This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily on November 17, 2017

KUALA LUMPUR: Talent is becoming more critical in determining Axiata Group Bhd’s ability to compete and grow as digitalisation gains momentum, said its president and group chief executive officer (CEO) Tan Sri Jamaludin Ibrahim.

The world of connectivity and communication is fast changing, and the telecommunication industry has no recourse but to learn new ways on how to engage customers, build solutions and create services, he said.

“For Axiata, our employees across every business in each country whether here in Malaysia or the furthest reaches of Nepal are core and fundamental to our success. Today, as digitalisation gains rapid momentum, talent becomes even more critical to the group in determining our ability to compete and grow in our markets,” he said in a statement.

“In total we have deployed close to US$40 million on talent development since 2009 and as we journey into the next phase of our growth and to realise our ambitions of being a digital champion, we are dedicating significant resources to address our employees’ digital learning needs. The objective is to transform our company in the way we, as employees across the region, think, act, work and create with a digital mindset,” he added.

Meanwhile, the group’s chief talent officer Datin Seri Badrunnisa Mohd Yasin Khan told reporters during a briefing on the group’s latest digital initiative that Axiata has committed to investing US$6 million over the next three years to scale up existing digital expertise and provide critical digital development and capacity building for all its employees across all levels and roles.

Axiata is also making use of Facebook Inc’s Workplace, a corporate communication platform service, to leverage employees’ interaction in problem-solving and operational improvements.

She said the platform has been made available to all Axiata staff, including its subsidiaries, across six countries.

“We want to provide a new and exciting digital experience where all employees will be introduced to new, creative and efficient digital work tools to give them the confidence and curiosity of doing things digitally.

“We want to give them a glimpse of the future work environment in the digital world and trigger the idea and realisation of the tomorrow-is-here experience,” she said.

Celcom Axiata Bhd’s CEO Michael Kuehner, who was also present, said Malaysians are increasingly engaging socially and interacting with businesses in a digital way.

Hence, he said Celcom’s strategic focus on delivering a better customer experience is underpinned by the company’s digital transformation.

“We will fundamentally change the way we address our customers’ needs by reimagining customer-facing sales, marketing and care engagements with digitalised channels, processes and practice measures that will sustain Celcom’s continued growth internally and externally,” he explained.