Ernst & Young Global Limited released “Ernst & Young (EY) Business Pulse Survey: Living with Covid-19 and Winning Together ” on the 23rd March, revealing that 86 percent of over 500 companies in Malaysia including large companies as well as micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) are prepared to live alongside Covid-19 and are prioritising technology adoption as the country enters the transition to the endemic phase on 1st April, 2022.
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Effective 1st April, Malaysia will enter the “Transition to Endemic” phase of Covid-19, with all restrictions on business operating hours being removed.
According to the EY Business Pulse Survey, two out of five businesses (41 percent ) have adapted positively to COVID-19 pandemic with 77 percent of companies prioritising the adoption of technology as they fast-track their adaptation to the new normal.
“Around 48 percent of large companies and 37 percent of SMEs indicated that technology had the most positive impact on their business during the pandemic,” said Ernst & Young Consulting Sdn Bhd.
Over half of the businesses were optimistic on business recovery from late 2022. In the short term, the majority of businesses will focus on people safety, reskilling employees and adopting digitalisation.
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“With the evolving market disruptions and changing consumer preferences amplified by the Covid-19 pandemic, businesses need to prioritise capability development as they seek to transform their operating models for the future. Speed and agility are of the essence,” said Chow Sang Hoe, EY Asean Consulting Leader and Ernst & Young Consulting Sdn Bhd’s managing partner.