Leveraging the latest technologies in the name of progress, Bestinet is pioneering transformation when it comes to cross-border migration solutions.
THE MANAGEMENT MARVEL
Without question, global migration is on the rise.
According to the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, the number of migrants has almost tripled since 1970, increasing from around 84 million to more than 243 million people.
This also translates into a proportional increase, with one in 30 people around the world now claiming migrant status.
In the face of such statistics, global migrant management has continued to come under growing pressure, pressure that Malaysian firm Bestinet is seeking to relieve with its innovative approach.
An information technology specialist, Bestinet’s focus is centred on delivering comprehensive cross-border migration solutions, serving its clients in both the public and private sectors.
“Established in 2008, we saw there were a lot of challenges when it came to Malaysia’s migrant management processes,” explains Ismail Mohd. Noor, the firm’s Chief Executive Officer. “Our founders recognised that the system was being abused by a large number of opportunists so, looking to correct this, they proposed the introduction of a Foreign Worker Centralised Management System (FWCMS) to the Malaysian government, known as Migrant Management System (MiGRAMS) for other labour receiving countries.”
ENCAPSULATING EFFICIENCY
Built to act as a holistic solution, FWCMS was first implemented under a proof-of-concept basis for the Malaysian government. The proof of concept is a pilot implementation for Bestinet to showcase the feasibility of FWCMS as it was the first cross-border solution in 2012 that was developed to manage the entire recruitment process of migrant workers. The overwhelmingly positive results it displayed led to the Malaysian government adopting the system in 2015 – a contract that the firm still retains today.
In the time since, Bestinet has developed both its Bio-Medical System, Unified Recruitment Platform (URP) and its Migrant Management System (MiGRAMS) that, alongside FWCMS, make up the company’s core service portfolio, collectively satisfying a diverse range of migrant management needs.
Having successfully developed these complex systems, Bestinet has become a champion of revolutionised administration solutions throughout Malaysia, a feat that Ismail is particularly proud of.
“What we’ve seen from the elimination and replacement of many outdated, manual migrant management processes between countries with the introduction of digital systems is a vast improvement in efficiency, transparency and compliance,” he explains.
“It is this that I feel that differentiates us. We work to both achieve optimum efficiency and security from a management perspective, and equally place substantial emphasis on reinstating the human rights of migrant workers, providing a win-win situation for all stakeholders involved.”
A passionate player in the IT sphere, Bestinet’s core values are centred on going beyond just solving problems. Further to this, the firm ensures that it delves deep into each individual project, seeking innovative ways that it can deliver improved solutions, from conception to development to deployment.
“The company’s culture is simple – solve the world’s problems and aid humanity by leveraging the latest technologies,” Ismail adds. “We are always looking to expand our capabilities to help our clients travel down any challenging migrant management pathway.”
MALAYSIA’S ENABLER
This admirable philosophy is readily displayed in Bestinet’s investment strategy, focusing on both improving the firm’s existing offerings and exploring the development of new capabilities.
“Within our current systems, we’re now looking to include new technologies such as facial recognition, digital identification and artificial intelligence,” reveals Ismail.
One such example can be seen in the recent enhancements to its Bio-Medical Systems model. Incorporating a number of AI-enabled and digital document signing elements, Bestinet has been able to both bolster the security of the system and simultaneously more accurately monitor and manage national security, health issues and medical data.
“Previously, this system was being used by medical centres to upload X-rays to the cloud, with radiologists then manually analysing the graphics to determine a diagnosis,” Ismail reveals. “However, by integrating AI, the process of radiological screening has become much more efficient as we utilise the principles of machine-orientated learned behaviour.”
Moreover, the firm is also an innovative player for open source solutions platform Red Hat, a position that offers a reflection of its ideals in regard to pursuing collaboration and cooperation in the aim of achieving excellence.
Ismail continues: “We’ve been with Red Hat from the beginning, largely due to our own values being synonymous with what Red Hat is trying to achieve – working together to provide the basis for global technology-enabled progression.
“To this end, we consistently try to maximise synergies both internally and externally.”
PIONEERING PROGRESS
These synergies can be seen in a variety of ways throughout Bestinet, evident in its training programmes.
Working readily with external partners, the company exposes its staff to a variety of different training strategies, providing them with the opportunity to excel when working alongside complex technologies.
Equally, aside from learning new core skills, Bestinet ensures that each employee is individually given the chance to expand their soft skills, regularly sending its workers on leadership, communication and management courses in support of this.
“Emphasising training in this way, we have grown to house a large number of talented individuals within the group, something that is, and will continue to be, crucial to our success,” states Ismail.
Bestinet’s role as a facilitator of social progress is not confined to the company internally, however, with the firm actively working alongside local communities in similar ways, thriving as a corporate social enabler.
Ismail continues: “Education is a passion of Bestinet, and I’m proud to say that we tirelessly work to promote this in as many different ways as we can. We’ve partnered with local schools across the country, for example, helping to upgrade their infrastructure and provide students with better access to educational materials.”
BREAKING NEW GROUND
Having adhered to this humble approach since 2008, Bestinet continues to play a key role in helping to transform Malaysia in wider ways than just its speciality of migrant management.
Moving forward, the firm hopes to continue to expand both its service portfolio and footprint in the hope of offering this expansive platform of opportunity and expertise to a broader range of people, both locally and internationally.
The Chief Executive concludes: “Last year was indeed our 10th anniversary year, and was cause for celebration when you consider how far we’ve come.
“However, as we move into 2019, I firmly believe that the next decade will be even more exciting and we’re expecting that a vast number of opportunities will present themselves on a global scale, a prospect that everyone here at Bestinet is truly relishing.”
