CFA Society Malaysia successfully launched its new Employer Recognition Program (ERP) in December 2020.
The local society has pioneered the initiative amongst the global CFA Society community and recognizes top employers in Malaysia who: 1) make a commitment to the talent development of employees who earn their CFA® charter; and 2) demonstrate strong compliance to the highest ethical standards in the investment management industry.
Why CFA Society Malaysia embarked on this journey
Cognizant of the vital role that employers play in nurturing and supporting their employees’ professional career development, CFA Society Malaysia endeavored to foster strong engagement with key employer organizations at its flagship events. In particular, the local society was able to do this at its annual flagship Career Day event, where employers spoke to aspiring finance professionals about careers in the investment industry and how the organizations value the CFA designation.
Building on the relationships that were developed over the years, CFA Society Malaysia took the opportunity to recognize the Top 5 Employers of CFA® Charterholders in the country during its annual Charter Award Ceremony 2019/2020. Bank Negara Malaysia, Public Mutual Berhad, Permodalan Nasional Berhad, Employees Provident Fund, and CIMB Group Holdings Berhad were recognized for nurturing CFA talent in their respective organizations.
The trophies awarded to the Top 5 Employers of CFA Society Malaysia during the CFA® Charter Award Ceremony 2019/2020
CFA Society Malaysia strengthened its partnership with employers by inviting representatives from the organizations to be speakers at a series of webinars and the virtual Career Carnival 2020. The Career Carnival was a week-long, virtual event where organizations were invited to network with the CFA Society Malaysia community, including young talent and seasoned professionals.
Employer Recognition Program 2020/21 – 10 Employer Partners
For the inaugural launch of the ERP, the top-tier national organizations who employ CFA Charterholders were invited to participate in the program. Upon comprehensive review of employer applications–ensuring the employers met the required criteria and provided sufficient evidence–the following 10 organizations were recognized as CFA Society Malaysia employer partners 2020/2021:
Employers Partners of CFA Society Malaysia’s Employer Recognition Program 2020/2021
Recognition as a Top Employer Partner
CFA Society Malaysia strives to fulfill its mission of developing future finance professionals and driving value to its members and capital market through investor education, continuing education, thought leadership research, and driving excellence in professional standards.
As employer organizations have the mutual objective to encourage professional learning and development of its employees, the recognition and acknowledgement as a Top Employer Partner of CFA Society Malaysia signals to the finance and investment community that the organization is as an exemplary employer that is committed to its employees personal, and career, growth through the CFA Program.
Key Benefits of the ERP
CFA Society Malaysia has received favorable participation and positive feedback from the Recognized Employer Partners. The key benefits the initiative offers, include:
- Elevated brand awareness & recognition of CFA Society Malaysia, CFA Institute and the qualifications: particularly the CFA Program, ARX Platform and Competency Framework;
- Advance financial professionals who are interested to pursue CFA Institute credentials to achieve the gold standard in the investment industry;
- Recognition of CFA Society Malaysia as a key partner of employer organizations in building a supportive career community to its common key stakeholders: candidates, charter pending and members; and
- Recognition of CFA Society Malaysia members’ professionalism and competency.
CFA Society Malaysia initiatives
Since the launch of the ERP in December 2020, the local society has kickstarted a series of initiatives to proffer the committed program benefits and entitlements to the recognized employer partners:
- CFA Program Updates Session
As the CFA Program syllabus is periodically reviewed to ensure relevance to the investment industry’s current financial practices and needs, the local society has hosted the Credentialing Team from CFA Institute, who have direct input into the CFA® Exams, to share the most updated information on CFA Program, including the exam curriculum and Computer-Based Testing (CBT) information. This session was open to interested employees of the Employer Partners who would like to know more about the CFA Program before they decide on taking the professional certification, and their HR colleagues who would like to understand more what CFA Program actually covers and how it complements the competency upskilling of an employee in their organizations.
- CFA Institute Competency Framework Roundtable Session
This session aimed to engage the HR leads from premium employer organizations, especially those involved in the Learning & Development. The speaker was Nick Bartlett, CFA, CFA Institute who shared details on the CFA Institute Competency Framework for different roles in the investment industry. Participants also heard from respective organizations on their journey/experience/challenges in establishing their Competency Framework.
- Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG) Gameshow
The ESG Gameshow is designed for practitioners working in investment roles who want to learn how to analyse and integrate material ESG factors and improve their understanding of ESG issues into their day-to-day roles. The participating organizations have successfully gained and expanded their ESG knowledge through a multi-level engaging learning and sharing experience to stay ahead in their field. With the interactive trainer – Richard McGillivray, participants can explore various sustainable investment approaches and how they are integrated in the investment decision-making process. The participants are also able to learn and conceptually embed ESG terminology, methodology, and key principles, and link ESG to every-day life.
- Ethical Decision-Making Workshop
Guided by Alan Lok, CFA, CFA Institute, this workshop provides an opportunity for the employer partners to examine real-life dilemmas that investment industry professionals may face in their careers and may not have a clear right or wrong response. Participants can consider potential courses of action to address the issues involved and vote on one they believe is best, designed to spark discussion and reveal unique perspectives. Participants will also learn about the CFA Institute Ethical Decision-Making Framework and how they can use it to analyze a situation or dilemma relevant to their day-to-day roles.
Speakers of the Programs offered to the Employer Partners
It is also evident that the employer organizations are now more receptive and supportive to collaborate with CFA Society Malaysia on events and strategic initiatives that are mutually beneficial to their respective stakeholders. This includes participating as panel speakers in local society webinars and encouraging their employees to join the various professional learning webinars organized by the local society and CFA Institute.
In the Sustainable & Responsible Investment (SRI) Series 2021 collaboration between World Bank Group and CFA Society Malaysia, two key senior representative panel speakers were from the Recognized Employer Partners – Securities Commission Malaysia and Employees Provident Fund. This further signifies the recognition to the local society as a collaborative partner in advocating sustainable and responsible investment in Malaysia’s asset management industry. Click here for a glimpse of what was discussed at the exclusive session.
More details on upcoming initiatives are available here.
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