In January this year, we launched this column by a mystery columnist who only wanted to be known as “42”. We described him as “a brain-drained Malaysian who left the country at the age of 16”, and as someone who “has returned and looks forward to a better-led country, economically and socially”. Each of 42’s columns began with a question — the first being “Can we regain our competitive edge?” to last month’s “So, now how?” In this concluding piece, 42 reveals himself and shares his thoughts on the column, Malaysia’s potential and what he hopes the column achieved with editor-in-chief Dorothy Teoh.

From feedback and letters received, your column — despite the author being anonymous — seemed to have struck a chord with readers. Let me start with the question on many readers’ minds: ‘Who is 42?’
I’d like your readers to think of 42 as themselves. I’d like to believe that I have helped put in writing many of the questions, concerns and thoughts they themselves harbour. For that reason, I chose to keep 42 anonymous because I believe the identity of the writer can get in the way of real understanding especially when dealing with complex issues. It’s kind of like wine appreciation. The same wine is deemed to be better when one knows the label. That’s why the wine industry swears by blind tasting as the ultimate source of truth. When I started this column, I was interested only in getting the readers to read the message and not the messenger. The former is the important thing here.

We’ll pick up on the identity question later. Let’s talk about the intriguing choice of a pseudonym: What is 42?
I read almost anything. From the range of historical works to light inane novels, every once in a while I find one of those exquisitely enjoyable moment when the two ends meet, where insights are buried amongst the inane.

Douglas Adams’ The Hitch Hiker’s Guide To The Galaxy will hardly rank amongst the classics but behind its comic absurdity lies a deep understanding of humanity. In the first book of this series, a super computer had figured out the ultimate answer to Life, the Universe and Everything. And yes, you guessed it: the answer is 42. That’s all the inspiration I needed. The rest of his books dealt (comically) with figuring out what the ultimate question was that yielded this simple but supposedly profound answer. I liked that construct, and that’s why the column is always headlined with a question.

You did give voice to many Malaysians who share your concerns. What do you hope to achieve by asking these questions?
Malaysians love to talk about politics. From people in five-star hotel lobbies to streetside mamak stalls, the key topic is always about how the country is being run (and who’s running who!). But too much of this chatter verges on sensationalism. So, the first thing I wanted to do is to frame the discussion that little bit more objectively. 

I must confess though that when I first started this column, my writing was more circumspect. After all, as Robert Kennedy once said, ‘it is more comfortable to sit content in the easy approval of friends and neighbours than to risk the friction and controversy that comes with public affairs. It is easier to fall in step with the slogans of others than to march to the beat of the internal drummer. And it is far easier to accept and stand on the past, than to fight for the answers of the future.’

Nevertheless, as the year progressed, I could see a group of leaders emerging — leaders who have the courage to question the past and forge a better future. I couldn’t let this strategic opportunity pass of helping to nudge Malaysians onto the same path of progress.

Do you think you have achieved those objectives?
I don’t really know… I think my voice has helped to add a semblance of objectivity to the often partial commentaries out there. That said, the objectives of this column are unimportant in the larger scheme of things. The ultimate objective is the victory of this country living up to its tremendous potential.

What do you think is the potential of Malaysia?
In a word, huge. I can think of very few countries blessed with what we have: good weather all year round, a strategic geographic position in the fastest growing part of the world full of people of the biggest cultures of Asia and, not to mention, being endowed with natural resources that fuel the world’s growth.

By way of comparison, we should be as large as either Australia or Canada, two former British colonies and countries with facility with the world’s lingua franca, English, and which are similarly endowed with resources that are shared by a 25 million-strong population. But our GDP is merely a third of Australia’s and less than a quarter of Canada’s.

As I’ve said before, we’ve done ourselves a great disservice by failing to fully develop our most valuable resource — our human capital — to the fullest. At one end, we give them easy rewards and at the other, we allow our best to leave and create wealth for others. We need to address this, and only then can we live up to this huge potential.

Guiseppe Garibaldi, perhaps Italy’s greatest military and political leader, wisely encapsulated this two centuries ago when he said, ‘I do not promise you ease. I do not promise you comfort. But I do promise you these: hardship, weariness and suffering. And with them, I promise you victory!’.  We need to make sure our policies do not run contrary to these fundamental truths.

You have written about ‘unshackling ourselves from the past’. Are you referring to a dismantling of the New Economic Policy?
Because there is so much noise around this, Malaysians at large, and readers of The Edge included, tend to associate any mention of the term ‘policy’ with the New Economic Policy. However, my perspectives are far wider than that. NEP is but one of many policies we have. We live in a constantly changing and increasingly competitive world; no policy can stay correct all the time. Past policies must be re-examined in the light of new realities.

NEP should not be singled out as the scapegoat here. All policies need to be improved.

But if I am to understand the deeper purpose of your question, and that you would like me to name a single policy that can make the most impact, then I’d say we need to fundamentally rethink our entire human capital development policy — from education to immigration to employment.  

Do you think Malaysians are moving in the right direction?
From the feedback both you at The Edge and I as the author have received, I’d say yes. The ideas have struck a chord. Not that there are no dissenting voices. Indeed, of the feedback I got, I particularly like vitriolic responses from those who don’t agree. I don’t believe in absolute truths, and always feel that every position benefits from fuller discourse to round it out.

There was one reader who wrote and expressed his dismay that he felt I ‘talked up’ an underperforming government by drawing comparisons with countries behind us. I had the opportunity to build on his reaction and in my subsequent article, I expanded on my thoughts. His opposition helped the idea become more complete. However, I would like to caution that we cannot debate an issue ad infinitum. It must land somewhere and we must move on — put the solution into plan and organise to get it done.

I should add that in my line of work, I have learned that putting things into plan is easier than getting it done. Having formulated the plan, and tasked with helping make it happen, I often had to bolster the confidence of my clients who when challenged by the enormity of the task, seek to slow down roll-out, scale back ambitions. We all know that big differentiated results can only come from doing things others could not.

I had used the metaphor of Tarzan to explain the mechanics of executing a transformational programme. The fastest way to move through a dense forest with thick undergrowth is to find a clear path through the air, swinging on vines. Vine-swinging is scary: in order to propel himself forward, Tarzan had to let go of the old vine, be suspended momentarily with nothing to hold on to and reach out to the new one which is tethered on a tree further forward that will enable him to swing still further.

In executing breakthrough business models, I recognised that it was not comfortable for many executives to let go, get suspended and to reach out. But those who did, they can now look back at the results and know that at the critical point when the path ahead looked fraught with dangers and difficulties, they ventured on and are now reaping the just rewards.

You’ve hinted at what you do. Could you enlighten us some more?
‘42’ is Vincent Chin. I lead BCG in Malaysia and the Financial Institution Practice across Southeast Asia. In that role, I’ve seen mediocre organisations become better and good companies become great. In fact, I understand what it took, and if I were to generalise and distill that into precepts it’d be this:
1.    The courage to take an honest, open-minded assessment of the real problems;
2.     The intellect to formulate the right answer, balancing analytics and pragmatism;
3.     The ability of the senior team to lead the organisation from the front through the implementation;
4.    The fortitude to stay on course despite the dangers and difficulties knowing the plan has been well-thought through; and
5.     The consistent acknowledgment and celebration of successes for all along the way.

That’s a high five! I’ve seen companies do it, local, regional and global. It is often harder for good companies to be great. But the very greatest clients I have had the honour of working with are always telling me that they feel they are not good enough: that they can be better, much better.

They are always looking for new ideas, new challenges. This is the seed upon which the High Five cycle above is grown on! Malaysians have had the good fortune of being in a well-endowed country. We cannot rest on our laurels. I know our country can be great.

What’s next for you, Vincent?
Over this past year, I hope to have helped shift the debate (at least intellectually) to what’s essential, what’s insightful and ultimately what’s impactful. Going forward, I’d like to concentrate on helping companies and country realise their future.

One more question in closing: What is the ultimate question to Life, the Universe and Everything to which 42 is the ultimate answer?
In the final book of the series, a man who knows all that is true confirms that ‘42’ is indeed The Ultimate Answer, but added that it is impossible for both The Ultimate Answer and The Ultimate Question to be known in the same universe. So Douglas Adams never provided an answer.

Mathematicians have pointed out that the binary notation 101010 in base 10 is 42.

My own take is more human, more mortal. 42 is about half a healthy human’s life expectancy nowadays, and about double the legal adult age. It is a very wholesome junction in one’s life. A good ultimate question would be: ‘At what age should one really start to live for the betterment of the world around oneself?’ If all 42 year-olds and above ascribed to this in their lives, each time they stand up for an ideal, or act to improve the lot of others, a ripple of hope is sent forth, and combined with the millions of other ripples of hope, I have no doubt we will be a great nation, a great world.

Thank you, Vincent, and we wish you all the best.

With this, Vincent Chin will conclude his 42 column. He will return occasionally next year to comment on the latest developments in management and leadership.

This article appeared in Management@work, the monthly management pullout of The Edge Malaysia, Issue 835, Dec 6-12, 2010