Korn Ferry Malaysia managing director and senior client partner Anthony Raja Devadoss (centre in pic) has been elected as the new chairperson of OM (formerly known as Outsourcing Malaysia), a chapter under the National Tech Association of Malaysia (PIKOM).
OM, which was established by PIKOM together with the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) in year 2006, aims to promote and develop Malaysia’s global business services (GBS) industry and to better position the country as a global hub for high-value services.
Anthony said that he was ‘humbled and honoured’ to assume the role from immediate past chairperson Cheah Kok Hoong (left in pic) who had led OM for six years.
“Cheah established a strong foundation for Malaysia’s GBS industry, and the new committee and I are humbled to be entrusted with the mission of taking it to the next level,” said Anthony, adding that the newly-elected OM committee comprise a ‘healthy balance’ of service provider and shared services professionals.
Having served as an active PIKOM councillor with more than 15 years of selfless contribution to the growth of Malaysia’s digital technology and business services industry, Anthony is well known within industry for his passion about inclusivity and growth of Malaysia’s various technology ecosystems. His other numerous contributions to industry growth include serving as PIKOM Academy and GBS Asia Awards Committee chairperson.
Anthony will be supported by deputy chairperson (outsourcing) Dato’ Munirah Looi, deputy chairperson (shared services) M. Pattabhiraman, treasurer Raymond Devadass with eight committee members.
The OM committee’s goals for the current term include greater emphasis on inclusivity with a stretch target of increasing the number of members and industries they represent, while also nurturing greater collaboration with academia and HRD Corp under a ‘single window platform’ to ensure the Malaysian workforce continue to upskill and reskill towards greater employability for all Malaysians.
IDC estimates that the Malaysian GBS industry achieved US$4.95 billion (RM20.72 billion) at end-2020 and is estimated to grow at a 5-year CAGR of 6.2% to achieve US$6.7 billion (RM28.04 bilion) by 2025.
“Malaysian human capital needs to be on a constant learning curve – which means digital, analytical, automation upskilling and reskilling – so that they can better ‘future-proof’ their careers while contributing towards the growth of our country’s digital economy. This is further reinforced with our recent Digital Global Business Services Talent Market Report and the launch of the Digital GBS Skills Framework,” said Anthony.
Cheah said that, over the years, the GBS industry has played a leading role in Malaysia’s digitisation movement.
“The movement has inevitably enhanced resilience in corporate performance, deliver greater business value and emphasised the need for local businesses to be more customer-centric,” said Cheah.
“Under Anthony’s watch, I am very confident that OM would assume a more influential role in expanding our objectives for greater industry representation,” he added.
PIKOM chairman Dr Sean Seah (right in pic), meanwhile, expressed his confidence that the new OM committee would bring greater industry recognition and thought leadership for the country’s GBS industry, adding that a rebranding campaign for OM is already in progress.
Sean also shared that OM is currently embarking on a GBS Strategic Vision Report which will be launched within the next few months.
“The report will contain a five-year strategic roadmap (2022 – 2027) for the GBS industry, and involves strategic public-private partnerships,” said Sean.
Spearheaded by OM with strong support from MDEC, these partnerships would involve, among others, Invest Penang, Iskandar Investment Berhad (IIB), Invest KL, Invest Selangor, Cyberview, the Sarawak Digital Economy Corporation (SDEC) and the Contact Association of Malaysia (CCAM).
