There seems to be heightened demand among Malaysians wanting to pursue business and management studies as there is a bank of knowledge offered by various private institutions across the nation.
A student’s conundrum in choosing the right course of study often depends on the quality of the courses offered, in terms of whether the qualification is recognised enough to obtain suitable employment, then comes the cost and location criteria.
BusinessToday seeks to learn more of the avenues to study, especially in terms of a student receiving quality tertiary education which is globally recognised. This would also include courses for working adults to hone their knowledge and skills to adapt to future demand while enhancing their mobility.
One such avenue is the Singapore Institute of Management (SIM) which prides itself on its offerings and ability to prepare their students to be adaptive to global demand and changes or being future-proof.
To understand their proposition BusinessToday met up with Singapore Institute of Management Brand, Marketing & Communications Director Gerald Lum recently.
BT: Our world is increasingly interconnecting at an exponential rate. How do you see the Singapore Institute of Management maximizing the benefits in areas such as social media, Internet of Things and massive open online course (MOOC)?
LUM: The pandemic accelerated digital transformation across the nation but also shone a spotlight on a widening digital skills gap. As such, we believe the responsibility of building and nurturing an agile and well-equipped workforce starts with us, the education and learning institutions.
It is critical that we all play a part – which is exactly why SIM refreshed its brand identity to reflect an industry-focused and skills-based era of learning. Our purpose in rebranding is also aligned with Malaysia’s national agenda.
Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Noraini Ahmad recently said the 12th Malaysia Plan would focus on developing innovative programmes to cultivate lifelong learning. We recognise that continuous upskilling and learning needs to, and has become, the new norm.
As the post-pandemic situation continues to evolve, it is vital that organisations address the skills gaps of their employees to remain competitive in the new normal.
To this end, SIM offers a plethora of relevant courses including Digital Entrepreneurship, Digital Innovation And Emerging Technologies, Exploring Social Commerce And Entrepreneurial Marketing and Harnessing The Outreach Efficacy Of Social Media Channels, to name just a few.
Under our Professional Development arm, we also have a wide range of courses related to AI, machine learning, Cloud and cybersecurity for learners looking to develop their digital skills.
Furthermore, we partner with RMIT Online to provide convenient, 100% online short courses delivered by RMIT instructors such as Developing AI Strategy and Implementing Digital Marketing Campaigns.
BT: What plans do you have to assist SIM alumni in resharpening their edge by learning business skills not taught years ago at SIM: e.g., practical applied education, social media marketing and analytics or effective selling (or pitching) skills?
LUM: We are committed to taking an innovative approach to education, ensuring our alumni from all stages of life graduate from SIM armed with skills that remain relevant for the rapidly evolving future of work. Redefining education as continuous and necessary at all life stages is of utmost importance if Malaysians are to remain competitive in today’s demanding job landscape. Thus, SIM emphasises employability and support, beyond graduation, with its offerings.
This means instilling critical thinking and problem-solving skills, just to name a few, in our alumni by the time they complete their courses with us.
One way we do this is through our proprietary Professional Development (PD) programmes, which aim to upskill and cross-skill professionals for advancement. We work with various industry partners to develop programmes for Professionals, Managers & Executives (PMEs) to reskill and pivot to new job roles in growth industries.
An example would be our content and social media marketing courses which enable our learners to design, implement, and deliver content and social media plans that leverage the appropriate channels and tactics to develop brand awareness and increase business from existing customers.
From Idea To Market: Securing Financial Funding And Strategic Partnership For Your New Product is another example of a master class specially designed for entrepreneurs and business leaders to guide them in securing financial funding and strategic partnership for a new product launch.
Leveraging On Google Analytics For Targeted Reach And Decision Making empowers learners with invaluable skillsets to enhance data planning and capturing capabilities, perform deep-dive analysis to understand their consumers and generate actionable insights for their businesses.
SIM’s Professional Development courses are taught by instructors who are themselves industry practitioners with in-depth professional experiences. Many of our courses provide hands-on sessions, so alumni leave SIM with not just theories, but also valuable practical knowledge.
BT: Does Singapore Institute of Management ensure that the curriculum taught is well connected with real world business demands and is future-proof?
LUM: Absolutely. Our offerings are designed to inspire and equip all learners with the industry-related skills they need to be fit for the workplace of the future. We deliver high-quality education for our students by offering more in-demand programmes with an emphasis on digital skills, that are required in the workforce for a disruptive age.
As market demands shift, we recognise that there is a growing demand to meet new ways of learning and employment needs. Therefore, we introduced micro-credentialed courses which complement our university programmes to enable our learners to pick up practical skills to help them stand out in the marketplace.
SIM is also committed to helping PMEs level up for the future of work with curated learning journeys, no matter what stage of their career the learner may be in.
For instance, Professional Development (PD) is SIM’s offering of programmes that aims to deliver lifelong learning for career professionals and enterprises, in line with the evolving needs of the business environment and industry.
As they are specially developed for the needs for the future world of work, this helps professionals hone their competencies to upskill, drive business value and achieve peak personal and enterprise performance. With professional courses gaining interest in Malaysia, it provides more opportunities for SIM as we offer over 80 PD courses, with some of the courses conducted online.
When students study in SIM, we not only provide them with an international learning environment, high-quality university courses and lecturers with industry experience, but also pay special attention to the cultivation of students’ soft skills and emotional intelligence.
At the same time, SIM creates the talent that is needed by companies to fulfil their business objectives through teaching by industry experts, and collaborations with industry leaders such as Maybank, KPMG, Shopee, Alliance Bank and Supahands.
Our team is constantly on the lookout for more partnerships with Malaysian organisations to provide internships and employment opportunities for our students.
BT: What makes Singapore Institute of Management distinctive?
LUM: SIM is committed in taking an innovative approach to learning, helping learners stay employable throughout different life stages, and ensuring that their skills remain relevant for the rapidly evolving world of work.
For instance, SIM Global Education (also known as SIM GE) is our offering to connect students with some of the world’s best higher education programmes which include programmes developed in collaboration with globally recognised universities from US, UK, Australia, and Europe.
Malaysian students are able to obtain a degree of equal standing from these world- famous universities, through SIM GE. The fees and expenses that students will spend while studying in SIM GE are estimated to be about one-third or one-quarter of the fees and expenses that they will spend should they study in the home countries of our university partners.
We want to provide inclusive education for all students regardless of their financial backgrounds.
Recently, SIM GE received the EduTrust Star certification award, which is the highest form of quality assurance accorded by the Committee for Private Education, a department under SkillsFuture Singapore, a statutory board that looks at the ecosystem of education and training in Singapore.
This certification which notably few have attained, recognises SIM GE’s outstanding academic, operational and customer excellence. It is a testament to the excellent learning and educational journey Malaysians will go through, when embarking on an educational programme with us.
BT: What does success look like for Singapore Institute of Management?
LUM: At SIM, our success starts and ends with our learners. We strive to resonate with them and inspire them to embrace lifelong learning throughout their different life stages in hopes of leaving a lasting positive impact for both our learners and society at large.
We also hope to ensure that we are providing our students with a holistic education and are nurturing them to be well-rounded students capable of thriving in different circumstances. Our social purpose has remained the same since 1964, which is to enable individuals with or without the means, to have access to the best learning programmes to improve, and keep improving their socio-economic outcomes, as well as the economic outcomes of the organisations they serve.
BT: What is your menu of experiential learning?
LUM: From our perspective, we believe vocational skills type of education will play a greater role in the future of education as we are entering an industry-focused and skills-based era of learning. In a disruptive world caused by the pandemic and technological advances, real-world skills like agility and adaptability are as important as technical knowledge.
The life span of knowledge is getting shorter and shorter and a lot of the knowledge we have learned will quickly become outdated, which is the reason why we need to embrace lifelong learning.
At SIM GE, we believe in providing our students with a holistic education and nurturing them to be well-rounded students capable of thriving in different circumstances. We hone the soft skills of our students – from adaptability, communication, leadership, cross- cultural understanding to the ability to think from a multinational perspective – through a wide range of out-of-classroom student life activities.
SIM’s programmes do not just impart academic knowledge, but also encourage our students to analyse real-life scenarios and issues so that they can hone practical skills that will help them succeed in the real world. Some of our programmes are also developed with industry so our students can be assured of real-world relevance when they study with us.
Furthermore, SIM has over 80 student clubs and societies which provide students with the opportunity to assume leadership roles, employ their digital marketing skills or tackle pressing real-world issues.
One example of the latter is when the SIM International Affairs Society participated in the Harvard National Model United Nations (HNMUN) Conference to debate international affairs and devise solutions.
Finally, SIM GE also offers a series of career initiatives such as workshops and career guidance like profiling, as well as micro-credentialled and short core modules for students to build essential and practical skill sets to prepare them for their future workplace.
