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Innovation has become a buzzword in Malaysia of late, with the government identifying it as one of the core pillars behind the efforts to transform the country into a developed nation by the year 2020 as visualised in the Vision 2020 masterplan. With the deadline only 10 years away, efforts to promote innovation as a way of life in Malaysia have been boosted of late. No surprise then that this year - 2010 - was declared the Malaysia Year of Innovation and Creativity by the Prime Minister Datuk Sri Mohd Najib Tun Abdul Razak in December 2009, with the official launch taking place on the 27th of January 2010.

Embracing innovation

Blogging about the topic, Datuk Sri Najib pointed out that countries such as Japan, Finland and the United States have developed more advanced economies because they favour innovation thus leading to an increase in national competitiveness and jobs. As such, he warned that if Malaysia is to avoid being left behind in the competitive global economy, then Malaysians “must make a creative impact”.

This is reflected in his speech to Parliament when presenting the 2010 Budget in October last year where affirmed the importance of innovation in the national development agenda and announced that “the government will transform Malaysia through a comprehensive innovation process… that will elevate the nation to a more advanced economy.”

However, it should be said though that the decision to embrace innovation and creativity is not something new. In fact, the Ninth Malaysia Plan (9MP) which ran from 2006 to 2010 noted that the economy has to shift from being focused on resources to one of knowledge capital and innovations.

Furthermore, the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation (MOSTI) has identified the period from the late 1990s to 2020 and beyond as being the age of the Innovation-Led Economy. As stated in its report National Innovation Model, which was drawn-up by the National Innovation Council and launched in 2007, the Ministry recognised the “need to shift from a resources-based economy and production-based economy to a sustainable one where knowledge and ‘know-how’ become the main drivers for economic growth.”

In the same document, it was emphasised that “it is no longer enough to be assemblers or expert practitioners of old methods (i.e. labour intensive production), as we will surely be overtaken by those with cheaper labour”. Thus, the old days and old methods of doing things are no longer relevant in the new economy. If Malaysia wants to catch a second wind… if it wants to enjoy the halcyon days again just as it did back in the late 1980s and early 1990s, it has to embrace change.

The fierce urgency of now

While - as mentioned above - the focus on innovation isn’t an entirely new concept in the national agenda, the fact that 2020 is only just a decade away makes it even more vital than ever. What Malaysians have to understand today - as far as innovation goes - is what Martin Luther King called “The fierce urgency of now”.

The government has of course recognised it. As such, the setting up of a National Innovation Centre (MyNIC) has been mooted, along with creating a network of centres of innovation excellence. The MyNIC will be instrumental in bringing together science and technology-related councils to resolve issues and share experiences in various technology fields.

But policies can only go so far. Without the right people to lead the drive towards an innovation-led economy, even the best laid plans will remain just that…plans. It does not do to just talk about it, something must be done. There is a need for executors, implementers, and doers who can not only visualize and envision but also bring these ideas into fruition.

It may be a tall order. It may even be an extremely difficult – some might even say improbable – task. After all, we are talking about changing the mindset of people in the space if just 10 years. They say Rome wasn’t built in a day, but compared to creating a paradigm shift in people’s mode of thinking, building Rome would seem an easier task within the timeframe stipulated.

It only takes one man

But it is not an impossible dream. And in many ways, Malaysia is blessed because it can lay claim to being the home of one man who has been a constant voice and inspiration calling for Malaysians to embrace creativity, innovation, and thinking out of the box for the better part of 2o years, long before such words became part of the national vocabulary. In fact, it is his constant commitment to promoting these values which have led them becoming instilled in the minds of the people. As such, even if the concepts are not entirely well – understood, they are in the psyche.

But Tan Sri Lim Kok Wing is not just a talker of good ideas; he is a doe as well. He has shown that creativity and innovation are not just fancy words to be bandied about, but actual concepts that need to be practiced and followed if we, as a nation, hope to become more competitive and successful. He has seen the potential in the youth as the future leaders of the nation, and recognized the importance of imparting in them the importance of thinking out of the box.

This is why as far back as 1986 he set up the Limkokwing Institute of Creative Technology – the country’s first educational institute dedicated to creativity. This has grown to become the Limkokwing University of Creative Technology, which today boasts 30, 000 students from 140 countries, as well as six branch campuses overseas.

Those who have graduated and those who are still studying within the confines of Limkokwing share one trait in common. They have been taught to accept innovation as an instinct. In other words, they do not only do things in an innovative or creative manner, they are innovative and creative by nature.

Without a doubt, Tan Sri Lim Kok Wing is the most important and influential public intellectual in Malaysia of the past 30 years. After all, how many can we name who have changed minds as effective as he has done? Precious few, we expect. Little wonder then that Tan Sri Lim’s opinions and viewpoints have been sought by the government, especially when it comes to formulating directions and policies on promoting innovation and creative thinking.

And he is a pioneer as well. Not only did he establish the first educational establishment dedicated to creativity and creative thinking – which incidentally also became the first fully – fledged private university in Malaysia Design & Innovation Centre (MDI) long before the MyNIC was even conceptualized.

One can see many similarities between the roles played by the MDI and the MyNIC, although the latter focuses more on a national level while the former is an arm of Limkokwing University. For instance, MDI was set up to help businesses brands, achieve brand recognition in the market, and it aims to become the world’s first fully integrated design researchers, designers, technologists, academics and multimedia experts to develop a platform for R & D in Southeast Asia.

As mentioned above, Tan Sri Lim has spoken a lot and written equally as mush on innovation and creativity, and some quotes from his column Creative People, Innovative Nation – which ran from February to April 2004 in the New Sunday Times only shows just how erudite and passionate he is about his cause.

“Today’s business leader must be able to manage creativity and innovation in order to build customer satisfaction and keep the competition out of his way. There is mounting globalised competition in the market today, especially from transitional and emerging economies. We must add value and quality to whatever we make or produce. Innovation holds the key to building competitiveness”.

Take the following for instance, “Change is something that is inevitable in our lives. By adapting we survive, we are able to chug along and keep pace. But it is only when we effect a change that we will thrive, pull away from the pack of survivors and take the lead. New discoveries, new inventions, new ways of doing things have been changing the way we live for thousands of years. At the very core of change is creativity and innovation”.

Not so long ago, Datul Sri Najib Launched the Government Transformation Prgramme (GTP) and the New Economic Model (NEM). The objective of these programmes is to enact the transformation that Malaysia so desperately needs in order to become a progressive and thriving economy. As we can see, six years before the fact, Tan Sri Lim Kok Wing was already warming against being the victim of change and advocating becoming its agent instead.

Tan Sri Lim will be the first one to say that in order to instill change, one has to be innovative. For him, the countries in the West are “the world’s most advanced economies because they are also the world’s most inventive and most innovative with well developed and creative industries that continuously research and develop the next step forward. (They) give priority to design and creativity which are strategic to building national competitiveness”.

For Tan Sri Lim Kok Wing, Malaysians need that creative and innovative mindset in order to achieve that competitive edge. “The energy must be harnessed strategically to enable the business community to penetrate the world market with a clear difference”, he wrote in 2004. “We need our manufacturers to understand the process of innovation as we have the ability to produce quality products (and for) as many as our SMIs as possible to understand design, creativity and innovation for Malaysia to an impact on the world”.

Naturally, Tan Sri Lim Kok Wing has been honored multiple times, yet perhaps one accolade that is especially close to home was when he was named “The father of innovation in creative Education” by the Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation – Datul Dr. Maximus Ongkili – on behalf of the Ministry itself during – aptly enough – the launch of the Limkokwing Innovation Bank.

Hailing Tan Sri as “an institution by himself”, Datuk Dr. Ongkili praised the contributions of Limkokwing University to the country by telling the audience. “When you come out of this university, the skills that you have having trained in creative thinking, innovation and creativity, will make you a real asset for your country. It is here that Limkokwing University plays a very crucial role in the nation – building of the many countries where you (the students) come from.

Tan Sri Lim Kok Wing Has not only talked but he has done; he has taught and inspired. He has, through his university, ensured that the passion for innovation and creative thinking, and the recognition of their importance will be carried on in the next generation and in generations to come.