Thursday 28 Mar 2024
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This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily on November 21, 2017

KUALA LUMPUR: More organisations are acknowledging the need to implement work-life practices in their workplaces to encourage balance among employees, according to Talent Corp Bhd (TalentCorp).

A recent Life At Work survey by TalentCorp and Ernst and Young — which polled over 360 employers from key sectors — found that 90% of organisations in Malaysia agree on the importance of offering work-life practices for employees.

Work-life practices are usually associated with flexible working hours and reductions in working time or the implementation of family-friendly policies.

To further encourage organisations to see the importance and impact of work-life practices on human capital and the overall economy, TalentCorp recognises employers who champion diversity and inclusion in the workplace through its annual Life At Work Awards 2017.

In its fifth year now, the winners this year include CIMB Group Holdings Bhd, who was named the Best Malaysian Organisation, while DiGi.Com Bhd chief executive officer Albern Murty took home the CEO Champion award.

Awards were also presented to Pricewaterhouse Coopers Malaysia (PwC Malaysia) who won the Best International Organisation award, while IHS Markit Malaysia was recognised as the Best Lean Organisation.

Participating organisations in the Life At Work Awards have to offer at least three flexible work arrangements and at least two family-friendly facilities or work-life benefits.

There were 30 participating companies this year, compared to 29 last year, said TalentCorp CEO Shareen Shariza Abdul Ghani.

“We are seeing even more commitment from companies in addressing flexibility in workplace policies and shift in culture to respond to current and future talent needs.

“With the announcement made during Budget 2018 in promoting flexible work arrangements, we are positive that companies will be inspired to implement advanced workplace strategies of the future,” Shareen said during TalentCorp’s conference yesterday on the future of work, workplace and workforce.

The one-day conference was aimed at fostering greater conversation on the future of work and how to address challenges and opportunities posed by the fourth industrial revolution.

Towards that end, TalentCorp launched two new initiatives at the conference.

The first, Nurturing Expert Talent, is a national talent analytics platform to acquire and analyse data about the quality and ability of the Malaysian workforce to meet the demands of the evolving marketplace.

The second is a report entitled “Visioning Malaysia’s Future of Work: A Framework for Action”, which underlines five key recommendations to future-proof Malaysia’s workforce.

Shareen, who also spoke on the changing job types in the future, said there are specific jobs that the new digital economy will require, citing data analyst roles as an example.

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