Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) has inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with an American business and employment-oriented online service to further enhance the digital presence of businesses and develop digital talents in the country. The partnership focuses on two strategic fronts: Enhancing Digital Presence and Equipping Digital Talents.
Firstly, it will see MDEC and the company working together to enhance the online presence of local companies, to ensure that they remain relevant and effective in the present digital landscape. This aspect of the MoU will involve several activities, including webinars to enhance the companies’ LinkedIn page, as well as setting up international corporate pages on the platform for local small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to expand their regional and global reach.
Secondly, the MoU will also see both parties engage in various initiatives to develop digital talents for Malaysia. This includes the ongoing Let’s Learn Digital 2021 programme, which sees the company offering the Digital Marketing Pathway course for Malaysians.
The company will also be coordinating with MDEC to bring its popular ‘Rock Your Profile’ sessions to lecturers and students of MDEC’s Premier Digital Tech Institutions (PDTIs). ‘Rock Your Profile’ sessions provide tips on how the users of the online platform can realise the full creative potential of a profile, on top of insider advice on profile, long-form posts, and other LinkedIn tools that agency professionals are using to increase their productivity and success.
Many Malaysian enterprises already understand the importance of an online presence for their business. According to the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM), companies with a web presence have increased from 37.8% in 2017 to 53.9% in 2019. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has driven even wider digitalisation locally and internationally, which necessitates more innovative and effective means of standing out.
According to the CEO of MDEC, two ingredients that are fast becoming essential for companies today are a strong digital presence and competent digital talents. To that end, this partnership between MDEC and LinkedIn can help ensure local businesses remain globally competitive, in line with the goals of the Malaysian Digital Economy Blueprint (MyDIGITAL). Additionally, the job landscape is set for a massive shift. According to the WEF Future of Jobs Report, 97 million new jobs will be created and 50% of employees will require retraining by 2025.
This strategic partnership with LinkedIn is another testament to MDEC’s continued efforts to engage global tech companies to address industry challenges in the digital economy and foster a strong digital workforce as we strive to support Malaysia’s economic recovery and provide equitable digital opportunities to the people and businesses.
The Head of Asia, Talent and Learning Solutions at the company stated that COVID-19 has accelerated the adoption of digital platforms across Southeast Asia. This digital transformation has led to many changes in the workforce, for example, it has driven the adoption of new business practices amongst companies in Malaysia. Moving forward, it is incredibly important that both businesses and workers are equipped with digital skills and capabilities to help them remain relevant.
The announcement of MDEC and LinkedIn’s MoU comes during the #MyDigitalWorkforce Week, which forms Week Three of MDEC’s Malaysia Tech Month 2021 (MTM’21). Ongoing from 16 to 30 August 2021, #MyDigitalWorkforce Week features a series of webinars and talks on digital jobs and career awareness, on top of a Digital Jobs Expo which expects 5,000 job vacancies from more than 100 companies.
