Ahmad Mohd Magad
Singapore
“The participants were proudly spoilt and present their national attires, the mainland Chinese would tell stories about the differences in their culture and practices from ours and the Indians would cook their best sumptuous dishes for us.”
“Sir, anecdotal data suggest that there is an increasing number of families who have sold their flats twice but are unable to afford another flat from the open market due to cash flow or other financial problems. There are also others, for one reason or another, who are no longer eligible to purchase another subsidised flat.”
“I would also like to know whether HDB could process applications for sales of balance flats faster as feedback received suggests that applicants are frustrated by the long waiting time and the uncertainty of whether or not they are going to get their flats allocated. Income ceiling for HDB flats”
“Furthermore, for single mothers who are working, many of them are possibly unaware of the childcare schemes that they can make use of. I hope that MCYS, with the cooperation of Malay/Muslim organisations, can spread the message about the choices available to fulfil this need.”
“Many small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the manufacturing industries face challenges in sending their workers for training and skills upgrading.”
“Sir, 2009 also saw quite a significant shrinkage in maritime activities in Singapore. With the economy on the mend, could the Minister provide an update of MOT's efforts to prepare and capitalise on the economic upturn and enhance Singapore's position as a global maritime hub?”
The complete record
Every one of 470 lines we hold for Ahmad Mohd Magad, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 10 of 10.
“Sir, it is laudable to note that we have a host of assistance schemes and programmes that the Government has made available to SMEs, as clarified by the Finance Minister, Dr Richard Hu, during the Budget debate yesterday. However, based on feedback from industry associations and employer groups visited by the GPC for Finance and Trade and Industry, of which I am also a member, many SMEs appear to be still unaware of the existence of certain schemes that they can take advantage of. Sir, in view of the large number of such schemes available for SMEs to tap and also in consideration of their lack of awareness of many such schemes, would the Government consider a re-launch of the public education programme in the media, preferably utilising the official languages, to educate SMEs of the various assistance programmes that they can benefit from? Would the Government also consider identifying and reaching out directly to promising SMEs and, for that matter, PLEs, to assist them in their business through the availability of such assistance schemes? My next question is identical to what my colleague, Mr Inderjit Singh, has raised earlier on. I shall therefore not repeat it. [Mr Deputy Speaker in the Chair] 4.42 pm Sir, I now move on to the issue of manpower development. With Singapore now expecting to accelerate its restructuring momentum to move into the innovation- driven phase of our economic development, the economy will demand for greater qualitative improvements to come from the efficient and optimal use of labour and capital. To successfully manage the transition from a labour-driven and investment-driven economy to a full-blown innovation-driven phase, the issue of effective utilisation of labour, among several others, must be efficiently addressed.”
“In a recent conversation I had with a top German banker recently, I was told that there is no solution in sight to the structural unemployment problems in Germany because the country had not adequately prepared for it when things were buoyant. We cannot allow this to happen to us. We just cannot afford it. I know we are not resting on our laurels on this issue as evidenced by what we know is being done again by the NTUC, PSB, ITE and EDB to address this problem, but I would like to urge the Government and these agencies to intensify their efforts in finding more creative approaches in confronting this challenge. Conclusion In conclusion, Sir, I would like to say that although the FY 97 Budget, with an anticipated surplus of $4.8 billion, is expected to be the lowest in five years, it is still very healthy. The increase in development expenditure will go a long way in strengthening our long-term future to enable us to continually attract high quality investments and ensure continued economic growth. The Budget is generous in rewarding the man-in-the-street and favouring the financial sector but I hope more could be done to help our SMEs and our local businesses. Sir, I support the financial policy for FY 97.”
“With the increased pace of technological change as we gear ourselves up for upstream economic activities, I believe skills and knowledge obsolescence will become a bigger issue in the near future. This concerns particularly our older workers aged 40 and above who also represent the group with probably the lowest education in our workforce. In spite of increasing retrenchments in recent years, we have been lucky in being able to find replacement jobs for those affected because of our consistently healthy economic growth year after year. However, we cannot assume that this phenomenon will continue into the future nor could we afford to allow it to mask the impact of an unevenly developing workforce. Apart from finding it harder to find alternative jobs if retrenched, these workers, if they are not prepared for the change in our economic environment, will potentially contribute to an adverse impact in our overall productivity as the economy goes through its restructuring motion. While there are efforts such as the Skills Redevelopment Programme initiated by the NTUC and jointly supported by various Government agencies, I am concerned, Sir, that the pace we are proceeding in addressing this problem is not in tandem with the quicker pace of change in our economy. Considering the fact that we have a sizeable portion of our total workfoce falling in this category, I would like to reassert what Mr Lim Swee Say mentioned yesterday about the important need to also invest in our not-so-young Singaporeans. Sir, I think we need to do this with a greater sense of urgency in view of the experience of several European countries, as cited by Mr Lim Swee Say and also by Mrs Yu-Foo Yee Shoon.”
“As a means to quickly obtain specific capabilities in some key technologies and know-how, the more established SMEs could consider merging with or acquiring foreign companies, as proposed by Mr Sin Boon Ann yesterday in the context of what we could do with our budget surpluses. This will enable our SMEs to quickly bring in expertise they do not possess instead of trying to reinvent the wheel themselves, which not only will take much longer but will also sap their limited resources. Retail Sector Sir, the retail sector is another segment in our economy which appears again to have been ignored. Every Singaporean is aware of the predicament of the retail sector, especially in the last several years. Many have gone out of business while those remaining are bleeding and left in the lurch to fend for themselves. A significant number of them are indeed struggling to survive and the very fact that they are still around, I believe, is due to one primary reason and, that is, they do not know what else to do. They just keep going and struggle to keep themselves afloat. Do we leave things status quo and let them `die a natural death'? Do we simply allow the so-called process of creative destruction to take its toll on these people, without rendering them any help? While it is encouraging to note that the negative trend for retailers is somewhat reversed in May, as reported recently, it is too early to assume that this is going to be a sustainable trend. I therefore hope that the cries for help from the retailers will not continue to fall on deaf ears. Manpower Issues Sir, let me now move on briefly to the subject of our manpower development.”
“Some feel that we are moving too fast - without much regard for the fact that the majority of our SMEs lack expertise, financial resources and technology and, therefore, need more time to prepare themselves to switch to upstream activities. Sir, if this is not already done, I suggest that the appropriate Ministry undertake to track and study the readiness and the extent of assimilation of our SMEs in gearing themselves up for the current restructuring phase by employing Econometric Modelling or other suitable techniques. Although our SMEs provide slightly less than 50% of employment to our workforce, I believe they continue to represent more than 90% of the establishments in Singapore and they are, therefore, a key pillar of our economy. I know, Mr Speaker, Sir, that the Government has done quite a lot to assist them through various assistance schemes and programmes managed by the Productivity and Standards Board, the Economic Development Board and the Trade Development Board. In view of their limitations, I think it is important that the Government continues not only to do more to assist them but also to further promote our SMEs as they are our indigenous and home-bred establishments that will stick through thick and thin with us. Sir, perhaps, one way to stimulate accelerated growth of our SMEs is to encourage mergers and acquisitions by the more promising ones among them. Such a strategy will enable the pooling and harnessing of scarce resources very much needed by our SMEs. Of course, I am not suggesting the creation of a climate of hostile takeovers but friendly ones.”
“Sir, while this situation has propelled many companies to upgrade and automate their existing operations, or relocate to a lower cost environment, many also continue to struggle and are uncertain about what needs to be done, and therefore their future. The plight of our local SMEs is a known fact to this House and Singaporeans in general. They continue to be confronted with many problems, such as inertia, lack of professional expertise, generally lower productivity compared to MNCs and difficulties to cope with increasing costs. Feedback from industry associations and business groups suggests that labour cost in general continues to be the leading contributor to escalating business costs. In a tight labour market situation, many of them have to resort to the recruitment of foreign workers and are feeling the pinch of high foreign worker levies. They are once again appealing to the Government to help them by considering further levy reductions to reduce their high operating costs. Sir, I do understand the Government's need to balance economic, business and social factors in our foreign worker policy but I feel that this could be achieved by imposing perhaps more control on the dependency ceiling and quota as a means of control, and therefore allow some room for pricing relaxation. Another concern expressed by this group, Sir, is the pace of restructuring. Many of them understand the Government's intention to encourage or quicken the move into upstream and higher value-added activities in order to increase productivity and preserve our competitiveness. But many of them are asking if we are proceeding at an appropriate pace.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, as one of the last few speakers, many of the positive side and accolades about the Budget I intend to mention have already been raised by my colleagues who have spoken before me. Sir, allow me, nevertheless, to briefly present my comments on the Budget and views on some business issues which have been the central subject of discussion yesterday and earlier today. In terms of what the FY97 Budget meant for businesses, I wish to echo my agreement with some of those who have spoken earlier of it being a sharply focused one, targetted at specific components of the financial sector. It contains no sweeping give-aways for business on the surface, and is, therefore, looked upon as quite a disappointing budget for businesses in general. Sir, closer scrutiny of the Budget, however, suggests that there is indeed light at the end of the tunnel. Hidden goodies appear to be embedded in the expenditure side which I would urge businesses to look at closely for them to take advantage of. For instance, there are financial set-asides to be disbursed under the Economic Development Assistance Scheme and the Cluster Development Fund amounting to almost $300 million. To encourage more research and development initiatives, a whopping $482 million has also been allocated under the aegis of the second National Science and Technology Plan for businesses to benefit from. Businesses also stand to gain from the massive $4 billion in economic and infrastructural expenditure which is twice that of the preceding year. However, Sir, amidst this backdrop, our businesses, especially home-bred SMEs are feeling the intense cost pressures and competition in virtually all areas.”
“If you try to jump queue and be caught "offside", you can land yourself in deep trouble. It is like someone who cannot afford a business class ticket but insists on sitting there. You are just asking for trouble. Our successful economic policies have enabled Singapore to become one of the more advanced developing countries. We have to upgrade according to our means. Our market economy causes some Singaporeans to be utilitarians. Let us put our collective wisdom together, to balance the imbalance between economic development and the building up of a gracious society. In the past 30 years, the consensus between the Government and the people in major issues has resulted in Singapore becoming a small but strong nation. We have friends all over the world. Our model of success has become the role model of many developing countries and territories. Thirty years later, if we have the chance to meet again, I hope that we will be able to rejoice in having a strong and healthy Singapore where everyone is joyful and happy. Singapore 21 will be yet another role model, just like the way we are glad that our leaders in the early days of our nation building had made the right decisions and paved the way for Singapore to progress to what it is today.”
“To these people, they ought to be happily contented with life but they have made themselves unhappily discontented. At the same time, those who can afford to upgrade should not look down on those who cannot. On the contrary, they should help the less fortunate to upgrade on certain aspects of life to enjoy a better standard of living. If the upgrading of society can benefit only certain groups of people, then the problem is serious. The present trend seems to be that many people want to upgrade, but they fail to take their means and actual needs into consideration. We should accept the "in-flight" arrangement. As we all know, in every flight there are the economy class, the business class and the first-class cabins. No matter which class you travel in, you will enjoy in-flight services. SIA will not send an air hostess to the economy class just because she is less attractive when, as a matter of fact, all our SIA girls are charming and attractive. But more importantly, everyone reaches the destination safe and sound together. As to who travels in the economy class, who goes to the business class and who flies first-class, we will have to consider our means. Let me give you an illustration. Suppose economy class is the HDB flats, business class is the private apartments, and first class is the bungalow houses, we should believe that when we step into the next century, when we realise our vision of Singapore 21, it will be like the SIA flight taking you safely at the same time to your destination. All Singaporeans, whether you are living in an HDB flat, a private apartment, or a bungalow, will benefit. Mr Speaker, Sir, upgrading is a motivating force, but we have to upgrade according to our means. More importantly, we have to upgrade in line.”
“Those who are late and missed the special offer were full of complaints. This has caused friction among the people and has certainly a negative effect in our effort to promote a gracious society. Our education system and our social rules should be structured in such a way to teach our people how to judge the real value of things, whether it is worth doing or whether they should or should not do it. Unfortunately, there is always a small group of people in our society who believe that "you are a fool not to get it", and therefore they want to grab everything that is available. This concerns the personal values and social values. I hope that the Government will look at the major issues from these minor matters. In formulating policies, we should try and change the people's philosophy of "you are a fool not to get it" to one of "I will take it only if I should take it." In order to strengthen the bonding among the people, we should remember another thing, that is, while encouraging our people to upgrade themselves in various aspects, they should be reminded to cut their coat according to their cloth. As we all know, in recent years, besides the long queue for HDB flats, there are also long queues to purchase private condominiums and country club memberships, farecards, etc. It is not a question of the people having no roof over their heads, or not enough farecards to go around. The reason is that the people have money and they want to make a few `quick' bucks. We often hear people complaining that they are having not enough money to spend. Not enough money does not mean no money. If they do not live within their means, and want to buy one more house or a bigger house, to buy a club membership, or to go for overseas holidays, then, of course, the money is not enough.”
“But, in fact, our people are now talking more and more to machines. Civil servants are listening to the voices of the people through the machines and replying with computer-generated letters which require no signature. Since everybody is working through the machines, and the only voice we hear is that of the machine, there is a danger that with so much automation, the civil servants are leaving everything to the machines to tackle. In exceptional cases where compassionate consideration should be given, they are also left to the machines, which have no compassion, to deal with. This is certainly not conducive to the strengthening of the bonding between the Government and the people. As we are crossing to the next century, we want to train people who are not only efficient in their work but also effective in dealing with people. We have already formulated policies to enable 20% of each cohort to have the opportunity to be enrolled in the universities and 40% to receive polytechnic education. We will also start national education at the primary school level to teach students the history of post-independence Singapore. We should also cultivate graciousness and courtesy in our people in various stations of life. We should teach our people to be courteous to others. The Singapore Tourist Promotion Board recently launched a "Smile" campaign. This is a typical example. While we teach our students to achieve good results, we should also teach them to relax and smile. We know that many Singaporeans have to be reminded to say "Smile, cheese" before a camera, only then will they smile! We read from the newspapers that each time there is a "A dollar a phone" or "A dollar a chicken" sales promotion, a big crowd of people will be attracted to it, resulting in massive traffic jams.”
“His space of activity has extended beyond the football field into the homes of many Singaporeans, thereby enhancing the bonding among the people. In fact, in Singapore there are many "Yans Can Cook", "Moses Lims" and "Fandi Ahmads" who have yet to make their name. They can sell bah kut teh, barbecue satay, crack jokes, and sing karaoke. Anecdotes in coffeeshops, touching real-life stories in hawker centres and good deeds of taxi-drivers are frequently picked up by the media and they help to promote the bonding among the people. Presently, our focus seems to be concentrated at the celebrities and elites of the upper and middle classes in our society. If we allow our people more space for activity, everyone will be more relaxed, and the bonding among our people will be stronger. In recent years, the Government has begun to target its activities at the masses and encouraging more people to participate. This is a move in the right direction. The Feedback Unit is inviting representations from various quarters and opening up more channels of communication with the people, enabling more people to voice their views on Government policies. This is very effective in promoting consensus between the Government and the people. In promoting consensus between the Government and the people, the public service plays a critical role. Our public service is very efficient. Our civil servants are very good at their work. This is a recognised fact. However, while going for high efficiency, the Government departments should also remember one thing, that is, its services are targeted at the people. More and more Government departments are using machines to replace the work of the civil servants. On the surface, less demand for manpower would mean higher efficiency.”
“In order to enhance our competitiveness, we should let all the people of Singapore know that competitiveness is not just the concern of the bosses or the Government alone, but that every citizen can play a part and contribute to the enhancement of our competitiveness. There are three things we can do to strengthen the bonding among our people and thereby enhancing our competitiveness. Although Singapore is very small, the space of activity of Singaporeans is in fact very large. The June school holidays have just started and many families have already left on tours to Indonesia, Hong Kong, China, Japan, the United States. In fact, they are going farther and farther away. As Singapore gets wealthier, Singaporeans travel farther away. But when they come home from their holidays abroad and get back to their HDB flats, they begin to feel that they are very constrained. We can provide them with larger space of activity and increase their space for exchanges. In this area, the media can play a very useful role. As we all know, the American Chinese "Yan Can Cook" has been cooking from the United States to Singapore, and cooking from Singapore to China - from speaking in American-accented English to Cantonese-accented Mandarin. His specialty is made known to more people through the help of the media. Our very own Moses Lim has also been creating fun from Channel 8 to Channel 5, and from Singapore to Hong Kong. His activity space is expanded. This has proved that he has the bonding domestically which gives him the competitiveness internationally. Our football star, Fandi Ahmad, has become the focus of attention to the newspaper and the TV media, not only in his game of football but also his wedding.”
“It should be noted that economic growth and sharing of wealth alone is not enough to bond our people together. The moment there is some discrepancy in the distribution of wealth, misunderstanding will arise among the people, and between the people and the Government. In recent years, people have been rushing to apply for HDB flats to upgrade themselves. In the very long queue for HDB flats, many are first-time applicants and there are also some upgraders who are in need of bigger flats because their children have grown up. But there is also a good number of people who are changing their flats to reap great profits for themselves. This has caused great concern and unhappiness to many people. When the Government adopted new policies to check this phenomenon, it gave rise to some misunderstanding between the Government and some of the people. This has adversely affected the bonding among the people and the bonding between the Government and the people. As a matter of fact, there is a small group of people in our society who seem to be unhappy with any policy or measure introduced by the Government. There exists between them and the Government a perception gap on many issues. We should try and do something to narrow this gap. To some people, if the weather forecast says the weather will be fine nation-wide this afternoon, and all of a sudden there is a downpour, they will blame the Government. Perhaps, the only thing they will not blame the Government is when they bought a lottery ticket and it did not strike a prize. Then they will say, "Well, bad luck" and they do not blame the Government for that.”
“Such a proposed system will not only help them retain their jobs but may save them from the trauma of retrenchment, joblessness and finally facing the reality of settling for a lower paying job. The system will be particularly helpful to workers who do not want to take heed of the call for upgrading their skills. Besides, without the choice of such a system, some businesses may be forced to trim down or relocate sooner due to cost pressures, thus, exposing such workers sooner rather than later to joblessness in our imminent high-tech and knowledge-based economy. On that note, Mr Speaker, Sir, I would like in conclusion to, once again register my wholehearted support for the motion to thank the President for his Address. Mr Seng Han Thong (Ang Mo Kio)( In Mandarin): Mr Speaker, Sir, thank you for giving me the opportunity to join in the debate. I support the motion standing in the name of the Member for Bukit Timah to thank the President for his Speech. 1997 is an important year for Singapore. It is the year where the people of Singapore elected a new term of Government to lead them into the next century, into the new millennium, to jointly realise the vision of Singapore 21. In his Speech, the President clearly pointed out that the competition before us will be more and more intense. The President also urged the people of Singapore to be more united, and Singaporeans and their leaders should strive to reach consensus on key issues. In fact, competitiveness and bonding are closely related. If the bonding among the people is not strong, if the bonding between the Government and the people is weak, then we will not be able to enhance our competitiveness. To put it simply, no bonding, no competitiveness.”
“It is therefore imperative that programmes are in place to prepare workers beyond the current needs of their jobs to enhance their employability. The suggested central body can also serve as a one-stop centre to coordinate the multitude of training programmes offered by various institutions to suit diverse training needs. A nation-wide campaign of sorts to effectively put across the importance of perpetual learning should also be considered and launched. Another concern I have is the rigidity of our seniority-based wage system. Such a system exposes our mid-career and older workers to lay-offs when companies restructure or relocate their operations. Statistics of retrenchments over the last two years revealed that the average age of the group was 40 years. Unless these workers are prepared to settle for lower pay, getting a new job may not be easy for them as their skills become less and less relevant to the economy. I am glad to note that the Ministry of Labour, in its Addendum to the President's Speech, intends to address structural problems in our current wage system which make it difficult for employers to retain older workers. I suggest that the Ministry considers the relevance of a wage system which plateaus at a certain point of a worker's age and then gradually declines - something to the effect of a backward bending wage curve. I understand that such a system has been successfully adopted by companies in Japan. The point I wish to make here is that our workers must realise that as they reach a position when their cost exceeds the value of the job they perform, their jobs will be at risk. They face a stronger prospect of being laid off.”
“I would like to suggest that the training programmes must also incorporate the inculcation of positive and proper attitude in our workers, apart from the most current technical content. Although we have been rated No. 1 year after year by Business Environment Risk Intelligence (BERI), work attitude has remained one of the attributes we have continued to lag behind. Our workers have to understand the importance of doing more - faster and better - with less, and be committed and supportive to accept constant changes at the workplace. In due course, as the cost of our workers approaches that of developed economies, employers expect them to act like an owner to help cut costs, serve the customer better, continuously improve productivity, innovate and take personal responsibility for outcomes that count the most. In short, they must realise that they have to contribute more than they cost. Mr Speaker, Sir, with training and retraining expected to be the norm in the near future, our workers, young and old, must be made to recognise and accept that life-long learning is the only way to remain competitive in the job market. This means strengthening our Continuing Education and Training (CET) infrastructure. I am not certain if this is being done but I would like to suggest that a tripartite approach with a central coordinating body be considered to enhance our CET infrastructure. This differs from the current largely employer-driven approach, which focuses only on skills required by the workers' current jobs. As our economy shifts to become more technology and knowledge intensive, their current skills may become less relevant or even obsolete.”
“If not tackled decisively in advance, it could widen the social gap and therefore pose a serious problem for us in the future. Sir, while it is encouraging to note that workers are generally responding well to the call for training and retraining, I am concerned whether we have adequately reached out to one of our primary target groups, namely, the lower educated older workers, ie, those averaging 40 years of age. I suspect the majority of them in this category have not felt the urgency to upgrade and prefer moonlighting to make ends meet. I am not sure if this is currently being done, but I would like to suggest that we gather appropriate data and statistics to clearly understand the extent of responsiveness of this group to retraining. I believe we have to devise more effective strategies to persuade and motivate this group. I suggest the consideration of a holistic approach involving Government and community organisations, self-help groups, employers, unions, grassroots organisations and even family members, to persuade, motivate and clearly put across the retraining message to this vulnerable group specifically and others generally. Secondly, Sir, it is a known fact that our workforce is rapidly ageing. In the not-too-distant future, younger and better educated managers and supervisors will run organisations and production units staffed by relatively older workers. I believe the handling and treatment of older workers require a special set of skills to keep them motivated on their jobs. It is therefore important for special people-centred human management programmes to be devised to teach our young people how to effectively deal with their older subordinates in order to ensure that productivity does not suffer due to communication and human relations problems.”
“The information age is causing developed and newly industrialising economies (NIEs) to shift more and more towards services and towards knowledge work. No sooner than we realise, competition for our very own job will come from practically any corner of this earth. It is therefore imperative that we must continue to have access to data and information with the predictive power to show where we are headed, to enable us to continually make informed and the right decisions. The Ministry of Trade and Industry, in its Addendum to the President's Speech, has outlined a number of key policies and strategies to maintain the vibrance and resilience of our economy. Retraining of older workers and helping them to acquire new skills is one of them. The aim is to train half a million workers by the year 2005 through on-the-job programmes. Mr Speaker, Sir, this is not only laudable but essential considering that the educational level of our workforce still lags behind many developed countries and NIEs and also that we have some 700,000 workers with less than secondary education. With the majority of them expected to remain in our workforce for the next 20 years, they will continue to represent a sizable portion of our active workforce in the medium term. Also, as Singapore restructures and shifts its economy upstream, it exposes our workforce to the potential of structural unemployment as those with lower skills face the risk of losing their jobs or find themselves displaced from the centre of economic activity. Joblessness, even more than poverty, strains families and robs children of workforce role models. When legitimate work disappears, more serious social problems develop that could affect the entire society.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I would like to reiterate the support for the motion moved by the hon. Member for Bukit Timah in expressing our thanks and gratitude to the President for his Address at the opening of the First Session of the Ninth Parliament. The President, in his Address, highlighted before a full House about the formidable challenge facing us in the wake of tougher economic competition. However, he assured us that there is no reason to be daunted as we are much stronger now than in 1965. This reassuring statement underscores the President's confidence in the Government's almost 32 years of track record. We have surmounted various crises at home and abroad, each time coming out stronger as we reach new milestones in economic and social progress. This can only be possible because of a government which continually plans ahead, is pragmatic and realistic in confronting problems, and a government which has repeatedly earned the confidence and respect of the people, as once again demonstrated in the recent general elections. Mr Speaker, Sir, while the President reassured us of our current position, we have also often been reminded by our Government leaders that our success so far cannot be a reason for us to slacken. We need to work harder and smarter as our standard of living approaches developed nation levels. Sir, being also a private sector executive myself, the subject of competition and competitiveness is always close to my heart. Knowing exactly where we are is important, but knowing where we are going is critical. Computers and telecommunication technologies have already created intense, worldwide competition for business.”