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Malaysian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are facing human capital development issues due to unskilled employees. The institutes of Malaysian education are providing ineffective science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education which are generating unskilled graduates as a future workforce. The low capability of Malaysian graduates affect the performance of Malaysian SMEs. Therefore, the main purpose of this study is to examine the effect of STEM education in solving the human capital development issues for the enhancement of Malaysian SMEs performance. The current literature explores the ineffective system of STEM education for Malaysian graduates which result in human capital development issues in Malaysian SMEs. The curriculum of Malaysian education institutions plays a pivotal role in making the university graduates skillful since a teacher should teach the syllabus according to the need of the national curriculum and the student must learn practical knowledge for the sake of the professional employee in future. Hence, this study identified the significance of properly provided STEM education to deal with the human capital development issues faced by Malaysian SMEs. Effective STEM education is important in generating the human capital as it makes the university graduates skilled and capable which enable them to successfully meet the industry needs in future. Likewise, through the development of human capital, the performance of Malaysian SMEs could be improved.

The importance of the retail sector to the Malaysian economy especially in this volatile environment caused by the Covid-19 pandemic would be more prominent. The retail sector under the current Industry Revolution 4.0 would be prioritized to align with the challenges of future growth for retail sales and employment. In the Industry 4.0 environment, retail companies must put enough resources in embracing the major changes for maintaining their competitive advantages. This includes adapting and developing backend systems, creating effective storage and distribution networks that make products available to consumers on any time basis, and offering maximum flexibility in the last-mile delivery options. Retail companies will need to evaluate the importance of innovative ideas such as crowdsourced distribution networks, radio-frequency identification (RFID), automated locator that shift the look of logistics when evaluating newer, nimbler distribution models, and multichannel marketing that consist of online and offline customer interface.

Malaysian public and private universities have faced unprecedented challenges due to multiple government policies in the short and medium term – coupled with economic uncertainty, budget cuts, and the entrepreneurial university (EU) agenda. This pressure is aimed to both public and private universities in accordance with the third mission of the Malaysian Education Development Plan 2015–2025 and ranking agencies by effectively engaging with the community and business, generating income in the process of tackling fundraising. The purpose of this study is to fill that gap by exploring the perspectives of those who are part of the Entrepreneurship Architecture implementation, as intermediaries of knowledge exchange and the impact of interaction by embedding Artificial Intelligence (AI) in achieving the mission of Entrepreneurship University by the government. Therefore, the main objective of this study is to develop a new model for internal parties in public universities as a guide for policy development and strategies to achieve the EU agenda. The Entrepreneurship Architecture Model will be used to identify the existing determinants, the AI infrastructure, and how the demographic factors, e.g., staff and related universities, support the model.

Since the 1970s, the sustainable development was developed from science and environmental crusade. Since then, there were many programs done in the field but not named as “Sustainable Development.” The environments have affected because of the process of the development which was noticed by the world community. Malaysia has made a commitment to the 2030 Agenda in September 2015 for the future of mother earth. Despite the increasing attention toward sustainable development and circular economy across the world, understanding of the potential sustainability synergy among developing countries remains sluggish. This chapter therefore briefly discusses the development of circular economy within developed and developing countries. The chapter then narrowed the discussion toward Malaysian practices of the circular economy. Malaysia also recorded among the countries that faced waste management issues in Asia. The detailed discussion includes Malaysian acceptance and initiatives in reaching a circular economy within the past years, present, and future. The discussion surrounds the circular economy practiced by Malaysian industrial players as well as government's initiatives in encouraging and educating Malaysian toward embracing the idea of circular economy and sustainable consumption. As most countries embrace green technologies, Malaysia has taken proactive steps toward adopting green technology. Among the four main policy priorities are energy, environment, economy, and social, the key to green technology in driving the country's economy while promoting sustainable development. In fact, the major economic drivers of the Malaysian economy involve industrial activities such as palm oil, mining, and manufacturing, which are now beginning to take steps toward the development of green technology development. The application of green technology can provide a balance between economic development and environmental preservation as well as solutions to climate change issues. The initiative aims to make Malaysia one of the best countries in the world with sustainable economic growth, innovation, and prosperous citizens by 2050.

The ongoing economic impact of the global COVID-19 pandemic upon national and international economies has provided a novel set of challenges and barriers for organisations; particularly for small and medium enterprises (SMEs). This has led to an increased focus on sustainable decision-making and long-term survival and growth strategies, such as internationalisation opportunities, for SMEs during obscure times and fluctuating economies. Thus, examining how SMEs within ambiguous economies are adopting innovative decision-making to continue to sustain and grow their enterprises provides a vital perspective and understanding of not only enterprise survival but enterprise growth during times of economic uncertainty. This chapter proposes a conceptual framework that explores internationalisation opportunities through an intersectional lens. The framework depicts that intersectionality as an enabler during ambiguous times for Maldivian women entrepreneurs generates innovative decision-making towards internationalisation as part of sustainable growth practices. The conceptual framework offers theoretical implications for empirical studies of an inductive or deductive nature and offers pragmatic importance for women entrepreneurs considering internationalisation through sustainable growth during obscure times and fluctuating economies. This chapter contributes to the growing body of knowledge in the field of international entrepreneurship, particularly innovative decision-making, and sustainable growth through internationalisation opportunities of women entrepreneurs, whilst advancing our understanding of gender and entrepreneurship studies. Studying innovative decision-making and sustainable growth practices of women entrepreneurs additionally provides a new perspective on intersectional works within entrepreneurial growth during uncertain times.

This chapter introduces the concept of an intelligent organization in the context of the twenty-first-century knowledge economy. An intelligent organization is one in which individuals behave intelligently, work is grounded in intelligent methods and choices, and rich stocks of intelligence in the form of knowledge capital to support intelligence work and choices. Intelligence is defined as both a thing and attribute and behavior and way of working. The chapter also highlights examples of intelligent behaviors and or organizational pathologies. The chapter also highlights the importance of becoming aware of intelligent and unintelligent choices.