SINGAPORE - Companies looking to boost their digitalisation efforts will now be able to benefit from three new programmes that collectively target workers across all levels of a business.
The programmes will be offered by the Singapore Business Federation (SBF) and the Institute of Systems Science at National University of Singapore (NUS-ISS), with the two organisations signing a memorandum of understanding on Wednesday (Oct 16).
Business owners and leaders can sign up for the Digital Competency Roadmap comprising three courses over five days.
The courses aim to equip them with the mindset and know-how needed to map out an effective digitalisation strategy for their companies.
There is also a longer five-course, 13-day variant for employees at the executive level.
Executives who wish to take their classroom learning further can also work towards a Professional Diploma in Digitalisation jointly awarded by SBF and NUS-ISS .
This programme will include a four-month project where experts from NUS-ISS will guide participants to apply what they have learnt when they are back in their own companies.
The last programme, called Skills for Transformation, is targeted at companies who already have an idea of what their digital transformation will be like.
Depending on each company's needs, NUS-ISS will then work with them to roll out specific training programmes for employees.
The programmes were announced on Wednesday by Minister of State for National Development and Manpower Zaqy Mohamad at the Suntec Singapore Convention and Exhibition Centre during the opening ceremony of SBF's Future Economy Conference and Exhibition.
"Transformation is an ongoing journey. For companies who have started, you must press on and continue to look out for new opportunities... For those who have yet to start, I encourage you to do so now," he said.
The programmes are expected to kick off early next year and are open to SBF members. Companies interested in finding out more can attend a 9.30am briefing at the SBF Centre on Nov 20 or register their interest at https://nus.edu/2oNvhfI
The programmes are targeted mainly at companies from the retail, logistics, F&B, manufacturing and built environment sectors, but SBF is open to considering companies from other industries, said SBF assistant chief executive officer Joanne Guo.
She added that SkillsFuture subsidies will offset programme costs by up to 90 per cent for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and 70 per cent for non-SMEs.
Mr Zaqy also announced that SBF is working with Workforce Singapore to develop an online resource portal to guide and encourage the adoption of technology solutions by manufacturing companies.
He also provided an update on the Infocomm Media Development Authority's Digital Acceleration Index (DAI), revealing that more than 2,000 companies have used the index since its launch earlier this year.
The DAI is a self-diagnostic tool that gauges how far along companies are in their digital transformation and provides insights on their digital strengths and weaknesses.
The next window for registration will open in January next year.
