As organisations across Malaysia and ASEAN compete fiercely to attract and retain top talent, traditional compensation practices are under scrutiny. Salary history, a long-standing anchor in compensation decisions, is increasingly viewed as outdated and counterproductive.

It’s not a hiring issue. It’s not always a training gap. More often than not, it’s a disconnect between what we say people should be good at, and what we expect them to actually do in their roles. Yet, for many businesses, competency remains an abstract concept. It’s referenced in leadership pipelines, talent reviews, and performance appraisals but rarely applied with clarity or consistency.