Monroe Consulting Group Indonesia and TMF Group conducted another successful webinar - “Investment in the Great Reshuffle” on Wednesday, October 13, 2021. The webinar featured guest speaker Alvin Christian, the Managing Director of TMF Group and James Palin, the Managing Director of Monroe Consulting Group Indonesia. The webinar discussed how businesses should face the ongoing disruptions of change, coined by Linkedin as the “Great Reshuffle”, and what key area of opportunities and changes in the market businesses needs to be mindful of as covid restrictions starts to ease up.
With the Indonesian government targeting a high vaccine roll out rate, businesses are starting to shift from survival mode to growth mode. Adjustments and adaptation need to be implemented by businesses to sustain themselves in the post-pandemic world. Although the Great Reshuffle is a term often associated with HR, it also impacted every business activity. Consequently, an organisation-wide adjustment might be needed. This adjustment starts with understanding the changing economy and investments situation currently happening in Indonesia and globally.
Alvin Christian from TMF Group, kicked off the webinar by introducing the market outlook for Indonesia and globally. TMF Group released a report entitled “The Global Business Complexity Index (GBCI) 2021” that ranks countries’ jurisdictions where TMF Group is operating. Complexity refers to how complicated and unpredictable a business environment is. In 2021 Indonesia ranked number 6 in the most complex jurisdictions in the APAC region, ranking number 1 in the previous years. As a result of the establishment of the Omnibus Law, the number has improved. The rank is expected to improve continually in the coming years and hopefully bring more investors to the country.
The global economies are recovering from the pandemic, and the Q2 2021 GDP shows a rebound. Indonesia is expected to recover to 3.8% GDP from -2% in the previous year when the pandemic hits. The top sector in Indonesia that is currently recovering the fastest are transportation & storage, where it suffered the worst last year - owing to the effort made by the government through the national recovery program. Indonesia's recovery is expected to be slower than those countries that are a part of the global value chain. In addition, emerging markets, including Indonesia, need to be mindful of other risks that a bigger market is currently facing, such as China's property crisis and the tension between China and the US. Alvin also mentioned that Indonesia is resilient when facing a global crisis compared to other countries in the emerging markets.
Indonesia is a highly attractive country where the government does everything to attract foreign investors through incentives and the Omnibus Law. That means Indonesia is opening a large room for investors to come in. Now, in response to the simplification of the business environment and the expected incoming investors, companies need to adjust their workforce and culture to adapt successfully.
James Palin, Managing Director of Monroe Consulting Group Indonesia, spoke about the changes in Indonesian workforce and company culture. As of March 2020, there was a significant decline in the number of jobs in Indonesia. However, as the year progresses and companies adapt to the chaos the pandemic caused, employment rates are increasing with shortage of talent to be expected in the tech industry by 2030.
There are several ways for companies to position themselves to be attractive to the workforce. One of the essential factors is first impressions. This could be obtained from strong employer branding, including the vision and mission statement, advertisements, and how candidates first engage with the company. Other ways are through talent mapping, competitor analysis, utilization of talent communities, choosing the best recruitment services, creating the proper interview process, understanding what candidates are looking for in employers, and making clear policies on work flexibility. On the other hand, some of the things that companies should not be doing are going with the cheapest option, working with too many agencies as it may alter your company’s image to be no longer exclusive, making the recruitment process too easy or quick, and relying on one approach to hiring.
Branding is one thing, and making your employees stay in the company is another. Onboarding and retention are an important part of the employment journey. As there are more job opportunities, employees could easily move from one job to another. One way to retain your employees is through gamification. Gamification could be implemented for leveling up your employees and how you track their performance - the essence of gamification is to keep employees engaged in the business. Another vital way to engage employees is through non-work activities such as company trips, family days, and open days. Other ways are by defining clear probation targets, clear work schedules, shorter promotion gaps, mentoring for senior employees, and paying bonuses.
James also discusses how Monroe Consulting Group has been trying to create a company culture that lets employees be more engaged in the business. WFH is currently the main way for employees to work; it’s important to keep employees together, albeit virtually. Therefore, having a clear WFH guide, conducting morning meetings and Friday wrap-ups, and creating non-work activities are the ways companies could keep employees engaged, happy and disciplined. It’s also essential to give mental health support to employees in times like this. Not only that, giving acknowledgments and awards can boost confidence, motivation and increase happiness.
In conclusion, companies must start shifting their focus on a growth model as the economy and market start to recover. The webinar has outlined several business practices that you and your business can adopt in the post-pandemic market.
We have previously done a webinar with TMF group covering the Indonesian omnibus law and what impact it has on the Indonesian market and labour force. Check out the webinar recording here: Omnibus Law: Predicting the Future of Investment and Hiring in Indonesia Webinar