Senheng unveils AI retail plan under new leadership
Senheng has named Lim Kim Heng as managing director with effect from 1 August 2025, marking a change in leadership and a wider refresh of the organisation. The company says the new structure is designed to speed decision-making and help deliver on 12 initiatives that target operations, digital capability and customer experience. The plan aims to keep the retailer competitive in a fast-moving consumer electronics market.
The programme places artificial intelligence at the centre of day-to-day work. Senheng is rolling out AI tools to automate repetitive tasks across departments, with the goal of reducing costs and freeing staff to focus on service. The AI effort builds on more than a decade of infrastructure investment, including a proprietary data lake and a next-generation New Retail Solution known as NRS 2.0. Together these systems are intended to support faster analysis, better forecasts and quicker responses to customer needs.
The company is also shifting more activity to the places where customers now start their shopping journeys. It is expanding content and commerce on social platforms and through chat-based engagement, including on TikTok and chat commerce channels. The plan includes stronger investment in content quality and two-way interaction so that discovery, questions and purchases can happen in the same digital flow.
Internally, Senheng has moved to a flatter structure with a younger leadership bench. Division managers are being given wider authority, backed by a defined framework of key performance indicators and real-time tracking of results. The intent is to push ownership closer to the front line and shorten the time between planning and execution. A refreshed C-suite will steward this model, with the expectation that clearer accountability and faster feedback loops translate to quicker improvements in stores, supply chain and service operations.
The company has set a mission that places people at the centre of its strategy, focusing on happiness, well-being and a better quality of life. In practical terms, Senheng links this mission to three outcomes. For customers, it points to more consistent service, simpler digital interactions and stronger value. For employees, it signals a culture that encourages initiative and collaboration. For the wider business, it anchors decisions to long-term relevance rather than short-term gains.
NRS 2.0 is described as being on track to go live, while the data lake is being more deeply integrated into commercial and support functions. Senheng expects these technology foundations to power personalised marketing, tighter inventory control and faster customer support. The company sees these capabilities as essential to competing on both price and experience in a category where new models, promotions and platform rules shift quickly.
The 12 initiatives have not all been detailed, but the emphasis on AI, digital reach, structural simplification and measurable accountability outlines the direction. The leadership change is presented as a way to align teams behind this agenda and to make the company more agile. The timing, at the start of the second half of 2025, positions Senheng to move into year-end trading with a clearer operating rhythm.
Senheng is one of Malaysia’s most recognised names in consumer electronics retail. The company says its core purpose remains to help customers upgrade their lives through better value, service and innovation. The leadership transition and the new operating plan indicate a push to systematise those aims with data-driven processes and technology platforms that can scale.
