I am touched by the response from readers. especially alumni of AIM in Malaysia & world-wide on my story titled “Remembering Allahyarham Tun Ahmad Sarji Abdul Hamid, former PNB Chairman & Governor, Asian Institute of Management (AIM)" published by newswav.com dated 14 August 2026. One of the readers who is not alumni, CPA Suppiah Subramaniam, aptly stated “Tun Ahmad Sarji, a great man who has contributed immensely for the country.”
I can still remember in his keynote address to grace the opening of Asian Forum on CSR in KL, the late (Allahyarham) Tun Ahmad Sarji Abdul Hamid, as an eminent Member of AIM Board of Governors, said “Business enterprises and public-service institutions as well - are organs of society. They do not exist for their own sake, but to fulfill a specific social purpose and to satisfy a specific need of a community, of individuals. They're not ends in themselves, but means. The right question to ask them is not, What are they? but, What are they supposed to be effectively doing & what are their fundamental tasks?"
Tun Sarji punchline was “Management, in turn, is the organ of the institution. The question, What is management? comes second. First we have to define management in and through its tasks. A business management has failed if it does not produce economic results. It has failed if it does not supply goods and services desired by the consumer at a price that consumer is willing to pay. It has only one true resource by making human resources productive.”
Based on my years of corporate and management teaching experience, I agree with Tun Sarji that an institution exists for a specific purpose and mission; it has a specific social function. In the business enterprise, this means economic performance is the rationale and purpose of responsibility for profitability.
Zulkifly Baharom (hajizul50@gmail.com) is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
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