Businesses and Organisations Urged not to Work in Isolation
Businesses and organisations have been urged to be vigilant and not operate in isolation. This was the message from the President Major-General (Ret’d) Jioji Konrote during the 2018 Fiji Business Excellence awards on Saturday night at the Sheraton Resort Fiji.
“I believe that we must continue to be open minded about how we navigate our organisations through the present age.
“We might think that our operation is confined within our industry, current technology or within this country; however, we need to be mindful that we cannot operate in isolation.
“As our economy evolves and modernises, even the more established businesses are experiencing new and ever-changing challenges, which they did not encounter 20 years ago.
“These changes are being brought on largely by the growing openness of market forces, advanced technology and the widespread application of the World Wide Web.”
Uber, Air-BNB
President Konrote said they should look abroad to companies like Uber and Air-BNB where they are now worth Billions of dollars. “These companies challenged the status quo and use technology to change the traditional way of engaging with customers by introducing a more convenient solutions with just a press of a button.
“Uber, for example, is a ride-sharing application for fast, reliable transportation. It is now available in more than 630 cities worldwide, and providing a stiff challenge to the conventional transportation businesses. The company is valued close to US$50 billion (FJ$106bn) as of today.
“The irony to this success story is that Uber is a public land transportation business that does not own any vehicle! Likewise, Air-BNB the world’s largest accommodation provider that owns no real estate. “Transactions and bookings take place over the internet with the click of a button.
Industrial revolution
“This is the fourth industrial revolution that we are now living in – digitalisation.
“In this age of digitalisation, global discussions centre around smart factories, smart machines, smart food, smart cities - the use of technologies for continuous improvements and business excellence. This is the global trend.
“We have to be aware of what is happening around us and make strategic moves to stay ahead of the competition by being innovative with our products and service delivery.
“The organisations that survive do so because of their ability to fine-tune their operations amidst the changes taking place around them.
“The challenges we face in the business environment will continue to vary with time, but I urge you all to be ready to defy the odds and make the necessary adjustments within, in order to stay afloat. “As an entrepreneur once said, and I quote: “I cannot change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my sails to always reach my destination.” Unquote.
“We might not be able to control the circumstances that come our way, but we can always control how we respond to it – to achieve the best possible result.
He highlighted that the age of digitisation is not limited to apps in wealthier and more developed economies.
“Right here at home, I am glad that the Fijian Government is at the forefront of realising the changing trend towards the use of technology to streamline business processes.
“Visionary leadership that is allowing our economy and our workforce to keep pace as the world around us evolves, tapping technology to create new opportunities instead of digging in our heels and resisting change,” the President said.
About the awards
This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Fiji Business Excellence Awards under the National Training and Productivity Centre of the Fiji National University. Earlier this year, the new FBEA logo was launched to mark the 20th anniversary year of the awards. The new logo symbolises unity and commtment.
The colour – gold – highlights the fact that the Fiji Business Excellence Awards represent the Gold Standard for the many organisations that participate each year.
Classic Apparel
Meanwhile, Classic Apparel was recognised at the awards for supplying the recognition jackets for FBEA evaluators who served five years in the awards process. Over the years, Classic Apparel has supplied more than $100, 000 worth of jackets, free of charge, in support of the business excellence initiative in Fiji.
Special recognition
Also recognised were individuals who have made a significant contributions to the awards such as the Minister for Employment, Prodcutivity and Industrial Relation Jone Usamate, Former general manager Productivity and Quality Awards Anand Kuver, USP TAFE trainer Verleshwar Singh, ILO representative Surkafa Katafono, BSP training manager Viliame Waqalaivi, private consultant Robin Anganu, private consultant Binesh Chand and Energy Fiji Limited general manager HR Naveen Latchmaiya.
Also recognised were the panel of review, Permanent Secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister and Sugar Industry, Yogesh Karan, Mark One Apparel managing director Mark Halabe, Fiji Commerce and Employers Federation chief executive officer Nesbitt Hazelman, Former military officer and senior FBEA evaluator Jackson Evans and Fiji Ports Corporation Limited chief executive officer Vajira Piyasena.