Deloitte’s SEA Regional Capability Centre: Powering Professional Services Regionally with 3,000 Digitally Skilled Talents by 2027

Deloitte has been a trusted member of Malaysia's business community for over 55 years. The company’s unwavering presence in the country showcases its confidence in the local economy and dedication to supporting clients in the region.

Over the years, Deloitte has added several regional functions to its Malaysian operations. Besides the back-office support functions such as HR, IT, Marketing, and client support, Deloitte has also expanded its range of services to cover its core businesses across audit, tax, risk advisory, financial advisory, and consulting by building new capabilities to support clients.

The recent Regional Capability Centre (RCC) launch in Kuala Lumpur also reflects its continued optimism in the Malaysian journey. 

Deloitte Malaysia CEO Yee Wing Peng said: "Malaysia has all the right ingredients for success. With a talented and diverse workforce, supported by favourable government policies and initiatives, businesses here can truly flourish.

Plus, our strategic location provides easy access to neighbouring countries, making Malaysia the perfect regional hub for large-scale investment in the digital economy."

Spurring digital transformation 
Furthermore, Deloitte has been a key player in championing innovation and technology in Malaysia. The company has been at the forefront of assisting businesses in the country to embrace digital transformation with cutting-edge solutions in cybersecurity, data analytics and cloud computing. These emerging technologies are bound to be key growth drivers of Malaysia’s digital economy in the foreseeable future.

The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted physical operations and forced companies to reimagine how they do things. With movement restrictions in place then, virtual and remote work became the norm. This period tested the effectiveness and feasibility of delivering work virtually. As a nation, Malaysia saw success in embracing virtual work and benefited greatly from the shift towards automation and digitalisation.

“In a way, Malaysia emerges as a major beneficiary, embracing automation and digitalisation as the pandemic drives a shift in work dynamics. Since the pandemic, more regional work is being delivered out of Malaysia.”

Another feather in the cap
This year, the company also opened doors with the establishment of the Deloitte SEA Consulting office in Penang. “The office will continue to expand our advisory capabilities and bring unique expertise in supply chain management, cloud computing and data science. The investments in these technologies are timely, seeing their immense prominence and growth. The global AI market size of nearly USD 100 billion in 2021, for example, is expected to grow twentyfold by 2030, up to almost USD two trillion. Also, Penang has a big electrical and electronic sector. So we will also pivot into high-value areas,” Yee said.

Talent game
Malaysia is renowned for producing world-class talent in various fields, including accountancy. Our talent pool comprises qualified accountancy professionals such as ICAEW, ACCA, and CPA Australia, and we consistently produce world-class talent.

Yee said: “In the past, the country's inadequate number of high-paying job opportunities led many talented individuals to seek employment overseas. However, with the establishment of our RCC in Malaysia, which currently employs over 700 professionals, we are opening up 1,000 high-paying jobs in year one and aiming to scale up to 3,000 digitally skilled talents within the next three to five years.

“This strategic move is not only about retaining our existing talent but also attracting new talent from within and beyond our borders. Malaysia’s multilingual workforce enables us to serve internal and external clients across the globe. Further, Malaysians’ strong work ethics and established infrastructure contribute to Malaysia’s position as an attractive regional hub. We also have a talent pool proficient in other languages, including Chinese, Tamil, Japanese and Korean. On top of talented human capital, this multilingual capability is crucial in our decision to expand our regional capability centre.”

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Scaling up
To boost Malaysian talent, Yee said it is essential to have on-the-job training and involvement of experienced foreign talent to enhance the local workforce. “Our goal is to have a talent mix of 85% local and 15% foreign, with foreign workers transferring knowledge to locals. As locals continue to upskill, the percentage of foreign talent may decrease. To achieve this, collaboration among employers, learning institutions, and government agencies is crucial in creating a conducive ecosystem for skill development and job growth.”

Kudos to MDEC
Yee also expressed gratitude towards Malaysia’s government agencies, particularly Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC), for their proactive efforts in upscaling local talent and providing various platforms and opportunities to create a thriving digital ecosystem. 

“I commend MDEC for the relentless effort in facilitating investors and leading the development of the nation’s digital economy as we see more MNCs setting up their operation in Malaysia today.”