her.

Tell us about the various responsibilities you shoulder at TRX City. What are your current focus areas?

At TRX City I handle the entire gamut of legal functions of the company; I handle anything and everything that the company contracts in including addressing and considering corporateshareholder issues and the company’s business interest. I am involved in every stage of the Tun Razak Exchange project right from the inception of the project in securing the land for development which included taking necessary legal action and negotiation to evict unlawful occupiers from sourcing out investors, documentation, negotiation, and the development phase to now the execution phase. The project is at its completion stage, and we are looking to manage the Tun Razak Exchange as a self-contained district and source further investors, and seek out new areas to venture into. We already have on upcoming project known as Bandar Malaysia which is located at the Southern gateway of Kuala Lumpur and is earmarked as a transit-oriented development. TRX CITY SDN BHD is designed to foster sustainable development and we are moving ahead to a sustainable future driven by the ESG goals. And my role here is to contribute to the greatest extent to meet such goals at the earliest possible.

Throw some light on the most critical business challenges you face in your current role. What steps do you take to overcome them?

Since my role is focused on commercial-legal and strategic matters, my primary challenge is to deal with the investors and various stakeholders bearing in mind my mandate and skilfully negotiating the investment process with them. However, not everything goes as planned ever so often negotiating, understanding the other party’s constraints, and meeting at a landing that is workable for the transaction and the parties while balancing my mandate is challenging. In such situations, I have to convince the management to be on board with the revised mandates. To successfully meet this challenge, my role demands to have great negotiating skills which I believe I have received and continue to receive from my experience throughout my career where I was indulged in a lot of projects and drafted their various interdependent documentation. Those experiences have built in me the skills to effectively communicate and negotiate with both the investors and stakeholders as well as the management of the organization.

What are some of the most significant milestones that you have so far? What has been the driving force behind your success?

My biggest milestone is where I am today; my expertise in the legal domain got me the opportunity to lead the legal department for TRX City and I have been able to successfully deliver positive outcomes and live up to the expectations of the organization. The management team of the company has recognized my potential through appreciation which is reflected in my career progression in the organization and that has been my greatest achievement so far.

My strengths are the various skills in legal practice that I have acquired throughout my career, coupled with an attitude that every problem has a solution that has to be sought after and worked towards. My driving force is to constantly learn, improve, and add value to the organization and my work.

“Every problem has a solution that needs to be sought after and worked towards. Learn and improve constantly while making sure you add value to the organization”

How do you align yourself with the periodic shifts in your respective industry and technology landscape?

I indulge in seminars, webinars, research, and article reading; I try to grab every new information that is out there and update myself with the new trends that the company is experiencing. TMT (Technology, Media & Telecom) is the new trend in the business industry, and these are the areas where I am striving to venture into. It is altogether a different aspect of the business operation where I am hoping to move with my future endeavours.

What would your advice be to young women who also aspire to become business leaders?

As women leaders, our main constraint is our commitment and time as we are always balancing our personal and professional life. Therefore, I would advise aspiring women business leaders to put in a lot of hard work, not give up, persevere, and achieve the best that they can along with their additional responsibilities.

Prema Sivasoathy, Director Legal, TRX City Sdn Bhd (TRX City)

Having a Bachelor’s in Law from the University of London, Prema holds more than two decades of experience in legal practice in various organizations. Currently, she is embarking on a journey to create Kuala Lumpur’s first dedicated international financial centre

Headquarters: Kuala Lumpur