DEVELOPING A CULTURE OF INNOVATION
The 2nd WIEF-UiTM Global Discourse calls for a more widespread entrepreneurial drive in academic institutions.
Kuala Lumpur, 8 October, 2010 – The 2nd World Islamic Economic Forum-Universiti Teknologi Mara Global Discourse was held today at the INTEKMA Resort and Convention Centre Shah Alam and was organised by the WIEF-UiTM International Centre, the product of a smart collaboration between the WIEF Foundation and Universiti Teknologi Mara. The event is part of the continuous efforts of the International Centre to run programmes of the various initiatives of the WIEF Foundation that strengthens people partnership and knowledge exchange across the globe.
The discussion centred on the topic ‘Churning Out Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Malaysia’ and was attended by over 100 participants comprising of tertiary education students, entrepreneurs and business leaders.
The keynote address on the same topic was delivered by Prof. William F. Miller, Professor of Public and Private Management, Graduate School of Business, Stanford University, and President & CEO Emeritus of SRI International, who noted that the region needed the fundamental resources of research and research trained scientist and engineers to produce the innovations that would in turn develop a high tech entrepreneurial economy.
“Additionally the region needs entrepreneurs who market these innovations, and these most often are not the same people. And the region needs a business and social environment that facilitates entrepreneurship and breeds entrepreneurs. Universities play an important role in creating the social attitudes and practices conducive to entrepreneurship by what they teach and especially how they teach it,” he said.
Professor Miller also cited interesting examples from three US universities of programmes that facilitate the development of these social attitudes and practices.
The Keynote Address was followed by a Panel Discussion, that featured business luminaries including Tengku Farith Rithauddeen, CEO of Skali Group, Dr. V. Sivapalan, Advisor of Technopreneur Association of Malaysia (TeAM), Mr. Ashran Dato Ghazi, President of the Malaysian Association of Bumiputera ICT Industry and Entrepreneurs (NEF), as well as Mr. Ian Buchanan, Senior Executive Advisor of Booz & Company, Australia and who shared interesting insights into the climate of innovation and entrepreneurship in Malaysia while highlighting critical issues on the path towards successful commercialisation of a research project.
The WIEF Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation based in Kuala Lumpur, organises the annual World Islamic Economic Forum, a world-class business platform showcasing business opportunities in the Muslim world, and runs programmes of the various initiatives of the Foundation that strengthens people partnership and knowledge exchange between Muslim and non-Muslim communities across the globe. The Foundation aims to tackle problems in the Muslim world strictly from a business perspective, and to build bridges through business between the Muslim and non-Muslim world.