The Breakfast Grille

Datuk Shamsuddin Bardan, Executive Director, Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF) & Sivarajan Arumugam, Secretary-General, Parti Sosialis Malaysia PSM participate in a panel on the proposed Employee Insurance Scheme (EIS), discussing the necessity of starting a social safety net for retrenched workers. Good idea -- but Issues like scheme mechanics, oversight, management and governance come int...

Exactly how free is the Malaysian media? As of 2017, the country ranks 144th on the World Press Freedom Index. Deputy Home Affairs Minister Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed does not agree with the ranking, given that the country enjoys unrestricted internet access and a space for independent media outlets to operate. On this World Press Freedom Day, we discuss with him about what constitutes "press freedo...

“Many of the most highly regarded works on Malaysian history, politics, economics, sociology and law have been carried out here at Australian National University.” The director of the newly set-up Malaysia Institute was also reported saying that  “Australian scholarship on Malaysia has declined in recent years, and more Australians studied the Malay language in the 1970s tha...

Are the doors closing for aspiring immigrants to the New Zealand? Its government is taking a Kiwi-first approach and is tightening the immigration policy as it shifts focus to attracting skilled migrants. But there still are opportunities for Malaysians there: Investors are welcomed especially in sectors, like tourism, which are growing rapidly. As New Zealand and Malaysia celebrates the 60-year m...

Charles Brewer, CEO of DHL eCommerce, talks strategy in an ASEAN market that is growing at leaps and bounds in the one area which is upending traditional retail: ecommerce. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

SilverTech Global is the result of a joint venture between Heitech Padu and SilverLake. Its core business is in the digital government market, specialising in public sector identity management projects for developing countries. Do they have the solutions to transform tedious and complex bureaucratic processes in governments that would better serve the public? We ask its CEO Jonas Lind. See omnystu...

Donald Trump came to the White House as an outsider. And while he as excelled at signing Executive Orders, his legislative agenda has been beset with problems which in part reflect his inexperience in the complex levers of government, his inability to pander to the Republican who control Congress and his own lack of a coherent policy agenda. But it is early days yet for a man who might end his ten...

Tomorrow is Earth Day with its focus on environmental and climate literacy. The global campaign see literacy as “the engine not only for creating green voters and advancing environmental and climate laws and policies but also for accelerating green technologies and jobs.” It will also see the launch of the autobiography of veteran environmental campaigner, Gurmit Singh. His book is tit...

According to the Tyre Retreading Manufacturers Association of Malaysia, 30% out of 1.2 million retreaded tires on the market were not manufactured according to specifications. Cheah addresses the concerns surrounding the industry, ahead of Eversafe Rubber's IPO on April 21. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Responsible for the training and development of the 45,000 employees of Malaysia's biggest bank by market cap, Nora Manaf, Group Chief Human Capital Officer of Maybank Group, shares how she's trying to ensure job satisfaction in a VUCA world.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Spotify now boasts 100 million users, and about half of them are paid subscribers. Sunita highlights Asia’s role in the overall growth strategy for one of the world’s leaders in online music streaming. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Remember those 'economic corridors'? We have the benefit of the Nothern Corridor Implementation Authority describing how employment and self-sufficiency have been created. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr Claus Weidner, Mercedes Benz Malaysia managing director, spells out the recipe behind the company's record sales performance in 2016. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jahabar Sadiq aims to migrate personal principles of fairness and independence to The Malaysian Insight, a new news portal he founded after the closure of The Malaysian Insider last year. We ask him whether funding sources and commercial realities can challenge this independence. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Many challenges lie ahead for the small nation of Finland, that has only just emerging from a long recession. In a statement issued in January this year the Finnish central bank said “An improving employment situation and low inflation will bolster real disposable household income. Exports will recover amid better competitiveness and higher external demand." It went on to note that an a...

Ranked 4th in the Times Higher Education World University 2016-2017 raking, Cambridge University continues to be seen as a leader in quality higher education. Today we speak about the development of a fund, named after the late Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Kuan Yew as well as the impact of Brexit on higher education funding. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kim Teck Cheong Consolidated Berhad (KTC) is a Sabah-based consumer packaged goods distributor. CEO of KTC, Dexter Lau, joins us on The Breakfast Grille to provide some insights into the performance of the company since its listing on the ACE Market in November 2016.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Malaysian Competition Commission has proposed a fine of RM213.45 million for alleged anti-competitive behavior by the General Insurance Association of Malaysia (PIAM) and its 22 members. Philip provides insights into the current state of the domestic insurance sector, along with the associated challenges. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr. Mohd. Zamzam Jaafar, CEO, Malaysia Nuclear Power Corp, fields questions on the viability of this highly efficient but very contentious power source, as Malaysia gears up for its next and final push to fully developed status See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The global business services sector is expected to attract some RM6.5 billion in investments and create over 14,000 job opportunities by 2020. Munirah provides an outlook on GBS/BPO, given some high-profile departures and delays in the sector. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As antitrust cases are becoming more global in nature, so must antitrust enforcement. Marvin N. Price, Director of Criminal Enforcement for the Antitrust Division of the US Department of Justice, discusses the enforcement of anti-competitive behaviour and cartel-like conduct, and the challenges to international cooperation.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Since its inception in 2005, Andaman Group has reached a gross development value of RM3 billion. Dato Sri Dr. Vincent outlines how this property developer finds its edge among the larger players. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Because CIMB has become a proxy to Malaysian ideals of an Asean bank, their views on fintech and corporate governance are pertinent to how the economy moves forward. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Group Managing Director of Freight Management Holdings, Chew Chong Keat, shares his strategy in navigating the current challenging market outlook. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The fintech disruption continues and now allows you to buy gold with just a few bucks. We assess the good and bad of that. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.