Alan Koh is the Chief Marketing Officer of Impossible Marketing, a multi-award-winning digital marketing agency he helped build into one of Singapore’s most recognised names in AI-powered search and growth strategy. His professional journey began not in a startup, but in the banking sector, where he quickly earned eight industry awards in four years—a track record that speaks to his early discipline and drive. Today, he leads a team trusted by hundreds of businesses across Singapore, working at the intersection of technology, marketing, and entrepreneurship every single day.
Beyond the agency, Alan serves as a Board of Governor for the Spirit of Enterprise (SOE). This role is not ceremonial for Alan. It reflects a genuine commitment to showing up—not just in boardrooms, but in school halls, career sessions, and community spaces where the entrepreneurial mindset needs to be planted early.
The Session at Bukit View Secondary School
Alan visited Bukit View Secondary School to deliver a career entrepreneurship and AI talk to a room full of secondary school students. The session was not a polished corporate presentation. It was something more valuable: an honest, engaging conversation about what entrepreneurship actually looks and feels like when the highlight reel is switched off—the failures, the pivots, the lessons that only come from doing things the hard way.
By the time the session wrapped up, the room broke into applause.
Key Takeaways
- The Tortoise, the Hare, and the Lesson Nobody Tells You:
Alan opened with a story everyone thought they already knew. But he pushed it further. What if the hare hadn’t fallen asleep? The tortoise loses. What if there’s a riverbank along the course? The tortoise, a natural swimmer, crosses easily while the hare is stranded. The point was not about persistence alone—it was about perspective. Success is not a fixed formula. The entrepreneurs who thrive are the ones who read their environment, know their strengths, and find the right people around them.
- Why Studying Actually Matters:
Alan reframed the question that sits at the back of every student’s mind. Studying is not about the grades. It is about what the process builds in you—the discipline to absorb knowledge, the habit of continuous learning, the attitude to keep getting better. The common thread among successful people is not where they studied. It is that they never stopped learning and applied that knowledge relentlessly.
- Ideas Are Common. Courage Isn’t:
Perhaps the most memorable moment came when Alan cut through one of entrepreneurship’s biggest myths. “Everyone has great ideas,” he told the room. “The difference is who has the courage to execute them.” And then the line that truly landed: “If you don’t build your dreams, someone else will hire you to build theirs.” For students still figuring out their futures, this was a genuine nudge to think about ownership, agency, and what it means to bet on yourself.
- AI and the Next Generation of Entrepreneurship:
Alan also spoke about where the world is heading. For this generation, AI is already part of daily life—and it will be central to how businesses are built and scaled in the years ahead. Understanding how to work with AI, not just use it, is becoming a foundational skill for anyone thinking about starting something. The tools have never been more powerful. The question is whether young people will have the knowledge, attitude, and courage to put them to work.
A Room That Showed Up
The students at Bukit View Secondary School were engaged in a way that is genuinely hard to manufacture. They asked questions, leaned in, and stayed present throughout the session. Not every student in that hall will go on to build a company. But if the talk shifted even a few perspectives on what is possible—or gave someone the confidence to take that first uncertain step—that is exactly the point. Entrepreneurship does not begin with a business plan. It begins with believing you are capable of building something.
For Alan, volunteering his time to sessions like this is an extension of what SOE stands for: inspiring enterprise at every level of society, starting with the young minds who will shape Singapore’s future.
Inspired to Make a Difference?
If Alan’s story has inspired you, or if you are a professional with a journey worth sharing, the Spirit of Enterprise (SOE) welcomes you. We are looking for volunteers passionate about honouring and inspiring the next generation of Singapore’s entrepreneurs.
Join us at soe.org.sg/volunteer/ and help shape the future today.
AUTHOR BIO
ALAN KOH
Alan Koh is the Founder and CEO of Impossible Marketing, a group of companies renowned for hyperlocal marketing strategies tailored to businesses in Singapore. His professional journey began in the banking sector, where he quickly rose through the ranks, garnering eight industry awards in just four years.
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