(Above pic: Dato’ Abdul Rauf Rashid, Malaysia Managing Partner, Ernst & Young PLT)
KUCHING, 24 Mar: According to the latest EY Business Pulse Survey, the majority of Malaysian businesses are prepared to live with COVID-19 (86%) and are prioritising technology adoption in the immediate term (77%) as they fast track their adaptation to the new normal.
Ernst & Young Consulting Sdn Bhd conducted the survey between October to December 2021 to assess the readiness of Malaysian businesses to transition to the COVID-19 endemic phase.
The online survey garnered over 500 respondents from large companies as well as micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
They comprise C-suite executives (CEO, CFO, COO, CTO and CRO) from large and listed companies as well as business owners or key decision makers from MSMEs across diverse industry sectors.
The Business Pulse Survey: Living with COVID-19 and Winning Together, that tried to assess the business preparedness of Malaysian companies in the new normal, also revealed that 43% of the respondents are optimistic on business recovery to pre-pandemic levels within the next one to two years.
This is encouraging as Malaysia enters the transition to the endemic phase on 1 April 2022.
Both the large companies (48%) and MSMEs (37%) indicated that technology had the most positive impact on their businesses during the pandemic.
Movement restrictions, especially the Movement Control Orders, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic had accelerated the companies’ adoption of technology and their transition to a digitally-enabled work environment.
“Despite two years of challenging conditions, businesses have remained focused on building their resilience, but they must continuously evolve to capture the opportunities ahead,” said Dato’ Abdul Rauf Rashid, Malaysia Managing Partner, Ernst & Young PLT, in a press release issued yesterday by Ernst & Young Consulting Sdn Bhd, a member of the global EY organisation.
However, most respondents experienced more negative impact on the financial side (44% of large companies, 63% of MSMEs) and the supply chain (54% of large companies, 44% of MSMEs).
“While the large companies have better access to technology and talent, challenging circumstances call for organisational agility to navigate disruptions, address current gaps, and accelerate measures to build resilience. It is about the survival of the fittest,” said Chow Sang Hoe, EY ASEAN Consulting Leader and Malaysia Consulting Managing Partner, Ernst & Young Consulting Sdn Bhd.
“With the evolving market disruptions and changing consumer preferences amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic, businesses need to prioritise capability development as they seek to transform their operating models for the future. Speed and agility are of the essence.”
In the short term, 85% of the respondents are prioritising the improvement of employee safety and the implementation of SOPs, including flexible work arrangements, while 77% are focused on enhancing digitalisation to facilitate contactless IT infrastructure.
Moving forward, the key business priorities will be on reskilling people (74%) and adopting digitalisation (74%).
The survey also found that a higher proportion of MSMEs are paying greater attention to readapting business size, changing the business model or entering new business ventures (58%) and improving their financial positions (48%).
The survey respondents indicated that they require further support in upgrading digital technology (51%), adapting their businesses to be more resilient (47%), accessing resources for business recovery (42%), and redesigning physical premises (40%), to help them better prepare to live with COVID-19.
Beyond the recovery and improvement phase, the respondents indicated that they need guidance in finding new markets (58%), forging new partnerships (54%), accessing digital skill sets and talent (53%), and developing new business models, products and services (53%).
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