D

Dividends & Interest

Malaysia’s Financial SectorIs Banking on Women

Michael Jenkins

awn breaks over KualaLumpur, the soaring Petronas Towersgleam in the early morning light, andthe sprawling city comes to life. InKuala Lumpur, one of the fastest-developing cities in the world, vastamounts of money are being investedin new office buildings, shopping cen-ters, communication centers, and cityrail transport systems. At first glancethe city seems like any other moderncity, with its skyscrapers and concretefreeways. A closer look reveals the jux-taposition of modern and traditionalcity life coexisting with kampong, or“village,” life. Around the bases of theskyscrapers, traditional Malay settle-ments are dotted here and there amidthe greenery. As the hawkers set uptheir street stands offering passersbythe possibility of a tasty breakfast,thousands of workers head for theirjobs in the city. Among the crowdsheading for work in offices, shops, andbanks are many women wearing thetraditional kebaya sarong and a modestheaddress, the tudung, in a multitudeof colors, patterns, and designs.

CREATING A VISIONAlso making her way to work is TanSri Dato’ Sri Dr. Zeti Akhtar Aziz,

who has been governor of Malaysia’scentral bank, Bank Negara Malaysia,since 2000. Her career spans severalsenior positions in Bank NegaraMalaysia in the areas of monetaryand financial policies and reservemanagement. Zeti also presided overa financial sector master plan for

developing the Malaysian financialsystem and consolidating domesticbanking institutions over a ten-yearperiod. She has also been involved inthe development of Islamic bankingin both the domestic and internationalarenas and played a role in the cre-ation of the Islamic FinancialServices Board (IFSB), chairing itssteering committee.

Zeti is not the only woman takinga leading role in Malaysian andglobal financial services and training.Datuk Rafiah Salim, a lawyer byqualification, with a master of lawdegree from Queen’s University,Belfast, Northern Ireland, is executivedirector of the recently launched

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International Center for Leadership inFinance (ICLIF). With almost threedecades of experience in the aca-demic and human resource fields,she was for five years the assistantsecretary-general for human resourcemanagement at the United Nations,the highest post held by a Malaysianat that international body. During hertime at the United Nations sheworked with Secretary-General KofiAnnan, and she is widely creditedwith having introduced and sustainedan empowerment culture in theoffices of the United Nations that waseventually adopted by many coun-tries.

So what does it take to get to sucha position of influence in Malaysia?To begin to answer this question,Datuk Rafiah describes ICLIF’svision of leadership: “Excellencebegins at the top. When leaders createa compelling vision and effectivelyengage employees to make that visiona reality, a high-performing organiza-tion is created. High-performingorganizations have effective leadersacross the organization who energizeand motivate people. Building andsustaining change in organizations isquintessentially about the example setby leaders who command respect andinfluence in driving people towardexcellence.”

Datuk Rafiah insists that, irrespec-tive of the type or aims of an organi-zation, the fundamental leadershipprinciples remain the same. “It’s allabout integrity, ‘walking the talk,’ andbeing able to influence your people to

Editor’s note: Many prominentMalaysians have titles conferred onthem by royalty or by the federal orstate government. In this article suchtitles—Datuk, Dato’, and Tan Sri—appear before the name.

The most important

leadership quality is to

have the trust of those

you lead.

do what is right for your organiza-tion. In that respect there are certainuniversal leadership qualities. Themost important one is to have thetrust of those you lead. This is what Ihave aspired to do.”

Talking about personal experi-ences and turning points on her pathto leadership, Datuk Rafiah mentionsher childhood experiences at board-ing school. “The principal of myschool made a big impression onme—not necessarily positive. Iremember trying to stand up to unfairtreatment—and feeling I had to standup for those who couldn’t defendthemselves. In a way it not onlyshowed me the type of leader I didnot want to be but also encouragedme to stand up for what I believed in.I have tried to apply those principlesto my life since that time.”

Regarding personal leadershipdevelopment, Datuk Rafiah mentionsthe importance of having a mentor—and of challenge. “I had the privilegeof working for someone whobelieved in me,” she says. “He sawsome capabilities in me that I didn’tsee. He actively mentored me andcoached me, helping me to becomewhat I am today. He moved me out ofthe legal field—which was my com-fort zone—and into the HR arena. Heeffectively empowered me to learn

new skills. He pushed me and mademe stretch a bit, but then supportedme through the early tough learning.Not that I necessarily liked theprocess. Nor was I convinced that he

was the perfect model leader. I quiteliked him, and I did admire hisintegrity. But he did have flaws,which I could see and later tried toensure I did not emulate. He wasquite tough on his staff. Sometimesyou do have to be tough, but I alwaystry to make sure I am fair. Being awoman, I think I am perhaps moresensitive to people’s needs. I thinkwomen tend to have a better sense ofwhat is needed to get a contributionfrom their people.”

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KEEPING GUARDIs it a coincidence that Malaysia’sfinancial sector has a number ofwomen in key leadership roles? Whatenables these women to make such asignificant contribution to the vibranteconomy of this progressive, multi-racial Islamic society? To find out, Ispoke with Pat Chua, a Malaysianwhose family hails originally fromChina. Pat has worked as a seniorbusiness leader in Malaysia, theUnited States, and Hong Kong.According to her: “It is not at allunusual to find Malaysian womenCFOs, since there is a widely heldcultural belief in Malaysia that whenit comes to keeping hold of the pursestrings and ‘guarding the money,’women excel. This is why we findcomparatively large numbers of high-ranking women not only in financepositions but also in high politicaloffice. It’s clear that for women inthis country, Malaysia is a land ofopportunity for those who are pre-pared to seize the moment and workhard.”

Michael Jenkins is managing director ofthe CCL-Asia campus in Singapore. Heholds a postgraduate degree in Japaneselanguage, economics, and politics fromNanzan University in Japan.

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Serving the Financial Needs of Muslims One facet of the financial sector inMalaysia is Islamic banking. Sayyou’re a businessperson who needsa few million dollars to expand yourfactory. What do you do? You proba-bly head to the bank to take out aloan. However, what if you are also adevout Muslim? The Koranic lawsthat govern a Muslim’s daily life for-bid the lending of money for profit.In Malaysia, which is 60 percentMuslim, you could go to one of morethan twenty banks to get the capitalyou need and pay no interest.

Instead you would make a monthlypayment on a promissory note thatfactors in a profit for the bank. Thatway you get the capital you needand the bank gets a new customerand a return on its money—but thetransaction is in compliance withSharia, or Islamic law, which alsoforbids the sponsoring of un-Islamicactivities such as gambling or drink-ing alcohol.

According to Islamic Banking andFinance magazine, from Jakarta,Indonesia, to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia,

265 Islamic banks and other finan-cial institutions are operating insome forty countries, with totalassets topping $262 billion.Malaysia is rapidly outpacing theMiddle East in this area of finance.In addition, 14 percent of Malaysianmutual-fund assets are Sharia com-pliant, and some institutions offerMuslim-friendly mortgages, whichoperate more like leases than loans.Since 1996, Dow Jones Indexes hasoffered indexes of stocks vetted bySharia scholars.

Is it a coincidence that

Malaysia’s financial

sector has a number of

women in key leadership

roles?