CONTENT OVERVIEW

o Report Summary o Definition o Methodology o Classification

1
INTRODUCTION FINDINGS

o Geographic Distribution o Distribution by Metrics o Rankings by Number o Comparative Analysis

o Intellectual Contributions by Industry Practitioners, Thought Leaders, and Academic Scholars

o Key Challenges

BONUS SECTION

CHALLENGES & RECOMMENDATIONS

o Envisioning the Future o Recommendations

WHAT ARE IFEKSP (ISLAMIC FINANCE EDUCATION & KNOWLEDGE SERVICES PROVIDERS)?
For the purpose of this research, we defined IFEKSP (Islamic Finance Education and Knowledge Services Providers) as organizations that provide any one or more of the following in the subjects of Islamic Economics and/or Islamic Finance:

Dedicated degree programs ( Bachelors, Masters, PhD) Courses within a degree program (Electives, Major courses) Independent short courses (Non-degree) Diploma (Postgraduate / Higher, Regular) Certification Training Courses ( Individual, Corporate ) Seminar, Workshop, Awareness programs Research (Primarily academic)
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DISTRIBUTION OF ISLAMIC FINANCE EDUCATION & KNOWLEDGE SERVICE PROVIDERS BY WORLD REGION
Sub-Saharan Africa Oceania 6% 2%

742 IFEKSP

5
North America 8%

Middle East & North Africa 19%

Asia 43%

Europe 22%

2
Asia, home of the largest Muslim population hosts

43% of global IFEKSP

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TOP 10 COUNTRIES BY NUMBER OF ISLAMIC FINANCE EDUCATION AND KNOWLEDGE SERVICES PROVIDERS

Pakistan Malaysia United Kingdom United States United Arab Emirates Indonesia India Bangladesh Bahrain Turkey 12 22 20 28 31 44 43

88 86 86

Pakistan tops the chart with 88 institutions that offer education and knowledge services in Islamic Finance in the country. 74 of these are academic and 14 are non-academic Institutions. Malaysia and United Kingdom come second with 86 institutions offering Islamic Finance education and knowledge services. United States and United Arab Emirates take fourth and fifth position with 44 and 43 institutions respectively. In case of United States 41 are universities and higher learning institutions.

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DISTRIBUTION OF ACADEMIC VS. NON ACADEMIC INSTITUTIONS IN TOP 10 COUNTRIES

Academic & Higher Learning (Universities & Colleges)
Non Academic (Training, Awareness and Other)

74 49 48 41 28 24 14

Pakistan United Kingdom Malaysia United States United Arab Emirates Indonesia India Bangladesh 7 7 Turkey Bahrain

Malaysia United Kingdom United Arab Emirates Pakistan India Bahrain Bangladesh Indonesia Turkey United States 3 5 7 9 15 14 14 13

38 37

13

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INTELLECTUAL VS. SKILL BASED PROGRAMS

How will research and development be facilitated for future growth & sustainability?
Intellectual (PhD, Dedicated Degree Programs, Research)

15%

85%
Intellectual Skill Based

Skill Based (Certifications, Workshops, Training, Diploma, Seminars Short Courses etc.)

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DISTRIBUTION OF IFEKSP IN EUROPE

Country Institutions Belgium 2 Bosnia & Herzegovina 3 Cyprus 1 Denmark 3 Finland 1 2 France 12 Germany 7 Hungary 2 Ireland 8 Italy 5 Luxembourg 5 Spain 5 Sweden 3 Switzerland 6 The Netherlands 2 2 Turkey 12 United Kingdom 86 1

United Kingdom leads Islamic Finance Education Services in Europe with 53% of the total IFEKSP in the region

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DISTRIBUTION OF IFEKSP IN THE MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA

Algeria Bahrain Egypt Iran Iraq Jordan Kuwait Lebanon Libya Morocco 1 20 9 2 1 6 7 9 3 3

United Arab Emirates leads in MENA with

2

43 institutions which is 30% of the total

IFEKSP in the region

Oman
Qatar Saudi Arabia Tunisia United Arab Emirates Yemen

7
4 19 4 43 3
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3 1

RECENT TREND IN DEMAND BY PROGRAM TYPES

Detail available in Full Report

Sample Size 2,910

Source: Yurizk Poll, Yurizk Web Queries (2012 2013)

Demographics (Region) Asia, Europe, Africa, Americas, Oceania, Middle East

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CHALLENGES FACING ISLAMIC FINANCE EDUCATION

Human Capital

Insufficient quality human resource is claimed as critical challenge for Islamic Finance industry although 85% of the educational initiatives are towards professional development. Where is the gap? Only 15% of the global IF educational initiatives are potential contributors of R&D. What should be the way forward? Who will design a comprehensive curriculum that addresses all the challenges to produce next generation human capital?

Funding

Research & Innovation

Curriculum & Textbooks

How will the initiatives be funded? Will there be conflict of interests?

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DEVELOPING NEXT GENERATION HUMAN CAPITAL

SHARIAH SCHOLARS

How do we visualize the next generation Shariah Scholars? How do we visualize the next generation Academicians? What will be the role of next generation Research Scholars?

ACADEMICIANS

RESEARCH SCHOLARS

SKILLED EMPLOYEES

What will be expected from next generation skilled employees?

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BONUS SECTION

Industry Thought Leaders, Practitioners, Academic Scholars shared their views on various issues of Islamic Finance Education

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WHY ISLAMIC FINANCE TRAINING NEEDS TO CONFORM TO AAOIFI STANDARDS

Ethica Institute of Islamic Finance

Without standardized training and certification, the Islamic finance

industry will continue to calcify in its old ways: no serious innovation into equity-based Musharakah and Mudarabah products; no practical alternative to a fractional debt-reserve banking system; no global gold-based currency; and no move away from debt-based mainstays. Instead, what we need in order to rebuild Islamic finance is a strong foundation of capable, trained individuals competent enough to innovate products away from debt-based, fiat-based, cosmeticallyenhanced conventional products for the rich and upper middle class to equity-based, asset-based, genuine products for all. Yet, we continue to sing the praises of Islamic bankers at awards ceremonies, hymn the growth mantra of conventional economics, and hope for the best. Somehow, someone, we believe, will one day make it all right. After all, Islamic finance is just starting out and it only needs a little more time to work out the details, no? Wrong. Where we are presently headed is an unabashed embrace of conventional banking served up with a milquetoast nod to the Shariah. If we go on without standardized training, nothing changes and we continue as before. We lend further credence to detractors who believe that Islamic finance is not working and what is needed is a complete revamp.

But because these same detractors leave much to be desired in the way of a practical, scholar-approved blueprint for us to follow, what the absence of a workable alternative will more likely lead to is countless millions with a worse option (interest-based products) rather than a merely bad one (poorly implemented Islamic finance). What we need is a move away from the current state of anything goes Islamic finance training and certification. What we need is standardized training and certification based on AAOIFI Shariah Standards. AAOIFI, (pronounced a-yo-fee), is the Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions and the de facto in over 90% of the worlds Islamic finance jurisdictions. AAOIFI already brings together scholars from all over the world who agree on Shariah standards and have put behind us the painstaking task of harmonizing global standards. According to the Institute of Management Accountants, AAOIFI standards are now mandatory in Bahrain, the Dubai International Financial Centre, Jordan, Qatar, Qatar Financial Centre, Sudan, South Africa, Syria, and the Islamic Development Bank. AAOIFI standards also form the basis for national standards in Bangladesh, Brunei, France, Indonesia, Kuwait, Lebanon, Malaysia, Pakistan, Russian and Central States, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and the United Kingdom.

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What we need is a move away from the current state of anything goes Islamic finance training and certification. What we need is standardized training and certification based on AAOIFI Shariah Standards.
AAOIFIs regularly updated texts have become the definitive reference work for those seeking a comprehensive rule book about Islamic financial products and practices. Its 85 standards cover everything from accounting and auditing to governance and productspecific Shariah standards. The 16 to 20 scholars the number depending on the year who sit on AAOIFIs Shariah Board are leading Islamic finance scholars who come from the Gulf, South Asia, South East Asia, Africa, and North America; each of them legally qualified to issue a fatwa and adjudicate on matters Islamic finance. If we are going to be serious about Islamic finance, we need to be serious about Islamic finance training. And being serious about training means being careful about what is being said. A scholar once advised his student, Find the best teacher and become the best student. The best teacher the Islamic finance industry presently has is AAOIFI. Are we as students equal to the task? Winner of "Best Islamic Finance Qualification" at the Global Islamic Finance Awards, Ethica (www.EthicaInstitute.com) is trusted by more professionals for Islamic finance certification. Training and certifying professionals in over 100 financial institutions in 56 countries, Ethica's 4-month Certified Islamic Finance Executive (CIFE) is a globally recognized certificate accredited by scholars to fully comply with AAOIFI, the world's leading Islamic finance standard. Ethica's award-winning CIFE is delivered 100% online or live at the bank. The Dubai-based institute is now supported by Licensed Ethica Resellers in 11 countries. For more information about this article, or to schedule an interview with Ethica Institute of Islamic Finance, please call +9714-455-8690 or e-mail at info@ethicainstitute.com.

Ethica 2013-18 | www.ethicainstitute.com

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CHALLENGES AND RESOLVES FOR ISLAMIC FINANCE EDUCATION: A PRACTITIONERS PERSPECTIVE

Muhammed Ikram Thowfeek, President, First Global Academy

Till today, since 2008, given the global financial crisis after crisis,
millions of people all over the world are suffering directly and/or indirectly, whilst looking for alternatives to the conventional modes of banking, financing and investments that can portray ethics and fair dealings. These millions of people who are looking for an alternative system of banking and finance are yet to explore the benefits, opportunities and the growth potentials of the Islamic banking and finance industry. Unlike the conventional banking and finance that looks at any financing and/or investment activity mostly from an economic and financial benefits, whereas Islamic Finance (IF) goes beyond economic and financial benefits, and looks at moral, ethical, social, and religious aspects of it, which are unique propositions that can provide solutions to millions of people (both Muslim and nonMuslims) all over the world through equity participation, risk sharing & fair dealing. The challenging question to ask is that, if the IF industry can provide solutions to those individuals, corporate entities and the governments at large that are affected directly and/or indirectly by the global financial crisis after crisis? Then, what is stopping the industry of becoming the main stream banking & finance system appealing to the global market to serve both the Muslims as well as the non-Muslims? Is it Awareness, Education and/or the

Islamic Finance Institutions (IFIs) within the industry are the bottlenecks to sustain the growth of the IF industry and become the main stream global finance system.

The simple answer to this challenging question is, bring Awareness globally, from laymen to intellectuals, coupled with Education from 16+ years to the PhDs. All those who are Aware and also equipped with education on the subject matter will definitely can make a difference in the public domain and more specifically at the institution level too, to raise the standards in every facets of the organization to compete and to go beyond their conventional counterparts, whilst sustaining the growth of the IF industry and making it appealing to the global market.
Lets look at Awareness - what are the challenges and resolves available to take this message of IF globally to the laymen as well as the intellectuals and to those in between, so that everyone benefits. Three decades plus, from the birth of the modern experiments with IF in 1975, till to date, only 20% of the market opportunities and growth potentials of IF industry is tapped. Its, just like the tip of the iceberg, 80% is largely untapped mainly due to lack of understanding and awareness as to what Islamic Finance is all about?

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only 20% of the market opportunities and growth potentials of IF industry is tapped, just like the tip of the iceberg, and 80% is largely untapped mainly due to lack of understanding and awareness as to what Islamic finance is all about?
In most of the countries where there is an Islamic bank, two or more, the target market is confined to the Muslim community only? As if IF is only confined to the Muslims and not for the non-Muslims, who are indeed looking for alternatives to the conventional modes of banking & finance. Why this focus? Again due to lack of understanding, awareness and education on the subject of IF and its enormous benefits that could accrue to all mankind, irrespective of what color, sects, race, religion or ethnic group they belongs to. The primary challenge of some of the existing Islamic Financial Institutions (IFIs) is not attracting new Muslim customers to the Islamic finance fold, but how to retain those who are already patronizing, while some of those although not satisfied with the level of services and offerings compared with that of their conventional counterparts but still stay put, with all the bickering, mainly due to the Shariah layer or comfort. However, majority of them move back to conventional banking or to any new IFI that has open doors, seeking better customer services, wide range of product offerings coupled with excellent distribution channels the pricing and returns become secondary and then comes Shariah compliance for them. Today, the mandates of bringing awareness to the masses is confined to those Islamic Finance Infrastructure Institutions (IFIIs) like, IFSB, AAOIFI, CIBAFI, IIFM, IRTI, IIRA, etc., through their annual forums, conferences and symposiums held once or twice a year. This has to change from annual events to a day to day affair bringing awareness to the general public is onus on all the stakeholders of the Islamic finance industry, mainly the institutional players, practitioners, Shariah scholars etc., who should have planned awareness and educational events to reach out to the public every nook and corner of the country through various channels news media, TV, satellites, social media, Q&A forums, live, online, virtual chats etc. This needs a budget allocation by all the IFIs for planned events mainly to bring public awareness and educating the masses (not only the Muslim community but the entire humanity at large), which will definitely add value to the bottom lines of the IFIs. More the general public, from all walks of life, understand what the IF is all about and experiences proper conduct of IFIs, not only the Muslims are going to rally around and patronize IFIs the nonMuslims too will join the bandwagon not mainly due to Shariah compliance but due to excellent customer services and the ethical values portrayed in every transaction and activity undertaken by the IFIs.

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Thats on Awareness, lets come back to the Educational Programs in building professionals in the field of Islamic Finance who could take this industry to yet another paradigm given the appetite and the global attractions to the Industry aftermath of the global financial crisis after crisis. With all due respect, most of the educational institutions that are offering a certificate, diploma, a degree or a PhD level program in Islamic finance drumbeats that they are sharing practice (not theory) with students and making them ready to take up positions in the Islamic banking and finance industry.

improve their lives, financial and investment choices - through equity participation, risk sharing and fair dealings. To get these graduates and students who are looking for a career and to fill one of those million jobs needed up to 2020, as per the researchers, need to pursue on programs that really make them professionally qualified as an iBanker (Islamic Banker) whilst retaining their specialization or their field of choice namely, ICT, human resources, Shariah, product development, sales, marketing, legal, financing, accounting, management etc.

The other day, a dear friend of mine, asked me a question, soliciting my views as a seasoned professional in the Islamic Finance (IF) industry, trying to see what I thought the prospects were for those young people looking to enter the Islamic Finance industry and 'make a difference'.
He said, The story these young graduates keep telling me is that there are simply no jobs on offer which seems to be at odds with the headlines that we keep seeing proclaiming that the IF industry is 'growing at 20% per year. My response was Those seeking greener pastures or opportunities in the IF industry are unfortunately knocking at the wrong doors or are ill equipped - the regional and global markets are opening up for Islamic finance so be ready. Further, I mentioned that, being in the IF industry over the last two decades, I strongly believe that the bigger the global financial crisis is the greater the opportunities are to all the stakeholders in the Islamic finance industry, which can provide solutions to millions of people (both Muslims and non-Muslims) all over the world to

Keeping in mind, these current demands for professional Islamic Bankers who can raise the bar of the IFIs, in particular, and the IF industry, in general, the First Global Academy (FGA) have rolled out the iBanker Certificate, Diploma and Executive Diploma programs to the global market (both in campus and online), for those who would like to enter at different levels from 16+ years onwards.
Becoming an iBanker, in a chosen field, by following these FGA programs not only groom students to take up any entry level or a higher position in any IFI but also makes them to look at banking & finance from yet another perspective. That is, as Entrepreneurs. Islamic bankers are not mere bankers from a conventional sense, where accepting deposits and lending are the core competencies of conventional bankers to have the maximum spread between the two. Whereas the Islamic bankers and finance specialists focus on profit/loss sharing by using the funds on economic generating investing and trading activities to make a profit and share that profit with all the depositors and shareholders, whilst protecting the fabric of our society without engaging in activities prohibited and harmful to the society.

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I strongly believe that bigger the global financial crisis is the greater the opportunities are to all the stakeholders in the IF industry, which can provide solutions to millions of people (both Muslims and non-Muslims) all over the world to improve their lives, financial and investment choices through equity participation, risk sharing and fair dealings
With the mindset of grooming an iBanker to be an iEntrepreneur (Islamic Entrepreneur) too, we will be sharing only Practice, Practice & Practice of Islamic finance and our lecturers panel are geared up to do so and equipped with practical knowledge and exposure in setting up IFIs in the Middle East (ME) region from scratch. They know and very well aware whats happening in the kitchen of those institutions and the expectations of the customers. Indeed, there is a wide gap persist between the expectations of the customers and the reality; we have to narrow down this gap to reach out to as many people as we can with Islamic finance offerings bringing benefits to all (both Muslims and non-Muslims alike) to improve their lives, financial and investment choices - through equity participation, risk sharing and fair dealings.

Muhammed Ikram Thowfeek (MIT) is currently the Founder of First Global Group and Group CFO of QAF Holdings Group. He is a Chartered Accountant by profession and an Islamic Banker by practice. To date, he has gained a wealth of knowledge and experience in auditing, management consultancy, financial control, strategic planning & budgeting, Islamic banking & finance, retail, commercial and investment banking, Islamic capital and global Sukuk (Islamic Bonds) market, training and career development etc., through his diverse positions held in various organizations (Ernst & Young, Kuwait Finance House, First Islamic Investment Bank, International Islamic Financial Market, Commercial Bank of Qatar, Barwa Bank, QAF Holdings Group, First Global Group). Mr. Thowfeek is a startup specialist and has set up number of Islamic Banks (IBs) and Islamic Financial Institutions (IFIs) in the ME region, both fully fledged Islamic Banks and independent IB branches of conventional banks, from scratch. He is an Associate Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants (ACA) of Sri Lanka, a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (FCMA), Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA) of the UK, a Member of the Institute of Financial Consultants (MIFC) of the USA, a Member of the Chartered Institute of Securities and Investments (MCSI) of the UK and a Certified Islamic Banker.

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PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION IN ISLAMIC FINANCE

Professor Dr. Syed Othman Alhabshi, Chief Academic Officer, INCEIF

The

best practice especially in the banking industry is to recruit staff from various backgrounds. There are occasions where the staff is not from the disciplines related to economics and finance. They can be engineers, medical doctors, quantity surveyors, lawyers, etc. The main reason is that most of the tasks involved in banking can be easily learnt by those from different background. I know a statistician who was given a chance to work in an Islamic bank. Eventually he became one of the most efficient senior staff of the bank. We also know of engineers and lawyers who do extremely well in the banking industry. Learning from such experience, it would be a proper practice for students of Islamic finance to come from various academic backgrounds. This will certainly enrich the discussions in class because the body of students would have differing views from various perspectives, skewed to their background. I for one strongly believed that the students would do extremely well if the professor shows tremendous patience in nurturing them inside and outside classroom. I read of a story of a sociology professor who wanted to know whether the young children of about 10 years old, in a particular slum area in US would make it in life or not. He sent two hundred of his MBA students to the slum area and selected two hundred children to find out if they would make it in life. Based on the environment, the way they dressed, the materials they wear, etc. the two hundred MBA students had only one answer. They all agreed that these children will never make it in life

Twenty-five years later, another sociology professor who happened to read the report sent two hundred of his Masters students to the same slum area to find out from the same two hundred children who were the subject of that study twenty-five years earlier. They found that out of two hundred children, only one hundred eighty three were around. The other seventeen have either moved out of the area or have passed away. The Masters students found that all the one hundred and eighty-seven children who are now about 35 years old have actually succeeded in life. Some are engineers, others are lawyers, doctors, teachers, corporate executives, etc. They then asked how come they were so successful. The answer was, there was a teacher. The two hundred Masters students asked around to find the teacher who happened to be an old lady of about seventy years old. When she was asked how come those children who were considered to have no chance to make it in life have now achieved tremendous success, she answered with a broad smile on her face, I LOVE THEM ALL. I strongly believe that the approach to be adopted in nurturing students whoever they are is to show them the respect, the confidence we have in them, the dedication and commitment we give them to really make them successful in life. It is not just the quality of students that we have but more importantly what our real intention is when teaching them.

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..the biggest challenge is acute shortage of human talents who have very high technical knowledge and at the same time have excellent Shariah knowledge
Having a very comprehensive programme with high quality curriculum and content is very essential to produce the talents we need in any field. Of course we also need quality students with the positive attitude to learn. Above all, we need the right approach to coach, train and educate the students in the most effective way. One of the major challenges in producing the right type of talent in Islamic finance is to provide them with the right input so that they would be able to manage and handle all situations that they face in the industry. This is a major challenge because Islamic finance as a subject or discipline of study is still very new. We do not have standard texts for all the subjects that we teach. Most of the time, we use texts that are not complete and hence have either to use many texts or to be added with our own materials. This poses a problem of standardization or harmonization, especially with regards to Shariah, principles or concepts and products. We know that there are conflicting views on Shariah matters between jurisdictions. Hence we do get products that are acceptable in one market but rejected in other markets. Even these differences are not considered as major issues. This is because those conflicting views can be explained and such conflicts do get mitigated. There is yet a bigger challenge where some scholars simply feel that the current practice of Islamic banking and finance are not Shariah compliant because the beneficiaries do not include the poor and the have-nots. They prefer to take the view that the benefits of Islamic banks today which directly benefit the rich and the bankable only have ignored one of the objectives of Maqasid Shariah that is meant to bring about benefits to all and sundry and not confined only to the rich and bankable. Such a view simply denies the benefits that Islamic finance as practiced today has brought about to society. Those who adopted this view do not have the alternative system that could resolve the problem of those poor and not bankable. The challenge then is how to ensure that there is financial inclusion. One possible answer is Islamic microfinance. Although Islamic finance is growing at a faster rate than conventional finance, which under present circumstances is unstoppable, the biggest challenge is acute shortage of human talents who have very high technical knowledge and at the same time have excellent Shariah knowledge. We have also observed many qualifications in Islamic finance that have been introduced to the market that do not provide the right level, quality and scope of the subject. We need to find ways of attracting students to the right programmes so that the objective of bringing Islamic finance to the next level can be effectively achieved.

Professor Dr. Syed Othman Alhabshi is the Chief Academic Officer at INCEIF. Since November 1969, Prof Syed Othman has served in various academic capacities in five leading universities in the country. He has also served in various capacities on the boards of a number of organizations including takaful and investment companies in Malaysia and Pakistan. He has written and published more than 200 articles and books.

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ISLAMIC MICROFINANCE EDUCATION: THE CRITICAL NEED, OPPORTUNITY & WAY FORWARD
Muhammad Zubair Mughal, Chief Executive Officer, AlHuda CIBE

Islamic

Microfinance means micro financing through interest free modes to the financially deprived and poor people to generate economic activities and making them self employed for the ultimate economic prosperity. As per the latest research of Centre of Excellence in Islamic Microfinance of AlHuda CIBE, the global Islamic Microfinance volume has reached at US $1 billion with persistent growth and serving about 1.3 million beneficiaries but the share of Islamic Microfinance by less than 1% of overall volume of Islamic Finance (US $1.3 trillion), unveils its misfortune. As per the expert view it is stated that the Islamic Microfinance education is the ultimate way to make Islamic Microfinance practicing and let the people aware of the Islamic Microfinance on global canvas for its acceptability. The main hindrance to the Islamic microfinance behind successful execution is instant acceptability caused by lack of awareness. The concept of Islamic microfinance is recently developed dimension for micro financing to operate on Islamic modes and started in early 1960 from Latin America and South East Asia but Bangladesh has significant contribution to originate and approach the concept of Islamic Micro financing. The Islamic micro financing is being done through different models such as: Gramin Model, Credit Union and Self Help Group in particulars but the microfinance sector is looking forward a compatible brain well trained and equipped to practice Islamic Microfinance using these models prudently. It is observed there are no specialized institutions for the education of Islamic Microfinance in particular.

Absence of specialized education in Islamic Microfinance, particularly, is the crucial fact in Islamic Microfinance Industry, which is one of the hurdles for the promotion of the industry as well. There is an immediate need to initiate comprehensive degree programs on Islamic Microfinance globally. If we look into the main challenges of Islamic microfinance, the lack of awareness and education fall on the top. Islamic Microfinance Industry is facing lot of criticism in different aspects e.g. acceptability of Islamic Finance because of lack of awareness, education and religious consciousness are the main challenges to Islamic Microfinance Industry.
The expensive education of Islamic microfinance is also a discouraging factor for the Islamic Microfinance learners which should be subsidized and funded by Donor agencies e.g. IFC, World Bank and IDB etc. The 46% of whole world poverty exists in Muslim World while Muslim population in the world is 26%, so Islamic Microfinance can potentially be used for poverty alleviation by social awareness programs through proper channels and educationists of Islamic Micro Finance realizing its importance and optimal results. Muhammad Zubair Mughal is the Chief Executive Officer of AlHuda Centre of Islamic Banking and Economics (CIBE). He has been working consistently for last nine years for poverty alleviation through Islamic Microfinance concept; he can be reached at zubair.mughal@alhudacibe.com

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TALENT DEVELOPMENT IN THE ISLAMIC FINANCE INDUSTRY: NEEDED OR NOT?

Joy Abdullah, Head of Marketing & Communication, INCEIF

More

and more educational institutions, around the world, are offering degree programs and diplomas in Islamic Finance and banking. This is a good sign as it indicates that the growing global Islamic finance industry has a rising demand for competent and trained talent. Given that the industry is in growth mode why cant those undertaking industry qualifications get jobs? 57,000 new Islamic Finance jobs? How not to get one! This was a headline from a leading online news provider about eight months ago. Whilst industry news reports spout various numbers, by countries, of the qualified talent requirement, the scenario on ground belies the fact that the industry organizations are doing anything concrete towards talent development. Studying the industry shows two clear trends: 1. Most Islamic finance operations started as windows. The conventional products were wrapped in an Islamic cover and offered out. Inadvertently such a practice impacted the talent recruitment practice of an organization wherein the preference was for regular conventional finance qualifications. 2. Factor in the lack of industry and academia collaboration resulting in slow development of professional standards and the required practical educational content.

These two trends, amidst the backdrop of the global financial crises that forced organizations to make do with available talent resources, gives us the background of where talent development in the Islamic finance industry is at presently.
Whilst respective international financial centers are attempting certain actions towards a formal talent development policy, on its own initiative, the global industry is yet to take up this issue as a critical one. Talent is the most crucial element in the success of an organization. Recruiting, engaging and managing the talent, career planning and developing the talent to be an organizational leader, all of these ensure sustainable growth and success of an organization. For the Islamic finance industry lining up the ducks that result in excellent talent will only be beneficial in all ways. A key first step is to define what talent is. A common definition, across the industry, would help in establishing parameters that would aid in developing a talent development policy, at an industry level, and aid in developing their independent talent management strategy. Some key parameters to put in place would be: i. Clear set of competencies and a grid to score on, identifying areas of development. ii. Identifying talent based on these competencies.

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iii. Ensure the organization has an environment that speaks to personal growth people must not only want to get better but must be allowed to, as well. iv. Lastly ensure identified talent has progressively meaningful work and gaining influence. These are two critical success factors for talented staff in terms of retention and productivity.

The second step would be the route of collaborations between industry organizations and academia and actively investing in the collaboration to obtain the desired quality talent. As talent is a primary requirement of the organizations in keeping their business running, the lead on this has to come from the organizations themselves. The way forward could be to collaborate with the academic institutions for research requirements that the organizations need to grow their business.
Thirdly, use the output of the research to develop case studies that can then become part of academic programme content in order to provide a more experiential knowledge base for incoming talents. Lastly, a globally accepted set of competency standards needs to be in place as the guideposts to what is expected from the talents in terms of educational qualifications. There are dual benefits of having in place an industry focused talent development policy. I. Locally the organizations would be seeding in the competencies they seek in a talent, through the collaborations with academia. The talent gains both knowledge and competencies that the industry organizations require to keep their business growing.

At a country level, this would act as a stimulus for the financial services and the education sector. As the collaborations are actioned, the talents recruited directly by the organizations will create a word-of-mouth scenario through social media by talking about their jobs. This in turn will lead to potential talents looking at the industry and evaluating career benefits. From there its a short step to obtain required qualifications. So the academic institutions start benefiting as demand for their programme rises. Net result the industry gains by having a continuous pool of planned for talent that has the competencies the industry wants. At an international level centralized collaborations, between industry bodies in different financial centers, will bring together organizations and academia to work on enhancing specific areas of the existing academic content. This, in turn, will facilitate generation of cross-border academic content. Which benefits talents all round by providing them the cross-jurisdiction knowledge they need. For a talent this provides a huge benefit as he or she becomes a true knowledge worker and is able to value-add to an organization irrespective of the geographical market. A common grouse of the industry CEOs is on the issue of how can the sharia specialists understand the bottom-line business pressures and how can the commercial specialists understand there are strict ethical principles to adhere to. This constant mode of internal challenge actually inhibits progress. So what can the global industry do in aiding the organizations in resolving this issue, as a start towards having effective talent development strategies?

II.

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1. Co-create short training content that provides an overview for the respective teams i.e. the sharia specialists get a business overview and how their decision impact a businesss bottom line & the commercial specialists get an overview of what are the key guidelines to know in ensuring they can deliver a sharia compliant product.

But talent development will remain on the backbench, unless and until, organizations take it upon themselves to align their business goal, organizational values and talent competencies and approach the academia with what they need.

Taking it one level down, at an organizational level, the team i.e. of commercial and sharia specialists could perhaps be given joint business targets for achievement and joint rewards for achievement.
This would bring about joint talent development in the organizations and allow them to maximize the knowledge and competency of their talents for the benefit of the organization. 2. Accept and Implement a common global standard for qualifications like other professional qualifications develop and implement a global standard for qualifications, including short term courses, which all educational institutions and educational service providers have to adhere to. This will bring about a rise in the quality of the talent as well as enable the industry organizations to have a standard on which they can base their recruitment policies. The advantage the Islamic finance industry organizations have, vis-vis other industries, is that there are vast amounts of expertise from their conventional counterparts already available for use rolling out effective talent development plans.

..talent development will remain on the backbench, unless and until, organizations take it upon themselves to align their business goal, organizational values and talent competencies and approach the academia with what they need.
Joy Abdullah is the head of marketing & communication at INCEIF The Global University of Islamic Finance
The opinions expressed is a personal point of view of the author and is not an opinion from or on behalf of INCEIF.

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We would like to thank

We would like to thank the following individuals and organizations for their moral support, assistance, and intellectual contributions in this report.

Sameer Hasan, Business Director, Ethica Institute of Islamic Finance Muhammed Ikram Thowfeek, Chairman & Founder, First Global Group Muath Mubarak, Lecturer of Islamic Banking and Finance, First Global Academy Dr. Syed Othman Alhabshi, Professor & Chief Academic Officer, INCEIF Joy Abdullah, Head of Marketing & Communication, INCEIF

Muhammad Zubair Mughal, Chief Executive Officer, AlHuda CIBE

Almir Colan, Director, Australian Centre for Islamic Finance

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Commitment

Islamic Economics & Finance

Focus

Education

Strength

Research and Marketing

Second Nature

Creativity

Appendix: List of Institutions (Academic)

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Appendix: List of Institutions (Non-Academic)

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