KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 9 (Bernama) -- The Productivity Nexus has proven its keen initiative of increasing human capital productivity by implementing the Productivity Nexus for the Retail and Food & Beverage (F&B) industry. This targets a 7.2% growth in labour productivity in the industry to meet the 2020 national level productivity target of RM92,300 per worker, as announced earlier during the Official Launch of the Flagship Programmes held at Sunway Putra Hotel, Kuala Lumpur on 8 February 2018.

Through this, the platform, driven by the private sector and supported by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, aims to empower industry associations to become key change agents in the nation. This is because the collective power of industry associations offer a strong bridge to connect with enterprises and knowledge experts in each sector. The event was officiated by YBhg Dato’ Dr Mohd Ghazali Bin Abas, Secretary General of Human Resources representing YB Dato’ Sri (Dr) Richard Riot Anak Jaem, Minister of Human Resources.

As of right now, the Retail and F&B sector currently employs no less than 2.7 million people which marks a value-added of RM89 billion – recording an 8.3% contribution to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). However, the productivity in this sector remains as one of the lowest. This spurred the implementation of the Productivity Nexus which rides on the premise of sharing the economy’s best practices and being inspired by industry experts to further inspire the rest of the industry. The initiative is slated to involve 80 to 100 selected flagship companies.

There is no denying that digitalisation is the way of the future. Recognising this factor, the Retail and F&B Productivity Nexus Champion Dato’ Bruce Lim reiterated, “The Productivity initiatives for Retail and F&B have included support for digitalisation of business operation and honing e-commerce capabilities.”
“By strengthening the Retail and F&B players’ competencies as well as providing necessary assistance throughout this transformative journey, this sector will have the opportunity, backed up by the right skills, to expand internationally,” added Dato’ Bruce.

The flagship programs are divided into three areas; Retail Digitalisation Program, O2O Growth Venture Program, and Top Transformers. Led by the Malaysian E-Commerce Chairman Ganesh Kumar Bangah, the first flagship program centres on guiding and equipping selected brick and mortar retail business owners to understand, adapt and master the online revolution. This programme aims to attain sustainable growth as well as increase sales by taking their businesses online.

The O2O Growth Venture Program, helmed by Fave Founder Joel Neoh, emphasises on venturing into new online sales channel and business model to increase sales of businesses. It also educates on the adoption of digital tools and consumer insights.

Meanwhile, the Top Transformers program is designed for leaders in Retailing and F&B who are tasked to manage people and deliver results regardless of ranking to produce a well-tuned working environment. The program, championed by PKT Logistics Group Sdn Bhd Group Chief Executive & Managing Director Dato’ Michael Tio, has kicked off in January and will commence until March.

YB Dato’ Sri (Dr) Richard Riot expressed, “The time has come for our labour capital productivity to be further enhanced by embracing of the digital economy ecosystem. These flagship programmes are all game-changers for the Retail and F&B industry as well as the people of Malaysia. I am truly pleased to see our nation on its way towards fully grasping the possibilities the economy of the future holds for us.”

Productivity Nexus for the Retail and F&B industry is proudly supported by the Malaysia Productivity Corporation (MPC); Economic Planning Unit (EPU); Prime Minister’s Department; Ministry of Domestic Trade, Co-operatives and Consumerism (KPDNKK); Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (MATRADE); and Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC). This initiative is also slated to receive the support of Human Resource Development Fund (HRDF).

Being a privately driven initiative, it is also in collaboration with Bumiputera Retailers Organization (BRO); Malaysian Franchise Association (MFA); Malaysia Retail Chain Association (MRCA); and Malaysia Retailers Association (MRA).

Concurrently, K-Pintar has been appointed as the Project Manager and they will be tasked to measure the productivity levels of the participating companies while simultaneously overseeing the entire project.

About Productivity Nexus for Retail and Food & Beverage (F&B)

The Productivity Nexus for Retail and F&B is a one-stop centre that caters to enterprises to boost productivity while increasing innovation and capturing growth opportunities. The initiatives emphasises the development of a holistic ecosystem in order to increase technology adoption and further strengthen key industry enablers.

The Productivity Nexus is led by highly skilled and specialised individual who is committed in administering the implementation of productivity efforts as governed by the National Productivity Council (NPC).

The Productivity Nexus aims to forge close partnerships among industry associations and partners to strengthen industry-specific support infrastructure and foster cross industry collaboration through various industry initiatives.

SOURCE : Global Creative Media Agency (GCMA)

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--BERNAMA