• SME News
Local SMEs told to move up value chain
PETALING JAYA: Local small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are encouraged to emphasise on product innovation, branding and new technologies to enhance their competitiveness in the global marketplace. The SMI Association of Malaysia national president Chua Tiam Wee said Malaysian SMEs could no longer depend on being suppliers or original equipment manufacturers (OEM) to the bigger companies.
“No doubt our SMEs are good in manufacturing quality products, but they need to add more value to their products by focusing more on research and development, branding, innovative designs and adoption of information and communications technology.
“We cannot be just competing on lower production costs alone because we will lose out to China and Vietnam that have even lower costs,” he told StarBiz in an interview.
Chua said SMEs should also learn from Taiwan, which is known as “The Kingdom of SMEs”, for its efficiency in productivity and strong networking.
“Today, we are riding on the globalisation wave. It is important for SMEs to be prepared to go beyond boundaries to penetrate the world market.”
According to Chua, some SMEs had already moved in this new direction and performed well, achieving earnings that are comparable to those of listed companies.
The SMI Assocation is organising its 7th SME Recognition Award 2008 with the theme “Strategic Positioning Towards Global Competitiveness”, to recognise SMEs who have excelled in their respective fields.
This year, it has introduced three new awards – Young Entrepreneur Award, Government-linked Enterprises Excellence Award and Social Responsibility Excellence Award.
Chua said 88 winners from 16 categories would be announced at the awards presentation on Dec 13.
“The standard of the winners has been improving over the years,” he said, adding that not less than 30 of its award winners were now listed on Bursa Malaysia.
The association hoped that SMEs could further improve themselves through this award, which acted as a platform for SMEs to benchmark against their competitors, he said.
The official media partners are The Star, 9.88, RedFM and Shanghai magazine.
DiGi Telecommunications Sdn Bhd is the presenter and the main sponsors are Standard Chartered Bank, Westports Malaysia Sdn Bhd and OCBC Bank (M) Bhd. In conjunction with the award presentation, a briefing roadshow will be held next Tuesday at Menara Star. - The Star
| « SMEs bracing for tougher days | | | Treat SMI bosses well, banks told » |
