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KEEP UP WITH THE TIMES TO STAY AHEAD
JULY 06, 1997 -
THE STAR
By Dr Tarcisius Chin
THE frontiers of knowledge are being extended at an
astonishing rate. Commercial applications ion base d on new
knowledge are being introduced with increasing frequency. We
have moved from video cassettes to laser discs to compact
discs to video discs in a short span of less than 10 years.
The march of technology - and its spin-offs of new products
and processes - is only part of the global expansion of
knowledge. Practically all spheres of human knowledge are
touched by change and its consequenees.
An engineer can become obsolete within eight years if he does
not update himself; for the computer specialist, the rate of
obsolescence is doubled. All professions and disciplines are
caught in a web of exciting new discoveries and possibilities
as well as painful obsolescence and irrelevance.
For a country aspiring to be developed, the key to fulfilling
Vision 2020 is our competitiveness. With globalisation and
ready access to information, we simply have to be able to
outperform other countries. tries . World-class standards and
benchmarks will have to be our yardsticks.
Can we raise our competencies to compete effectively in the
international marketplace? We have a habit of trumpeting small
achievements. The danger is complacency.
Malaysia Boleh is a good rallying point but deeds must match
spirit. As a larger proportion of the population moves into an
economic comfort zone, it is so easy to be lulled into a sense
of well-being and to drop our guard.
Competencies can only be gained through hard work. It takes
six years to train a doctor and several more years to qualify
as a specialist. To be on top of the discipline, the
specialist has to continue to learn, to be familiar with the
latest medical breakthroughs and innovations, to gain clinical
experience and to contribute to research.
It is the same for the management profession. One advantage is
that the essence of management is timeless. "Deciding what to
do and getting it done through others" was as much a challenge
in the construction of the Egyptian Pyramids or the Great Wall
of China as it is in installing the Multimedia Super Corridor.
But the technology of going about it has changed enormously.
Human labour is now replaced by IT and human creativity. And
human creativity will continue to seek ways of creating the
future more imaginatively, more purposefully and more
productively.
The literature on management has witnessed distinctive shifts
through time. Much of it relates to new approaches, new
techniques and new philosophies.
Calls for a return to basics have been made over the decades,
to be responded by yet another new management thought. There
are plenty of management gurus, doctors, witch-doctors and
even quacks who have spun the latest management ideas.
If competitiveness is the name of the game, our managers need
to be informed about what's going on in the world of
management as a discipline.
We need to know what works; we need to have insights into the
forces that help people co-operate and pull together for a
common purpose; we need to learn from failures.
Being a manager is not a destination; it is a journey that
demands responsibility and accountability Part of the
responsibility requires us to be fully aware of the
movements-in management thinking so that we can be proactive
and contribute effectively towards wealth creation and the
betterment of society.
Keeping abreast of management thinking can be done in three
ways:
First is for the manager to submit himself to continuing
education. The. popular route has been to pursue an MBA
degree. But the commitment is substantial, and not all
fast-paced managers can spare the time for this pursuit.
The second option is informal, to keep up with readings and
attend the occasional course or seminar. Unless this is
guided, at best this can turn out to be a hit-and-miss affair.
Route three is through the world of professional exchange in
which opportunities are provided to interact with other
practising managers or management thinkers so that we are at
least, acquainted with the crucial issues of concern and how
other organisations are managing.
One neglected but quite powerful professional exchange is the
management conference which usually provides an update of the
contemporary problems and issues facing management and the
solutions adopted by organisations.
In a compressed period of one to three days, the ABCs of
today's management concerns are exposed by selected experts.
Not as taxing as a degree course and not as rudderless as
private readings, taking part in a l management conference is
one quick way of getting an update on the world of management
and the emerging demands on the manager.
The Malaysian Institute of Management is organising its annual
management conference on July 15 this year with the theme
Managing in the 21st Century - The Making of the New Manager.
Several leading management practitioners will discuss issues
of leadership and technology and will narrate the experiences
of their organisations in winning the Management Awards of
Asia.
A more regional-based management conference organised by the
Asian Association of Management Organizations will be held in
Perth, Australia, from Oct 19 to 22,1997.
It boasts a panel of distinguished speakers, including Peter
Drunker. Jay Conger and Barry Posner, and a varied list of
Asian and Australian management thinkers and practitioners.
Those interested in taking Route three to update their
management knowledge can find out more about the two
conferences from the Membership Services Unit of MIM (03-264
5255, fax 03-244 9319).
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