Companies Need To Allocate Budget For Innovation Even In Bad Times

By Mohd Khairi Idham Amran KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 23 (Bernama) -- Malaysian companies must set aside a certain allocation from their expenditure planning for innovation even in difficult times. Agensi Inovasi Malaysia (Malaysia's National Innovation Agency) Chief Operating Officer Abdullah Arshad said this was contrary with the regular practices in companies nowadays which abandoned innovation when the bottomline was bad, focusing on survivability and not planning for the future. "Rain or shine they must force themselves to allocate some budget for innovative activities so that they can continue to reinvent themselves," he told Bernama on the sidelines of the Asian Institute of Finance International Symposium 2017 here Wednesday. He said reinventing themselves was one way for companies to navigate their way to move forward during bad times. "You have to look for ways to make it better. You have to innovate. That is why innovative companies are more resilient and sustainable, because they keep on reinventing themselves with new ideas," he said. Abdullah added that with the fast rate of change in disruptive technologies and with the impending fourth industrial revolution, industries that don't reinvent themselves would soon die. 'With the fourth industry revolution, many things will change especially in the manufacturing industry," he added. Nevertheless, he said innovation was still not the agenda for Malaysian companies as they were more keen on being followers instead of inventors and cheap labour was another factor why companies did not consider innovation seriously. Abdullah said industry leaders must take the lead in fostering the culture of innovation due to their capability in terms of financial standing and resources. "The big boys have to start first," he said, adding that industries in Malaysia which have innovated well included services, medical, hospitality and commodities. Palm oil and rubber-based industries have undergone much innovation, driven by world class researchers, he said. Themed, "Talent and Innovation: Enhancing Productivity and Performance", the symposium gathered about 200 participants, both local and foreign, to discuss various issues including innovation and disruptive technologies. -- BERNAMA