Monday, July 2, 2012

Start swimming with the big fish

Source From (Business times): http://www.btimes.com.my/Current_News/BTIMES/articles/ikan/Article/

Published: on 02 July 2012

MANY would agree that market access remains one of the major barriers for SMEs apart from access to finance. In their daily existence, it is quite tough for SMEs to knock on the doors of large conglomerates to seek opportunities to be part of their global supply chain.

They will have to take the extra mile to sell their products and services, as well as provide the assurance that they are the ones these big players are looking for. On the other hand, SMEs that can adhere to the stringent market requirements and high-quality standards are usually the ones that are sought-after by these huge corporations.

There are times, when I was approached by SMEs complaining about how tough it was for them to penetrate into the local market, let alone in the global playing field. I hear them and understand the constraints faced. Nonetheless, I believe in the words by the man with positive thinking, Norman Vincent Peale; "Every problem has in it the seeds of its own solution. If you don't have any problems, you don't get any seeds".

And just to share, I always remind myself and my team to practice the 4C principle, which stands for Connect, Communicate, Consult and Colla-borate.

This has always been our main ingredients used when executing every given task. Hence, being the central coordinating agency, we are here to communicate with you and connect you in many ways in identifying the potential solutions to overcome the many challenges faced, particularly ease of market penetration.

In fact, we have been continuously providing avenues to link potential SMEs to the big players over the past 15 years. Our industrial linkage programme, now branded as Business Linkage Programme (BLING) is developed to create linkages between potential SMEs and various MNCs, large corporations as well as hypermarkets like Tesco, Giant, AEON and Mydin.

On top of that, our dedicated BLING team is always exploring opportunities with the big names in the industry. I'm proud to mention that to date SME Corp has succesfully organised business opportunity sessions with renowned global players with the likes of The Boeing Co, BAE Systems, international hypermarket chains as well as MRT Corp to name a few. Indeed, we brought along our business matching session to the Global Women Summit 2012, in Athens recently.

From time to time, we were often approached by the big corporations to assist them in sourcing for suitable SMEs that could be their potential suppliers. Thanks to our in-house diagnostic tool which is famously known as SME Competitiveness Rating for Enhancement (SCORE).

With SCORE, MNCs and large corporations are assured that SMEs we proposed are the cream of the crop as only companies rated three star and above will be selected to participate in this programme.

Once we have identified the pool of SMEs, a business opportunity session will be organised, bridging them with the big corporations to further explore business opportunities. As in previous years, the highlight of Smidex 2012 which was held two weeks ago, is the one-to-one Business Matching.

Marking its 15th year, the ultimate objective of this session is to provide a channel for SMEs to forge strategic business partnerships and networking with the Large and Multi-National Corp. This is indeed the perfect opportunity for SMEs to understand what it takes to be their suppliers.

Through sessions like this, SMEs will take the necessary steps to upgrade their technology and comply to the necessary standards once they have a better understanding on the customer's requirements.

Since the inception of Smi-dec/SME Corp, the business linkage activities done in matching SMEs and their potential partners comprising MNCs, GLCs and large companies have generated nearly RM1.2 billion worth of potential sales, with a total of 1,372 linkages.

Last year alone saw a total of 178 business matching sessions materialised at our SME Annual Showcase, with sales negotiations valued at RM194.7 million.

I am delighted that this year, a total of 231 business linkage materialised, with sales negotiations valued at RM247 million negotiated during the three-day session!

My heartfelt thanks to Proton, Perodua, BAE Systems, The Boeing Co, hypermarkets and the rest of our partners for their support and commitment shown during the recent Smidex 2012-Business Matching Session.

Did you miss that business opportunity? Don't worry ... our business linkage activities are not only done during Smidex, it is a year-long activity. Don't hesitate to talk to us if you need our assistance to link you with your potential clients. After all, this is what we do best; getting you connected and pioneering your business transformation! Just remember what B.C. Forbes said:

"If you don't drive your business, you will be driven out of business!'. Put on your gear, and let's start swimming with the big fish ...

Datuk Hafsah Hashim is the chief executive officer of Small and Medium Enterprises Corporation Malaysia (SME Corp Malaysia)

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