Change management in the new global economic order

•  First-ever MIM-CPM International Management Conference kicks off

By Cassandra Mascarenhas

Furthering the development of the management profession in Sri Lanka and Malaysia, the Institute of Certified Professional Managers (CPM) partnered with the Malaysian Institute of Management (MIM) for the first time ever, bringing about the inaugural international management conference hosted by the two entities in Colombo.

Themed ‘Change Management in the New Global Economic Order,’ the MIM-CPM International Management Conference will take into account ‘change management,’ which is a systematic approach to dealing with change, both from the perspective of an organisation and on an individual level.

The global economy is going through a fundamental transformation. Advanced economies are experiencing major disruption as millions of workers in the emerging economies of China, India and Brazil, to name a few, enter the global production chains. Therefore successful adaptation to change is crucial for any organisation.

A full day of technical sessions featuring speakers with experience in these areas will address these matters, with the last sessions in particular providing an insight into how leading companies have successfully implemented change management in their organisations.

Alongside the inauguration of the two-day conference which was held last evening, the CPM Outstanding Business Leadership Awards 2012 were also held, awarding a number of business leaders for their impressive contribution to the country’s corporate community. In addition, a MoU was signed between CPM and MIM in order to develop closer co-operation in the development of the management profession within the two countries.

Welcoming remarks

CPM President Prof. Lakshman R. Watawala in his welcoming remarks stated that he was pleased that MIM and CPM have come together to bring about a much needed international management conference to Sri Lanka, strengthened by the signing of the MoU between the two organisations.

“This partnership will bring about the development of the management profession in Sri Lanka and will help us upgrade the skills of existing managers and enable us to train new managers. This conference takes into account change management, the successful adaptation of which is crucial for any organisation and will involve the implementation of structured methodology,” he said.

Speaking on the 2012 Business Leadership Awards, Watawala explained that the seven individuals selected have excelled in business activities and have been able to make their visions a reality, driving growth, success and profitability.

Some of the qualities, including innovation, community service, brand building, diversification and management skills as well as the leader’s ability to formulate strategies and capitalise on key trends were some of the key criteria considered when choosing these personalities. He went on to congratulate them and wished them continued success in their business activities.  

A historic collaboration

Malaysian Institute of Management CEO Dr. Nazily Mohd Noor addressing the gathering noted that the day marked the historic collaboration between the two institutions, one which will prove to be beneficial for the working professionals in Sri Lanka.

Giving the audience a brief history on MIM, he asserted that it has always been at the forefront of management leadership and development, having trained over 900,000 Malaysian managers and is soon to reach the milestone of one million managers. The institution also boasts a 6,000 strong membership base with over 800 corporates as members as well.

“Among MIM’s products and services are management development programs designed for the improvement of skills and knowledge of participants. In total, we have over 200 courses for professionals. At MIM, it is our mission to provide management leadership, development training and education with the aim of increasing managers’ competencies and help them be more innovative and productive,” Noor said.

Many of Malaysia’s corporate leaders are products of MIM and through the institution’s diploma and masters programs, they continue to be strong supporters of MIM to this day. Past ministers, prime ministers and even the present prime minister are all part of MIM’s honorary membership.

“There are plans to turn Sri Lanka into a regional trade and logistics hub for the Indian subcontinent and this will require the Sri Lankan workforce to perform at their optimum. Hence MIM is proud to be supporting CPM to deliver professional diplomas and management programs. Both institutions share a similar vision and this journey will benefit the citizens of Sri Lanka and advance the development of the country. We at MIM are looking forward to a long and fruitful relationship with CPM and we hope to deliver nothing but the best through our programs in Sri Lanka,” Noor stated.

South Asia – a management hub

Guest of Honour, Association of Management Development Institutions in South Asia (AMDISA) Vice President Prof. Dr. Ashok Joshi, expressed his pleasure at being present at the internationalisation of the CPM.

As a Vice President of AMDISA, he requested Sri Lanka to actively participate in the body as the country’s participation has been minimal since the hosting of the AMDISA conference in 1998.

“The agenda is very clear – we need to develop South Asia as a global hub of management professionals and in the role of management education. For South Asians, wherever they have gone, they have provided corporate leadership in various multinationals and have created their footprint. Even in academia, you will invariably find Indians spearheading education globally,” Joshi recommended.

He went on to say that with China emerging as a manufacturing hub, Singapore as a financial hub, Joshi asserted that South Asia should emerge as a management profession hub. “We have the advantage of numerical ability, English communication and age – I’m sure that with these three components, South Asia can emerge as a hub.”

Joshi stated that the social and economic perspective is most important as it is under these factors that change management needs to be rolled out. “The world has witnessed a change in the economic order over the last decade which calls for a large understanding of evolving strategies to deal with this change, especially issues of governance at country, corporate and institutional levels.”

Representative democracies are now being questioned, he added, with the voices of the discriminated masses clearer than ever before. The demand for substituting a representative democracy with a participative democracy is also being made in India, he observed, as people are tired of bureaucratic delays and corruption and are demanding transparency and governance.

He also noted that India’s political and social order does not recognise women’s rights in an equitable manner and that there are other issues to be addressed as well. “More nations will have to ensure that the people in poorer strata of society do not feel left behind but that they too derive the most out of the change process.  The process of replacement appears intimidating as the new features question the basic fabric nations operated on earlier.”

He then congratulated the European Union on winning the Nobel Peace Prize, for their collective endeavour in reaching peace and harmony despite the financial crisis which has exerted major pressure on all the nations of the EU.

Adapting to change

CPM Advisory Council Member and Immediate Past President of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce Dr. Anura Ekanayake addressing the gathering as a guest speaker noted that a large number of organisations teach the science and art of management.

“A large number of professional magazines and websites teach this science and art and are full of tools on how to do it in a particular context but they tend to be a bit short on the philosophy and the concepts. The danger then is making use of the tools at the wrong time, in the wrong way. That’s why although it can be boring, it is necessary to focus on the philosophy and underlying concepts,” he explained.

Change is the only constant, he observed, and change too comes in different forms, ranging from microscopic to mega changes. Globalisation for instance, Ekanayake pointed out, is a mega change that can be seen all the time. However, he added, it is important not to miss the small changes that occur as they too are very important. If one does not take the time to pause, step back and reflect on the tiny changes in a business, it can incur a great cost to the organisation at some point.

“Globalisation was popularised only over the last decade but it’s nothing new. The only difference is that the modern day current globalisation the pace of change is much faster than ever before. This globalisation is primarily a technology driven one but there are other aspects as well. There is economic globalisation as well. Then there is perhaps, not so easily noticed, social globalisation. Lifestyles, fads and even political systems are becoming similar the world over,” he noted.

“Today it is not necessary to learn through experience as it could lead to costly damages. What MIM and CPM are about to do is timely and extremely important,” Ekanayake said.

He then categorised change into different types. Mega changes, such as the 2009 recession, are outside the control of individuals and even corporate entities and the only thing to do is to try and understand the change that is taking place and figure out how to adapt and deal with it – not managing the change per se but managing how the adaption to it takes place.

Autonomous changes refers changes like aging process, which corporates also go through, settling down over time and finding comfortable ways of conducting business and at some point they suddenly wake up when it’s too late.

“Take the example of today’s business environment in Sri Lanka. Everyone tells me that is tough, and I agree but why do we find it tough now when two years ago, we were facing the global recession? Over the last two years, the going was so good, we lost all the experience we gained coping with the global recession – this is a big problem,” he revealed.

The third category of change are those that managers decide to introduce, conscious decisions taken by business leaders and managers such as downsizing, mergers and acquisitions, large scale investments etc. While the degree of control here is higher than with the other two, the level of control is still not very high as one never knows how many things could go wrong.

“When you introduce change, even in response to a mega change, there has to be a champion who believes that the change is possible and who is willing to risk his professional career for the change. There cannot be half-hearted champions when implementing change. Just because an idea is economically and financially feasible, if the stakeholders don’t buy it, it’s not going to happen – no sustainable change is possible without the backing of stakeholders.”

Rule of law and order

Chief Guest Attorney General Palitha Fernando noted that the theme selected for the conference is a most appropriate one for modern times.

“Dr. Joshi said that there was a volatile situation in Sri Lanka earlier and now that we have overcome it, if we don’t seize the opportunity that we have got, we will never get it again. The concept of management is as old as human civilisation. In every community, wherever people get together, there has to be a manager to control activities and exercises,” he observed.

The science and art of achieving these goals through effective management of human resources to get the best out of people is something only a dynamic manager can do, he added.  When speaking of management and achieving these goals through the effective management of human resources is what is important and all managers have to be mindful of the rules and regulations that govern them.

Fernando also pointed out that things that are too important cannot be left alone and whenever management plans are put into action, when company resources are being controlled and when managing the activities of companies, it should be kept in mind that the rules and regulations of the government should also be kept in mind. Equality and non-discrimination are important concepts that are vital in any field when it comes to management.

“I have heard that there are three types of people – those who strike hard to change for the better, to do something effective, people who sit and watch the changes, and third consisting of people who suddenly wake up to wonder how these changes have been brought about but do not contribute to them – you have to work with all these categories,” he said.

He then quoted from Queen Elizabeth’s speech at the UN General Assembly in 2012: “I have seen many changes, many of them for the better, in science and technology and in social attitudes, remarkably sweeping changes have not been brought about by governments or committee resolutions or central directives. Instead they have been brought about because millions of people around the world wanted those changes.” From this he stated that changes brought in should fit and suit the aspirations of people.

Fernando went on to say that a person who manages should have a lot of vision and courage. If you courageously take steps and lead from the front, whatever it is, country, institution or society, what you lead will be successful. “In the modern world, I think this is what is needed, to understand the aspirations of the people and the changes occurring around the world. We are rapidly exposed to a competitive world. The world is shrinking and it is absolutely necessary that we take up challenges and take up change.”

He also observed that there is a generation gap when it comes to change, with older generations more reluctant to adapt to change but despite all that, changes have taken place and it is necessary to take over those changes, amidst change.

“In whatever we should do, we should be aware of the changes in the world and be ready to step out into the new and go on courageously with wisdom and within the rules of the law. Sometimes you find people who violate principles of law and they discourage managements and institutions, so it is necessary that the law be stringent and that law and order reign. As attorney general, I will do my utmost in order to see that your corporate sector is secure and fortified by the law of this country,” he stated.

The technical sessions of the MIM-CPM which will be held today will feature a keynote address delivered by IMF Resident Representative Dr. Koshy Mathai during the first session at which speakers will address the conference theme. The second session will focus on organisational change management (OCM).

The final two sessions of the day, themed ‘Success Stories of Change Management,’ will consist of eight speakers from leading Sri Lankan companies who will speak on their real life experiences with change management within their respective organisations.

 – Pix by Upul Abayasekara