Nora (second left) and Ahmad Bashawir (second right) shake hands at the MoU signing ceremony between Maybank and UUM.
KUCHING: Maybank and Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for a strategic partnership between industry and academia in developing the leaders of tomorrow.
The signing ceremony took place in Menara Maybank and was signed by Maybank’s group chief human capital officer, Nora A Manaf and UUM vice chancellor Prof Dr Ahmad Bashawir Abdul Ghani.
The MoU between Maybank and UUM aims to strengthen and further develop collaborative links in the areas of talent development, youth employability and the closing of the skill-gaps between industry and academia.
Maybank has been collaborating with UUM since 2016 through various talent development programmes designed for both students and university employees.
Notable programmes like the Ministry of Education driven CEO@Faculty Programme, Maybank Young Bankers Internship Programme (MYBIP), Maybank GO Ahead.
Challenge (MGAC), employability workshops, C-suite dialogue sessions and on-campus recruitment drives have been carefully curated and executed to bring about real industry exposure to its participants.
Maybank, through Nora Manaf who sits on UUM’s University-Industry Advisory Council (MPUI-UUM) and is also an Adjunct Professor at UUM’s School of Business and Management, plays an active part in the revision of UUM’s academic curriculum to ensure that students are given the opportunity to develop diverse future-ready skills, are encouraged in innovative thinking and are agile for the IR 5.0 world.
In her speech at the event, Nora said that the signing clearly demonstrated that collaboration between industries and universities is critical to accelerate efficient and relevant transfer of knowledge, experience and to optimise strategic investments in talent development for the industry and nation, especially as rapid transformation of business, society and the nation is taking place.
“It is in the interest of all stakeholders; employers, students, lecturers and the nation as a whole that our young talents are shaped and defined through a more holistic lens with entrepreneurial
mind-sets and are future-proofed for the ever-changing landscape of the world of work,” Nora said.
“There must be a willingness to experiment, adapt, to be highly responsive and to be bold enough to push beyond boundaries but in a responsible manner.
“We’re looking to shape the leaders of tomorrow, not just trying to find the best talents. What better way to start than while they’re still in university.”
UUM with its student population of close to 30,000 studying in various courses offered by the university also serves as a good source of talent for the bank.
To support its students to thrive in this ever-changing world, UUM has made efforts to provide solid and relevant preparations for them via student development programmes and industry collaborations.
“Universities should not be seen as standalone entities but a living laboratory to mould character and good governance in producing future-ready talents,” Ahmad Bashawir said.