Neo Kian Hong

Neo Kian Hong is a Singaporean civil servant and former military officer. He was the seventh Chief of Defence Force of the Singapore Armed Forces from 2010–2013 and held the rank of Lieutenant-General. Prior to that, he served as the Chief of the Singapore Army from 2007–2010. After retiring from the military in 2013, Neo joined the civil service and became the Permanent Secretary (Education Development) in the Ministry of Education.

Education
Neo received his secondary education in Victoria School, where he was also a National Cadet Corps cadet, and his pre-university education in Nanyang Junior College. He was awarded an overseas scholarship by the Singapore Armed Forces in 1985 and went on to obtain a Bachelor of Engineering (Hons 2nd Upper) in electrical and electronic engineering from King's College London. He holds a Master of Science in management of technology from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He also completed the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School in 2013.

Military career
Neo joined the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) in 1983. Throughout his career in the SAF, he has held various appointments, including: Commanding Officer, 1st Battalion Singapore Guards; Commander, 7th Singapore Infantry Brigade; Assistant Chief of the General Staff (Operations); Commander, 9th Division; Commander, Army Training and Doctrine Command; Chief of Staff, Joint Staff; Chief of Army (2007–2010). He attended the Indonesian Army Command and Staff Course (SESKOAD) in 1994. He also served as the SAF's contingent commander for the International Force for East Timor (INTERFET) in 1999 and was involved in establishing the national contact and tracing system in Singapore during the 2003 severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) outbreak.

Neo succeeded Desmond Kuek as the Chief of Defence Force of the SAF on 31 March 2010 and relinquished his previous appointment as the Chief of Army to Chan Chun Sing on 26 March. He was promoted from the rank of Major-General to Lieutenant-General on 1 July 2010.

Neo retired from the SAF on 27 March 2013 and was succeeded by Ng Chee Meng as the Chief of Defence Force.

Civil career
After leaving the SAF, Neo joined the civil service and was appointed as the Permanent Secretary (Education Development) in the Ministry of Education on 1 July 2013.

Awards

 * SAF Overseas Service Medal, in 2000.
 * Public Administration Medal (Military) (Silver), in 2003.
 * Public Administration Medal (Military) (Gold), in 2007.
 * Long Service Medal (Military), in 2008.
 * Legion of Merit (Degree of Commander), in 2008.
 * Bintang Kartika Eka Paksi Utama, in 2009.
 * Most Noble Order of the Crown of Thailand, in 2010.
 * Darjah Panglima Gagah Angkatan Tentera (Honorary Malaysian Armed Forces Order for Valour (First Degree)), in 2011.
 * Bintang Yudha Dharma Utama (Grand Meritorious Military Order), in 2012.


 * Unverified:


 * SAF Good Service Medal
 * International Force East Timor Medal