A job fair in Binh Duong. (Photo: VNA)HCM City (VNS/VNA) -The country’s shift towards a globalised economy will be driven by the strengthof its workforce, according to company Michael Page Vietnam specialising insearch for professionals at middle management to leadership levels.
Tamara Boonstra, its director,said: “Companies are grooming Vietnamese employees to step up to seniorleadership positions.”
Senior professionals with theright mix of expertise and experience in strategic thinking, digital media andbusiness intelligence would be in demand and able to command the bestcompensation, she said.
“They will ultimately be able toaccelerate their career while making significant contributions to businesses inVietnam.”
Multinationals and fast-growinglocal conglomerates and start-ups were specifically seeking senior leaders andchief executives with the right mix of insights and innovative business skills,she said.
“In this market, Vietnameselanguage and cultural knowledge is essential. Local Vietnamese professionalsare attractive to employers because they understand consumer behaviour andrelevant strategies best.”
Tran Xuan Thuy, head of seller operationat Lazada and country manager at Alibaba Vietnam, concurred with Boonstra,saying multinationals do want to recruit local employees for key positions,“But in Vietnam, they cannot.”
He, and others attending around-table conference on how to build the capacities of senior executives inHCM City on November 6, listed some of the problems faced by companies inhiring Vietnamese for senior executive positions.
Lazada and Alibaba Vietnam areexamples of this inability to find local executives, he said, explaining"the number of professionals with expertise in the digital sector is nothigh, and what there are often cannot communicate well in English".
Thus, companies had to hire topexecutives from other countries and train local employees, he said.
Dinh Kim Nhung, head of humancapital at Masan Group, said: “It is more difficult for Vietnamese companies torecruit locals for senior leadership positions.”
Seeking and developing them was aheadache that had existed for a long time, she said.
Vietnamese executives "arenot open” to listening to advice from other people to improve their company’soperations, she claimed.
"They often think themethods they used to achieve success at former companies could be replicated attheir new places, whereas every company has a different environment," shesaid.
“It is important that they shouldadapt to the working environment to help increase value for their company.”
Her company uses a strategy of“buy, build, and borrow”, meaning they use jobs companies to find the candidatesthey need, develop their employees to become future leaders and also hire andtrain students and hire experts from other countries to train their employeesfor one or two years.
According to Michael PageVietnam, local professionals who secure a job move can command a 15-20 percentsalary increase.
The intense competition fortalent has created such strong demand in the market that top candidates oftenget multiple job offers.
Employers have to offer careerprogression opportunities and attractive salaries and streamline theirrecruitment process to secure the highly qualified professionals.
Boonstra said companies shouldoffer learning and growth opportunities to retain talent and think outside ofthe traditional profile to identify talent.
They should make plans for thenext generation of leaders and how to prepare them now, she said.
According to her company, the keyfor local professionals is to develop themselves in areas where there are skillshortages.
A majority of hiringopportunities are available in Vietnam’s fastest growing industries likeproperty, digital/fintech, manufacturing, and fast moving consumer goods.
The top four recruitment demandsare for operational managers for procurement and supply chains, human resourcebusiness partners, business controllers in the finance sector, and head ofbusiness intelligence in the digital sector.-VNS/VNA
Tamara Boonstra, its director,said: “Companies are grooming Vietnamese employees to step up to seniorleadership positions.”
Senior professionals with theright mix of expertise and experience in strategic thinking, digital media andbusiness intelligence would be in demand and able to command the bestcompensation, she said.
“They will ultimately be able toaccelerate their career while making significant contributions to businesses inVietnam.”
Multinationals and fast-growinglocal conglomerates and start-ups were specifically seeking senior leaders andchief executives with the right mix of insights and innovative business skills,she said.
“In this market, Vietnameselanguage and cultural knowledge is essential. Local Vietnamese professionalsare attractive to employers because they understand consumer behaviour andrelevant strategies best.”
Tran Xuan Thuy, head of seller operationat Lazada and country manager at Alibaba Vietnam, concurred with Boonstra,saying multinationals do want to recruit local employees for key positions,“But in Vietnam, they cannot.”
He, and others attending around-table conference on how to build the capacities of senior executives inHCM City on November 6, listed some of the problems faced by companies inhiring Vietnamese for senior executive positions.
Lazada and Alibaba Vietnam areexamples of this inability to find local executives, he said, explaining"the number of professionals with expertise in the digital sector is nothigh, and what there are often cannot communicate well in English".
Thus, companies had to hire topexecutives from other countries and train local employees, he said.
Dinh Kim Nhung, head of humancapital at Masan Group, said: “It is more difficult for Vietnamese companies torecruit locals for senior leadership positions.”
Seeking and developing them was aheadache that had existed for a long time, she said.
Vietnamese executives "arenot open” to listening to advice from other people to improve their company’soperations, she claimed.
"They often think themethods they used to achieve success at former companies could be replicated attheir new places, whereas every company has a different environment," shesaid.
“It is important that they shouldadapt to the working environment to help increase value for their company.”
Her company uses a strategy of“buy, build, and borrow”, meaning they use jobs companies to find the candidatesthey need, develop their employees to become future leaders and also hire andtrain students and hire experts from other countries to train their employeesfor one or two years.
According to Michael PageVietnam, local professionals who secure a job move can command a 15-20 percentsalary increase.
The intense competition fortalent has created such strong demand in the market that top candidates oftenget multiple job offers.
Employers have to offer careerprogression opportunities and attractive salaries and streamline theirrecruitment process to secure the highly qualified professionals.
Boonstra said companies shouldoffer learning and growth opportunities to retain talent and think outside ofthe traditional profile to identify talent.
They should make plans for thenext generation of leaders and how to prepare them now, she said.
According to her company, the keyfor local professionals is to develop themselves in areas where there are skillshortages.
A majority of hiringopportunities are available in Vietnam’s fastest growing industries likeproperty, digital/fintech, manufacturing, and fast moving consumer goods.
The top four recruitment demandsare for operational managers for procurement and supply chains, human resourcebusiness partners, business controllers in the finance sector, and head ofbusiness intelligence in the digital sector.-VNS/VNA
VNA
