Private sector: Competent persons not interested in public-sector entities: adviser to PM

ISLAMABAD: Mohammad Ali, adviser to the prime minister on privatisation has said that competent people from private sector are not keen to work in public sector organisations because it is quite easy to damage their reputation on fictitious charges and apart from other reasons it is one of the major factors which is causing brain drain from the country.

He said this at a book launch ceremony of “Reputation Management and Crisis Communication: A Study of the Corporate Sector” authored by communication expert Imran Ghazna viheld on Tuesday at the National Skills University.

He lauded the relevance of the subject in today’s hyper-connected and reputation-sensitive world.

“Reputation is highly crucial for any organisation, business, or individual. It has to be taken care of from the top,” he stated.

He recommended the creation of dedicated board-level committees on reputational risk and stressed the need for leadership training in crisis communication.

“In Pakistan its quite easy to defame someone by framing baseless and flimsy charges and even if you won defamation case against the accused it is very difficult to put him behind the bars because there is no such culture or precedence,” he remarked.

The ceremony commenced with a welcome address by Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Muhammad Mukhtar, followed by insightful remarks and reviews from prominent figures.

Dr Vaqar Ahmed, renowned economist and public policy expert, delivered the book review, emphasising the book’s relevance for C-suite executives and corporate strategists navigating today’s volatile communication landscape.

Joining via Zoom, Prof Dr Zafaruddin Ahmed, president of the Academy for Global Business Advancement (AGBA), USA, hailed the publication as a landmark achievement by a Pakistani author.

Similarly, Dr Javaid Laghari, former chairman of the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan, praised the book as a “must-have” addition to business and communication curricula, particularly within the South Asian context.

In his reflections, Imran Ghaznavi highlighted that the book is the result of years of research, personal experiences, and professional engagement in the corporate and regulatory domains. “In an age where one tweet or misstep can collapse the credibility of an organisation or a nation, managing reputation is not optional it is strategic,” he remarked.

Shahzad Ahmed Malik, president Institute of Cost and Management Accounts of Pakistan (ICMAP) delivered the remarks as to why corporate reputation is crucial for boards and reiterated to include the subject in directors training programmes. Dr Syed Hafeez Ahmed, professor at NSU concluded the event with a vote of thanks.

The event attracted a distinguished audience comprising senior bureaucrats, ambassadors, corporate leaders, regulators, academicians, and media professionals.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025