SERASA, Wednesday 16 January 2013 – With the advent of the new year, new resolutions are being made. That is exactly what took place during the first Strategy Management Group (SMG) Retreat of the year 2013 which aimed to kickstart the new year by addressing the goals and objectives for the organization.

The retreat was held at the Watermanship Center at Serasa, organized by the Office of Strategy Management (OSM). It was a continuation from the previous SMG Retreat that was held in the BRIDEX Hall in Jerudong. The retreat was also intended to strengthen friendship and cooperation amongst the SMG members in order to undertake the challenges ahead with a renewed sense of teamwork and vigor.

The Strategy Management Group (SMG) is led by Dato Paduka Haji Mustappa bin Haji Sirat, Deputy Minister of Defence. In attendance were the Defence Executive Committee, Service Commanders, Commandant of Training Institute, Directors and other respective stakeholders.

The Deputy Minister highlighted that in order for the whole organization to perform successfully, there needs to be a focus in the strategic direction that the organization wants to undergo. Hence, in order to ensure that a strategic direction is set, priority has to be given to certain objectives in accordance to those listed in the Defence Strategic Plan 2012 and the performances for these selected objectives have to be measured accurately. The task is understandably an arduous one but with all the stakeholders’ input, feedback and most importantly, commitment, the outcomes and goals can be achieved. This will set the foundation within the Ministry of Defence and the Royal Brunei Armed Forces in achieving the Security Strategy of Brunei’s Vision 2035.  

The retreat ended with an overall agreement by the stakeholders to proceed forward with the current objectives as discussed in the meeting, albeit with room for refinement. With the current efforts targeted to streamline and prioritize the objectives, it will create the stage for a dialogue between the stakeholders to measure the progress of the objectives through key performance indicators which will be discussed in the next SMG meeting.