The NSYSU College of Management Career Day on June 2nd was a perfect event for both local and international students. It was an opportunity to discover the best strategies for finding a job and working in Taiwan.
The workshop covered the following topics:
- the Taiwanese working environment;
- working in or with a multicultural team;
- working in a high power distance culture;
- peer-peer and supervisor-subordinate communication;
- building a network – highly pertinent issue in the Taiwanese working environment;
- writing a literate and presentable resume;
- interview skills.
At the morning session, the guest speakers were foreigners currently working in different local and international companies including MiTAC, Asus, BenQ, and the Boltun Corporation, who kindly and openly shared their experience. The speakers gave helpful advice and clarified some issues in regard to starting a career in Taiwan and adjusting to a new working culture. The guest speakers were very diverse in their cultural, academic and working background, which allowed students to understand the job-seeking experience from different perspectives:
Mr. Daniel Herrera graduated from a Taiwanese university and currently works at MiTAC International Corporation as Product Manager. Mr. Herrera had the most extensive working experience among the guest speakers. He elucidated some industry trends and challenges for job-seekers and also discussed some of the most relevant marketing strategies and techniques.
Ms. Ana Belen Martinez Soto is a young NTU graduate and is currently working as a Global Account Manager at ASUS headquarters in Taipei. She told the students about her accomplishments, difficulties, and opportunities to learn she has encountered in her career. She discussed dealing with generational and cultural differences in the workplace and offered some strategies to overcome potential conflict. She stressed the importance of knowing the local culture and language and knowing the key person in your working environment.
Ms. Sarah Grasdijk, who is currently Senior Marketing Specialist at BenQ, is originally from the Netherlands. She has extensive experience studying Sinology and Mandarin, ans has also studied media management. She shared her experience of adapting to a very different working culture and dealing with the communication issues between supervisors and subordinates. In addition, she discussed the importance of knowing how to communicate with coworkers from different departments. Ms. Grasdijk also emphasized the important of making Taiwanese friends, and expanding one's social life beyond socializing with other foreigners.
Mr. Fernando Sanchez is a former student at NSYSU's Chinese Language Center. He is a young and energetic sales representative and International Team Leader at the Boltun Corporation. Mr. Sanchez shared his motivations for finding a job in Taiwan: the friendly atmosphere, good attitude toward foreigners, and a great opportunity of learning new things.
In the afternoon session, local human resource professionals and NSYSU alumni were welcomed to share their suggestions for successful CV writing and interviewiong, as well as some key points to remember when looking for a job in Taiwan.
The “CAKE” technique (Chronicle, Action verbs, Key phrases, Edible length) for resume writing was introduced and explained by Mr. Aaron Kuo, Business Intelligence Manager at 3M. Mr. Kuo explained in detail the importance of the first impression a resume makes on the employer. Making a resume attractive and eye-catching is of the utmost importance. The average resume will be viewed for only six seconds, so brevity and precision are the key factors.
''Work hard, play harder'' is the motto of global Corporation employees, and Ms. Mei Shih follows it unconditionally. She is a human resource Business Partner at global company and shared the “blind date” concept of resume submission. To get the job, the job-seeker has to “sell” oneself. In order to do so one needs to be confident, precise, and prepared. Ms. Shih also encouraged students to consider a different approach to interviewing. An employee is not just an interviewee, but also an interviewer - try to lead the conversation, ask questions, collect information, and steer the conversation in an advantageous direction.
Ms. Stella Su and Mr. Michal Yang, NSYSU alumnis, also shared their experiences of finding a job, managing the challenges of being a newcomer in the company, and finding a perfect fit for one’s education as well as the job demands.
The students at Career Day were engaged and enthusiastic, and had many questions for the guests. The most important pieces of advice shared during the event were:
- Bake the “CAKE”.
- Build your network – the sooner, the better.
- Establish meaningful relationships with your peers.
- Learn Chinese - it is an indispensible asset.
- Attend NSYSU events and workshops, the best way to build your network.
