Building resilient business through digital transformation at 4thIBC

Held for the fourth time, present to grace the opening of the conference was UTAR President Ir Prof Dr Ewe Hong Tat, who applauded the efforts of the organisers for the success of the conference. He commented, “This conference is a good platform for the academics and the industry experts and specialists to share their knowledge and experience with the participants. It is a good mix and balance of educational knowledge and practical real-life experiences complementing each other so that participants can have a more holistic view of the digital transformation sweeping all businesses across the world.”

He added, “The pandemic has brought this transformation much earlier and faster than expected especially for many smaller businesses. If businesses are to survive, they have to be competitive and resilient, also be entrepreneurial enough to adopt e-commerce and digitise their operations and processes for faster turnaround time and speedier outcomes. So, I hope this conference will bring more insights on the benefits as well as the challenges faced by the industry experts and share their expertise with the participants. The organisers have also incorporated some extended workshops on topics related to digital entrepreneurship, digital marketing, E-Commerce, and Big Data application in businesses. These are all very relevant topics which are crucial for all sectors of business in the industry especially those wishing to catch the wave of digitisation.”

The event proceeded with the keynote address titled “A Catalyst in Social Protection through Digital Transformation” by Social Security Organisation Malaysia (SOCSO) Chief Executive Officer Dato’ Sri Dr Mohammed Azman Bin Dato’ Aziz Mohammed.

“SOCSO has played a crucial role in providing social protection for employees commencing with the formal sectors since 1971, which was then extended to employees from the informal sector in the recent years. In delivering various social security services and measures, we see a great shift in how social protection is delivered particularly during the Covid-19 pandemic. The unprecedented pandemic has pushed organisations worldwide over the technological tipping point, and SOCSO is not excluded. Digital technology has transformed our service delivery as we reach out to our contributors and non-contributors by conforming to the new norms. We never thought that we would resort to having online interviews for job seekers, or holding full-fledge career fairs following restrictions on travelling and physical contact. Technology has also enabled us to develop the state-of-art national employment portal MYFutureJobs that support among others efficient job matching, job placement, and many other active labour market programmes (ALMP). MYFutureJobs was developed with the objective of providing a holistic approach in candidate matching. Designated as the national employment portal in 2020 under the PENJANA economic package, MYFutureJobs is designed based on the organisation for economic cooperation and development (OECD) framework on public employment services. The framework of MYFutureJobs portal comprises of three main components. First, case management is an approach utilised to assist both job seekers and employers in finding the best fitting jobs or candidates to meet their needs, with the assistance of SOCSO case workers. This type of support assist job seekers and employers on a personal level with a goal of securing a job placement. Second, job brokerage as the single window for employments in Malaysia; MYFutureJobs portal allows access to diverse employment opportunities, ranging from professional jobs to self-employment opportunities for job seekers via the state-of-art Artificial Intelligence (AI) matching technology with great emphasis on the skills and competency for both job seekers and employers. Third is labour marker infrastructure. Having the contribution database as the reference for employment status, MYFutureJobs is capable to track the employment status of any job seekers. This is because the information of the retrenched workers applying for EIS benefit is automatically integrated into the portal. The uniqueness of the portal lies in the integration of advanced matching technology and human touch that provide effective and flexible solutions in meeting the dynamic structure of employment,” said Dato’ Sri Dr Mohammed.

He continued, “MYFutureJobs has undergone a dramatic shift from traditional occupational-based job matching, incorporating comprehensive skills and competency matching parameters. While traditional occupational job matching only focuses on filtering candidates through work experience, job title and education level, the new skill and competency-based matching offers a holistic approach in hiring candidates. As some have observed and experienced, the Covid-19 pandemic as well as the emerging digital technology have caused disruptions to a significant number of jobs and led to the rise of unchartered employment opportunities in the job market. Evolving skill strength and new emerging sectors bring disadvantages to vulnerable workers as they are often filtered out through the traditional approach. On the other hand, the skills and competencies-based matching connect job seekers’ transferrable skills from their previous working experience or academic knowledge to new occupations that require their skills and experience. This targeted approach does not only enable job seekers to switch jobs across different industries but also identifies skills and competencies gap to further improve job seekers’ employability. Academic-based matching has increasingly screen out skilled job seekers and broaden the opportunity gap. Alternatively, skills and competencies-based matching increases job seekers’ chances of getting hired regardless of their education level and working experience. In contrast to pursuing tertiary education in less demanded sectors, job seekers may opt to develop their skills through alternative and micro credential learning. In our effort to standardise the occupations in Malaysia, to improve the accuracy of job matching activities through MYFutureJobs, we have successfully developed the Malaysian Skills, Occupations, Qualifications, and Competencies Taxonomy (MSOC) that places significance on the functional aspect and skills of each occupation. The MSOC consists of four main components namely, taxonomy, occupation, skills and competencies, and qualification. The utilisation of MSOC in MYFutureJobs allows an in-depth matching process which focuses on a more comprehensive matching model that combines the preferences of the job seekers to functional skills and competencies process by the job seekers. The AI-oriented matching model provides users with matching results that extend beyond their preferences based on the skills and competencies required by a particular job. This capability allows users, especially school leavers, graduates, and retrenched workers to explore other possible employments based on their profiles in MYFutureJobs. From data collected with MYFutureJobs, we found an alarming trend on the growing disparity in the supply and demand in Malaysia employment market. In contrast, to a majority of registered active job seekers who possess diploma, degree, and Master’s qualification, employers are only looking for candidates with lower academic qualification application, including primary and secondary education. The figure illustrates the mismatches in the job requirements and qualifications of graduates that are produced by the existing education structure. Therefore, it comes as no surprise that this group of job seekers are often considered as over-qualified by employers.”

He also added, “The current economic climate has resulted in the three top sectors hiring the most workers, which are manufacturing, accommodation and F&B, and professional and technical service. These sectors require strategic talents to fill the available vacancies. Regrettably, our existing local graduates do not match the pressing demands in these sectors. It is critically important to fill the gaps by prioritising jobs for local talents so that Malaysia will be less dependent on foreign workers and expatriates. In respond to this scenario, the country’s learning structure and academic direction must keep pace with the ever-changing demands of these industries. In embracing the changes, a new model of engagement is required to bridge both the industry and academic institution. We have also identified the need for a strategic collaboration between related ministries and agencies to drive the shift in the country workforce supply to meet the needs of the industries. In view of this, SOCSO has taken the initiative to develop the Bridging Occupation and Qualification Framework to facilitate a better connection between the supply and demand in the labour market through collaboration with partners, such as the Ministry of Higher Education and the Ministry of Human Resources, together with each agency. This framework, which encompasses three phases, aims to establish a sustainable workforce development flow which can cater to dynamic needs of the industry.”

As an ending note, Dato’ Sri Dr Mohammed, emphasised, “I would also like to highlight SOCSO’s effort in ensuring digital platform workers are in fact protected under our umbrella for work injury, accidents, or death during work. No one should be left behind. For those without the traditional employer-employee relationship, SOCSO has established the self-employed social security scheme under ACT 789 to protect informal and gig workers. In addition, we also introduced matching of full contribution grants to targeted self-employed workers in order to reduce their burden of contributing throughout the duration of the Covid-19 pandemic. Three programmes were launched under government’s various stimulus packages, specifically PENJANA GIG, SPS LINDUNG, and SPS PRIHATIN WANITA. Now, more than 323,300 self-employed workers are contributing under SOCSO. MYFutureJobs provides unique perspective in employment facilitation where the portal serves as a one-stop solution for employment that combines active labour market policies, technology, and human touch experience in an integrated job portal. MYFutureJobs is also able to provide real-time situation of our labour market and track the process as well as the employment status of a job seeker in order to increase the efficiency of the labour market transition.”

At the core of the event, several talks and forums were conducted, which saw speakers and panellists sharing their opinions, ideas and solutions for business to become more resilient with the help of digital technology. For instance, Digital Solutions Lead of Business Digital Adoption Stanley Lo from Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) spoke on “Future Proofing Your Business through Digital Transformation”. He emphasised the need for manufacturers to adopt digitisation in order to stay relevant and competitive. He also explained the benefits of digitising a business, which included the use of various digital platforms to boost revenue; Artificial Intelligence and machine learning to increase production capacity; and the increasing reliance on robots for manufacturing. To strengthen his points, he shared some successful businesses that adopted digitisation and yielded fruitful outcomes. In helping Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) to adopt digitisation for their businesses, Lo enlightened participants on the “100 Go Digital Coaching Workshop” to help businesses attain practical digital guidance, as well as the financial initiatives provided by the government to support SME.

On a topic more relevant to our current situation, Alibaba Global Digital Talent (GDT) trainer Dr Hen Kai Wah, who is also the deputy dean for Faculty of Accountancy and Management, spoke on “Covid-19: The Responses of the E-Commerce Ecosystem in Malaysia”. He talked about the accelerated shift towards the digital world caused by the pandemic and increased online shopping. In the e-commerce ecosystem, Dr Hen found that the pandemic in turn brought huge increases in sales, number of new sellers, and popularity of the e-commerce platforms. It was also noted that e-commerce delivery through digitisation, was able to improve operational efficiency and provide the business with innovative solutions. Other aspects that were brought to light also included the adoption of cashless payment, or also known as e-wallet, and the government’s initiative to promote e-commerce during the pandemic.

More on SOCSO’s initiatives and efforts, Head of Employment Services Department Gayathri Vadivel and Head of Strategic Initiative and MYFutureJobs Unit Andreas Charles Akobiarek from SOCSO elucidated on “MYFutureJobs and Hiring Incentives” and “Pakej Perlindungan Rakyat dan Pemulihan Ekonomi (PEMULIH)” respectively.  Gayathri highlighted the ability of MYFutureJobs to provide more accurate job matching activities, and how the development of Malaysian Skills, Occupations, Qualifications, and Competencies Taxonomy (MSOC) in MYFutureJobs allows an in-depth matching process which focuses on a more comprehensive matching model that combines the preferences of the job seekers to functional skills and competencies process by the job seekers. Meanwhile, Andreas Charles enlightened participants on the application criteria, benefits, and outcomes of hiring incentives provided by the government to increase job creation. He also highlighted the government’s effort to produce more competitive local digital professional talents by providing several online webinars on digital skills and data science.

On the other hand, Founder of Yan Value Cube Information Technology Co. Ltd-cum-Guangxi University of Science and Technology Prof Li Xinlong spoke on “Digital Transformation - The development of cross-border e-commerce （数字转型-跨境电子商务的发展)”. He spoke on the current situation, obstacles and solutions to China’s cross-border e-commerce. According to Prof Li, it usually takes at least 7-21 days to send items from China to Southeast Asia. The logistic cost for exported items is several times more expensive than domestic logistic. Other obstacles including missing packages, obstacles to customs clearance and the complicated procedures in returning broken items. In order to overcome the obstacles mentioned above, China set up a lot of overseas warehouse. Prof Li said, “The Chinese sellers could transport their goods to overseas warehouse for storage. It could help to reduce the logistics costs and shorten the delivery time. All the goods are imported according to the normal custom’s clearance procedures. With the overseas warehouse, the sellers could also remotely control the logistics and distribution management from China.

The session on “Something new about the e-marketing (新网络营销)” with E-marketing mentor Jason Kok saw participants learning about ways to transform traditional marketing to social media marketing, find ideal customers and increase sales, as well as methods to promote products in an international platform. He highlighted the importance of being an influencer and advised, “A great salesperson would know how to promote himself. Therefore, I encourage everyone to use social media platform as a branding tool. Consider your customers as butterflies who are not easy to attract. Rather than trying to ‘catch’ them, you should instead be the farmer who builds a garden to attract the butterflies. So remember, make the right choice and your efforts will be rewarded.”

Founder and Executive Chairman of Eco Agri Solution Sdn Bhd and Tafon Agri Sdn Bhd Lai Mei Sheng enlightened participants on “Digital Path of The King of Fruits with Tafon Agri Sdn Bhd（大丰企业与马来西亚国王的数码之路）”. Lai shared his experience on digitising his business by using an app to collect and organise data. He explained, “Through this app, we could collect data on the field. The recorded data and images will be sent to the cloud for re-checking and tracking in future. With this kind of electronic data, we will know when the crops are harvested and which products are more effective and popular in the market. Our customers could go to any of our branches and get effective pesticides for their plants.” He also highlighted the benefits of digitising durian plantation in Malaysia.

Three forums, on the other hand, saw (1) panellist namely CEO, Bizporter, MCM eCom Global Venture Sdn Bhd Dan Then Ikh Choo; CEO, Convedge Sdn Bhd Stan Lee; and CEO & Principal Consultant, ASK Education & Training Sdn Bhd and Senior Consultant at ITD World, a Global Leadership Development Expert K. Ravinther discussing on “Digital Transformation: A Path to Business Resilience”; (2) panellist CEO & Founder of P Lab, Ipoh, Perak Chok Yen Hau; Founder of Simple Hive Guest House, Ulu Yam, Selangor Low Ley Soon; Director of Chop Guan Kee Sdn Bhd, Sg Pelek, Selangor Teo Shao Hui; and Director of Tat Lian Enterprise, Jenjarom, Selangor Jennifer Tan Siew Lee discussing on Digital Transformation and Development of Malaysia New Village SMEs (馬來西亞鄉鎮中小型企業的數位轉型與發展); and lastly (3) panellist Co-founder, PichaEats Lim Yuet Kim; Owner & Co-Founder, KLSings Cheryl The; Grow The Goose and Borneo Cocoa, Vice President of CSED Malaysia (Chamber of Social Entrepreneur Development) Nina Othman; CEO, DemiLaut Haaziq Ibrahim; and Director, Yayasan UNIKL Assoc Prof Dr Cordelia Mason discussing on “Social Entrepreneurship: Reflections on Resilience as part of the process”.

The conference ended with a closing speech by Prof Choong, who also encouraged participants to participate in the workshop provided to enhance their knowledge, skills, and competencies to digitise business.

Click here to watch the full conference.