Ravindran Amirthalingam: Where Passion Drives Progress
For Ravindran Amirthalingam, embodying our value of Drive (continuously innovating to drive positive impact) means taking purposeful action forward — not doing more for the sake of simply doing more.
As Assistant Manager for Training and Corporate Development at ComfortDelGro Driving Centre and a Special Mention recipient of the Passion! Award 2025, Ravindran sees Drive as raising standards in driver education and shaping safer roads through continuous learning. This means building better systems and helping people improve.
Challenging the Status Quo
Early in his career, Ravindran began questioning traditional driver training methods. They built competence but couldn’t explain why certain problematic behaviours (such as failing to check for blind spots and maintaining a safe following distance) kept resurfacing.
To truly develop safer, more self-aware drivers, we needed insights into habits, risk patterns, and decision-making.
This gap sparked the creation of two major initiatives: the Driver and Rider Diagnostic Assessment and the Driver Development Tool. Both were designed to provide targeted, personalised coaching points rather than relying on a one-size-fits-all training approach.
The Driver and Rider Diagnostic Assessment is designed around targeted questions for different driver and rider groups, going beyond pass-or-fail outcomes. It identifies risk levels – low, medium, or high – so that training can be focused and meaningful.
Seeing the tools adopted widely and contributing to the development of thousands of drivers is deeply meaningful.
For trainers, the bar is set even higher. They must score 100 per cent for their bi-annual assessment, ensuring their knowledge stays current and aligned with the centre’s high standards. The result is a learning system that promotes accountability, reflection, and continuous improvement.
Designing Today's Tools to Meet Tomorrow's Needs
Recognising that tools must evolve with real-world use to stay relevant, Ravindran spent time outside regular hours engaging frontline trainers, observing pilot runs, and gathering honest feedback. He used these insights continue to refine the assessments and improve how results are delivered – instantly, in clear and actionable ways.
Ravindran’s growth mindset also shaped his work on the Driver Development Tool. The project combined research, data, and real-world application to create an intelligent system for personalised coaching that addressed genuine training gaps rather than offering generic solutions.
I believe in designing with people, not for them. A tool is only useful if it works in the hands of the people who use it daily.
The impact speaks for itself: thousands of drivers from organisations such as SingPost and the Home Team have benefited from more targeted training. Trainers too, have gained deeper insights into driver behaviour, strengthening their ability to coach based on learner needs.
The project’s success earned the Research and Development Award from Singapore’s Intelligent Transportation Society in 2024, a milestone in Ravindran’s learning journey.
The recognition is encouraging, but what matters most is knowing the work helps create safer roads and gives trainers better ways to guide and shape driver behaviour.
Growing Together as One CDG
When asked how he personally embodies ComfortDelGro’s values – Collaboration, Drive, and Growth – Ravindran shared three practical principles that guide his work every day.
Make Complex Ideas Simple: People deserve clarity. When things get complicated, distil information into a one-page summary to align everyone quickly and remove friction.
Pilot Early with Real Users: Small, real-world trials surface issues fast. Early testing builds momentum and ensures tools or processes are shaped by the people who use them.
Close the Loop: Always share what changed, and why. When people see their input influencing outcomes, engagement increases naturally.
All these principles reflect Ravindran‘s beliefs:
Clarity builds confidence
Evidence builds trust
Growth is shared, not individual
Whether he’s supporting trainers, drivers, or colleagues, Ravindran reminds us that Drive is not about doing more — it’s about doing what matters to build Mobility for a Better Future.