International High Achievers Battle It Out
Final Stage of the Maybank GO Ahead. Challenge 2013 Kicks Off in Kuala Lumpur
KUALA LUMPUR, 26th August 2013: The Grand Finals of the nation’s most prestigious business apprenticeship competition, the Maybank GO Ahead. Challenge, began today at Maybank’s headquarters in Kuala Lumpur. 54 finalists from ten countries across the world have converged in Malaysia to battle it out for the prize fund of US$72,000 and the chance to join the sought-after Global Maybank Apprentice Programme.
The finalists were unveiled by Maybank PCEO, Datuk Abdul Farid Alias, who cut the ribbon to reveal a huge Perspex box containing the excited candidates. The eager participants quickly raced off to begin the first challenge of the 5-day event; designing and constructing a product which they will later be tasked to sell to the public in shopping malls across Kuala Lumpur.
Maybank has developed the GO Ahead. Challenge as an initiative to create a talent pool of world-class future business leaders and competent financial experts for the region. It represents an innovative and distinctive manner of talent procurement which helps the bank to identify and nurture the most promising candidates for future managerial positions.
The participants will be put through a series of challenges throughout the Grand Finals; from trading, negotiation and sales, to working in a children’s home and even a group dance session. These challenges have been designed to emulate the entire process of bringing a product to market, from designing the prototype, pitching for investment, creating a marketing strategy, and identifying suitable locations to sell the finished product to the public. To test their ability to solve problems and operate in high-pressure environments, the challenge organisers have placed ‘roadblocks’ in their path – unexpected surprises which aim to throw them off course.
Rather than selecting the crème de la crème from top institutions based solely on their academic achievements, the GO Ahead. Challenge strives to see how the participants perform
in a real working environment. The GO Ahead. Challenge is designed to stretch the participants’ creative, imaginative, and intellectual skills; as well as their ability to perform in teams comprising of many different nationalities.
At the end of the five days the winning team will be revealed, based on its combined performance in challenges throughout the challenge, and will be awarded the US$30,000 grand prize. Additional prizes for first and second runners up value US$20,000 and US$10,000 respectively, with the balance going as consolation prizes.
The Maybank GO Ahead. Challenge is open to final-year university students and recent graduates with solid academic records. The inaugural Maybank GO Ahead. Challenge was held in 2012, and this year the search has been expanded to meet exceptional demand, with more than 5,000 applications from across the world. This year, the United Kingdom, China, Thailand, and Cambodia joined Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Vietnam, and the Philippines in sending candidates to the final in Kuala Lumpur, reflecting the global reach of the bank. Additional countries this year included the United Kingdom, China, and Thailand.
Aside from the prize fund available to the winning participants and runners up, the finalists each stand the chance to join the Global Maybank Apprentice Programme, an exclusive two-year holistic learning programme aimed at creating the future generation of leaders in the industry. Specially designed to accelerate its participants into managerial roles, it offers apprentices a breadth of experience across Maybank’s network through customised on-the-job-rotations, dedicated mentorship, and familiarisation with Maybank’s operations across different markets and departments.
Catch some of the best highlights of the whole GO Ahead. Challenge at www.goaheadchallenge.com