In an era where universities across the world are grappling with questions of relevance, employability and industry integration, few educationists have attempted to fundamentally redesign the university model itself. Tan Sri Datuk Professor Joseph Adaikalam, Founder and Executive Chairman of Binary University, Malaysia, is among those rare institution builders who have spent four decades reimagining how universities should function in a rapidly changing global economy.

From introducing the Industry Specialist Professional (ISP) model in the 1980s to building deep partnerships with multinational corporations, and from creating a global entrepreneurial ecosystem to launching highly specialised premium postgraduate programmes, Tan Sri Joseph’s work has consistently focused on one central idea: universities must produce industry-ready talent, not just academically qualified graduates.

Binary University has long emphasised the integration of industry and academia through the ISP model. What inspired you to develop this approach, and how has it evolved into ISP 9.0?

When we started Binary in 1984, there were fewer than ten private institutions in Malaysia. We positioned ourselves as a specialist college for Business and IT because we believed that no college could be the best in everything. But by the late 1980s, many institutions began copying this specialist model, so we realised we needed a completely different strategy to stand out.

That was when we developed the Industry Specialist Professional model. The main difference was that we decided to serve two customers: students and employers. Employers became central to curriculum development and to enhancing the student experience. All our specialisations became industry-specific, which differentiated our graduates from others.

This model attracted world-class IT companies such as Sun Microsystems, IBM, Oracle, SAP, Lotus and Microsoft. We invested heavily in industry-standard laboratories so that students could train on real platforms used by industry. We began producing what we called “just-in-time graduates” for employers.

Over time, the model evolved from ISP 1.0 to ISP 9.0. Today ISP 9.0 includes World is Our Campus (WOCA), Learning in Industry (LII), and the Binary Talent Internship (BTI) Network. These are all part of our strategy to produce extraordinary talents rather than just graduates.

You often say that “the world is our campus.” How does this work in practice?

We believe that no university can be the best in everything. To provide the best experience to our students, we must expose them to other universities that offer new technologies, cultural experiences and career opportunities.

Through the “World is Our Campus” concept, Binary students have the opportunity to participate in study abroad programmes at world-class universities. This gives them global exposure and prepares them for international careers.

Education today must be global. If we want to produce global talents, we must give students global exposure and international learning experiences.