MBA EDGE Postgraduate Studies Dec 2012 by Penerbit Wawasan

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Studies

POSTGRADUATE

PHD: PURSUING THE ULTIMATE DEGREE wITH pROFESSOR DR CHOONG CHEE KEONG

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Studies

POSTGRADUATE

Professor Peter C. Doherty, AC, FAA, FRS Nobel Laureate wows crowd with immunology and humour

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EDITOR’S NOTE

CONTENTS

mba edge & postgraduate studies september-october 2012 TM

CORPORATE Managing Director: Steven Shim Office Manager: Vicky Shim Key Accounts Manager: Wong YW Finance Manager: Bonnie Bang

It looks like 2012 is coming to an end, with the monsoon season upon us. It has been an exciting rollercoaster ride, with various happenings here in Malaysia and the rest of the world, literal climate change as well as that in the political and social arena. As we live in these interesting times, it can be hard to plan for an uncertain future but what if you were thinking of committing yourself to a doctorate degree that requires dedication, hard work and unwavering interest?

how to choose a suitable area of interest or supervisor, the aptitudes of a PhD students and which part of the process is the most challenging. We hope these experts on the subject matter will help those of you who are contemplating a doctorate degree to make up your minds and be equipped with the right information and confidence to embark on this enormous venture.

Eu-Jin Chia and Dr Hendry Ng talk about the importance of the branding of institutions of Our current issue features the higher education in their article entitled ‘Brand Ecosystem of inside story on pursuing a doctorate degree, be it a PhD Institutes of Higher Education’ or a DBA, and clarifies the issues while an article based on a survey by Jobstreet.com that may concern anyone reveals the real reasons behind who is thinking of obtaining the unhappiness of Malaysians that ultimate postgraduate degree. We speak to Professor in the workplace. Dr Choong Chee Keong about We also feature the concept the differences between of BookPeckers, a group set the PhD, DBA and doctorate up for members meet up to degrees in general. Associate discuss and review the books Professor Dr Kevin Low tells they have read. These readers us what it takes to pursue the share their insightful reviews PhD, its benefits and also the in collective learning, taking process involved, for instance,

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reading to another level, not to mention making it an enjoyable, social event. Alexandra Wong speaks to the CEO of SEGi, Hew Moi Lan, about the journey of SEGi leading up to its 35th anniversary and its ascension to university status in an exclusive interview that reveals the hard work and perseverance behind its success. If you have any suggestions on what you would like to see in this magazine in relation to postgraduate studies or have any comments about our current issues, please email us at: penerbitwawasan@gmail. com. Happy reading!

Janet Tay

EDITORIAL TEAM Senior Editor: Janet Tay Writers: Nurraihana, Mohd Amil Contributors: Alexandra Wong, Dr Hendry Ng, Lenny Chiah, Eu-Jin Chia. Photographer: Tang Weng Kit, Brandon Leow Graphic Designer: Tony Lam PUBLISHER Penerbit Wawasan Nusa (M) Sdn Bhd (866716-P), Wisma Wawasan, 19-2 Jalan PJS 8/12, Dataran Mentari, Bandar Sunway, 46150 Petaling Jaya, Malaysia Tel: 603-56301802, Fax: 603-6301803, Email: info@pwn.com.my, penerbitwawasan@gmail.com Website: www.pwn.com.my PRINTER BS Print (M) Sdn Bhd No 10 Jalan Indrahana 1, Off Jalan Kuchai Lama, 58200 KL, Malaysia All rights reserved by MBA Edge and its publisher. While every care has been taken, the publisher, writers, and editors will not be held liable for errors, inaccuracies or commissions. Unsolicited material is submitted at sender’s risk. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced in any form without the prior written permission of copyright owner. The scanning, uploading and distribution of this magazine via the internet or any other means without the permission of publisher is illegal by law. Unless otherwise stated, credits for public domain images are from www.inmagine.com without prejudices (royalty free).

THEME PhD: Pursuing the Ultimate Degree

What Does it Take to Pursue the PhD?

Professor Dr Choong Chee Keong is the Dean and Professor at the Faculty of Business and Finance, Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR), Malaysia

Associate Professor Dr Kevin Low is currently attached to the Department of Accounting at the Faculty of Accountancy and Management, UTAR

BookPeckers: MAKING READING SOCIAL

PKT logistics and polisas: MOU signing between PKT Logistics Sdn Bhd and Politeknik Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah (POLISAS)

Sunway Education Group’s Celebration of 25th Silver Jubilee Anniversary

CONVOCATION!: Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman, 20-21 October 2012

BRAND ECOSYSTEM OF INSTITUTES OF HIGHER EDUCATION

UTAR hosts appreciation dinner to celebrate 10th Anniversary

Supporting deserving youth

First Asean Ebook Conference

SEGi Stands Tall: MBA Edge Postgraduate Studies interviews SEGI CEO Hew Moi Lan.

UTAR and Mega PJ to venture into green technology construction

Professor Peter C. Doherty, AC, FAA, FRS

Nobel Laureate wows crowd with immunology and humour

Malaysians are Not Happy at Work

FACON EDUCATION FAIR

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presents

PhD

The MBA Edge Business Competition Season 3 TM

ersonal branding is like your fingerprint. It is unique to you. But how does one create a powerful personal brand? The MBA Edge Business Competition is now in its third season. For this season, prepare a powerpoint presentation (target audience 28 to 35 years old business executives) on “The Salient Points of Creating a Powerful Personal Brand in the Malaysian Context Today” with presentation notes for each slide.

Rules • Maximum 30 slides. • Proof of purchase - a receipt for 1 copy of MBA EdgeTM Postgraduate Studies magazine. • 3 winners will be judged by the impact, persuasiveness, and pragmatism of the advices. • This is an individual competition open to current MBA students studying in Malaysia.

• • • • •

All submissions will be blind judged by a panel of judges Winners will be contacted directly. Decisions of judges are final. No queries will be entertained. The Organizer reserves the rights to substitute prizes of equal worth. The Organizer reserves the rights to publish the entries submitted with due credits to the students.

Prizes Each winner will win a prize consisting of: • Certificate of achievement. • Faber-Castel Premium Pens. • 1 session of personality-style test by professional image consultant. • Make up & hair styling (2 themes). • Fashion styling. • 8 touch-up photos (print). • 20 softcopy photos in CD.

Submit by email to: penerbitwawasan@gmail. com before 15th November 2012 or by mail to: Penerbit Wawasan Nusa (M) Sdn Bhd, Wisma Wawasan, 19-1 & 19-2, Jalan PJS 8/12, Dataran Mentari, 46150 Petaling Jaya, Bandar Sunway, MALAYSIA Tel: 603 - 56301802, Fax: 603 - 56301803

Pursuing the Ultimate Degree When Tom Peters coined the term “personal branding” in his 1997 article “The Brand Called You” in Fast Company, he had this to say: We are CEOs of our own companies: Me Inc.

Entry Slip Name of participant: Email & Mobile: University name: University chop:

Dan Schawbel puts it this way: Personal branding is the process of how we market ourselves to others. The way we manage our careers is changing, due to the rise in competition and the introduction of web 2.0. In order to extend our reach, visibility and networking capabilities, we must turn to personal branding as our savior. In the digital age, our name is our only currency.

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Professor Dr Choong Chee Keong is the Dean and Professor at the Faculty of Business and Finance, Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR), Malaysia.

rofessor Dr Choong is currently holding the Tan Sri Dato’ Sri Dr Teh Hong Piow Chair in Banking and Finance (Professorial Chair) at the Faculty of Business and Finance. He has taught Economics, Business Finance, and Statistics for Economics and Management, History of Economic Thought, Quantitative Techniques, Basic Econometrics, Econometrics, Research Methods, Business Research Methodology (master and doctorate levels). He is actively involved in research covering the areas of applied and monetary economics (public finance, stock market, monetary and fiscal policies) and international economics (private capital flows, exchange rate, remittances, trade) and financial economics (financial sector development and institutional quality). He

has more than 130 papers accepted/published so far in national and international journal articles. He was also awarded five Fundamental Research Grant Scheme (FRGS) from the Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE) Malaysia; four UTAR Research Fund; and four collaborations with local public and private universities (Universiti Malaysia Sabah, Universiti Teknologi MARA and Monash University Sunway Campus). His articles published in Macroeconomics and Finance in Emerging Market Economies and Japan and the World Economy have been cited as one of the Top Requested and/or Most Downloaded Papers in the years 2010, 2011 and 2012, respectively.

MBA Edge Postgraduate Studies speaks to Professor Dr Choong about the differences between a DBA, PhD and

doctorate degrees. Q. Why do graduates pursue doctorate degrees? Is it solely a stepping stone to an academic career? Doctorate degrees are the highest-level academic degrees. While a DBA programme focuses on applied business research in the thesis writing phase, a PhD in business study veers more towards theoretical research. Graduates will have more confidence in their research abilities after going through the unique experience of getting a PhD degree. They become powerful researchers. It is the ideal qualification for an academic career. Though a doctorate degree is not necessary (or even preferred) for one to join the industry or the business world, it is evidence of one’s

knowledge in his or her area of research. In addition, a PhD or a DBA holder can perform relevant jobs that require critical thinking and research skills well in the business world. Q. Are career potentials there for PhD holders? A PhD degree is the ideal qualification for joining the academia – i.e., the academic community of lecturers and researchers in universities. Some PhD holders may hold high- level research, administrative and management positions of governmental, nongovernmental, and agencies of world bodies like United Nations. In the industry or business world, PhD holders would be able to make use of their highly developed skills to do research, critically analysing data or information, write

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Full-time after Master’s Degree: minimum two years to maximum six years.

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Q. How does one develop the right research topic?

Before selecting a topic or a research area, one must consider his or her particular interests, capabilities and motivations.

papers and give talks. Suitable positions for them in their respective areas of specialisations include economists, financial analysts, fund managers, and business researchers or consultants. Q. What is the typical process of the PhD programme? The typical process of the PhD programme is quite simple, but generally takes an MPhil or basic degree holder three to six years to complete full time. The PhD programme provides an alternative to taught postgraduate degrees

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and the PhD degree is earned through the completion of a theoretic research thesis and viva or oral examination. Q. What are some of the unique aptitudes of successful PhD students? Some of the unique aptitudes of successful PhD students are (but most acquire some these talents in the process of completing their PhD degrees): •

Ability to work steadily through (sometimes) a gruelling and painful process.

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Can read and critique many research papers.

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Likes to run experiments or research and interpret results.

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Ability to figure out what problems need to be solved.

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A talent for writing papers and giving talks.

Q. What is the length of a normal PhD? Part-time after a Master’s Degree, minimum four years to maximum eight years

It involves the development of your capacity for independent thinking after going through a lot of initial anxieties and uncertainties. Your capacity for independent thinking must usually be preceded by many hours or months of reading.

research problems?

popularity in the University

Is it manageable in size?

What is the potential for making an original contribution to the literature in the field?

Cost and availability of financial aids

If the problem is solved, will the results be reviewed well by scholars in your field? Are you, or will you become, competent to solve it?

Before selecting a topic or a research area, one must consider his or her particular interests, capabilities and motivations. Some students are led into areas according to the greatest interests and needs of the academic and private sectors respectively.

10. By solving it, will you have demonstrated independent skills in your discipline?

The chemistry professor and author, Robert Smith, in his book, Graduate Research: A Guide for Students in the Sciences (ISI Press, 1984) lists 11 points to consider in finding and developing a research topic. They are equally suitable for those undertaking research in social sciences. You should be able to answer positively or “Yes” to all these questions:

Q. How does one go about choosing the right university for a PhD? How important is the reputation of the university?

Can it be enthusiastically pursued?

Can interest be sustained by it?

Is the problem solvable?

Is it worth doing?

Will it lead to other

11. Will the necessary research prepare you in an area of demand or promise for the future?

The first thing students should consider is accreditation. If a programme is not accredited, it is not worth pursuing. Other important factors concern your needs, goals, and suitability. The list includes: Programme location Specialisation options Faculty reputation Programme reputation or

Image of the University to potential employers and in society. Q. How does one choose the right supervisor? Choose a supervisor who is still motivated, productive and active in the research community and who has similar research interests as you. You need to get along well with your supervisor, so do not get one with an extremely difficult personality. All else being equal (personality and research interest relevance), a supervisor (better still a full professor) who has a long list of publications in reputable journals is preferable to those who are less experienced and have fewer publications. Avoid someone who is too busy with his or her own work to spend time on you. Q. What are the differences between the DBA and the PhD? “The unexamined life is not worth living”, so said Socrates, a great ancient Greek philosopher. In the academic sector, a PhD, which is obtained through a theoretical research thesis and oral examination, is often considered to be of higher level. Doing a theoretical

research is like philosophy – a study of truths and pursuit of wisdom. To join the academia, a PhD in business administration is preferred to a Doctorate of Business Administration. Conferments of MPhils and PhDs reflect independent research capability – from research problem formulation to research design and articulation of findings. These degree programmes are ideal for those who like independent study, reading, research work, as well as intellectual discussions with their supervisors and peers. They are ideal as stepping stones for careers as lecturers and researchers, but the skills acquired from them are equally relevant in the industry for relevant jobs. Q. Do I need a postgraduate degree by research if I intend to join the business world? If you want to join the business world, an MBA (course-based programme) is acceptable and may be the popular choice. Having said that, there are certain positions in the business world – like business researchers, fund managers, and financial analysts – for which a postgraduate degree by research may be more suitable. An MPhil or PhD degree confers on its holder strong knowledge in his or her area of research, strong critical thinking, analytical,

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While quantitative research uses numbers as data from many participants for statistical analysis, a qualitative researcher makes use of words as data and performs thematic analysis with fewer participants.

Q. What are the salient differences between a PhD degree based on Quantitative Research and one based on Qualitative Research? The salient differences are as follows:

and problem solving skills.

•

With a postgraduate degree by research, one would have a good qualification for both the academic and business sectors. Q. What are the options available if a student cannot complete the PhD? Doing a PhD programme is by no means an easy task and is probably very different from any studies you have experienced before. To complete a PhD successfully, you will need to be highly motivated and exceptionally enthusiastic. For some it is a gruelling and painful process. Not every graduate student will finish the research thesis. An option may be to reregister for a course-based programme such as MBA or DBA. Q. What are some pitfalls to watch out for? •

No one cares about your thesis. Choose a research area where you can find a supervisor in your chosen university, preferably one who has similar research interests to yours.

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•

Biting off more than you can chew. Choose a problem or project that you can realistically complete within the allowed time period. Thesis problem becoming unimportant. Do your thesis as quickly as possible before your research problem has been solved by others, by new technology, or overtaken by environmental factors – perhaps your supervisor (or yourself ) loses interest. Unhealthy competition between you and supervisor over theory. This can happen, but things can be worked out when both parties try to be fair. Implementation of research without significant theory to be validated. Perhaps there are wonderful general ideas but no significant “gap” for research. Keep yourself at the front of a new research area, so that you can hit something big or at least new.

A quantitative research is based on realism (that a thing exists only if it can be observed by our senses), while a qualitative research is based on idealism (that things exist only in our minds) – a difference in methodology. In quantitative research, one is supposed to be detached from any context – including societal values and the process, while in qualitative research, the researcher is part of the context and not detached from societal or cultural values. While quantitative research uses numbers as data from many participants for statistical analysis, a qualitative researcher makes use of words as data and performs thematic analysis with fewer participants. Where a high degree of accuracy is required, the quantitative method would be more appropriate. A similarity of both is that they each have their strengths and weaknesses and researchers often use both at different parts of their research process. Q. What are the strengths of your university in terms

of PhD programmes? The strengths of UTAR in terms of PhD programmes can be gleaned from the accomplishments in its short history of 10 years. Twenty-five research centres have been established in UTAR to develop a lively research culture. These centres act as platforms for staff and postgraduate students to present their research ideas and to elicit feedback. Workshops are organised regularly on research matters. UTAR has been able to obtain financial support regularly to keep its research culture active nationally and internationally. Both students and academics have benefited in their research work from the University, industry leaders, various Ministries as well as international collaborators in various countries. UTAR has also shown itself to be very active in organising student exchange programmes as well as research collaborations with foreign universities in the US, Japan, Germany, Australia, Taiwan, China, etc. Q. What unique areas of research or strengths does your university offer? Financial support. UTAR as a private non-profit making university was successfully established by public donations and government

support. Today, its affordable fees structure continues to attract many students locally and abroad. Donations continue to come in support of UTAR’S building fund. Market leading companies are increasingly contributing research grants and professorial chairs. Mission. UTAR’S missions include the establishment of a learning institution with a strong research culture that is affordable and accessible to all Malaysians and foreigners. High employability rate. The graduates have an employability rate of 97% within six months. To maintain the industry’s best practices and standards, from the very beginning UTAR has appointed well-recognised external examiners – both local and overseas. In addition, each course of study has its own industry advisor, who annually does evaluation and gives presentations to keep the faculty informed and the course content relevant to the needs of the market. Academic and industry collaborations. Postgraduate students in UTAR can benefit from the increasing academic and industry collaboration – including those with foreign universities for student exchanges, China-Malaysia businessmen trade body for research fund, Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers for MBA programmes, and professional accounting bodies for other postgraduate

courses. Q. What are some of your university’s successful track records? Students embark on industrial training with industry partners and many are employed by the industry even before they graduate. Ninety-seven per cent of UTAR’s graduates are employed within six months of graduation. The university has established the UTAR Global Research Network which provides the platform for faculty members to network for research purposes among academics, researchers and technologists all over the world. Thirty-four international collaborative partners have been appointed in the network. Nine sponsored professorial chairs have been initiated since 2009 with a total of RM13.75 million raised. The professorial chairs were set up to conduct research and scholastic development with contributions from the sponsors under the leadership of appointed professors in the areas of banking and finance, environmental engineering and green technology, creative industries, medicine, construction management, economics, civil engineering, agricultural science and chemistry. The international student exchange programme at UTAR encourages student

exchanges with MOU partner institutions in more than 17 countries around the world. In year 2011, a total amount of RM7.51 million was secured by the researchers (funding in UTAR) and RM8.07 million in collaboration with some agencies, organisations or ministries. For publications, UTAR is among the top 10 universities in Malaysia with the most journal publications indexed in ISI Web of Science for the past two consecutive years. Q. Where can we find further information about doctoral programmes at your university? For all PhD programmes at UTAR, candidates can always refer to the link: www.utar.edu.my/ipsr Postgraduate Programmes Q. Please recommend some reading materials on pursuing a PhD. Requirements for admission and completion. The detailed requirements for award of a PhD degree vary throughout the world and even from university to university. In some universities in the US,

Canada, and Denmark, for example, many universities require coursework in addition to research for PhD degrees. In other countries (such as the UK) there is generally no such condition. Some individual universities or departments specify other requirements for students not already in possession of a bachelor’s degree or equivalent. The Internet can provide references from different sources. ME

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What Does it Take to Pursue the PhD? Associate Professor Dr Kevin Low is currently attached to the Department of Accounting at the Faculty of Accountancy and Management, Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman.

r Kevin Low is the Deputy Dean for R&D and Postgraduate Programmes and has a BA (Hons) degree in Accounting and Financial Management from UK and a Ph.D. in Management (Accounting). He has authored a vast number of publications – international journals and books mainly in the area of accounting, finance and corporate governance related studies. He was awarded a research grant by the British High Commission and Ministry of Higher Education of Malaysia under the Fundamental Research Grant Scheme (FRGS) in 2010-2011. He has also served as a consultant for some public-listed companies in Malaysia and New Zealand and has an abundance of experience in the field of corporate finance where he handled personally a fund size of US$10 million in the

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international financial market. He shares his thoughts with MBA Edge Postgraduate Studies on the benefits of pursuing a PhD and its process. Q. What are the advantages of obtaining a PhD? There are many benefits and rewards for having a doctorate degree, whether it is for personal satisfaction, for social status, for employment or for the sake of education and knowledge itself. With a PhD degree, you may have more career options to choose from. With the accumulation of work experience and the additional paper qualification, a person will most likely obtain a higher position within the company compared to candidates who do not have the same work experience and educational level. Throughout the PhD

acquiring process, you will build up a reliable and diverse set of professional networks. You will work with renowned experts and scholars in the field and make important contacts during conferences, all of whom will be excellent career references and can provide recommendations for any job positions. You can be proud of your hard work and achievements because doctorate degrees are difficult to obtain and are recognised and appreciated at all levels of society. In fact, you can become part of a well-educated group of individuals in the upper middle class, a fact that influences your lifestyle as well as your income. Your knowledge will not only be of theoretical but also practical use, and you can share it with others for solving problems or dilemmas. You are an expert and specialist in

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When you are researching for a PhD, you naturally tend to focus on your research. But when considering your career options, it is often beneficial to do the opposite.

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your area of study, and your educated opinion will be highly valued among friends, colleagues and even the media. Q. What are the job prospects of a PhD graduate? PhD graduates can offer a great deal in today’s knowledge-based economy where highly skilled people are in demand. However, a PhD in itself is no guarantee of higher-level entry into employment, or a higher salary. Whether recruiting within education, research or industry, employers seek personal skills, qualities and work experience. You can either opt for work in the academic industry or the industry as the consultant in business advisory field. Academia: Public Universities, Private Colleges, Private University Colleges, Private

Universities Industry: Local financial institutions, Security Commission, Bursa Malaysia, Research Company, Foreign companies: Barclays, JP Morgan, Accenture, Merrill Lynch, Mckinsey & Company, The Boston Consulting Group. Q. Is the PhD solely for those who seek an academic career? What are other potential options? No, other options include engineering field, health professionals, business and finance, commercial and

public sector management positions. Q. What are some common reasons students pursue the PhD? When you are researching for a PhD, you naturally tend to focus on your research. But when considering your career options, it is often beneficial to do the opposite. Thinking laterally about your career options and increasing your awareness of employers and the opportunities they offer will often reveal opportunities for career development you had never considered before. Employers value skills in

research, communication, consultancy and commercial awareness. Develop these and the job market will be more welcoming than if you merely present yourself as an academic. Q. Please provide an overview of the PhD research process. A Research Process should generally include: •

Formulating the statement of problem

•

Reviewing of relevant literature

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Generating statement of hypothesis or research

objectives •

Generating description of research design

•

Selection and operationalisation of variables

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Description of sample selection procedure

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Description of how data was collected

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Data presented and summarised in words

•

Conclusion, limitations, and implications

•

Bibliography or

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Many PhD candidates have shown enthusiasm in the initial stage of the PhD programme but eventually the passion starts to fade away

references cited •

Appendices

Q. Which part of the process would you consider the most challenging? Data collection stage is commonly considered the most challenging part of the research process as it consumes time and unlimited labour power. Many candidates have designed their research which is catered for a larger scale of project. However, the PhD process is largely a lone process where the candidate has to walk down the lane on his/her own (even with the supervisor’s guidance). The candidate might not get the feedback from the sources as anticipated and thus will find it difficult to proceed to the next stage of research.

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Q. What are some of the unique aptitudes of successful PhD students? Perseverance and firmness. Anyhow, it still goes back to one’s self-discipline in carrying out the process. Q. How does a PhD student choose the right university? There is no right or wrong university. The issue is whether the university is recognised by the government and in the public’s eye. Q. How important are the credentials and accreditation of the university? It is pivotal for any university to get the accreditation and approval from the Ministry of Higher Education and Malaysia Qualification Agency (MQA) before one enrols in the PhD programme. The

reason is that there will be checks and balances carried out by the relevant authorities on the quality and content of the programme. Q. Finding a suitable supervisor is tough. How does one go about it? Finding a suitable supervisor is like finding a life partner. It’s tough! However, a candidate normally can surf the details of the potential supervisors in the relevant university’s webpage before engaging in the normal communication mode. But sad to say, there are many private universities in Malaysia that still do not put up the full and complete details of their staff on the webpage. The enquirers basically have to walk into the universities to start the goose hunting process. Most universities are afraid that their staff with

PhD qualifications will be pinched by other institutions and therefore do not publish sufficient information on their staff’s education and research backgrounds. Q. How do you define a good PhD supervisor? A good PhD supervisor MUST have at least five years of work experience in academia and some relevant experience from the industry. This is required since the PhD topic might cover a wide range of areas that require certain knowledge and experience to deal with. Imagine a PhD candidate with vast work experience in the industry and is paired with a supervisor with vast experience only in the academic field. Both will certainly have some conflict over the time in the process of pursuing the PhD.

Q. How much fact-to-face interactions with the supervisor is ideal? They should meet up at least once every fortnightly. With the work and family commitment a PhD candidate has, it is sometimes very hard for them to meet up face-to-face to discuss the issues faced during the process. However, with the technological advancement, one can always use Skype to interact with each other besides the normal email and phone mode. Q. What happens if the student decides eventually that a chosen supervisor is not suitable? The student can always ask for a change of supervisor if they have reached a stage where they cannot work together anymore. However,

it is always up to the Senate to approve such a change. This seldom happens unless there is a change of research area by the candidate. Q. What are the common reasons students fail to complete a PhD? It must be the lack of a structured timetable by the PhD candidate. A structured timetable includes the daily activities a PhD candidate should carry out for the PhD work from the first stage of literature review till the last stage of report writing. Many PhD candidates have shown enthusiasm in the initial stage of the PhD programme but eventually the passion starts to fade away with factors such as more work commitment from the company, a family structure change, less

personal discipline, less self-motivation and a career change which push them even further behind from achieving the PhD goals.

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Q. What is your advice to prospective PhD students? The PhD process is another voyage in life with full of uncertainties. One must have a strong and determined mindset to finish the race in three to six years’ time. In short, have fun! ME

Associate Professor Dr Kevin Low

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BookPeckers

MAKING READING SOCIAL

et’s ask ourselves: How many books did we buy in the past year? Could be a lot. Out of what we purchased, how many have we finished reading? Perhaps not that many. Out of what we have read, how much information have we retained? Probably not much, unless we share it with others and put the lessons learned into practice. The time is 2pm at the Old Town White Coffee restaurant. Eight members put their heads together to discuss books. There are four books to be presented this time, from selling to personal finance and persuasion to career development. Each presenter takes 10 to 15 minutes to talk about his or her book, followed by a lively group discussion on the points presented. At the end of the two-hour gathering, members exchange their books to be read until the next meet-up. This is how BookPeckers work. Members not only share their books with one another, but also the knowledge obtained from their readings. As the saying “let iron sharpen iron”

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goes, this act of helping one another encourages the retention of information as well as the effective application of the knowledge to business endeavours and life challenges. Since the beginning of 2012, a total of 10 meet-ups have been held, each normally attended by a small group of five to 10 members. As of November 2012, more than 40 members have been blessed by these small group meetings. They include business owners, trainers, academicians, freelancers, career-minded individuals and other working individuals from different walks of life. More than 30 books have thus far been presented with particular focus on topics related to business, management, leadership, finance, life inspirations, work/ life balance, self-development as well as business fiction. We seek to cultivate the culture of learning and sharing in the business marketplace, so that all can learn and share together, inspire and be inspired by one another. Members have gained tremendous

benefit from this concept of collective learning and sharing. The BookPeckers meet-ups are currently held in two locations, each meeting once a month. The Petaling Jaya group meets on the second last Thursday of every month, while the Bangsar South group meets on the last Saturday of every month. The next meet-ups are scheduled on Thursday, 22nd November for the Petaling Jaya group, and Saturday, 24th November for the Bangsar South group. You can register your attendance online at BookPeckers.com. The meet-ups have proven to be useful and eye opening for many members. The small-group event will be replicated on different days and times throughout the country to bless more people in the marketplace. If you are interested to start such a group at your area, please email bigbird@BookPeckers. com for further information. Looking forward to co-create the movement with you. Together, let’s make reading social! ME

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Ming Yi

Florence Toh Title: EQUIP - Using Psychological Techniques in Selling Author: Billy Kueek Presenter: Mah Ming Yi Profession: Certified coach in NLP, hypnotherapy & time line therapy Email: mmingyi@gmail. com

I have been most fortunate to share about EQUIP, a book that has been eyeopening for me. Written by Dr Billy Kueek, who is in the training and speaking business and writes to impart the knowledge he has accumulated over the years, this book talks about one of the oldest and toughest professions: selling! First published in 2002, EQUIP revolves around what Billy introduces as the selling framework, which is the selling process from start (prospecting) to finish (closing the sale) and how to implement psychological techniques in-between. According to Billy, the components of the framework remain similar

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no matter what we sell or represent. Important steps include building rapport, determining needs and handling objections. Among the many aspects of selling, the art of communication is one that is most well-covered. It is mentioned that according to Mehrabian’s Communication Model, only 7% of the meaning of the message is attributable to what is said. Ninety-three per cent of the meaning of our communication lies in our body language and tonality. This shows how powerful the brain is and how we sometimes take for granted the impact of the words we use. Besides that, Billy shows that simple things like handshakes and eye movements are greatly significant in the selling process. This book also looks at NeuroLinguistic Programming (NLP), a field of psychology developed in the 1970s about

how people think, communicate and achieve success. The knowledge and application of NLP can help build rapport and determine the usage of different selling strategies, depending on whether the person is dominantly visual, auditory or kinesthetic. Buying strategies are addressed in the new edition of the book. On the whole, Billy sheds light on an overwhelming repertoire of techniques we can use. EQUIP is easy to read and written in an encouraging manner, it is akin to having a private lesson with Billy. Most importantly, it effectively achieves the objective of teaching readers how they may apply psychological techniques in the selling framework. It is essentially about putting the prospect in a positive mind frame to make the selling and buying process a lot more pleasant for both parties.

I would recommend this book to anyone looking to take their selling skills to a whole new level. Billy notes to readers about the importance of dealing with our own psychology, mindset and beliefs in order to improve. Of course, one will find that, like any other skills and techniques, those outlined in this book will take time, effort and diligence to master. Reading equips us and ultimately, the learning is in the doing. The BookPeckers have given me great opportunities to meet new people in a casual environment as we discuss and share knowledge about good reads. Because of this, I am so glad to participate and contribute, and I urge people to be part of it. If you love to learn with people, this is the place to be!

Title: The ABC’s of Getting Out of Debt Author: Garrett Sutton Presenter: Florence Toh Haw Ching Profession: Postgraduate Student Email: florencetoh@gmail. com

I was first drawn to the book because of the simplicity conveyed by its title coupled with the recognisable purple cover of the Rich Dad’s series. In the wake of increasing financial woes, Sutton’s work is timely in educating the public about managing their debts and credit. The book is made up of short but impactful chapters with easy-to-read structures. The author begins by distinguishing between good debt and bad debt as he narrows down the different types of credit and how to alleviate them. Readers with no formal background in the field may need to look up the meaning of some financial terms introduced.

The book takes a holistic approach to addressing not only financial matters but also the physical, mental and psychological effects of bad debt and credit. Furnished with stories of successful and unsuccessful financial cases, the book discusses various strategies to lower bad debt and credit tailored to the suitability, capability and individual needs of the consumer. Sutton exhibits great patience in explaining the strengths and weaknesses of each option while imploring readers to be proactive in seeking help and negotiating through their financial mess. He gives an honest and transparent view of the risks involved in taking on debts and credit. An important point highlighted in the book is his caution against dipping into retirement plans to salvage a tarnished credit image. The author remains firm about the need to protect our personal debt and assets as

he reveals the many types of existing scams targeted at the vulnerable. While the methods introduced are not novel, Sutton makes a convincing case of the longterm damages of financial mismanagement. With his qualification as a corporate attorney and over 25 years of experience in debt and credit management, the author commands authority in educating the public about personal finance and wealth building. The only setback is that most of the laws and systems discussed in the book are unique to the United States. As such, some of the resources provided may be irrelevant to local financial scenes. Nevertheless, the book awakens readers to question the potential

pitfalls of debt and credit abuse. Also helpful are the worksheets attached at the appendices to aid readers in keeping a systematic record of their spending. The author has recently released an improvised version of the book with an appealing makeover to its cover. Business and investing ideas related to Robert Kiyosaki’s Rich Dad series are some of the popular discussion topics among the BookPeckers. Despite my limited financial and business knowledge, I support the concept because I highly believe in the power of reading and the collective benefit of sharing our knowledge. The current growth of BookPeckers gives me tremendous pride to have taken part in its birth.

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Jon Tan

Joshua Tan

Title: Dragons’ Den: The Perfect Pitch Author: Peter Spalton Presenter: Joshua Tan Profession: Mobile App & Website Developer Email: j@mrjoomla.com

Everyone wants to launch a start-up nowadays; from students barely out of college to early-retirement technocrats.

Dragons’ Den: The Perfect Pitch comes very handy if you are a start-up looking for funding. The book is based on the BBC series where entrepreneurs are given the chance to pitch their business ideas to investors nicknamed Dragons. It is written in a way where even a non-audience like me can grasp the concepts without difficulty. The subtitle ‘How to win over an audience’ befittingly describes the book’s objective. Laid out in 10 commandments, the book’s strength lies in the many practical and thoughtful guidelines given in each commandment.

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In the first commandment, the book talks about using different kinds of pitch and which ones to avoid. Understanding the balance of power during a pitch is pivotal as that is where hidden dynamics are explained. Getting a hold of the emotions in the room is crucial. The pitcher needs to appeal to the head and heart of the audience to maximise the impact. In ‘Know the audience’, the pitcher needs to consider each individual as having a unique personality and different hot buttons. Advantage is gained by researching on the various individuals in the group beforehand. Nevertheless, there are general characteristics of certain groups of people such as bankers, venture capitalists and angel investors. By addressing the hot buttons of these people, the pitcher increases his chance of securing a good deal. ‘Structure your pitch’ talks about breaking the presentation into 10 sections

with an introduction and conclusion. Research shows that most people cannot cope with more than 10 topics at a time. The 10 topics are elaborated for the reader to input into his own pitch preparation. In ‘Know your stuff’, the pitcher is advised to ‘think in threes’ where three key points drive the train of thought in every section. ‘Using props’ enhances the presentation and the types of props available are identified. ‘Learning to love questions’ is also decisive where handling such is treated in-depth. The pitcher’s voice is also focused where warm-up exercises, getting the pace right, pauses, volume and inflection are examined individually. Body language of the pitcher and the audience are given full attention where nuances of hand movements, facial expressions and body posture are variously analysed. Mental preparation covers selfbelief, breathing exercise, and practising the pitch opening and closing. The last commandment talks about seizing the day, which is the

pitching day itself. Overall, the book gives a comprehensive coverage on the various aspects of preparing the pitch to secure further funding for any business. Quoting from the book, ‘All athletes and sports people train hard and get themselves psyched up over many days in the build-up to their big event which may itself last only a few minutes. Learn from athletes and mentally work up to your pitch as though you’ve entered for a marathon.’ I was intrigued when my friend casually mentioned BookPeckers to me a few months back. As the next meeting then was held nearby, I went to check it out. I was hooked by the format of sharing different books by different people of different backgrounds. It was a great learning experience as I’d learnt from other people’s perspectives in addition to getting a glimpse of the books reviewed. Subsequently, I was invited to be a host for the Petaling Jaya group and be involved in the Central Committee.

Title: Positioning Career To Your Life Purpose Author: Brandjontan Presenter: Jon Tan Profession: AuthorSpeaker, Coach-Mentor, certified Global Personal Branding Strategist Email: brandjontan@ brandjontan.com

Like it or not, every professional or careerist is already a “personal brand”. Unfortunately, the majority are “fragmented” personal brands, lacking distinction in personal brand identity and positioning. Either “clones” or “chameleons.” And usually without a clear Life Purpose to guide their professional, career or business path for the long term. This handy eBook serves as a mindopener to address both issues. Firstly, it strongly advocates the strategic need to position one’s personal brand, by going beyond functional and utilitarian competence, and focusing on addressing

emotional and psychosocial desires/needs of one’s target audience and the world in general, by “humanising” one’s personal brand. This is the best way to build “brand affinity” with your target audience, other people and the world. It also emphasises the great need to build “personal social responsibility” into one’s personal brand, and the usefulness of aligning to a social cause that is congruent to one’s life ecosystem. Secondly, it also debunks the “silly practice” of many people who brand and position themselves, based on their current professions, jobs or businesses. This creates the “hilarious” situation of the individual changing his/her personal brand, every few years … or at today’s trend, every year! Strong personal brands have many hallmarks, one of which is the longevity of brand positioning. This eBook recommends positioning one’s personal brand, based on one’s Life Purpose and Life Strategy,

with a clear direction guided by one’s essence, core values and enduring personality traits, and the fulfilment of that Life Purpose, via one’s innate talents, inclinations and interests. Your profession, career or business, is one of the ways to manifest your Life Purpose. The “how-to” of identifying and crafting one’s Life Purpose-driven Global Personal Brand is covered in a forthcoming trilogy, entitled Global Personal Branding: Living Your Life of Greatness. Book 1: Audacity (The Audacity to acknowledge and flourish your Seed of Greatness within You) Book 2: Brand (Personifying your Brand of Greatness) Book 3: Courage (The Courage to fulfill your Life of Greatness with your Life Purpose) This free eBook can be

downloaded via: http://www. slideshare.net/brandjontan The BookPeckers session is invigoratingly appealing to me, because it is not a typical synopsis sharing occasion. Every pre-scheduled book reviewer has not only read a particular book, but also started to embrace and practicalise the key principles and concepts, into real business and work situations. Thus, the reviewer is able to stand up to vigorous questions and rigorous discussion from the participants, pertaining to the key principles and concepts. The reviewer also fervently espouses personal and professional insights extending from the book, and where relevant, constructive critique of the applicationviability of the thinking of the author.

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PKT logistics and polisas MOU signing between PKT Logistics Sdn Bhd and Politeknik Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah (POLISAS)

Dato’ Abu Bakar (Left), Director of POLISAS) signs MOU with Dato’ Michael Tio (Right)

PKT Logistics Group Sdn Bhd (PKT Logistics) and Politeknik Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah (POLISAS) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in Kuantan on 4 October 2012 to pave the way towards a collaboration between an educational institute and a corporation. The MoU outlines the potential areas of collaboration between the POLISAS and PKT Logistics, which include: - On-site training for lecturers at our headquarters - Industrial visits by undergraduates of POLISAS to PKT Logistics Hub - Placement of jobs and internships for qualified students of POLISAS and - Providing regular lectures to students of POLISAS by PKT Logistics qualified and experienced personnel. PKT Logistics is making its presence felt by spreading its wings into the eastern region by building a mega logistics hub which will be located at the Gebeng Industrial Area, Kuantan. The

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request for industrial visits through the fan page (PKT Logistics Group Sdn. Bhd.). PKT logistics’ exposure in social media has benefited greatly through the PKT Logistics Facebook page.

PKT Logistics hub, which is known as “One Eastern Hub” (OEH), will have a built-up of approximately 450,000 square feet of modern warehousing space that sits on 18 acres of industrial land. The OEH was conceptualised from the design of the Hukawai Glacier Centre in New Zealand. This PKT Logistic warehouse will be also a Green Building Index (GBI) certified warehouse, the first in the eastern region. OEH will also be catering to

staff welfare and be equipped and fully furnished with a gym and lounge with similar standards as the One Logistics Hub in Shah Alam (PKT Logistics Corporate HQ). The security systems fitted in this OEH will be of international standards to ensure that customers have absolute

peace of mind. The realisation of the MOU is partly due to the Facebook page between PKT Logistics and POLISAS. PKT Logistics Facebook fan page has more than 12,000 fans to date, with the majority being university students. Students can

Dato’ Michael Tio, the Chief Executive & Managing Director of PKT Logistics, said, “Today we are absolutely delighted over this collaboration and Facebook is the reason for this success.” He added, “I hope that once the OEH is complete, we can employ a large number of students from POLISAS to

work for us.” Dato’ Michael is widely known as a modern CEO and a Gen-Y entrepreneur. He has made Facebook compulsory in PKT Logistics. ME For further information, please feel free to contact Mr. Justin Samson, Special Officer to Group CEO, PKT Group. Mobile +60194995033/ Tel: +603-51618111 / Fax: +603-51616663 / E-mail: justin@pktgroup.com

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Name: Kho Guan Khai Email: kgkhai@yahoo.com Name of postgraduate programme: Master of Business Administration (Ballarat, Australia) and PhD (UTAR) University: Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman Graduation: Expected 2014 Current occupation: Programme Director Job Description: Involved in developing new academy programmes such as Green Technology and Green Building to suit the latest industry requirements. Besides that, enhancing conventional academic programmes such as business management and accountancy to include new elements like Green Marketing and Environmental Accounting to add value to graduate skills. Q. What do you consider the best take away value from your postgraduate programme? Work experience is important but without academic qualifications, promotion opportunities may be limited. Experience needs to come with new ideology, hence, the knowledge I gain from my postgraduate studies is really helpful in my career advancement. I am also able to apply the theories I

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learnt from the classroom in my work environment. Subsequently, I have achieved breakthroughs in my work.

Name: Cham Tat Huei

Q. What is your advice to prospective postgraduate students to prepare them for this programme?

Name of postgraduate programme: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Management & Marketing

In the beginning, you may find it difficult to go back to the classroom environment again after many years of working. But you must set a clear objective for yourself when you decide to enrol for the postgraduate programme. The learning environment for postgraduates is totally different from the undergraduate; postgraduate education emphasises the application of solutions to problems rather than simply understanding theories.

University: Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR)

Q. Where do you see yourself in five years? I hope to make a significant contribution to the students’ career pathways and our society. As a leader, I need to position myself correctly to ensure that I am able to lead the young generation. Q. What is your motto in life? Life goes on – our lives won’t be smooth all time, there will be ups and downs. It’s the same as riding a rollercoaster full of anticipation, suspicion, excitement, fear and joy. Time will heal all pain.

Email: jaysoncham@gmail. com

Graduation: In Progress Current occupation: Full-Time PhD Student and Research Assistant Job Description: Involved mainly in academic research. Q. What do you consider the best take away value from your postgraduate programme? Continuous learning and self-discipline. Life should always be in a continuous learning mode as each new day gives a new meaning to life. We should embrace life by taking a moment to see things around us and learn from them. Moreover, one has to be disciplined too when it comes to being a student. During my postgraduate studies, both for my Masters and the on-going PhD, I have to ensure that I am prepared for every aspect of my studies by persistently reading and

learning from various reading materials.

Name: Joshua Yap Choe Wah

Q. What is your advice to prospective postgraduate students to prepare them for this programme?

Email: alleniversonycw@ hotmail.com

Have fun. I personally feel that learning should be a process that is enjoyable and pleasurable for everyone. With this in mind, you will be able to bring in your versatile knowledge to the classroom, to be applied and used for your self-improvement. Q. Where do you see yourself in five years? After five years, I will be involved in academia and most importantly living the life I want to live and cherishing every moment of it. Q. What is your motto in life? “Accomplish or Do Not Begin”

Name of postgraduate programme: Master of Business Administration University: Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman Graduation: On-going Current occupation: Human Resources & Account Assistant Job Description: Assist in the administration of the Human Resources tasks and programmes, processes, balances and produces errorfree paychecks in accordance with human resources and accounting policies and procedures. Q. What do you consider the best take-away value from your postgraduate programme? I strongly believe that the knowledge and skills I learned during my MBA studies will be an advantage for me and take me to another level in my career. Of course, the experiences gained from working are equally important. This programme is not a shortcut for us to succeed in our

career and it helps me to explore more different types of experiences. Q. What is your advice to prospective postgraduate students to prepare them for this programme? Self-motivation and selfconfidence are important for us to prepare for this programme. We must have self-motivation in order to form an interest in our studies. Behaviour plays an important role as positive thinking and willingness to solve problems are important in the studies. Q. Where do you see yourself in five years? To be a successful person in my life and keep trying my best to do whatever the result is. Be innovative and a creative entrepreneur. Q. What is your motto in life? Do my best, God will take care of the rest. A man without education is like a bird without direction. Learn from the past, plan for the future by focusing on today.

Name: Shirley Sugita a/p Krishna Email: sugi.ssk@gmail.com Name of postgraduate programme: MBA University: UTAR Graduation: On-going Current occupation: Accountant Job Description: Managing the finances of Wesley Methodist private schools and the headquarters Q. What do you consider the best take-away value from your postgraduate programme? The MBA covers many different areas and not just accounting alone. This is important to me as I previously did my degree in Accountancy. There is management, finance, economics, legal and even human resource. The package is a wholesome education. Q. What is your advice to prospective postgraduate student to prepare them for this programme? I would strongly advise students to do their postgraduate after gaining some work experience because my years of working

in three different industries have helped me in my assignments and are also relevant to the lectures. I am able to do more analytical thinking and explain issues better due to my work experience. Q. Where do you see yourself in five years? Right now I am still a junior executive. I want to be able to move to a senior position and also get better employment. I want to be able to put a practice what the UTAR MBA has taught me. Q. What is your motto in life? Strive to do your best and never take advantage of people because what goes around comes around.

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Name: Cecilia Dewi Lauw Email: cecildewi@gmail.com; Twitter: @cecildewi Occupation: Branding & Marketing Strategist University: • Victoria University MBA (VUMBA) at Sunway • London School of Public Relations Jakarta – Bachelor Degree Brief Job Description Passionate and resultsoriented marketer and a creative individual with an MBA focusing on marketing and branding management and an exceptional ability to analyse marketing strategy for businesses, develop and launch products and build consumer marketing strategies. Industry experience includes hospitality, education, beverages and cloud computing. Why made you want to study for an MBA? • To further my education in order to compete with the best as I continue to broaden my professional experience. • I always believe that when you plan for your future, when you know exactly what you want and you work hard for it, you are near to success.

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However, hard work alone isn’t enough to achieve success – you also need an opportunity. Personally, the MBA is not a guarantee of success but only a tool for me to create more opportunities by widening my business connections and also my “ticket” to enter a higher managerial position. • Obtaining an MBA has been one of my goals ever since I finished my Bachelors degree. After I finished my first degree, I moved all the way from Jakarta to Kuala Lumpur and started my MBA when I was 22 years old with two years’ work experience in the public relations industry. What inspires you? • Those who can smile in times of trouble and gather strength from distress. • Those who are willing to groom others to become successful without hoping for anything in return. Favourite Quote “Excellence is not the destination; it is a continuous journey that never ends.” – Brian Tracy “Believe in yourself and your feelings. Trust yourself to do what your heart is guiding you to do. Your intuition is powerful. Trust it!” – Life Tools.

Name: Jessie Chok Email: jessie.chok@posco. net Occupation: HR Executive University: Victoria University MBA Email: 12032355@imail. sunway.edu.my Brief Job Description 1) Organising company events – sports events, company trips, and charity programmes 2) In charge of training and development programmes 3) Translating Korean to English and vice versa Why made you want to study for an MBA? I was born in 1981. Considering that most of my peers are wives to others or even better, mothers, at age 31 this year, I had few other thoughts before I joined the VUMBA on how to make my life more colourful but eventually I came to the conclusion that knowledge is the best gift for me now. Every one of us is learning every day of our lives. In our rapidly changing world today, I think a Masters degree is no longer something

outstanding but a basic need for a person like me, as a stepping stone to go further in my career.

Name: Kanat Kumekov

I have the ability to learn foreign languages faster than others but I am not knowledgeable enough to share my thoughts. This was also one of the main reasons I chose to extend my learning pathway to pursue my Masters degree.

Email: bekshire@gmail.com

As a working adult, though I am utilising most of my personal time to study for the MBA, I still cannot afford to neglect my work life as I need to pay my tuition fees. VUMBA provides me with a flexible class timetable and is also a link for me to meet more people from more diversified backgrounds. What is your favourite quote? What inspires you? Gandhi’s - “Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever” inspires me a lot especially in enrolling for the MBA.

Occupation: Business development manager in a construction company

University: Victoria University MBA (VUMBA) at Sunway Brief Job Description: My job is to scout for new business opportunities in the construction sector in Kazakhstan, to manage and supervise the Business Development Department of my firm. Why did I choose to pursue the MBA? The current situation in the business community in the country is in favour of increasing globalisation and the pursuit of cross-cultural exchange of experiences. This means that companies, large and small, are seeking to expand the scope of their businesses and to go beyond the country. The main point here is the exchange of experiences with the group of people with different professional experiences in various fields. To do an MBA, the programme should have students of different

nationalities to give me valuable experience of intercultural communication. I think the most important skill of an entrepreneur is the ability to pinpoint his own weaknesses and find people who are capable to complement him. In this case, VUMBA is the right choice and direction. What really makes this programme attractive is that it focuses on practical matters. More attention is paid to analysis of case studies and to learn to track the performance of case firms. In this way, I learn to make certain decisions and analyse the impact of such decisions for my company. What inspires me? I get inspired when I see other entrepreneurs not giving up even after many failures. My favourite quote is, “Ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country” – John F. Kennedy.

Name: Uyanga Enkhbold Email: uvanga.enkhbold@ live.vu.edu.au Occupation: Marketing, Public Relations and Promotions Manager University: Victoria University MBA (VUMBA) at Sunway. And National University of Mongolia, School of Economic Studies BBA - Marketing Brief Job Description: I was the Public Relations and Promotions Manager of My Key World Education Centre, Mongolia from 2008 to 2010. Why made you want to study for an MBA? I wanted to study for an MBA to develop my career, widen my perspectives on business and establish professional networks. The VUMBA gives me the skills that allow me to start a business by being an entrepreneur. I believe that the MBA not only provides a new perspective on business but will also help me to look at the world differently through observing different managerial and leadership skills and diverse business practices. Networking is one of the most valuable values of choosing VUMBA because of its over 100 students

from different backgrounds, religions, cultures and professions. There is much learning from each other and the forming of long-term friendships and relationships. What inspires you? Since I was a teenager, my parents have always told me to work hard and catch up with things happening around me. I definitely believe in that I am more knowledgeable now. In the future, I hope to continue to have a limitless desire to improve by challenging myself always. Favourite Quote : Until you are willing to be confused about what you already know, what you know will never grow bigger, better, or more useful. So go further more. (Milton Erickson)

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BRAND ECOSYSTEM OF INSTITUTES OF HIGHER EDUCATION

international IHEs, it further adds to the confusion of branding and the consumers’ understanding of the differences. Universities/ colleges in this instance may have to make a conscientious decision to separate their branding and marketing efforts to be effective. When colleges/ universities market, brand and promote home-grown and franchised programmes in a single strategy, it runs the risk of side-lining either the home-grown or franchised programme for a ‘greater strategy’ of the institution. Internal competition may yet prove to be a healthy solution when it comes to providing equal chances for both home-grown and franchise programmes.

By Eu-Jin Chia and Dr Hendry Ng

Figure 1 Output multipliers of selected activities in Malaysia Source: Transforming Education as an Engine of Growth. ETP a Roadmap for Malaysia. (2012)

cursory survey of the related advertorials in the national newspapers shows that institutes of higher education are increasingly dependent on branding as a solution to realise their common need to have sustainable strategic marketing. Higher education is highly commoditised, therefore its providers ought to differentiate themselves. In today’s complex and highly competitive marketplace, an intimate knowledge of their individual ecosystem of stakeholders and their interdependent relationships is crucial to a successful outcome. In other words, it is no longer sufficient to earn brownie points through mere basic facilities and resources such as classrooms, lecturers and libraries. The basic facilities, when augmented by academic services, will enrich student learning experiences. Whatever the market-savvy does, it leads to to a strong brand of the institute of higher education (IHE).

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This article seeks to understand the marketing needs of institutes of higher education in Malaysia and the limitations of their brand ecosystems in comparison with the framework suggested by Pinar, Trapp, Girard and Boyt (2011). Branding of institutes of higher education (IHE) Institutes of higher education cannot delude themselves into thinking that brand management is irrelevant. This is because brands as powerful assets represent the essence of an IHE, outlasting the company’s specific products and facilities. Also, brands such as Harvard, Stanford, and LSE represent employers’ perceptions and feelings about the graduates and their job performance. The real value of a strong brand is its ability to capture customer preference and loyalty (Kotler & Keller 2012). Like any enterprise, IHEs have been negatively impacted

by the global financial crisis (GFC) (Educational International 2010). Apart from the economic factor, today’s prospective students are fully immersed in digital worlds. On the local front, the private education sector has been identified as one of the highest multipliers in the Economic Transformation Programme and will be the focal point of development, as illustrated in Figure 1. This will see a growth in competition in the private higher education institution (PHEIs) sector, forcing changes to be made in the way programmes are offered. Home-grown and franchise programmes will experience greater competition with the entry of more international branch campuses (IBCs) offering already established and reputable degrees and programmes. By 2015, 25 new International Branch Campuses (IBCs) of universities from across the world will be operating

in Malaysia. This gives a new perspective to the development of homegrown programmes with competition from what consumers may perceive as better brand-named universities such as Nottingham University, Monash University, Southampton University, University of Reading. This looming competitive landscape will urge private IHEs to brand their homegrown programmes with reputable universities as working partners while local franchisee colleges will have to work harder and create better value-added services to remain competitive in the wave of new entrants and multiple choices for the students. At present, local IHEs with both home-grown and franchised programmes face the dilemma of focus and it disrupts a clear branding strategy. In the face of new competition from the

Some of the competitive predicaments that are faced by private higher education may be new and not previously encountered, forcing institutions to innovate their marketing and branding strategies to suit the new environment. It is up to the entrepreneurial brains of the industry to weave it through this new and ever changing competitive mine field. The offering of more homegrown degree options in a university should not confuse the consumer. However, when a college offers multiple franchised programmes from different universities with the same majors, it will somewhat confuse the consumer, unless clear definitions are made in branding the programmes. The homegrown programmes that offer a wide choice of majors could prove to be attractive as it offers options and flexibility. However, the institution has

to be cautious in creating economies of scale when providing options of majors but looking into operational efficiencies through common subjects and other shared resources. Malaysian IHEs have differentiated themselves through serving the needs of different segments with different mixes of services and products. For services branding, the process nature of services involves many customer touch points (Zeithaml, Bitner & Gremler 2006). Each of these components could have a critical impact on service quality, and ultimately on the image of a service-based brand. Because of this, an IHE needs to understand not only how differences are perceived by different segments, but also how the different dimensions of service are interrelated such that a change in one area of service could impact other areas. As academic products in the form of courses become highly differentiated, the enquirers are more likely to go through the ‘learn-feeldo’ (cognitive, affective and behavioural) stages of specific responses to communication (Kotler & Keller 2012). The hierarchy-of-effects model is an instance of the ‘learn-feeldo’ stages. A cursory review may reveal the common thread running through the marketing activities of IHEs. Awareness: the communicator’s task is to build awareness if the target audience is unaware of the product. Knowledge: If the knowledge about the product is weak, brand knowledge may be the priority communication objective.

Figure 2 - Marketing mix of business schools Source: Ivy (2008)

Figure 3 Brand ecosystem of IHE Source: Pinar, et al (2011).

Liking: If the product features do not satisfy the majority of the audience, the institute has to redesign the product, then communicate its renewed quality. Preference: This is earned through relatively better quality, value, performance, and other features compared with the nearest competitors’ products. Conviction: This is about converting the casual enquirer into a serious applicant to join the course. Purchase: having done the above, it is now time to lead the potential students to the final step, perhaps by offering the discounts, or letting them try it out (e.g., sitting in the class). A study [Ivy (2008)] was carried out to measure student attitudes and their perceptions of the importance of various marketing activities and

tools they were exposed to in the selection of the business school. The most important factors (Figure 2) in sequence are: the programme (choice of majors, electives), prominence (reputation), price (tuition), prospectus (communication through direct mail), people (interactions with faculty, staff, and other students), promotion (publicity and e-media), and premiums (mixture of various offerings). However, brand building is more than just recruiting new students. Service touchpoints are the tangibles that make up the total experience of students using a service. Touch-points can take many forms, from brochures to mass media, computer lab and teaching software, office administrative staff and the head of programme. In service design, all touchpoints need to be considered in totality and crafted in order

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to create a clear, consistent and unified customer experience. It is more than just providing the state-ofthe-art classrooms and an elegant Graduate Centre. To add to the complexity, cross-cultural values have become important for positioning an IHE to international students, more so in Malaysia where over 500 private IHE compete for foreign students. Much may be learnt from how Australian universities have managed their international students’ expectations. Gray, Fam and Llanes (2003) have focused on the values that students in three Asian markets place on overseas university education, and the media they use to gain information about universities. Their findings suggest a common media mix, an adapted branding strategy as key considerations for positioning international university brands in Asian markets. IHE Brand ecosystem It is resource consuming to build a strong brand that delivers the promised customer experience and value. Porter (1985) points out that the activities of a business contribute to its tasks of designing, producing, delivering, communicating and supporting its products to create value. Similarly, the marketing framework of Kotler and Keller (2012) suggests that customer value is created and renewed through the interaction between relevant actors (customers, company, and collaborators) and valuebased activities (value exploration, value creation, and value delivery). In short, it involves a brand ecosystem (Pinar et al 2011) driven by consumer preferences and experiences. As illustrated in Figure 3, a brand ecosystem

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of an IHE encompasses all the stages of value creation from initial design idea (e.g., an academic product/service) to the final consumer (target students). Coherently, every internal and external activity (value networks) in the brand ecosystem is interrelated. Like any ecosystem, a change in any part of the brand ecosystem affects the whole brand ecosystem, and consequentially the brand image and brand value.

IHEs need to identify the key educational needs of students and the perceived value of the offering by IHEs. In Pinar’s framework, student experiences are the driving force for all value creation networks in developing brand equity. Student experiences include both academic (curricular activities) and non-academic experiences (supporting value creation activities of student life, sports, and community activities). Academic activities may fail without non-academic supplementary services. Also, the brand ecosystem includes other stakeholders such as employers, alumni, and donors who have direct and/ or indirect contacts with the students. For an IHE, brand ecosystem building focuses on the factors that help to market and promote the university brand to attract more students. For example, the quality of facilities has significant impact on a student’s choice of institution, people (i.e., faculty, staff, other students, community) and processes (logistics of the service delivery) in the marketing of services. Although the value network delivers the promised product and/or service to the valued students (customers)

of an IHE, it is the students who inform the IHE about the desired value proposition. Summary When academic products are highly commoditised, a brand functions as a powerful differentiator for the institute and a decision-making tool for potential students. The educational ecosystem framework of Pinar et al (2011) may be adopted by Malaysian IHEs for their major value-delivery networks and interactions in creating individual IHE brand. To build brand equity, each IHE needs to operationalise the model elements to measure and test the effects of each of the brand ecosystem elements identified in the model. While it is implemented, student experiences must be measurable in terms of perceived quality of the services and facilities such as library, industrial links, student life, sports, recreations and brand loyalty. In this way, the empirical findings will help to identify the key factors for building a strong IHE brand. ME

Eu-Jin Chia, Manager, Marketing Dept, Sunway University, ejchia@ sunway.edu.my

Dr Hendry Ng, Head, VUMBA Programme, Sunway College, Adjunct Senior Lecturer, Sunway University hendryng@sunway. edu.my

REFERENCES Economic Transformation Programme: A Roadmap for Malaysia, 2012. “Transforming education as an engine of growth”, Viewed 13 Oct 2012, Retrieved from: http://etp.pemandu .gov.my/ upload/etp.handbook_chapter_14_ education.pdf Educational International, 2010, “Education and the Global Economic Crisis: Summary of results of the followup survey”, Viewed 5 Oct 2012, Retrieved from: http://www.eunec.eu /sites/www. eunec.eu/files/event/attachments/ report_education_international.pdf Gray, B.J., Fam,K.S., Llanes, V.A. 2003, “Branding universities in Asian markets”, Journal of Product & Brand Management, vol. 12, no. 2, pp.108 – 120.

Kotler, P. & Keller, K.L. 2012 Marketing Management, 14th edn. Pearson Education Ltd. Pinar, M. M., Trapp, P., Girard, T. & Boyt, T.E. 2011 “Utilizing the brand ecosystem framework in designing branding strategies for higher education”, International Journal of Educational Management, vol. 25, no. 7, pp. 724-739. Porter, M. 1985, Competitive Advantage: Creating and Sustaining Superior Performance, The Free Press, New York, NY. Zeithaml, V., Bitner, M.J., Gremler, G.D. 2006, Services Marketing: Integrating Customer Focus across the Firm, McGraw-Hill, Maidenhead.

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Professor Peter C. Doherty, AC, FAA, FRS Nobel Laureate wows crowd with immunology and humour

unway University recently welcomed Professor Peter C. Doherty, AC, FAA, FRS to join its list of distinguished speakers for the Tan Sri Jeffrey Cheah Distinguished Speakers Series (TSJCDSS). Professor Doherty, who won the 1996 Nobel Prize together with Rolf Zinkernagel in Physiology and Medicine for their work on immunity to viruses, presented a short talk entitled “The Killer Defense.” The talk elucidated on a short history on the discovery of erythrocytes (red blood cells), white corpuscles and the role of the macrophages and lymphocytes to what we presently know. Professor Doherty began the talk on the subject of immunity, “You all have a concept of immunity in your head. The word immune comes from the Latin term immunus which means ‘without tax.’ The tax that the immune system seeks to deal with is the tax of infection and

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this is where it has evolved. We are large complex organisms, we have different organs and we are walking ecosystems. On the surface of our skin, nose, throat and various other openings, there are all sorts of bacteria and viruses that live within us. It is our immune system that keeps it under control.” Professor Doherty expressed that the immune system has been in place for many years and that every living creature, such as fish and birds, are made up of different immune systems but subjectively function to do the same things. The history of red blood cells was first apparent when Leeuwenhoek first observed them under the microscope in the 17th century. He could actually see the red blood cells flowing and when he saw skin cells, he realised that the body is made up of cells. He did not, however, see the white blood cells, which

Participants registering for the lecture

was first noticed by Richard Virchow. The whole field moved forward when Paul Ehrlich used vital dyes to stain white blood cells that grew to show that the human body is made up of different white blood cells. Eli Metchnikoff, studying the macrophage, made a discovery after experimenting on the larvae of starfish that led to the discovery of phagocytosis. “That was when we started to understand that in our body, we have

these cells that eat other cells. But it was not until the 1960’s that the experiments of Jim Gowans, Bill Ford, Av Mitchison and others who told us that the lymphocytes that are so prominent in blood, are immune cells that recirculate from lymph node, to blood, to tissue to lymph and back to the nodes. Following that, Jacques Miller identified the key role of the thymus, and we realised that there are separate lineages of T and B lymphocytes,”

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(Above) Noble Laureate Professor Peter C. Doherty addressing a packed hall of audience.

explained Professor Doherty. He further identified the killer T cells as the ‘hitman’ of the immune system. “What it basically does is that it finds the cells that are damaged by cancer or viruses that cannot replicate themselves, and uses the machinery of the cells as a factory. In order to bring that infection to an end, it grabs the virus with an antibody and destroys the infection.” Professor Doherty went on to explain how he and Rolf Zinkernagel won the Nobel Prize and how life had changed since. Many questions were addressed to him at the end of the talk, which he gladly answered. The TSJCDSS is a way for Sunway University to give

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back to the community and public by encouraging lifelong learning and intellectual empowerment. Tan Sri Dr Jeffrey Cheah, the founder and chairman of the Sunway Group of Companies in Malaysia, is passionate about education and seeks various methods to empower the community through education. Through the TSJCDSS, the public is presented with an opportunity to listen to a series of expert speakers presenting on a vast array of topics. Sunway University has also conducted many socially responsible activities in the past and is on a mission to contribute to society through education. ME

(Above) Tan Sri Dr Jeffrey Cheah presenting a token of appreciation to Professor Peter C. Doherty at the end of his lecture.

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Malaysians are Not Happy at Work

ccording to a recent JobStreet.com survey on Employee Job Satisfaction in Malaysia, 78% of the respondents claim that they are unhappy with their current job. While it is often perceived that the main reason many young talents leave a company is due to the low salary, only 17% out of the 1,145 respondents quoted salary as the main reason for influencing their unhappiness at their current jobs. Dissatisfaction with their scope of work is the top reason many feel unhappy at work. Most of these unhappy employees feel that they have too much work or that their work is predictable and boring. Another factor is also their poor relationship with their immediate supervisor or boss. The remaining 22% of the respondents who are currently happy at work reveal the top three factors that influence their happiness: 50% are enjoying their work experiences and challenges 21% are happy with their bosses who appreciate and value their input

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19% are enjoying their work because of their friendship with their colleagues Interestingly enough, salary is not a major factor in influencing happiness at work even though only 11% feel that they are earning a good salary. Overall, the employees agree that the ultimate change in order to determine their well-being at work would need to include opportunities for career development and also work-life balance in the company. If these needs are not met, the majority (62%) say they would find another job to restore their happiness at work. One respondent says, “A company with strong management work flow that meets customer’s demands, good colleagues who can help one another with office politics at its minimum and good career opportunities all contribute to a pull factor for me to enjoy my job.” A total of 1,145 employees, of which 62% are from middle management level, took part in the survey that was conducted by JobStreet.com in September 2012. ME

About JobStreet.com

Media Contacts

JobStreet.com (www. jobstreet.com) is a leading online recruitment company presently covering the employment markets in Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, Indonesia, India, Japan, Thailand and Vietnam. The Group currently services over 80,000 corporate customers and over 10 million jobseekers in its database. JobStreet.com is listed on the Main Board of Bursa Malaysia Securities (JOBST).

Dominic Wong (Sr. Marketing Manager) JobStreet.com Tel: 03-21760482 Fax: 03-26987200 Email: dominic@jobstreet. com

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FACON EDUCATION FAIR

ake your way to the Facon Education Fair, December 2012 and you will be inspired by more than 100 globally recognised and award-winning institutions of higher learning from Malaysia and overseas. As the largest and longest education road show in Malaysia, the objectives in organising this show are to provide a venue for Malaysians to gather information on further education opportunities and to reinforce Malaysia as the centre for excellence in higher education. Kicking off one of the largest and longest education road shows in Malaysia on 8 December, 2012 at the Putra World Trade Center, the fair will be held at Hall 1 with over 400 booths. This fair will then

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move to another 11 cities in Peninsular and East Malaysia where school leavers and working adults will have a unique opportunity to meet with representatives from these renowned institutions. The participating cities are as follows: Peninsula Malaysia Opening hours: 12 6pm Kuala Lumpur, 8-9 December, Putra World Trade Centre (Hall 1) Alor Setar, 11 December, Holiday Villa Hotel Penang, 12 December, Traders Hotel Ipoh, 13 December, Syuen Hotel Malacca, 14 December, Hotel Equatorial Melaka Johor Bahru, 15-16 December,

Persada Johor Int’nl Convention Centre

resources development and the education industry.

East Malaysia Opening hours: 12 4pm

Those who are interested to complete their higher education locally will not be disappointed as all major local institutions of higher learning will be at the fair. This event will provide visitors with a superb opportunity to meet all these big boys all under one roof. These include the Advance Tertiary College (ATC), the Asia Pacific University of Technology & Innovation (APU), Berjaya University College of Hospitality, Brickfields Asia College, HELP University, INTI International Universities & College, MAHSA University College, MSU/PTPL, Nilai University College, SEGi University, Taylor’s University, University Of Nottingham, UCSI University, UTAR, UNIRAZAK, UM, UKM and UTM.

Sibu, 8 December, RH Hotel Kuching, 9 December, Riverside Majestic Hotel Miri, 10 December, Grand Palace Hotel Sandakan, 14 December, Sandakan Hotel K. Kinabalu, 15 December, Promenade Hotel Tawau, 16 December, MB Hotel Since its inception in 1990, this prestigious event has been attended by millions of visitors, underlining its popularity and public recognition for its success and contributions to human

Visitors to the fair will also get a unique chance to meet representatives from internationally renowned institutions from other countries such as Australia, Germany, India, Indonesia, Russia, Singapore, Ukraine, USA, and others, making it the comprehensive show to gather vital information on further education. The information gathered will help you make a better choice when deciding on your future education path. At the Kuala Lumpur venue, there will be four international groups of institutions from China, Japan, Singapore and the UK. Don’t miss the chance to get information and meet the representatives from these institutions if you are interested to study in these countries. The China group will be at the Penang and

Johor venues too! With thousands of programmes being offered, visitors will be spoilt for choice as options of courses ranging from Design to IT, Business to Law, Medicine to Mass Communications, Engineering to Sciences, Accounting to Finance to Healthcare and the list goes on. Scholarship and Study Loan: A scholarship information booth will be specially set up at Kuala Lumpur and Johor Bahru venues to assist the visitors with information on scholarships offered by participating institutions. What’s more, Jabatan Perkhidmatan Awam (JPA) or Public Service Department (PSD) and PTPTN (National Higher Education Fund Corporation) will be at the

Kuala Lumpur venue to disseminate information on scholarships and study loans. Academic presentations: At the Kuala Lumpur and Johor Bahru venues, visitors are invited to attend a series of presentations to have a better understanding of the programmes, institutions and their facilities, conducted by the respective exhibitors. Admission is free and seats are limited. Special talks & Career Personality Test: Booths will be specially set up at the Kuala Lumpur venue and Johor Bahru venues to provide visitors an opportunity to have a FREE career personality test. At Kuala Lumpur venue, there are special talks by the International Psychology Centre on career, interest and

personality. JobStreet.com will also be at the fair to give a talk on the topic, “Are You Ready To Be Hired”. Visitors are advised to bring along their result slips and relevant documents for a more accurate assessment when meeting the counsellors and representatives of the institutions. The opening hours are from 12 to 6pm for Peninsular Malaysia and 12 to 4pm for East Malaysia. Admission is free. ME For more information on the Facon Education Fair – December 2012, please visit www.faconex.com or follow us on Facebook at www. facebook.com/faconeducationfair.

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Sunway Education Group’s Celebration of 25th Silver Jubilee Anniversary

CONVOCATION! Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman 20-21 October 2012

Contributed by Lenny Chiah

he Sunway Education Group celebrated its 25th Silver Jubilee Anniversary with a Gala Dinner on 5.10.2012 to mark the Group’s successes. The celebratory dinner was the culmination of a number of exciting events organised by the Group throughout the year. Yang Bahagia Tan Sri Dr Jeffrey Cheah, AO, Founder and Chairman of the Sunway Education Group and Founding Trustee of the Jeffrey Cheah Foundation which governs the entities of the Sunway Education Group, graced the dinner together with the Group’s staff, students and alumni. Ms Elizabeth Lee, Senior Executive Director of Sunway Education Group in her opening and welcome speech highlighted that “The Sunway Education Group will build on our expertise and proven

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track record of delivering quality education to continue to be a leading education provider. As we celebrate our 25th Anniversary, we hope to continue to educate our nation’s youths and support Malaysia as it reaches its goal of becoming a high-income nation by 2020 “. Highlights of the dinner included 10 and 20 Years’ Awards, a Research Award as well as the recognition of the 25 Star Alumni who have achieved excellences in their respective careers in business, the Arts, entertainment and social entrepreneurship. These 25 individuals are : Serena Cheah, Lenny Chiah, Kid Chan, Chua Teck Boon, George Ang, Hugh Seet, Joanne Soo, Kenneth Wee, Liyana Jasmay, Reshmonu, Michael Chuah, Xandra Ooi, Adrian Ooi, Cheong Kim Meng, Elaine Hong, Angela Yap, Jacintha Tagal, Joshua Lee, Shareen Iqbal, Syed Mustafa Kamal,

Ang Ker Soon, Chan Jinn Yep, Chew Shee Ghee, Jet Chan and Jolyn Sia. “For more than two decades, Sunway has nurtured countless young minds who have gone on to achieve great things. I am proud to see our alumni, many of whom have benefited from the Jeffrey Cheah Foundation, become successful, contributing members of society. As we celebrate our 25th Anniversary, I am pleased to be able to reaffirm our commitment to continue to shape the education landscape in Malaysia, equipping our youths with the skills and knowledge necessary to succeed in life,” said Tan Sri Dr Jeffrey Cheah, AO. ME

Lenny Chiah has more 20 years in the media and advertising industry. She believes in lifelong learning and loves to impart knowledge gathered from her long experience in the field with public talks and a book entitled : Learning from Championship Brands. Lenny has recently been recognised as one of the 25 Star Alumni of Sunway Education Group.

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UTAR hosts appreciation dinner to celebrate 10th Anniversar y

As part of UTAR’s 10th anniversary celebrations, UTAR, in collaboration with Lee Kum Kee, hosted the UTAR 10th Anniversary Appreciation Dinner at the newly unveiled Dewan Tun Dr Ling Liong Sik at UTAR Perak Campus in Kampar on 14 October 2012. UTAR Council Chairman Tun Dr Ling Liong Sik said, “This year UTAR celebrates its 10 years of excellence in education. As we celebrate all our accomplishments and achievements, we are also mindful that UTAR would not be where it is today if not for the support that the University received from thousands of benevolent corporations, organisations and individuals

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who shared and believed in the University’s aspirations. Their benevolent deeds will always be our source of inspiration as we move forward to achieve greater glories for many decades to come.” Echoing Tun Dr Ling’s sentiments, Lee Kum Kee Executive Vice President of Corporate Affairs Leslie Fung said that the dinner not only gave them the opportunity to contribute as a corporate social responsibility partner, but also presented a unique opportunity to promote Chinese culinary by showcasing Chinese food heritage and culture. Sponsored by Lee Kum Kee, the glittering event

presented guests with the rare opportunity to savour a delightful, 10-course extraordinary dinner prepared by renowned award-winning culinary master chefs from China. The dinner commenced with food presentation by Master Chef Lu Yong Liang, a foremost chef specialising in Hubei cuisine who re-created the award winning dishes from China in sync with Lee Kum Kee’s mission to promote Chinese cuisine worldwide. Dubbed as Wuhan’s Team, the 10 food connoisseurs consisted of Lu Yong Liang, Zou Zhi Ping, Chan Fu Zeng, Gan Quan, Chen Liang, Wang Bo, Pan Xiao Qiang, Yang Chun Hui, Zhang Liang and Liu Yi Li.

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Supporting deserving youth Melodious Crooners: The ‘Caring and Sharing Choir Group’ serenading the audience with a sensational masterpiece.

Benevolent Gesture: The Star Publication Regional Manager, Operations (North) Chung Chok Yin (first from left) presenting a mock cheque to the UTAR Education Foundation Board of Trustees Chairman Tan Sri Dato’ Sak Cheng Lum. Looking on are (third from left) Tun Dr Ling, UTAR President Ir. Professor Academician Dato’ Dr Chuah Hein Teik and Lee Kum Kee General Manager (South East Asia, Middle East and Africa) Edward Chua.

he Jeffrey Cheah Foundation awarded scholarships and awards amounting to RM11.7 million to 1,700 students of Sunway University and Sunway College recently. The scholarships were mostly need- and meritbased, including a new scholarship category for higher degree students. The scholarship that the Jeffrey Cheah Foundation is most proud of is the Jeffrey Cheah Foundation Community scholarship which was presented to 13 individuals from the underprivileged community and those from Homes such as Rumah Keluarga Kami, Rumah KIDS and Rumah Ozanam. Under the talent category, there were scholarships presented for Sports and Music.

Kind Contribution: Tan Sri Hew See Tong of Hughes Corporation (first from left) presenting a mock cheque to the UTAR Education Foundation Board of Trustees Chairman Tan Sri Dato’ Sak Cheng Lum. Looking on are (third from left) Tun Dr Ling, Professor Chuah and Edward Chua.

Drum-atic Experience: UTAR students, clad in vibrant blue and white ensemble, enthrall the audience with their high-spirited Festive Seasons Drum Performance.

A number of performances were lined up for the night. They included performances by UTAR students such as the Chinese Orchestra Performance, Wushu Martial Arts Demonstration, Festive Seasons Drum Performance and Chinese Poetry Recital. Led by Toh Puan Ena Ling, the ‘Caring and Sharing Choir Group’ also rendered four songs which were dedicated to the memorable occasion. Their awe-inspiring performance garnered rapturous applause from the ecstatic audience. A total of 15 individuals, corporations and organisations contributed RM7,300,000 to the UTAR Education Fund. ME

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The Jeffrey Cheah Foundation is the first-of-itskind in Malaysia within the field of private higher education, modelled along the lines of one of the oldest and most eminent universities in the world, Harvard University. The ownership and equity rights of the Sunway Education Group, of which Sunway University and Sunway College are a part, have officially and legally been transferred to the Foundation. Governed by a Board of Trustees, the not-for-profit Foundation ensures that assets, funds and operating surpluses are used to perpetuate the cause of bringing quality education to future generations of deserving Malaysian students. It continues the mandate of the Sunway Education Trust established in March 1997 and both entities have disbursed more than RM92 million in scholarships to more than 13,000 students to date. The Jeffrey Cheah Foundation was launched on 18 March 2010 by the Prime Minister of Malaysia, Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib Tun Abdul Razak, in the presence of its Royal Patron, H.R.H. The Sultan of Selangor, Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah Alhaj Ibni Almarhum Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah Alhaj.

Gourmets Get Together: Master Chef Lu Yong Liang (centre) is flanked by (fifth from left) Professor Chuah, Tan Sri Dato’ Sak, Tun Dr Ling, Edward Chua, Lee Kum Kee Executive Vice President – Corporate Affairs Leslie Fung and members of the exquisite Wuhan Team.

tan Sri Jeffrey Cheah (in suit) with the 13 Jeffrey Cheah Foundation Community Scholarship recipients

The Guest-of-Honour at the ceremony was Tan Sri Dr Jeffrey Cheah AO, Founding Trustee of the Jeffrey Cheah Foundation. Tan Sri said in his speech, “You should all be proud of how far you have come and of what you have worked to accomplish. The Jeffrey

Tan Sri Jeffrey Cheah (second from left) with the Jeffrey Cheah FoundationSunway Berhad Scholarship recipients.

Cheah Foundation was founded on the premise of giving back to society and as beneficiaries of the scholarships, I hope that you will keep the spirit of giving back to society close to your heart in all aspects of your life. Regardless of the area of study you embark on, I hope that you will rise to the occasion in championing this spirit of giving and that it will filter through in both your personal and professional lives”. ME

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First

Asean Ebook Conference www.aseanebookconference.com

4-5th December 2012 Vistana Hotel Kuala Lumpur

4 December

Agenda

7.30 – 8.30 am

Registration and breakfast

8.30 – 9.00 am

The Opening Ceremony of AEC 2012

9.00 – 9.15 am

Coffee Break

9.15 – 9.30 am

Session 1: Introduction

9.30 – 10.30 am Keynote Address: Bridging Prints To eBook Market 10.45 – 11.45 am Guy Hallowes (Guy Hallowes Consulting) Talk: eBook Formats: Evolution up to EPUB 3.0

2011 Publisher-Reported Worldwide Digital Sales • Harlequin: 15.5% • Lagardere: 6% • Penguin: 12% • Random House: 15.5% • Simon & Schuster: 15.5% (from Publisher Lunch, 2012)

First Asean Ebook Conference Vistana Hotel, Kuala Lumpur 4 - 5 December 2012

current eBook publishing programme. •

Phone: +603 7880 5840 Fax: +603-78805841 Email: mabopahq@gmail.com AEC 2012 reflects the current interest of Malaysian publishers on the growth and development of the eBook market in Malaysia and globally. Among the objectives of AEC 2012 are: •

To inform participants about EPUB3 standard, its future developement and ways to deploy this standard in their

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•

To discuss the latest development of the eBook market in ASEAN countries, namely Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Philippines and Vietnam. Representatives of major companies from these countries will present their experiences, and their outlook for the coming years. To gain a deeper understanding from the Malaysian players regarding the latest developments of eBook in the retail market, library markets and the

introduction of E-text Book in Malaysian schools. •

•

To initiate networking sessions among participants. To showcase solutions from the participating technology companies.

ASEAN eBook Conference 2012 (AEC 2012) is organised by the National Book Council Of Malaysia (MBKM), with the cooperation of the Malaysian Book Publishers Association (MABOPA) as the event manager.

12.00 – 2.00 pm Lunch 2.00 – 2.15 pm

Session 2: ASEAN eBook Market Development

2.15 – 2.45 pm

Talk: eBook Market in Indonesia

2.45 – 3.15 pm

Talk: eBook Market in Vietnam Tran Trong Thanh (VINAPO INC.)

3.15 – 3.45 pm

Talk: eBook Market in Thailand Dr. Polapat Udomphol (IT WORKS, Ltd.)

3.45 – 4.15 pm

Talk: eBook Market in Singapore, Melissa Teoh (MediaCorp Pte Ltd)

4.15 – 4.30 pm

Coffee Break

4.30 – 5.30 pm

Q&A session with the speaker

Guy Hallowes Mr Guy Hallowes was born and brought up in Kenya, but migrated to Australia in 1986. He has since also lived in England, Botswana, South Africa and Canada. He is a qualified Chartered Accountant in England and Australia. Mr Hallowes has vast work experience in the publishing industry. He joined Harlequin Enterprises, a publisher of romance fiction and mainstream single titles, in 1989. From 1989 to 1993, he was the Managing Director of Harlequin Mills and Boon, Australia. In 1993 he was appointed the Regional Director of Harlequin Enterprises for Asia Pacific, a post he held until 1998, during which he was responsible for the region of Japan, India, China, Taiwan, Australia, including English language exports to countries in the region. From 1998-2002, Mr Hallowes was Executive Vice President (Overseas) for Harlequin Enterprises and was based in Toronto. He was responsible

for all Harlequin Enterprises activities outside of North America, looking into various European operations and five joint ventures. During his stint there, books were translated into 26 languages and sold in approximately 100 countries. Mr Hallowes was back in Sydney in 2002 to start a writing career. He rejoined Harlequin Enterprises in 2005 as Managing Director of Mills and Boon UK, a post he held until 2009. He returned to Sydney in 2009 and published four books on Kindle in 2012. He continues to write until today. He also undertook various consulting assignments for Quercus, the English language publisher of the ‘Millennium Trilogy’ in Australia and UK. In 2008, Mr Guy Hallowes started the hugely successful e-book programme for Mills and Boon UK. The programme grew at a rate of approximately 100% per month and was profitable within three months; it is now a significant mainstream activity for the company.

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5 December

Agenda

7.30 – 8.30 am

Breakfast

8.30 – 8.45 am

Session 3: Malaysian eBook Market Forum

8.45 – 10.15 am

Forum 1: eBook Retail Market in Malaysia Faiz Al-Shahab (Xentral Methods)

10.15 – 10.30 am Coffee Break

10.30 – 12.00 noon

Forum 2: eBook Library Market in Malaysia, Mohd Zekri Ismail (Sage Interactive Sdn Bhd)

12.00 – 2.00 pm Lunch 2.00 pm – 3.30 pm

Forum 3: eBook In Malaysian School

3.30 – 3.45 pm

Conclusion

3.45 – 4.15 pm

Lucky Draw & Closing Ceremony

The Birth of e-Book The generally accepted birth of the e-book lies with the Gutenberg archive of electronic texts, which was started in 1971 by Michael Hart. It began with volunteers keying in the US Declaration of Independence, and then the Bill of Rights, quickly followed by the whole US Constitution; The Bible was added book by book, and then the works of William Shakespeare, one play at a time. Project Gutenberg continues today by scanning older works, with the same philosophy of encouraging the creation, easy distribution and use of e-books. (Armstrong & Lonsdale, 2011)

About MABOPA Dr. Polapat Udomphol Dr Polapat Udomphol, DBA, is currently the Business Development Director of Ookbee Co. Ltd. (www. ookbee.com) and IT WORKS Ltd. (www.itworks.co.th), IT companies based in Bangkok, Thailand. He is the Vice President of Thailand Federation of Information Technology, a post he has held since 2010. He was the President of Digital Content Association of Thailand from 2012-2012, and is currently the Secretariat/Committee of the same association. Prior to his current designations, Dr Polapat Udomphol had worked for several other organisations, mainly in the IT and business development areas. He had also served on the Strategic IT Committee for the Thailand Post, also in Bangkok. Prior to that, he was attached to the Siemens Dematic Electronics Assembly System (www. siplace.com) in Norcross, Georgia, as a Quality Systems Specialist.

Dr Polapat Udomphol holds a Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) from Ateneo De Davao University, Davao, Philippines, a Master of Science in Industrial Engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia, and a Bachelor of Engineering in Electrical Engineering from Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand. In 2008, he was part of the Thailand delegation that had attended an Information Security course at the Korea Agency for Digital Opportunity, in Seoul, South Korea. Dr Polapat Udomphol currently lectures at the International School of Engineering, Chulalongkorn University and at the Management for Development College, Thaksin University, both in Bangkok, Thailand. Previously, he had lectured at various academic institutions such as the Thonburi University, Bangkok, Thailand, the Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta, Georgia and the Lehrstuhl fuer Kunststofftechnik (Institute of Polymer Technology), Erlangen, Germany.

Zekri Zekri holds a Degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University. He has worked in the Human Resource space for 14 years, covering areas such as Psychometric Profiling, Performance Management, Learning & Development and Competency Assessment. He is also experienced in the areas of Business Strategy, Project Management, Quality Management and Collaboration Networks. Zekri is a certified Workplace Psychological Assessor and had started out his career at Telekom Malaysia Assessment Center as a profiler. In 2004, he became the Manager of

Business Strategy at Telekom Training College. He has received major awards from Telekom Malaysia, including Kristal Award and CEO Merit Award for his contribution to the TM Group Training Framework Project. In 2008, while a consultant at Deloitte, Zekri led the Change Management team for a groupwide IT transformation programme at Perbadanan Nasional Berhad (PNB). Zekri is currently the Project Director at Sage Interactive Sdn Bhd, leading the private sector implementation of the Celex Initiative to provide an ICT platform for lifelong learning.

How Many Devices? • 12.8 million e-readers were shipped worldwide in 2010, and 25.9 million e-readers were shipped in 2011. • Apple sold 7.9 million iPads in the US in 2010; 16 million in 2011; and 10.2 million in the first half of 2012. • In just over two years, Apple sold 84 million units of iPads worldwide, 34 million of those in the US, and 50 million to the rest of the world. (from Publisher Lunch, 2012)

MABOPA is the official association for Malaysian publishers representing the publishers’ interests to develop and improve the state of the publishing industry in Malaysia in direct collaboration with all stakeholders including government departments,

About MBKM The National Book Council of Malaysia (MBKM) was established by the Ministry of Education in 1968 based on UNESCO’s recommendatory that proposed all developing nations have a special body responsible for the inculcation of interest in reading and be the driving force behind the development of the book industry. MBKM was initially called the National Book Development Council, whose role was to be both a professional body and book advisory at the national level.

both local and foreign associations, and fellow publishers in Malaysia. With more than 100 publishers and members MABOPA continues to explore opportunities to strengthen state of the industry to face the 21st centruy. www.mabopa.com.my

Members of the Council were a pool of representatives from several ministries and government agencies, industrial organisations and non-governmental organisations that were involved with the industry and book development, as well as three individuals who had skills to contribute towards the roles and functions of the MBKM. The National Book Policy (NBP) is a policy created by the MBKM as a guide to expand its activities within the fields of books and reading in this country. www.moe.gov.my/mbkm

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SEGi Stands Tall MBA Edge Postgraduate Studies interviews SEGI CEO Hew Moi Lan. by Alexandra Wong

n 2012, SEGi University Group celebrates two important milestones: its 35th birthday and its ascension to university status. It’s a well-deserved coup for the education provider which started with a single-building centre offering professional qualifications in the heart of Kuala Lumpur, and grew into the country’s premier private education specialist with more than 28,000 local and international students from over 60 countries, six campuses in major Malaysian cities and which currently commands the biggest market capitalisation (for an educational institute) in the Main Board of the Malaysian stock exchange. Who better to tell us about its progress than Chief Executive Officer Hew Moi Lan, whose own journey as a SEGian – as the staff affectionately call themselves - is equally laudable? A chartered accountant who has dedicated the last 25 years to serving SEGi, she has a wealth of experience, an unwavering

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vision and a keen eye on what truly matters – the people. What can we expect from SEGi in the next five to10 years? In your capacity as CEO, what do you consider the most important elements SEGi has to put in place to achieve that strategic vision? We are focusing a little more on programmes for health sciences, early childhood and skill-based training – this is also the vision of the government, to have a vista of training and education available to Malaysians. We want to do our part in charting the landscape for the government and bringing early childhood education to the next level. SEGi’s vision is to be a major player in the education industry in Malaysia and beyond. Apart from strengthening SEGi’s own programmes in terms of quality and recognition, we are also coming out with niche programmes to cater to an

ever-evolving economy and country. In fact, we are already moving into the downstream market; we are in the process of setting up an international school in Setia Alam. In the next three years SEGi aims to have a larger percentage of international students from all over the world, and build a stronger brand in the international education area. Currently, we already have students from countries in South East Asia, Asia, Middle East, Eastern Europe and Africa. SEGi’s plan is also to go into technical vocational education and training in a big way. The ball has already started rolling with the appointment of SEGi as the Project Leader in SkillsMalaysia INVITE and the agreement signed with Vietnam MOLISA (Ministry of Labour, Invalids & Social Affairs) to supply trainees for the Project. Online education and hybrid programmes for the adult market would be areas in which SEGi will develop,

considering the fact that the world is becoming more borderless and the increasing competitiveness in the workforce. In your journey as a SEGian, you’ve witnessed its growth first hand. How has SEGi matured along the way to its 35th birthday? I have spent 25 years in this company. First as lecturer, then Head of Department, before moving on to Principal, VicePresident, COO and now as CEO. You could say that SEGi and I grew up together! When SEGi started in 1977 as Systematic Business Training Centre, it was known for professional courses and tuition. Today, we have six modern campuses throughout Malaysia offering an extensive range of courses up to postgraduate level. Our strength is we have a wide spread of programmes and every centre champions a particular discipline. For example, the University champions health sciences

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The Research & Innovation Management Centre (RIMC) was established to organise relevant workshops and seminars that enhance research capabilities among the academics. We must walk the extra mile to show that we care. If you show that you care, you will attract the right people. How do you ensure SEGi is relevant to market forces? We aim to produce graduates who are highly employable by constantly upgrading our programmes to ensure they remain truly industry relevant. We also strive to develop new programmes that meet current and future demands of the industry. and engineering, while the Kuala Lumpur campus champions business programmes, and Subang Jaya champions early childhood education and creative arts & design. Our main campus, SEGi University in Kota Damansara, opened in 2007. This fullfledged campus boasts on-campus residence halls, a sports and recreational complex and state-of-the-art labs and learning facilities. In 2008, the campus attained University College status, which allowed us to offer our own degree programmes. In 2012, we were upgraded to full university status, marking a new chapter in our development as a leading provider of industry relevant and recognised qualifications. Today, SEG University Group has more than 28,000 students. To accommodate the increasing student numbers, we have built an extension to the SEGi University campus and started the construction of a brand

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new campus in Perak. With these new facilities, we can increase our single-shift capacity from 32,500 students to 38,500. Just recently in October this year, I’m proud to say that SEGi University was recognised to be of Tier 5 (Excellent) quality by Ministry of Higher Education. SEGi is listed among 34 other private and public universities in Tier 5, evaluated in the 2011 Rating System for Malaysian Higher Education Institutions (SETARA ’11). This signifies SEGi’s high quality of teaching and learning for undergraduate level, putting SEGi among the best in Malaysia for higher education. The highest rating in SETARA is Tier 6, of which no institution has been able to attain to date. Prior to this, some of SEGi’s Associate Institutes were given the honour of being recognised as 6-Star colleges in the MyQUEST ratings. The Subang Jaya campus too the

highest award of being 6-Star for Overall College-based Category followed by the Kuala Lumpur campus which took 6-Stars for 4 categories in MyQUEST. Through it all, one thing has never changed – our focus on the people. Speaking of people, how do you attract quality human resource, such as lecturers and academic talent? In order to attract them SEGi attempts to offer packages which are on par with our competitors. However, education is not all about dollars and cents. If the academics can feel a sense of belonging working at SEGi and share SEGi’s vision, they will stay. SEGi, like any organization, attempts to make it the best place to work for its staff. Take myself for instance. Why should I serve SEGi for 25 years unless I am happy? Remuneration is just part of it. The Management does

its best to foster a strong sense of family on campus. Our administrators value academic excellence as well as work-life balance. In May 2011, the Management set up the Inspire Lounge where staff can relax, conduct informal meetings and even host guests with the aim of making SEGi The Best Place To Work. If you come to SEGi on Friday, you’ll notice that the University is a flood of blue – that’s the result of an initiative to encourage staff synergy by wearing the SEGi T-shirt every Friday. We also try to create an environment which provides a lot of latitude to develop and grow expertise. Our academicians are given ample opportunities to advance their scientific research. We want to see more students move into progressive endeavours. To assist them, we have set up an annual seed fund for young researchers. We also encourage them to apply for external research grants from the public and private sectors.

SEGi has an International Academic Advisory Board, which comprises international academics who are highly recognised in their respective fields. The Board keeps our programmes aligned with international standards. We also have close links with major industry players that provide us with input to keep our programmes industry relevant and updated following current trends. In turn, we provide these companies with a platform for our student internship placement. Education is a highly regulated industry, so we follow all the governance practices strictly to ensure that our graduates have paper qualifications that are recognised by the Malaysian government. SEGi is one of the earliest, and remain a handful of academic institutions to go on the stock exchange. How does SEGi sustain market confidence and what are the main

challenges in being a public-listed institution? We are obligated to ensure good returns to the shareholders, without compromising on the quality we give to the students. In order to be public listed, we had to comply with many requirements. The main challenge is balancing SEGi as a profitable organisation with being an educational institution. To be listed, you must be able to achieve that platform – in terms of student population, positioning, branding, student/faculty ratio, what are universally accepted as reliable metrics of academic excellence. Industry analysts will tell you that we have weathered some hard times. Why does SEGi rank high as a destination for further and postgraduate studies? Ultimately, our students get what they want: quality education which can help them gain the desired the skills, knowledge and employment. I believe this is one of the major factors. In terms of academic offerings, SEGi already has a wide and diverse range of programmes, but we continually break new grounds by collaborating with more top-tier organisations and institutions worldwide to produce more niche programmes. These collaborations also give our graduates a global advantage in terms of curricula and dual degree awards for some programmes. SEGi’s quality has been acknowledged time and again by external parties. Towards the later part of 2011, we achieved outstanding results in the 1st Malaysian Quality Evaluation Systems for Private Colleges (MyQUEST), an evaluation carried out by the

Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia. As I have mentioned earlier, SEGi University was awarded Tier 5 status in SETARA. Apart from that we have also won a long list of awards for our brand this year and previous years. All of this recognition has assisted in maintaining SEGi’s rank; however, it is our satisfied customers who have kept SEGi on the high. We have so many students who have graduated and recommended their own children, friends and relatives to study at SEGi. Education is not just about books. How does SEGi cultivate a healthy social community for its students? By cultivating a stimulating and vibrant environment. We want our students to have a meaningful campus life. Through the student clubs and societies, Student Affairs Department and even the faculties or schools, our students are given a great wealth of experiences. These experiences not only make campus life at SEGi fun for them, but they also grow as a person, mature and develop many soft skills along the way. Last word: what do you hope to achieve in your tenure as CEO? Our achievements are not due to some overnight stint, but as the result of a cooperative labour of love coming together over the years. I hope to help SEGi University achieve Tier 1 university status. More than that, when I step down, I want to look back and say, yes, SEGi succeeded as a caring educational centre that puts the best interests of its people at heart. This is the legacy I hope to leave behind. ME

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UTAR and Mega PJ to venture into green technology construction

Dr Ng explaining the green-technology product to Datuk Loo

saving. Mega PJ selected UTAR’s invention because it has proven to be a green and superior heat and sound insulating prefab building material suitable for the RMR1M project. The developer will likely be using the UTAR product for constructing RMR1M houses in other locations in Malaysia in the future.

niversiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR) and Mega PJ Sdn Bhd signed a memorandum of agreement (MoA) at the UTAR Kuala Lumpur campus on 11 October 2012. Signing the MoA on behalf of the parties were UTAR President Ir Prof Academician Dato’ Dr Chuah Hean Teik and Mega PJ managing director Shakry bin Ahmed, while UTAR Vice President (Research, Development and Commercialisation) Prof Dr Lee Sze Wei and Mega PJ Director Noor Hariri bin Mohamed Noor signed as witnesses. Secretary General of the Ministry of Energy, Green Technology Water Malaysia Datuk Loo Took Gee, Group CEO of Tuanpha Group and Mega PJ Sdn Bhd Tuan

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(From left): Dr Goi, Dr Ng, Dr Low, Tuan Mustapha, Datuk Loo, Professor Chuah, Sharky, Dr Tioh and Professor Lee

Mustapha bin Haji Tuan Mat and UTAR Faculty of Engineering and Science (FES) Acting Dean Dr Goi Bok Min were present to witness the signing. UTAR, a not-for-profit private university with a vision of becoming a premier teaching and research university, has developed and filed for patent a green-technology prefabricated building material called ‘membrane encased lightweight concrete panel and block.’ The product, an invention of the UTAR research

team comprising Dr Ir Low Kaw Sai (inventor), Dr Ng Soon Ching (co-inventor) and Dr Tioh Ngee Heng (co-inventor) from the FES, is expected to contribute significantly as part of the industrialised building system for green-technology construction. Under the MoA, Mega PJ will fabricate the greentechnology prefab building material as a licensee under the supervision of the licensor, UTAR, which will assume the role of main technical consultant. Mega PJ will

then use the prefab material in a project awarded to its subsidiary by a developer for building detached houses under the Rumah Mesra Rakyat 1 Malaysia (RMR1M) scheme in Kelantan. Under the RMR1M scheme, it is compulsory for the developer to incorporate in their housing construction industrial building system prefab building components with green and sustainable technology features such as the use of recycled or natural material and energy-

“I applaud all the parties here for taking the initiative to actually apply green technology in building affordable houses,” said Datuk Loo. She added that the collaborative effort initiated by UTAR and Mega PJ would contribute to the country’s move towards a greener tomorrow. “I am glad to mention that UTAR’s research efforts are synergistic with the Government’s plan towards creating a greener Malaysia. In line with the Green

Technology Roadmap, UTAR has certainly contributed to the national vision of leveraging on green technology to achieve sustainable development towards a high-income economy through the development of green technology,” said Professor Chuah, adding that all the research and development works in UTAR have taken the green aspect into consideration. Tuan Mustapha said that he hoped the MoA would create closer ties between Mega PJ and UTAR on exploring new technologies and innovations. He also hoped the MoA would lead to the commercialisation of the energy-efficient aerated lightweight concrete panel in the industry to align with the Government’s initiative to widely apply industrialised building system and green technology. ME

About UTAR Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR) was established in June 2002 under the Act of Private Institutions of Higher Learning 1996 of Malaysia. With an inaugural intake of 411 students in June 2002, today, UTAR has a student enrolment of over 21,000 and alumni strength of over 28,000. Having started with eight Bachelor’s degree programmes, it now offers over 110 programmes ranging from Foundation and Bachelor’s to Master’s and PhD levels in its four campuses in Kampar, Petaling Jaya, Kuala Lumpur and Bandar Sungai Long, which house nine faculties of Accountancy and Management, Arts and Social Science, Business and Finance, Creative Industries, Engineering and Green Technology, Engineering and Science, Information and

Communication Technology, Medicine and Health Sciences, and Science. Aiming to become an internationallyreputed teaching and research university, UTAR is also actively involved in research, development and commercialisation activities and has established 25 research centres. Media Contacts Ong Soo Weon (Ms), Deputy Director, Division of Corporate Communications and Institutional Research E-mail: osweon@utar.edu.my Tel: 03-7958 2628 ext 7117 or 019- 692 6228 (mobile) Sunny Yu Shy Yea (Ms), Senior Assistant Manager, Division of Corporate Communications and Institutional Research E-mail: yusy@utar.edu.my Tel: 03-7958 2628 ext 7136 or 016- 337 3954 (mobile)

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