Thursday May 4, 2017
By Hor Sin Yee sinyee@iconixtalentnetwork.com
Shah Alam, 28 April 2017: About 100 officials of Ministry of Higher Education, Chancelors, Vice Chancelors, Human Resources Directors, CEOs and Professors, Directors of Careers Services from Universities gathered here at Eco Sanctuary, Shah Alam fully sponsored by Ecoworld Berhad; for Together we gather – jom borak in Higher Education. The event is the brainchild of Industrial Relations Division, Ministry of Higher Education.
Guest of Honour, YB Datuk Dr Mary Yap Kain Ching, Deputy Minister, Ministry of Higher Education, in her speech says, “It is indeed a good starting point in the Academia – Industrial Relations. We aim to move in parallel to the Ministry’s new motto; that is redesigning higher education. And in the redesigning process, we need to work together to align with the industry.”
At this second gathering of the year, they have come together to celebrate the birth of TiGrESS - a Smart System to be integrated in Malaysia’s Universities. Developed and designed by Iconix Consulting Sdn Bhd; an established consulting firm by a group of passionate, dynamic and vibrant professionals who have served in the education and consultancy industries for more than 20 years.
TiGrESS is is a system that manages and tracks the progress of employability. It is designed and developed to assist jobseekers, agents and employers; to speed up the hiring search and process. In this context, the jobseekers are the graduates or undergraduates; the agents are the Career Services Centres; and the employers. With TiGrESS, the Ministry of Higher Education hopes to be able to track the initiatives and activities of public universities and as a result, rewarding the most active and highest graduate employability rate at universities.
Amongst the programme, the Employers Gossip Corner has a panel of renowned Human Resources Directors; namely Lee Soo Fern from EY; Lim Chee Gay from AIA Berhad, Grace Chan from Berjaya Group Berhad and Chen Fong Tuan from B Braun. The panel of discussion led by Fong Tuan, entertained the audience with very interesting tips and solutions on “What Employers Want”; as they come from different industry, each has their own unique expectations. Atteendees were amazed with their fun and witty quips as they shared about their experiences interviewing fresh graduates. Most importantly, they gained upper hand information in improving the effectiveness and efficiency of their on-campus graduate recruitment activities and initiatives.
YB Datuk Dr Mary also expresses, “…innovation is about people and it is a social process. It is people who make things happen. We are educating the nation, we are educating for the long-term needs of every company.”
At the hype of the gathering was the launching of TiGrESS and the signing of MOU between Iconix Consulting & FOUR (4) chosen Universities to pilot use the system. They are University Malaya (UM), University Kebangsaan Malaysia(UKM), Taylor's University & Multimedia University (MMU). As for the rest of the universities, they would be added by stages. It is in the hope that, by April 2018; all public university would be on-board of TiGrESS.
At the start of the event, Lily Chan, Managing Partner of ICONIX Talent Network, the organiser of the event, has uttered grateful thanks and the significant objectives of Together we gather is for all those involved in Graduate Employability to come together for a get together session to discuss challenges and table their best practices. She says, “Ultimately, this get together session would result in being a professional body for careers and employability professionals working with students in providing them a platform to be ready for the workforce. At the same time, equipping careers services offices with better skills in assisting students and graduand in unleashing their employability potentials.”
The event adjourned with a good networking lunch followed by a quick tour of EcoWorld Sanctuary Development.
About Iconix Talent Network:
Iconix Talent Network is incorporate in August 2016; the existence of a needed arm for talent management was due to the rapid expansion of Iconix Consulting Sdn Bhd. Since its inception, Iconix Talent Network (ICTN) has worked tirelessly bridging industries to universities. Its hard work is seen in winning the award Best Employer Consultant 2016 by HR Vendor of The Year; through its flagship programme, Talent ready 101.
The programme Talent ready 101, has benefitted more than 3000 students since its launching on 2 August, 2016.
Iconix Talent Network also executes a number of activation for Ministry of Higher Education; i.e.; CEO@Faculty Awards Nite, Together Gather, Teh Tarik Chat Series, E-mag, etc