Ngui (left) and Chiam will lead the research collaboration project.
KUCHING: Swinburne University of Technology, Sarawak Campus will hold a collaborative research project with the Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF) Academy to focus on the sustainability practices of Malaysian businesses.
The research project entitled ‘Sustainability Assessment of Business Organisations in Malaysia’ aims to investigate the sustainability practices adopted by Malaysian businesses, and seeks to develop a framework and an understanding of how sustainability issues are incorporated into decision-making processes and in business activities of their organisations.
A press release said the project, to be carried out for one year, will involve engagement and interviews with senior executives of MEF-member companies.
It will cover themes such as the procedures and mechanisms adopted by the companies for identifying, managing and monitoring development issues, as well as the impact of regulatory frameworks, and sustainability standards on business decision-making.
The research collaboration will be led by MEF vice-president and MEF Academy director Dr Michael Chiam and Swinburne Sarawak Assoc Dean of Research and Development Dr Ngui Kwang Sing.
Also part of the research team is Swinburne Melbourne Entrepreneurship and Innovation senior lecturer Dr Jerome Donovan and PhD candidate Agnes Pranugrahaning from Swinburne Sarawak’s Faculty of Business, Design and Arts.
Chiam, who is also an adjunct associate professor at Swinburne, said the private sector is increasingly expected to subscribe and comply with the global sustainable development agenda through proactive measures to mitigate the negative impacts of their activities, as well as adopt sustainability practices as a central component of business decision-making.
“Consistent with the global trend, Malaysia has joined a growing number of countries worldwide for public-listed companies to comply with the requirement on disclosures by way of a narrative statement and/or a Sustainability Report of their management on material economic, environmental and social risks and opportunities, in their annual reporting. The Bursa Malaysia Sustainability Framework requirement will take full effect by end of 2018,” he said.
Donovan – a leading international scholar on corporate sustainability – noted that although the Sustainability Framework represents a positive step forward for Malaysia, compliance will be a challenge, as executives would need to demonstrate active and systematic processes for stakeholder engagement, including how this is linked with material sustainability issues.
He said there is significant guidance in reporting methods and mechanisms, but developing management processes that effectively allow this remains a global challenge.
“This research provides an opportunity for Malaysian companies to demonstrate and promote their practices, while also contributing to the growing knowledge around procedural approaches to engaging with sustainability through business activities,” he said.
Donovan has most recently worked on projects with the Global Reporting Initiative Organisation, which look into integrating sustainability reporting into global value chains, and with Fairtrade ANZ looking at sustainable and ethical supply chains in the Indo-Pacific.
He has also completed a major project with six national governments across Asean on developing a best practice model for corporate sustainability assessments.
Swinburne Sarawak – the only international branch campus of Swinburne University of Technology based in Melbourne, Australia – is the highest ranking international university in Borneo according to the inaugural Asia-Pacific University Ranking 2017 by Times Higher Education (THE).
MEF Academy is a fully owned subsidiary of the Malaysian Employers Federation.
For more information about Swinburne Sarawak, visit www.swinburne.edu.my or look for @swinburnesarawak on Facebook and Instagram; @Swinburne_Swk on Twitter, or Swinburne Sarawak on YouTube.