KUALA LUMPUR: By 2030, Malaysia will see 10,000 Bumiputera leaders emerging from Yayasan Peneraju's (YP) Talent Bank programme, ready to lead in business, professional and community sectors in the country.
These Bumiputera leaders will be equipped to scale technology-driven ventures, start fund management firms, run accounting firms, or offer consultancy services in the country.
The focus is on ownership and entrepreneurship, said YP chief executive officer Ibrahim Sani.
"It can be anything, but you need to own the business and start your own venture," he said, adding that these 10,000 leaders will emerge across three categories: business, professional and community.
Ibrahim said YP has already trained 70,000 individuals and by 2030, this number will exceed 100,000.
"Of that, we aim for 10 per cent to become leaders. 5,000 professional leaders, 4,000 business leaders and 1,000 community leaders.
"The selection and development of these leaders will be conducted through our Talent Bank, a crucial initiative for achieving this goal," said Ibrahim, the brainchild behind this idea along with the Ministry of Economy (MOE).
The Talent Bank programme will be launched in Sarawak on Thursday, June 20. This is the first Bumiputera Talent Bank in the country, focusing on Bumiputera ecosystem development.
Ibrahim explained the motivation behind this initiative is that there is a disparity between talent management and economic growth.
"The problem is maximising the potential of these Bumiputera talents after they get their certifications.
"We have enough Bumiputera professionals; the Department of Statistics Malaysia shows Bumiputera dominate the professional class," said Ibrahim.
Many government-linked companies (GLCs) have a significant presence of Bumiputera professionals, including in leadership roles, thanks to well-designed programmes from the 1960s and 1970s, such as the New Economic Policy and the Bumiputera Transformation Plan.
These programmes were focused on eradicating poverty and enabling upward social mobility, allowing Bumiputera to secure good incomes and lead major organisations like our GLCs and GLICs.
However, Ibrahim said an unintended consequence is that none of them are able to pursue entrepreneurship.
To address this needs gap, YP will enhance the Talent Bank programme by refining the aptitude tests for its pool of 70,000 talents. Those inclined towards entrepreneurship will be guided accordingly.
"To assess qualifications, we use psychometric analysis based on specific values we have identified," he added.
These values cover traits such as risk-taking, innovation, and coalition-building for entrepreneurs.
Professional leaders typically show organisational drive, long-term vision, and a governance-focused risk tolerance while community leaders often demonstrate high empathy and less focus on profit.
These indices are combined into a composite index, known as the Value Creator's Composite Index (VCCI), which helps identify individuals capable of creating significant value, not just adding to it.
"At YP, we prioritise value creation over management. This distinction is crucial as it guides our Talent Bank programme, driven by the VCCI framework," said Ibrahim.
Using himself as an example, Ibrahim realised he is not inclined towards entrepreneurship or community leadership, but rather focuses on pursuing a career as a professional leader.
He said the Talent Bank at YP is designed to assist individuals like him in reaching their full potential in leadership positions.
"For those demonstrating high potential as entrepreneurs, they will be directed to our partner agency, Unit Peneraju Agenda Bumiputera (Teraju).
"Teraju plays a crucial role in nurturing these entrepreneurs, and we have collaborated closely with them to develop Bumiputera vendors," said Ibrahim.
Teraju's role extends beyond talent development. It also manages the Bumiputera ecosystem.
Exceptional entrepreneurs identified through this process may receive loans from Teraju to scale their businesses.
In May 2024, Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli said Teraju was targeted to provide financing facilities amounting to RM1 billion through collaboration with the private sector.
Larger enterprises may then receive further funding from Ekuinas through private equity, ensuring continuity within the Bumiputera agencies under the Ministry of Economy (MOE).
Teraju, Peneraju and Ekuinas are three Bumiputera-mandated agencies under the MOE that have been realigned to enhance and better promote Bumiputera's economic participation strategically, sustainably and effectively.
Development of Talent Bank will be conducted through in-house talent.
YP has recently expanded its team by 20 per cent, focusing on hiring data scientists and data analysts to bolster its internal capabilities.
The individuals come from organisations like Laksana, an agency under the Ministry of Finance and the Department of Statistics.
Another team member hails from a private university in Malaysia, while another comes from Malaysian Institute of Economic Research.
The Talent Bank programme which will be launched in Sarawak is to support the state's focus on energy transition and renewable energy.
"We are launching in Sarawak because we are dedicated to increasing our talent pool there," the spokesperson added.
"This commitment stems from the need to support local industries in growing the number of skilled professionals necessary for industry expansion.
"Without a robust talent base, industrial growth in the region would be challenging," said Ibrahim.
As an agency under the Economy Ministry, YP acts as a talent bank with a mandate to develop and manage Bumiputera talents to drive their competitiveness at the global level.