Monthly Business Breakfast

Hong Kong, June 13, 2013

CHALLENGES FOR THE NEW GENERATIONS OF YOUNG PROFESSIONALS IN CHINA AN LATIN AMERICA

Speaker:

WONG Wa Sun Thomas

Founding Partner CWCC Certied Public Accountants

With a marvellous assistance, this June 13th took place the Monthly Business Breakfast organized by MEXCHAM. This time, the principal speaker was Thomas Wong who spoke about the challenges of the education in China and Latin America. Thomas Wong is founding partner of CWCC and ViceChairman of The America's Commites of The The Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce. In the conference were present, o cials of the General Consulate of Mexico in Hong Kong as well as Vanessa Moriel, Managing Director Asia Pacic and Global Practice Team Leader Automotive and AIMS Board Member Asia at AIMS International - Asia. The following is the transcription of Mr. Wongs speech unlimited possibilities to the c o m p a n y. T h e r e f o r e , y o u n g professionals and graduates play important roles in a company and are always vital to a societys well-being and growth. Since the founding of the Latin Desk, I have been dedicated to cultivate new team members. My colleagues are very talented, hard-working, smart and ecient. I am sure that they will be the future of our Latin Desk as well as our society. It has always been my wish to shape the Latin Desk into an academy for young workers. We provide them with training, opportunities, and bring out the best in them.

Challenges and Hope

The Starring Rol of Young Professionals

Good mor ning consulates, ocials and colleagues. First and foremost, thank you for joining me in this breakfast meeting. Every business needs a successor. Every organization needs new blood when the predecessor leaves in order to keep everything moving on. By pumping in new, young and talented professionals, not only can the business be kept in continuity, these individuals will also bring in vitality, inspiration, cultural impact and

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Monthly Business Breakfast

Hong Kong, June 13, 2013

Following, I will be addressing the current situation of young professionals in Mexico and China, the challenges these youngsters encounter, how education can be the solution to these problems and last but not least, the moral commitments that we, the entrepreneurs can make in helping to create a new generation of skillful young professionals. First, allow me to give you some insight on the status quo in China. According to statistics, the percentage of young people in higher education in China is around 6% in 2 0 1 1 , o r m o re s p e c i c a l l y, a population of around 82 million. There were 6.3 million university graduates in 2010, 6.6 million in 2011 and 6.8 million in 2012. It is expected that by the end of 2013, we will see a record high of 7 million graduates. However, due to the relatively slow follow-up of job vacancies, the everrising amount of university graduates poses a threat to the job market. Are there enough job vacancies to absorb 7 million fresh graduates this summer? What about in the subsequent years? Statistics have also shown that in recent years, the unemployment rate of new graduates is around 10%, which is relatively high as compared to the urban unemployment rate of 4%. These gures bring out the concern of the current unemployment situation faced by the young professionals in China. Mexico encounters an analogous situation as that of China,
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The population of university graduates is around 25-30% in Latin America, and this is equivalent to around 150 million people. Several countries like Chile and Argentina have attained percentages greater than 35%. Mexicos remarkable educational eort produces 115,000 engineers each year. These gures highlight the capability of Latin American countries to produce a decent number of university graduates; perhaps, more than enough for their domestic demand for these graduates. It is indeed worrying that there is nowhere to accommodate all the talent. Clearly, if we do not address and tackle the situation, this phenomenon will persist and cause unemployment, human resources misallocation, and eventually aect the economic wellbeing in both China and Mexico. The problem that lies within Chinese graduates unemployment condition is a structural one. Most Chinese graduates receive similarly negative feedback from job interviewers they lack critical thinking skills, foreign language competency and even the understanding of standard o ce protocols. They do not possess the social network and work experience crucial to succeeding in a business environment. It can be concluded that the knowledge they have learnt do not articulate well with the skills required to acquire a job.

6% OF YOUNG PEOPLE IN CHINA IS IN HIGHER EDUCATION

around 82 million people

By the end of 2013, we will see a record high of 7 million graduates.

The population of university graduates is around 25-30% in Latin America, and this is equivalent to around 150 million people.

Mexicos remarkable educational effort produces 115,000 engineers each year.

The problem that lies within Chinese graduates unemployment condition is a structural one.

Monthly Business Breakfast

Hong Kong, June 13, 2013

sophisticates to join the education force from companies so as to enhance the quality of the education. Hiring professors with work experience would be an ideal choice. H o w e v e r, t h e b a s i c p a y o f a professor is very low, typically under 2500RMB per month. While we understand that business and economic growth are important; education is by no means a minor issue. As a conscientious corporation, we are willing to share our expertise with university students so as to assist universities to provide quality education, thus alleviate the current unemployment issue. In targeting the aforementioned challenge encountered specically by Mexico graduates, CWCC is welcoming towards young professionals of all nationalities. Its Latin American and Spanish business advisory desk o ers a friendly environment for young professionals from countries including Mexico and Brazil. Young professionals from Latin America will learn, excel in an environment that they feel at ease in. All in all, business rms undeniably have the obligation to tackle the imminent unemployment problems of graduates in China and Mexico. CWCC is committed to take up the corporate social responsibility and invest in education. We can oer graduates from China and Mexico with opportunities, provide youngsters with hands-on experience and fundamental workplace skills and ultimately lead young professionals onto the path of success in their future careers. Thank you.

merely education through academic institutions but more importantly, to equip youngsters with the This is where professional rms like the CWCC can step in and take up the collective responsibility to nurture a Yo u n g p r o f e s s i o n a l s f r o m Mexico encounter challenges as well. Given the inadequate job vacancies in their respective domestic Latin American countries and a relatively better economic prospect in foreign markets, young Latin American professionals turn to job opportunities overseas. These graduates seek opportunities in dierent regions such as US and Europe, or in overseas branches of Latin American corporations. In recent years, China has become a popular alternative. When Latin American graduates choose to leave their hometown to seek for jobs, they will have to adapt to a foreign environment. Unfamiliar places, language barriers, cultural dierences are merely some of the barriers these young graduates encounter. An in-depth research provides more for us. Research indicates that 15%-30% of the executives sent abroad by Latin American corporations are not able to achieve their goals. 30% of the managers leave the company after they return to their home country. A more common phenomenon is that the job fails to suit the newcomer, or that the member is unable to pass the probation period. Another problem is that many Latin American corporations do not consider the large dierence in the cost of living between two countries, rendering the compensation insucient. What should be done to x the problem? The key is education. Not
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skillful workforce. Targeting the passing on of essential workplace skills to graduates, a straight forward method is to align the graduates knowledge with the specic skills that the jobs require. In other words, universities should commit to skill training with the help of business rms, instead of just blackboard and lecture teaching. Many companies value specic skills rather than knowledge. By engaging i n s k i l l s t r a i n i n g p ro v i d e d b y corporations, graduates will acquire useful experience that will suit the job position they apply for, hence greatly improve their competitiveness among candidates. Throughout the course, students should be taught the specic skills in related subjects. This will alleviate the problem of the mismatch between skills learnt by young professionals and the requirements of the real business world. Regarding the curriculum, another way is to strengthen the relation between institutions and employers. Apart from placement, internship, job shadowing and mentoring, we, the employers can provide universities with suggestions in curriculum planning, in order to ensure that graduates have learnt the skills that will be applicable in their future careers. This collaboration with business rms will allow universities to keep up with the latest graduate employment market condition. From the perspective of professors, the third way to solve the problem is to attract talents and