Today was the last day of CIIF’s Chartered and Fellowship Masterclass (CFM) [also my one and only brother’s birthday – woot woot!].
To close off the 3.5 days masterclass, we had a panel of industry experts talking about the various aspects of Islamic finance against the backdrop of IR 4.0 – the digital era.
It was good line up of speakers who brought in practical yet deep thoughts to the table:
- Fellow CIIF Grand Council Member, Azleena Idris (seated in the middle) who was an ex-regulator, ex-banker and now with the leading payment system PayNet.
- Representing takaful we had Zainal Kassim who is probably the most experienced takaful actuary (I believe in the world, I stand to be corrected) and probably in the Malaysian insurance industry too.
- Last but not least we had Aiza Azreen Ahmad, experienced banker and digital enthusiast who was with Boost (the eWallet) during its early setup days. It was my first time hearing her speak but I must say, I was impressed with the points she put forward and how eloquent she articulated it. She was actually a last minute invite replacing an earlier panelist who could not make it.
Though I missed the earlier part of the session and had to leave early, I really enjoyed the sharing and discussions while I was there. I for sure will remember it as one of the best panel session I’ve sat through in a while.
The session was lively and colorful thanks to the panelists’ vast experiences, as well as their different personalities and presentation approaches, which complemented each other – Zainal being the analytical (and mathematical), fatherly and calm in putting his messages across, while the two amazing ladies coming out driven and for the lack of a better word, provocative in delivering their points (my kind of people).
But without a doubt, all of them truly believe in unison on that one message that pulled everyone together – the need for the industry to really evolve (to me personally, I would use the word “revolt”) to bring Islamic Finance to the next level.
Along the way, there were heated and passionate discussions together with the participants, which I personally believe was necessary if we are really serious about taking the industry to where it is supposed to be. These are the necessary difficult conversations we should and need to, continuously and regularly have even outside of these formal forums.
In the many points put forward, there were two prominent ones that struck me and immediately got registered in my mind – both put forward by Azleena:
#1: Change of Market Behaviors
The employment environment of today’s generation is totally different from before. Graduates no longer go for the traditional full-time jobs but opt (many probably not by choice) for the more flexible career options, giving them the control they want over their lives.
The examples cited of youngsters who rather rent than own their own home (average age of targeted first home purchase of today’s generation is at 38 years old vs. 28 years old before) and working hours starting at 12pm in their pajamas was indeed a wake up call on how the world today has significantly changed.
But the more important (and provocative) question thrown to the industry was – how will the Islamic banking and takaful industries going to remain relevant if our products and services are not designed to cater to these lifestyle changes? Where 9 to 5 workforce are no longer the majority driving market force?
It’s such a spot on question, which most of us, the industry players have been avoiding for a very long time.
#2: Articulate Problems, Not Solutions
Azleena started off reminding the floor on how Islamic Finance conferences are not being able to attract crowds, ending up with a lot of empty seats.
The real reason behind it is because we, the Islamic industry practitioners are masters at articulating problems and issues but we never really talk about or discuss the solutions to these problems.
I can’t agree more with the statement.
We don’t give airtime to learn from the successful working solutions around the world, though contractually conventional but “Islamic” in nature and operational behavior, to help us shorten the learning curve and address the problems we are facing.
And it’s the same old issues that we continuously talk about, be it at conferences, industry meetings, the office or even at coffee shops. The truth is we never really took the time and effort to address the root of these problems and deal with it.
By the end of the session, I came to my own conclusion: if we are really serious about changing the Islamic Finance industry and bringing it to the next level – in the “real” Islamic way, these two questions or pointers would be the immediate ones that we need to address be it at a community, corporate and to start it all off – at a personal level.
Today’s session also reminded me of my calling again, on why I am still in this takaful industry that I happen to love a lot.
So – my pledge today: in my own way, I will try my best to start this revolution moving, however small it may be or how rebellious I may come out as – whether I will succeed or not in this challenging journey is a totally different story.
Who’s with me?
#TakafulBytes #IslamicFinance #SociallyResponsible #CIIF