Entrepreneurship in the Fourth Industry Revolution era

The WEF ASEAN 2018 is themed “ASEAN 4.0: Entrepreneurship and the Fourth Industrial Revolution”. This is a practical content, closely linked with ASEAN’s 2018 theme of “Building a self-reliant and innovative ASEAN Community”, serving the long-term interests of the governments, businesses and people in each country and the whole region.

The increasingly shaping and developing Fourth Industrial Revolution (Industry 4.0), together with the process of integration and globalisation, have opened up new opportunities, while eroding many old advantages and posing multiple challenges to every nation and company, especially in grasping new technological achievements, adjusting the direction and mechanism of managing economic development, training highly qualified labourers and creating new jobs, and ensuring social security.

The new opportunities and challenges in the context of Industry 4.0 require the promotion of entrepreneurship, which is the courage, determination and will to enrich oneself and the community in an organised fashion, in line with national and international law, self-esteem, self-respect, and national pride, while upholding social responsibilities. It is also the proactivity and flexibility to effectively respond to market and policy fluctuations; to build and consolidate community cohesion, and develop national and international value links and supply chains; and to harmoniously handle interests and cultural differences in business, meeting the requirements of sustainable development both within the country and in the region.

Notably, the entrepreneurship is clearly demonstrated in the dare to think, smart investment, the improvement of productivity and quality, and the reduction of product prices on the basis of respecting talented people, enhancing innovation capabilities, and applying advanced technologies, production equipment and corporate governance. The entrepreneurship not only requires the proactivity, self-consciousness and self-reliance of the community and each individual business, but also needs to be fostered, honoured, shared, and supported by the whole political system and society. The Government should focus on creating a favourable environment for enterprises to develop, utilising the satisfaction of companies and people as a measure of efficiency. It is also necessary for the Government to renovate national education and vocational training in the direction of being smart and leapfrogging, aiming to ensure labourers are equipped with the skills and qualities needed to integrate and re-integrate into the social labour market. In addition, attention should be paid to developing the technology markets, infrastructure and business support services, while investing in the development of research and invention, while facilitating the commercialisation of business ideas and innovations, so that the spirit of openness, enthusiasm and trust of businesses, investors, and the people spread widely in the Vietnamese society and market.

Promoting entrepreneurship in the context of Industry 4.0 is to accelerate the process of construction and innovation in terms of technology, ideas and policies; bring into play the advantages and take advantage of opportunities; adapt to new challenges; bravely choose new directions and effectively exploit new motivations; and unceasingly improve oneself to become “smart businesses” of a “smart nation”, on the path of building a strong Vietnam with wealthy people and a democratic, equal and civilised society, thereby contributing to building a self-reliant, innovative, increasingly strong and prosperous ASEAN economic-business community – an attractive and potential partner of global firms.