Global Malaysians on advancing your career in Malaysia

In 2012, The Star’s Assistant Chief Subeditor, Elizabeth Tai decided to leave Malaysia in pursuit of the Australian dream. The journalist had spent the previous 12 years in a rewarding writing career with the national newspaper, but the call to Australia was very compelling for a number of reasons: the opportunity to go back to school again, the possibilities of a brand new career and the attractive offer of a Permanent Resident visa.  Moving away for that better life was a fairly easy and straightforward decision. 

Three years later, Elizabeth returned home. 

In a widely-read article published on her blog, Elizabeth explained that there were various factors that pushed her to return. She admitted that while many of her friends had been critical of her choice, she felt that coming home was inevitable as, “Sometimes you have other dreams bigger than the dream of being in Australia. I want to contribute as a writer in Malaysia. I want to be with my friends and family; that is important.”

For Jaziri Alkaf, who worked as an architect for seven years in New Zealand, coming home gave him the opportunity to do something “outside of the box and contribute to the nation”.

Back home in Malaysia, Jaziri founded the Malaysian Youth Profiling Indicator Technology (MyProdigy), a student enhancement and youth development programme that exposes high school students to different learning methodologies that in turn can enhance their employability.  

 Among MyProdigy’s projects include a collaboration with New Zealand’s Waikato Institute of Technology aimed at enhancing youth development, social entrepreneurship and social innovation, and most recently, a professional certification programme with University Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) offering people development programmes targeted at university students and graduates.

“You are able to give back to your society, your fellow Malaysians, here in Malaysia,” sharing that he was motivated by the opportunity to impact lives in a positive way.

Dushant Nainani concurs, saying that “After achieving the kind of things I sought to achieve, I guess there was a longing to contribute to the place you came from.” 

Dushant, who is Head of Risk Management and Transaction Banking under Maybank Group’s Global Banking Division, had over 13 years of work experience in risk and credit management with a leading trade finance bank in New York. In his last US-based role, Dushant spearheaded the development of risk management systems, credit policies and procedures as well as various related projects. 

Despite a promising career in the US, Dushant shared that he did not trade down when he returned to Malaysia. He is convinced that Malaysia has a lot of potential and has much to offer, especially to Malaysian professionals living abroad. 

“The country is in the midst of a major transformation. Therefore you’ll see a lot of opportunities in many different sectors,” said Dushant.

It is a unique time for Malaysians who have foreign experience. You can actually bring it back and contribute to the growth and prospects of the country to make Malaysia all it can be.”