Govt Encourages Setting Up Of Data Management Centres In Malaysia

19 Zulkaedah 1434

SAN FRANCISCO, Sept 24, 2014- The government encourages the setting up of data management centres in Malaysia to develop the national information technology (IT) industry, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

He said the setting up of the latest data management centres was among the matters being given attention by the government.

Speaking to the media after chairing the 3rd annual general meeting of the Global Science and Innovation Advisory Council (GSIAC) in San Francisco, Tuesday, he said the effort, however, might be constrained in terms of getting those with the capabilities such as data scientists in Malaysia.

Najib said Malaysia was capabable of developing such centres because it had a unique capability, wide area, suitable structure and could offer incentives.

Prime Minister said the development would also result in the country needing thousands of data scientists in the future.

He said he had also met several Malaysian companies which had transformed and had morphed from being sited in the Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) (in Malaysia) to venturing into partnerships with their share-partners from the Silicon Valley, United States.

"To the extent their products can now be sold in the global market," Najib said.

He said the companies were PULSATE Sdn Bhd, INTEL Corporation, Revolution Analytics Inc, MOL Global Pte Ltd, Rixty Inc, Joota Ventures Sdn Bhd, BrandX Development LLC and XYBASE MSC Sdn Bhd.

To expand further the innovation culture, Najib said companies which sought to implement innovations but in the end encountered failure should not be penalised because innovation was encouraged as a normal culture practice in the Silicon Valley.

He said their failures were sometimes caused by their bravery in trying something new and sometimes the causes were beyond their control.

Najib said the meeting also discussed efforts to provide more skilled workers for the teaching of English, the process of enhancing ability to use technology to shorten lead times and other innovative measures.

Among others, he said, was the development of 'smart urban development' in Iskandar Malaysia, Johor, which was tabled by the Iskandar Regional Development Authority.

Also discussed was the Rimbunan Kasih project which was jointly developed by the IRIS corporation and the federal government as a very attractive 'Smart Rural Development' model.

The GSAIC meeting on Tuesday was also briefed on Malaysia's Permata Pintar early childhood programme whereby some of the students with high IQ were exposed to the experience of visiting New York and meeting American scientists there.

"They (the American scientists) have also visited UKM (Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia) and given ideas on how the interests of the children can be fostered as would-be-scientists and future Nobel Laureates.

"This is our aspiration, whereby in deciding on educational opportunities, we should not necessarily see in terms of giving access to those with normal abilities only but also to those with extraordinary and unique abilities with unique programmes which do not hamper them from achieving their maximum potential," he said.

This can be carried out with the American scientific community with the forming of GSIAC because this sort of cooperation is very beneficial to Malaysia and many other nations want to follow in Malaysia's footsteps.

Asked on the outcome of his visit to the Twitter's headquarters on Tuesday, Najib said he had discussed with the management of Twitter on the possibility of using the social media network for disaster alert in the event of disasters to enable prompt action to be taken.

The GSIAC meeting was joined by national and international council members which are global experts on science and innovation.

GSIAC was founded by the Prime Minister in 2010 as part of his continuous effort to transform Malaysia into becoming a high income nation by boosting Malaysia's capability in science and innovation.

More information: BERNAMA

No Compromise In The Case Of Civil Servants Who Leak Government Secrets

9 Muharram 1434


PUTRAJAYA, Nov 22 , 2012- The government will not compromise in the case of civil servants who leak government information, Chief Secretary to the Government Datuk Seri Dr Ali Hamsa said today.

He said activities such as falsifying documents, leaking information and disseminating sensitive and confidential information would threaten national security and well-being.

"We cannot compromise at all in the matter of leakage of government secrets. As such, I want to remind heads and security officers of departments to take stringent action against any breach of security which results in leakage of government secrets," he said at the 2012 National Level Protective Security Convention at the Finance Ministry, here.

More information:BERNAMA

Knowledge Management ?

Every few years, a new technological development or management philosophy captures the attention of many strategic thinkers in organisation. First there was the Total Quality Movement, and then followed by Business Process Reengineering and others. There is no doubt, that the last couple of years have seen a surge of interest in knowledge management and also the revolution of Information technology. Now, everybody is talking about Knowledge Management (KM). But normally, not many understand that what the exact meaning of Knowledge Management is all about.

The KM area has spent much of its short time on earth defining itself. The question arise in our head is, why do we insist that there will be such a thing as KM? What the impulse underneath it? What are the value propositions that  “knowledge Management” might bring to our life?

On the other hand, the answer is obvious: As more and more information pours in, we feel ignorance and confuse. We are not keeping up. The knowable business universe is expanding faster than our small brain. So, that’s why we need KM. The existence of KM speaks to two phenomena. One has to do with knowledge and the other with management.

What is Knowledge Management

            Literally, knowledge can be defined as “that which is learned or acquired and integrated in some way in the mind of an individuals, group of individuals, or organisation of individuals that enable the knowledge holder (individual, group or organisation) to do something”. Meanwhile, management in the KM context means monitoring and improving knowledge by measuring and modifying the knowledge processes and the environment.

            Individuals and groups in pursuit of major organisational goals may define knowledge management as a systematic and integrative process of co-ordinating organisation wide activities of acquiring, creating, storing, sharing, diffusing, developing and deploying knowledge. It is a process through which firms create and use their institutional and collective knowledge as follows:

1. Organisational learning: the process through which the firm acquires information or knowledge.
2. Knowledge production: the process that transforms and integrates raw information into knowledge, which in turn, is useful to solve business problems.
3. Knowledge distribution: the process that allows members of the organisation to access and use the collective knowledge of the firm.

Karl E. Sveiby defined Knowledge Management as the “Art of creating value from an organisation’s intangible assets”. Another definition given by Roelof P. uit Beijerse is, “Knowledge Management is achieving organisational goals through the strategy driven motivation and facilitation of knowledge workers to develop, enhance and use their capability to interpret data and information (by using available sources of information, experience, skills, culture, character, personality, feelings etc.) through a process of giving meaning to these data and information.

History of Knowledge Management

 According to Lee Verker, (1999) Internet, Knowledge management is natural. It is a natural process that humans use to maintain and improve their survival. Since the first tribe, humans have been governing the production, transmission and acquisition of knowledge. The survival and legacy of a tribe depended on how well knowledge was managed. Throughout history, storytellers have recited a culture’s oral history, passing on knowledge from generation to generation. Parents transfer knowledge to children. It is what individuals and groups do, and have always done, to survive. The study of KM is not new. Plato designed an academy and Aristotle a Lyceum to advance the knowledge of philosophy. They both experimented with different ideas before settling on the one they felt was most efficient environment for the creation and sharing of knowledge. Ptolemy I Soter, the king of Egypt, began the ancient library of Alexandria. Together with his predecessor they made KM decision of where to place the library; what scrolls to make available; and how to preserve the scrolls in spite of the many attempts to destroy them.

 The study of KM in a business setting is also not new. Studies started in the late 1800s primarily on one facet of KM, the knowledge production in industrial laboratories and engineering groups. Over the last 40 years, organisational learning and computer science has pushed KM into business management. What is new is the recent focus on KM as a profession that concentrates on methods for managing and improving knowledge processes within a commercial enterprise to help it adapt and prosper.

This new focus is leading to the creation of KM offices, consulting practices, research programs, graduate courses, and a supporting industry. The importance of managing knowledge has been known for centuries. However, rather than an ad hoc approach to studying KM and the management of individual knowledge processes, the focus is now on a disciplined approach to managing all the knowledge processes found in human collectives.

Reference :

Sveiby, Karl E. (1996). What is knowledge management?. [on-line] available: http://www..sveiby.co.au.html. (2001 March 7)

Verker, lee. (1999). Knowledge Management Organization. [on-line] Available: http://www..Km.Org/standardsglossaryofterms.htm. (2001 March 6)

Beijerse, Roelof P.uit. (1999). “Question in Knowledge Management: Definition and Conceptualizing A Phenomenon.” Journal Of Knowledge Management, 3 (2), 102. [online] Available: http://link.springer.de/link/service/journals.htm  (2001 March 6)

MyInvest: Information as an Important Commodity

Information as an Important Commodity: "In an era of digital economy, information is recognised as one of the more important commodity. Its role in contributing to the economy of ..."