The Readiness of Small and Medium Enterprises for the Industrial Revolution 4.0

Abstract

Objective - The Industrial Revolution 4.0 has penetrated across the industrial world. It promotes innovation in organizing and controlling the entire value chain life cycle. The Industrial Revolution 4.0 not only brings convenience, but it also acts as a new trend toward smart technology. With this smart technology, production times are shortened, productivity is doubled, efficiency is increased, and income is also improved. The Industrial Revolution 4.0 is being emphasized among Malaysian SMEs. This is because SMEs constitute 98.5% of the business community in Malaysia. However, although the Industrial Revolution 4.0 is gaining popularity, SMEs remain relatively unaware on it. This has cast doubt on the readiness of Malaysian SMEs for the Industrial Revolution. Is the readiness of industrial revolution 4.0 reach the satisfaction level among Malaysian SMEs? Therefore, the purpose of this study is to assess the level of readiness of Malaysian SMEs for the Industrial Revolution 4.0. In addition, the study will also propose strategies to improve the readiness of SMEs in Malaysia for the Industrial Revolution 4.0. Methodology/Technique – Various papers and current information was accessed to determine the readiness of Malaysia for the Industrial Revolution 4.0 and strategies that can be employed to enable SMEs to adopt the new era of industrial revolution. Findings- From the findings it was concluded that Malaysian SMEs remain unprepared for the Industrial Revolution 4.0. Novelty - This paper proposed important strategies to assist SMEs and employees to adapt to the Industrial Revolution 4.0. Type of Paper: Review Keywords: Readiness; Strategies; Small and Medium Enterprises; Industrial Revolution 4.0; Malaysia. Reference to this paper should be made as follows: Teh, S. S; Kee D.M.H. 2019. The Readiness of Small and Medium Enterprises for the Industrial Revolution 4.0, Global J. Bus. Soc. Sci. Review 7(4): 217 – 223. https://doi.org/10.35609/gjbssr.2019.7.4(2) JEL Classification: M20, M13, M19.