By Stephanie Jacob
At an event during his trip to the United States, Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak invited US-based Fortune 500 and Forbes 2000 companies to consider Malaysia, particularly Kuala Lumpur as a place to set up their regional hubs in Asia.
Zainal Amanshah
Later the chief executive officer of InvestKL Zainal Amanshah said that he believed Malaysia had the legal and commercial infrastructure that is essential for businesses to run smoothly, and said that InvestKL would continue to enhance management, finance and trading capabilities, to further facilitate and help foreign companies establish successful companies locally.
But of course, for a business or organisation to run smoothly, it needs more than just the proper infrastructure and a business friendly environment; it needs capable and skilled employees to staff and run the business. The question is, does the Malaysian workforce inspire enough confidence in foreign investors to draw them to our shores?
Sally Raj, country manager at recruitment agency Robert Walters Malaysia says “there are equally good local talent in Malaysia and enough professionals to meet the current demand for employees in the market.”
She however does say that in the pursuit to improve their chances at career progression, there are certain areas in which local graduates and employees can further develop to be made more marketable. Raj explains that while “acquiring technical capability is first priority, candidates can consider the next step of enhancing their soft skills. This will provide them with increased confidence to give better presentations and articulate their messages more effectively in the workplace.”
She believes the weaknesses seen in the bottom tier are things that should have been learnt during the graduates early stages of education, and expecting candidates to pick this up in their late teens or during university all of a sudden is simply not feasible.
Melissa Norman
Melissa Norman, managing director of the Kelly Malaysia recruitment agency agrees, and says the two main issues that must be highlighted are the proficiency of English and the work ethics of Malaysian graduates.
She emphasises that Malaysians must “enhance our education system to encompass a holistic learning experience in order to create a generation of thinkers…and (their) proficiency levels in English needs to be on par with the needs of the international market.”
In discussing the importance of good work ethics, she says the biggest problem faced by local graduates is the lack of critical thinking ability, independent learning, self motivation and agility, which are highly sought after qualities, especially by MNCs.
Norman acknowledges she has seen an improvement in the Malaysian employment market year-on-year and adds that a lot of MNCs looking for candidates are very willing to hire local employees if they fulfill the skill set for the job.
However she emphasises that more must be done to constantly develop the marketability of graduates and suggests there should be a dialogue with local education institutions to develop and refine relevant, timely, and applicable curriculum to develop the skilled workforce needed.
It is a problem the Talent Corporation Malaysia Bhd (TalentCorp) has also identified, and the agency says that, it is its main focus in its efforts to increase the employability of Malaysian graduates.
Johan Mahmood Merican
TalentCorp’s chief executive officer, Johan Mahmood Merican said the agency has introduced short-term upskilling initiatives like the Graduate Employability Management Scheme (GEMS) and the electric and electronic sector specific programme FasTrack, which he explains, “serves to inculcate graduates with industry-specific technical knowledge as well as essential ‘soft skills’ for the workplace.”
He also concurs with Norman’s view that there is also a need to revamp the current curricula to create a more holistic learning experience. He said that along with these programmes, and as a longer term solution, TalentCorp will also focus on embedding concepts from these upskilling programmes into the relevant university curricula, so as to ensure that students are already equipped with these skills when they are ready to enter the job market.
The tone being struck by all the experts with regards to the marketability of employees seems to be positive, however they clearly outline problem areas that must be quickly addressed. With Malaysia increasing its efforts to attract more MNCs and foreign investors to our shores, now is the perfect time for recruitment agencies, TalentCorp and those in the education sector to work together to establish a comprehensive education and preparatory system, that will ensure that Malaysian graduates are good enough to staff any company, anywhere.
You must be logged in to post a comment.