Ikutlah pemimpin yang ada kredibiliti

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Kalau melawat ke Tasik Bera

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Sukanya hati tidak terkira

Artikel disiarkan Sinar Harian

http://www.sinarharian.com.my/karya/pendapat/ikutlah-pemimpin-yang-ada-kredibiliti-1.396876

Topik berkenaan kepemimpinan dan pemimpin telah menjadi subjek yang suka ditulis oleh pengarang, ahli akademik, penyelidik, ahli politik dan lain-lain. Ramai di antara mereka bersetuju bahawa ciri utama seorang pemimpin ialah kelakuan yang baik. Kebolehan untuk memimpin adalah di tempat kedua.     

Mengikut Mark Sanborn di dalam bukunya, You Don’t Need A Title To Be A Leader ada berkata bahawa manusia itu tidak dilahirkan untuk menjadi seorang pemimpin. Malahan, insan itu kenalah belajar untuk menjadi seorang pemimpin sama ada  ia mempunyai gelaran atau pun tidak.

Mengikut definasi di dalam kamus Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary pula, pemimpin ialah seseorang yang mengetuai sekumpulan orang, khususnya ketua bagi sesebuah negara atau organisasi.

Pemimpin yang sesuai untuk diikuti ialah apabila seseorang itu mempamerkan sifat atau ciri yang elok, di antaranya ialah kredibiliti.

Kredibiliti bermaksud seseorang itu mempunyai sifat yang boleh dipercayai atau diyakini. Ia boleh juga ditafsirkan sebagai kebolehpercayaan para pengikut kepadanya.  

 

Contoh yang paling cemerlang dari segi kredibiliti ini ialah Nabi Muhammad SAW. Semasa hayatnya, baginda Rasulullah diberikan gelaran sebagai “al-Amin”, yang bermaksud orang yang dipercayai.

Apabila seseorang pemimpin hidup dengan amalan kredibiliti, ia adalah seorang yang berjaya. Beliau mempunyai sifat yang terbuka dan jujur. Dengan itu, kehidupan hariannya tidaklah berserabut, malahan beliau kurang mengelamai perasaan tekanan.

Dalam tahun 2006, Mori of United Kingdom dan Business Ethics Institute of Malaysia (BEIM) telah berganding bahu membuat satu soal selidik tentang 15 jenis pekerjaan. Responden di United Kingdom dan Malaysia mempercayai profesional berikut: Pertama ialah doktor; kedua guru dan ketiga profesor. Ahli politik diletakkan di paras bawah sekali, iaitu di tempat kelima belas.

Jika seseorang pemimpin itu menghayati sifat kredibiliti, dia mempunyai kebebasan untuk membuat sesuatu keputusan dengan bebas. Ia tidak perlu untuk memihak kepada sesuatu kumpulan. Pertimbangan hanya dibuat untuk kebaikan syarikat atau organisasi yang dipimpinnya.

Seseorang pemimpin akan diikuti di sebabkan para pengikut mempunyai rasa hormat serta percaya kepadanya, bukan sekadar di atas kebolehan memimpin yang dimilikinya.   

Ujian sebenar seseorang pemimpin ialah untuknya menoleh kebelakang. Ini bertujuan untuk melihat sama ada masih adakah lagi para penyokong yang  mengikutnya.   

16 Syaaban 1436H

 

On pilgrimage together

Assalam,

Kawan jemaah bernama Sani

Baharu pulang dari Kuantan

STAR siarkan artikel ini

Jemput baca jika berkesempatan

On pilgrimage together

It was certainly blessings from Allah that my wife and I we able to perform the Haj in 2011, ahead of schedule. My turn should have been in 2014 and my wife’s in 2016.

We wrote an appeal letter to Lembaga Tabung Haji, stating our reasons to go earlier: we had performed the umrah (some refer to this as the mini Haj) in 2006; we were physically and medically fit to undergo the Haj’s physical rituals; and we were able to finance ourselves for the duration of the Haj season. With Allah’s grace, our reasons were accepted.

Our group left Kompleks Haji Kelana Jaya on the night of Oct 29 and headed for KL International Airport (KLIA) in Sepang. 

As our destination was Makkah, all the male pilgrims were already in their ihram attire. The clothing of ihram consists of two pieces of white unsewn cloth. One is wrapped around the upper part of the body, except the the head. However, when performing the tawaf (circling the Kaabah), the right shoulder must not be covered. 

The other piece of cloth is wrapped around the lower part of the body (which is kept in place with a money belt).

The flight to Jeddah took seven hours. From there, we travelled to Makkah by bus and reached the Dar Al-Eiman Royal Hotel in Al-Safwa Towers just before 5pm. For Muslims, performing  the Haj is the fifth and the last pillar of Islam.  

We performed the umrah on the same night, led by mutawif or religious guides.  Several compulsory rituals needed to be performed. First, we had to utter our intention in our heart to perform the umrah. We did this earlier while flying over Qarnul Manazil, Saudi Arabia, two hours before touchdown.

The second ritual was to perform the tawaf umrah by circling Kaabah seven times in an anti-clockwise direction. Upon seeing the Kaabah, I said to myself: “Thank you Allah for allowing me to be your guest”. 

The other rituals were performing the sa’ie umrah at Safa and Marwah, cutting our hair (called tahallul) and reciting our intention to part from wearing the ihram. 

For several days before performing the Haj proper we dressed in normally. Pilgrims spent the time intensifying their religious activities, praying five times a day, reading the al-Quran as well as reciting the numerous doa at the Grand Mosque, Masjidil Haram. 

It was made known that a prayer done at this mosque is 100,000 times better than anywhere else. Pilgrims took every opportunity to drink the zam zam water after every prayer.

Pilgrims had to pay a token Saudi Riyal 355 (RM340) if they wanted to perform the Tamattu’ Haj. We also had to pay Saudi Riyal 430 (RM412) if we wanted to participate in what is called the qurban. This is in remembrance of the the ritual performed by Prophet Abraham on his son, Prophet Ismail. 

On Nov 5 (9 Zulhijjah in the Islamic calendar), clad in ihram attire again, our group left for Arafah, around 12.50am. We uttered our intention to perform the Haj while in the bus and also reinforced this by reciting the talbiah during the journey. 

We must be present physically, called wukuf, at Arafah as this is the first ritual activity for the Haj. Prophet Muhammad SAW had once said: “Hajj is Arafah”. In terms of timing, all the pilgrims must be at Arafah, even if it’s only for a second, between zohor (afternoon) on Nov 5 and subuh (dawn) the next day. At about 12.05pm, we started our wukuf with a sermon, followed by the zohor congregational prayer.

At Arafah, we raised our hands high and prayed to Allah for the well-being and betterment of ourselves and our daughters, Dr. Sarah (working in Newcastle, Australia) and Syazana (alone at home); family members and friends. It was during this time that tears ran down our faces.  

At Arafah, our minds were not thinking of anything else but asking for forgiveness from Allah. After the isyak (night) prayer, we left for Muzdalifah. Here, we collected enough stones for melontar or “stoning the devil” ritual activity at Jamarah in Mina. 

We reached Mina at about 4.00am on the same day. Pilgrims were required to be in Mina from Nov 6-9 for the melontar ritual.

As we planned to go back to Makkah for the night, we performed the molantar that day at Big Jamarah (Jamrah Aqaba) at about 11.50pm, followed by the cutting our hair. Since we had cut our hair, we can part with our ihram attire. We then walked towards Makkah with four other friends and reached our hotel about 70 minutes later.

The next day, we went back to Mina, riding pillion for Saudi Riyal 100 (RM96) each. We stopped at Jamarah and performed the melontar at Small Jamarah, Middle Jamarah and Big Jamarah. The rituals were repeated on the next two days. 

We left Mina for Makkah by bus in the afternoon of Nov 9. To complete the Haj rituals, we still need to perform the tawaf haji and sa’ie haji. I did this with my wife on Nov 12, after the Isyak prayers. 

After performing tawaf wada’, we left for Madinah on Dec 1. While in Madinah, we prayed at the Masjid Nabawi, including  at the Raudhah. We performed the doa in front of the magnificent tombs of Prophet Muhammad SAW, Saiyidina Abu Bakar and Saiyidina Omar. I conveyed my friends’ greetings to the Prophet SAW. 

For the next few days, the organiser brought us to visit the surrounding areas, such as Masjid Quba, Masjid Kiblatain, Bukit Uhud, Khandak and date orchard. 

Before leaving Madinah, we were required to do the wada’ (goodbye) ritual at the Masjid Nabawi. We did it during the night of Dec 9. We left the hotel for Madinah Airport at about 2.00am on Dec 10. We landed in KLIA at about 9.25pm.

The Haj is a once-in-a-lifetime experience; it is something you remember forever. “Thank you” Allah, for accepting us as your guests during the Haj.  

 The writer at a camel farm near Makkah. Camel milk tastes just like coconut water 

 The writer and his wife at Kompleks Haji Kelana Jaya before leaving for Makkah

 The freshly baked mushroom pizza with cheese is popular with pilgrims at Makkah Hilton Hotel

 While in Makkah or Madinah, savour the Nasi Arab

Main entrance to Abraj Al Bait Shopping Center in Makkah, situated right in front of the Grand Mosque Masjidil Haram

20 Rejab 1436H

Minimising project delays

Assalam,

Membaca Star di atas kerusi

Harinya pula elok cuaca

Rencana ditulis untuk dikongsi

Jika kelapangan jemputlah baca

Minimising project delays

There have been newspaper reports about projects that have been severely delayed. Among them were KLIA2 and the Shah Alam Hospital.

The former began operations on May 2, 2014 while the latter is expected to be operational in stages by the end of 2015.

These project delays can be caused by several factors including the lack of building materials, changes to the original designs, and new requirements being added to the original plan, etc.

However, in the real life situations, many projects have been delayed due to changing of main contractor after work had started.

Selecting the right main contractor is the most important factor. Once the award has been made, based on a stringent tendering process, this main contractor is responsible to undertake the project from start to finish, including handing over to the client.

The main contractor would normally engage several sub-contractors to complete the project. This is a normal scenario in the industry.

Project delays can be avoided or minimised if business-like criteria are used in the tendering process. These criteria are contained in the work process as what the industry calls contractor risk management.

It is defined as the risk of non-performance by the contractor of contract obligations.

Several elements form part and parcel of the contractor risk. These elements include but are not limited to capability; quality & HSE standard; regulatory & local content requirements; work ethics; and post award performance.

Nowadays, more and more companies are adhering to contractor risk management standards; though their framework & guidelines may differ slightly from one another.

Basically, the framework & guidelines of the contractor risk will have sub-elements such as: definition of the element; checklist; mitigation; and indicator for monitoring. It will suffice if we go through one of the most important sub-elements, i.e. capability.

  Capability

 Capability is defined as the contractor having adequate resources, experience, competencies and project execution capabilities in order to carry out the obligations of the contract. In terms of resources, it must include financial solidity, sufficient manpower, adequate equipment and abundant materials.

   Checklist

   The successful contractor selected to carry out the project from start to finish must be able to pass the risk checklist, failing which the risk of project being delayed may occur. The checklist comes in several categories. They are:

-Technical capability: construction; detailed engineering, procurement, start up and training; and project execution.

-Human resource: current workload and resources; selection of key personnel & experience; skilled manpower availability; and total man-hour estimates; and

-Financial: cash flow management; performance and bank guarantee; and currency fluctuation (if applicable).

   Mitigation: The contract must have the clause to prevent replacement of key personnel. The contractor must also be able to propose candidates for project manager, construction manager and planner or scheduler. To avoid possible project delay from happening, a comprehensive project control system must be in place.

   Indicator for monitoring: The client must always be on alert for one or more of the following indicators. It signals that something needs to be done in order to avoid possible project delay. They are:

-Progress is slow and performance is not up to the mark;

-Slow or late mobilisation of contractor’s personnel and equipment;

-Downtime is high due to breakdown of equipment;

-Shortage of labour;

-High turnover of main contractor and sub-contractor personnel;

-Litigation issues seem to happen;

-Lower credit facilities;

-Lower paid-up capital.

This capability sub-element and other sub-elements in the framework and guidelines must be properly executed and monitored so that non-performance by contractor can be avoided or minimised. Otherwise, it will certainly have an unpleasant impact on the overall project concerned.

KAMARUDDIN HASSAN

Shah Alam

(The writer was a manager with a GLC)

9 Rejab 1436H

 

Ikhlas dan Integriti

Assalam,

Bila raya pulang ke Perlis

Jauh dari Negeri Kelantan

Saya baharu belajar menulis

Jemput baca jika berkesempatan

(1) Ikhlas berusaha inspirasi tuai kejayaan [16 April 2015]

Linda R. Dominguez dalam bukunya, How To Shine At Work, ada menulis mengenai subjek keikhlasan. Beliau berkata: “Sekiranya anda ada sesuatu perkara yang hendak diperkatakan kepada orang lain, lakukan dengan berterus terang. Jangan gunakan cara  karut-marut apabila berurusan dengan mereka”.

Beliau juga menambah: “Jauhilah daripada membuat janji yang berlebihan atau menawarkan terlalu banyak komitmen. Usah membesar-besarkan perkara yang kecil, atau menggunakan cara yang kurang beretika dengan tujuan supaya orang mempercayai cakap anda”.

Dominguez juga memberikan satu nasihat yang berguna untuk kita renungkan bersama. Beliau berkata: “Bertuturlah dengan cara bersungguh-sungguh. Cara anda memperkatakan sesuatu adalah lebih penting daripada apa dilafazkan”.    

Hasil buku mengenai keikhlasan

Penulisan agak terperinci mengenai subjek keikhlasan turut dihasilkan seorang penulis Amerika yang masyhur, Napoleon Hill. Nama beliau memang tidak asing lagi bagi mereka yang suka membaca buku motivasi.

Dalam bukunya, A Year Of Growing Rich, keikhlasan adalah antara bab yang menarik untuk diperkatakan.

Beberapa tahun sebelum meletusnya Perang Dunia Kedua, seorang gadis remaja bernama Martha McChesney Berry menubuhkan sebuah sekolah untuk kanak-kanak di kawasan pergunungan Lavender Mountain di sebelah utara Georgia, sebuah negeri di Amerika Syarikat.  Kanak-kanak lelaki dan perempuan ini dipilih daripada keluarga kurang berkemampuan yang mana ibu bapa mereka tidak berdaya untuk membayar yuran bulanan.

Martha menghadapai sedikit kepayahan dari segi kewangan untuk mentadbir sekolahnya pada peringkat awal. Beliau berusaha berjumpa dengan seorang ahli perniagaan yang juga pembuat kereta yang terkenal, Henry Ford untuk memohon sedikit bantuan.

Dalam sesi pertemuan dengan Ford, Martha menerangkan apa yang beliau telah dan sedang lakukan di sekolahnya. Dengan rasa rendah hati, beliau meminta sedikit derma, tetapi Henry Ford enggan memberi. Walaupun gugup dengan penolakan itu, Martha masih memberanikan diri, sambil berkata: “Baiklah tuan. Jika begitu, bolehkah tuan memberikan sebusyel kacang tanah kepada kami?”. Busyel ialah unit ukuran untuk biji-bijian, kira-kira lapan gelen.      

Permintaan yang aneh itu menyukakan hati Ford dan beliau memberikan sedikit wang kepada gadis itu untuk membeli kacang tanah. Martha dan pelajarnya menanam kacang tanah berkenaan dan hasilnya dijual di pasar. Pendapatan dari jualan itu amatlah lumayan sehingga mereka dapat mengumpul sejumlah wang yang agak banyak.  

Beberapa ketika selepas itu, Martha sekali lagi berjumpa Ford dengan tujuan memulangkan kembali wang yang iberikan dahulu. Katanya: “Tuan Ford, kami sudah menggunakan duit yang tuan dermakan dahulu dan berusaha menanam kacang tanah dengan pendapatan yang agak lumayan. Kami sekarang sudah agak selesa dan boleh berdikari”.

Beliau menambah, “Kami ingin memulangkan duit yang tuan dermakan dahulu”.

Ford kagum sifat positif gadis

Ford begitu kagum sekali dengan sikap positif gadis berkenaan.  Diceritakan bahawa Ford memberikan sumbangan dalam bentuk traktor dan lain-lain perkakas perladangan untuk membantu sekolah berkenaan mengusahakan ladang kacang tanah dengan lebih teratur dan efisien.

Dalam tahun-tahun yang berikutnya, Ford memberikan wang melebihi USD1 juta (kira-kira RM3.6 juta) untuk membina bangunan sekolah yang baharu. Ford berkata: “Saya begitu kagum dengan keikhlasan gadis berkenaan serta cara yang digunanya begitu menakjubkan sekali untuk membantu para pelajar lelaki dan perempuan.”   

Martha tidak berhenti berusaha dalam meningkatkan pelajaran untuk kanak-kanak yang kurang berkemampuan . Dari sebuah sekolah yang kecil ia kini telah menjadi kolej - Berry College yang mana kampusnya terletak di pekan Rome, Georgia. Di hadapan pintu masuk utama kampusnya, ada papan tanda yang tertulis Berry College Gate of Opportunity.   

Dari cerita ini, sememangnyalah sesuatu kejayaan boleh dicapai jika seseorang itu membuat apa juga kerja dengan hati yang ikhlas untuk membantu orang lain.

Kamaruddin Hassan

Bekas pengurus sebuah GLC,

Shah Alam

(2) Contohi pemimpin berintegriti [16 April 2015]

 26 Jamadilakhir 1436H