UTAR’s Faculty of Business and Finance (FBF) organised Industry Advisor (IA) Day at Kampar Campus on 5 July 2018. It was organised for the students to learn and gain some inputs from their respective IAs.
Present during the event were IAs for Bachelor of Commerce (Hons) Accounting, namely Jabil Circuit Sr Regional Finance Director Kim Chin Kuang and PKF Tax Sdn Bhd Director Fan Kah Seong, along with IA for Master of Business Administration (Corporate Management) Fiji Electric (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd Executive Director Chong Nee Hwa and IA for Bachelor of Business Administration (Hons) BP Health Group Deputy President Joevy Beh Yen Ling.
Kim sharing about the future of accounting profession
The event started with a talk titled “Digital Disruption and the Future of Accounting Profession” by Kim. According to him, the existence of artificial intelligence (AI) has led people to rely heavily on robots, machines and the internet.
“The process of automation has made accounting records, financial documentation and reporting much more efficient and easier. For example, the development of e-commerce with the collaboration of Alibaba, Paypal and Amazon have shown a great accomplishment in going cashless by performing online transactions. Moreover, e-commerce provided the convenience in trading, where users can perform trading or transaction through their smartphones or a chat room online,” said Kim.
Kim further explained the process of Industrial Revolution from industry 1.0 to 4.0 and how the world has evolved from using manual handicraft to digital technology. The latest evolution, which incorporates advanced sensors, machine to machine communication, big data and cloud computing technology, has helped to increase productivity and flexibility while reducing the cost required. He advised the participants to adapt themselves to the latest digital technology in order to keep up with the rapid development of technology.
Fan delivering his talk
Fan also shared a few points about AI in his talk titled “E-Commerce in the Future of Finance”. He began his talk by explaining that AI is able to perform more works and tasks compared to humans. According to Fan, the advancement of technology is vital for the business sector, especially in accounting and finance-related task as a mean to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the whole accounting process. He also emphasised that the participants should be aware of the automated accounting process. He advised them not to solely focus on machines alone to perform their tasks, but to incorporate their own strategic and technical skills when operating the machine.
Chong briefing about the job prospect in Fuji Electric (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd
Chong, on the other hand, enlightened the participants with his talk titled “Getting Ready for the Business World”. He shared some insightful tips with the students, in hope to prepare them before they embarked on a new journey in the employment and corporate world. He shared a few key attributes that employers seek from fresh graduates and ended his talk by introducing his company and informing the participants about the job prospects in Fuji Electric (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd as well as the available internships.
Lim (second left) and Ng (far right) with participants
The participants also benefitted greatly from another visit by OCBC Bank (M) Bhd Operations and Technology Divisional Head Lim Yau Seong, the IA for Bachelor of Business Administration (Hons) Banking and Finance. He was accompanied by E2 Power Sdn Bhd (subsidiary of OCBC Group) Operations and Technology Vice President Alice Ng Bee Leng, the IA for Bachelor of Finance (Hons). The visit took place on 16 July 2018. Lim gave a talk titled “Journey of OCBC”. He explained that IT knowledge is crucial and relevant in the banking industry and encouraged the participants to enhance their digital knowledge by involving more in an IT-related elective.
Panimoli (third from left) receiving a token of appreciation from FBF Dean Dr Au Yong Hui Nee
Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) Senior Economist Panimoli Kalidass, the IA for Bachelor of Economics (Hons) Financial Economics visited FBF on 30 July 2018. She had a discussion with FBF Head of Economics Department Thavamalar Ganapathy on curriculum design, students’ performance, educational resources, current industry’s trend and the potential of future collaboration. Panimoli also shared her experience on the latest economic development and the role of BNM.
Students posing with Loh (far left) after the presentation
IA for Bachelor of Business Administration (Hons) Risk Management, Edlogic Sdn Bhd Principal Eddie Loh was present during the students’ Final Year Project presentation. He offered some useful comments and feedback to the students during their presentation when he was attending a board of studies meeting on 2 August 2018 in FBF.
The Industry Advisor Month Visits was part of the FBF’s initiative and the university’s commitment to provide an excellent education by ensuring its programmes stay relevant to the latest industry needs. Feedback and advice provided by the IAs were equally vital for FBF to continuously improve their programmes and nurture the students according to the industrial requirements.
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