Conclusiones de Mayo

Built on the earlier plans of OPP3, NVP, 8MP and lessons learned d uring the Asian Financial Crisis in 1997 and 1998, the quality of the country's m anpow er has been identified as one critical factor in determ ining how fast and how successfully M alaysia transform s itself from a production econom y to a know ledge-based economy. Furtherm ore, her status as a learning region has required M alaysia to be able to value her intellectual, hum an, social, industrial, agricultural an d cultural capital. In this view, it has been arg u ed th at "if the regions are expected to do m ore for them, then they need to be em pow ered to design and deliver policies, w hich are attu n ed to the nuances of their regional economies" (M organ, 1991: p. 503).

In this regard, according to M alaysia's M inister of H u m an Resources, there are tw o crucial issues th at need to be studied: firstly, w h at will the shift to a know ledge-based econom y m ean for Malaysia, its corporations and employees? Secondly, how well p rep ared is M alaysia - in m anpow er term s - for the proposed shift to the know ledge-based econom y? Seeking answ ers to these questions will in tu rn raise m ore questions: w h at will be the dem an d for know ledge w orkers? Will our supply of know ledge w orkers be adequate for the p resen t and the future? Are our universities, colleges and training institutes, w hether public and private, w ell equipped to m eet this need? H ow can corporations help to m eet the dem and for know ledge w orkers? (Fong C han Onn, 2003).

W ith regard to this scenario, the m ain features of the know ledge-based econom y are a highly educated labour force, know ledge w orkers w ho are skilled in the application of know ledge, and the use of inform ation and com m unications technology. A know ledge-based econom y prom ises m ore value-added p roduction and greater international com petitiveness (Malaysia, 2001 an d OPP3). H ow ever, there is one big issue to be considered in relation to the increasing com petition an d d em and for higher stan d ard s of efficiency in the global business venture. This is the question

of how the M alaysian econom y can rem ain com petitive and viable in the global m arketplace. This is due to the current trend, w hereby m arket liberalisation will increase opportunities for m arket opening to low-cost p roducing countries, w hile globalisation will lead to greater com petition for foreign direct investm ent (Jomo and Shyam ala, 2001). In relation to the earlier review in C hapters 2 and 3, em ployers in the know ledge-based econom y face several challenges, such as the grow ing d em and for custom er satisfaction in the m arketplace, the deepening economic interdependence in a globalise w orld, the free flow of inform ation and rapid developm ent of inform ation and com m unications technology. Therefore, the h u m an resource developm ent issue w as ad d ressed d uring the Budget 2004 Speech as one of the resolutions aim ed at overcom ing the above scenario (A hm ad Badawi, 2004). This is because, in the past, it has been show n th at long-term com petitiveness in the international m arket can only be m aintained th ro u g h ensuring w orld class perform ance standards, operational excellence, cost efficiency and enhanced labour productivity and innovation (Amar, 2002 and Am ar, 2004).

In line w ith this, having m ore know ledge w orkers (who are m ostly inform ation technology w orkers in the M ultim edia Super C orridor Com panies) m ay help the M alaysian econom y to achieve sustainable com petitive advantage. This is because, as Sm ith an d R upp (2004: p. 66) argued, 'There is a shortage of inform ation technology w orkers to fill jobs in the long term and ... the im pact of this shortage will become m ore severe w hen productivity and grow th become threatened. For exam ple, in the USA m any of these inform ation technology intense jobs are being outsourced to India". Furtherm ore, in view of the success of the M ultim edia D evelopm ent C orridor in developing the M ultim edia Super C orridor, the governm ent will expand its role to become a one-stop agency for selected services sectors (M oham ad, 2002). Thus, there will be m any requests from eligible com panies to apply for M ultim edia Super C orridor

status, as well as an increasing need for know ledge workers. This is because a successful transform ation of the econom y into a know ledge econom y is predicated u p o n an adequate supply of know ledge w orkers (Abdul Rahim et al., 2000). H ow ever, the lim ited num bers of know ledge w orkers, as show n earlier in the M ultim edia Super C orridor Inform ation Survey 2003 report, require hum an resource m anagem ent to look into this m atter in depth, and especially at the need to m otivate and retain know ledge w orkers in the country by applying know ledge m anagem ent. In this view, the role of h u m an resource m anagem ent has been highlighted as crucial for the effectiveness of know ledge m anagem ent im plem entation (Amar, 2002; Newell et al., 2002; N onaka and Takuechi, 1995; Solim an and Spooner, 2000; Yahya and Goh, 2002). This is because in the current inform ation age, know ledge, inputs, and w ork products of industries, governm ents, the professions and com m unities can be captured as digitised inform ation. This can then be processed, duplicated, stored, retrieved and transm itted in w hatever form it m ay take, unconstrained by time, distance an d volum e, at ever low er costs (D avenport and Prusak 2000; G rayson an d O'Dell, 1998; New ell et al. 2002; N onaka ,1994, 1995, 1998 and 2000; O rdonez de Pabloz, 2002; Smith, 2001; Suk Choi, 2000; Wiig, 1999). Therefore, this capability adds huge new capacities to hum an intelligence, perh ap s even o u tru n n in g society's capacity to apply it effectively and wisely th ro u g h the m anaging of know ledge. This then leads tow ards M alaysia's transform ation into an effective learning region, which is believe to su p p o rt a m ore innovative attitude by "...w orking w ith w h at exists, how ever inauspicious, in an effort to break the traditional institutional inertia in the public and private sectors, fostering inter-firm netw orks w hich engage in interactive learning, n u rtu rin g tru st and voice- based m echanism s w hich help to lubricate these netw orks an d prom oting a cultural disposition w hich sets a prem ium on finding joint solutions to com m on problem s" (M organ, 1997: p. 501).

In responding to this dem and, the education system s and in particular institutions of higher learning (IHLs) have a very im portant role in the training of know ledge workers, particularly for the inform ation com m unication technology sector in general and the M ultim edia Super C orridor in particular. Besides, the tim e has come for the relevant authorities to take a second look at the current system to determ ine w hether it m eets the country's need for resourceful w orkers (Lucas and Verry, 1999). In the case of M ultim edia Super C orridor status companies, there is now a need to u n d erstan d these resourceful w orkers com prehensively. The inform ation gathered will subsequently help the com panies to create a situation that will m otivate know ledge w orkers to rem ain in the country rath er than going to w ork elsewhere. As stated earlier in C hapter 1 (see Section 1.3, The Research Obejctives), the research attem pts to answ er the follow ing research questions:

1) H ow do know ledge w orkers perceive the cu rren t definition of "know ledge w orkers" by the M ultim edia D evelopm ent C orridor and w h at is their opinion of being classed as such?

2) H ow do know ledge w orkers perceive the current practices and m ovem ent to w ard s the im portance and actual im plem entation of know ledge m anagem ent in Malaysia?

3) W hat are the factors affecting the successful im plem entation of know ledge m anagem ent in Malaysia?

4) W hat w ould be the role of hu m an resource m anagem ent in m anaging know ledge w orkers and helping know ledge m anagem ent to m eet its objectives to achieve a com petitive advantage?

5) W hat w ould be the role of the governm ent developm ent agency, and particularly the M ultim edia D evelopm ent C orporation, in ensuring the success of know ledge m anagem ent im plem entation in Malaysia?

4.5 Sum m ary

This chapter exam ines the phases of the M alaysian econom y's transform ation since independence in 1957. The agriculture-based econom y w as the m ain source of grow th in the early phases of developm ent. This w as follow ed by the industrialised-based econom y in the 1990s, w hich focused m ostly on productivity and industrial u p g rad in g to higher value- a d d ed industries. C urrently, M alaysia is w orking actively tow ards a know ledge-based econom y to enable it to face the era of globalisation competitively. W ithin the param eters of national developm ent m entioned earlier, M alaysia has experienced rapid changes in the last tw enty-five years, economically and socially. There have been increasing education and em ploym ent opportunities for citizens. Furtherm ore, w h at is currently h appening in m ost organisations is the realisation of the fact that people are their m ost im p o rtan t resource (Amar, 2004 and 2002; Acton and Golden, 2003; H orribe, 1999; Otte, 2002; Richard, 1995; Rowley, 2003). They realise th at m anaging this resource well is critical for their success, and ultim ately, their survival. They also realise that to gain a com petitive advantage, they have to perpetually attract, train and m otivate a highly com petent g roup of staff. C om panies capable of doing so effectively will inevitably be the survivors. This is a fundam ental issue; hence, achieving excellence m ust, to a large extent, be d ep en d en t on the com pany's h u m an resource m anagem ent philosophy. Thus, attracting and retaining know ledge w orkers is both a priority and a problem for all the developm ent plans, as discussed earlier.

W ith the com m encem ent of the plan in 2004, M alaysia now has 16 years in w hich to achieve Vision 2020. The next questions to ad d ress are as follows: - "Is M alaysia on the rig h t track to become a developed nation by the end of the next decade? Are M alaysians really ready for this, and w h at will h ap p en in the years ahead?" The NVP is entrusted to build on the success of its predecessor and set the pace for the country to be fully developed by

the year 2020. "Vision 2020", as the governm ent has called this am bitious plan, is to have a united society inspired by strong m oral and ethical values and a dynam ic, robust econom y that is resilient and socially just. In this regard, M ultim edia Super C orridor status com panies are considered as the grow th engine for m aking the Sixth Challenge of Vision 2020 into a reality. Therefore, strengthening of their hu m an resource developm ent functions is crucial for the continuous success of the M ultim edia Super C orridor status com panies in particular and the nation in general. H ere, know ledge w orkers have been highlighted as the m ost im p o rtan t asset for these companies. Thus, an u n d erstan d in g of how best to m anage them contributes to w ard s the achievem ent of the policies discussed above, such as 8MP, OPP3, KEMP and NVP, especially w ith regard to M alaysia's transform ation into a learning region.

CHAPTER FIVE