The world’s top 20 companies: 4 Taiwanese businesses make the list

By Chi Bing-hui, compiled and reported

The “Million Dollar Memo” competition organized by Tourism Queensland since March has now reached its final stage. From an initial pool of 70 finalists, the competition has been narrowed down to the current top 20, with a total of 4 Taiwanese companies making the cut—claiming as much as one-fifth of the spots—an impressive achievement. These four companies are Yahoo! Taiwan, XinMedia, Procter & Gamble, and ASUS. In August, each will send a representative to Queensland to compete in the ultimate challenge for a reward trip worth NT$30 million (AUD$1 million).

Pan Wen, Director of Tourism Queensland’s Greater China Office, stated that the list of the top 20 finalists features a highly diverse range of corporate backgrounds. The companies come from 11 different countries, with some employing thousands and others having fewer than ten staff. They span industries from construction to insurance, each showcasing their unique strengths. The finalists include the top 3 vote-getters in the popularity poll: ASUS (Taiwan), XinMedia (Taiwan), and Yahoo! Taiwan (Taiwan), as well as 17 contestants selected through comprehensive evaluation by Tourism Queensland: Procter & Gamble (Taiwan), ADR Group of Companies (Indonesia), Base Architecture (Queensland, Australia), Beijing Huayuan International Travel Service (China), Boomerang Reisen GmbH (Germany), mobile game developer COM2US Corp (South Korea), Datamatics (India), De'Longhi (New South Wales, Australia), Hong Leong Assurance Berhad (Malaysia), Lend Lease (Queensland, Australia), Mary Kay (Victoria, Australia), Peoplebank (New South Wales, Australia), Reading Room (United Kingdom), Samsung Card (South Korea), Sparkloft Media (United States), Vero Insurance NZ Ltd (New Zealand), and Wood Group Integrity Management (Western Australia, Australia).

The top 20 companies will each send a representative to Queensland to participate in an 8-day ultimate challenge. Participants will visit various attractions including the Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, Whitsunday Islands, Hamilton Island, Daydream Island, Hayman Island, and Tropical North Queensland. They will also experience a captivating dinner hosted by Virgin Australia, the natural bushland at Hyatt Coolum Resort, and stay at the Palazzo Versace on the Gold Coast and the Sea Temple Spa Resort in Port Douglas. The competition champion will be announced on Wednesday, August 31, 2011.

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