Awaiting Post-pandemic Economic Recovery
Equipping Ourselves to Stay Ahead of Changes

Suffering from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the global economy has plunged into a severe contraction. A number of industries are facing unprecedented crises. News about layoffs, forced unpaid leaves and paid cuts is overwhelming us. It is difficult to judge whether Brexit, the ongoing US-China trade war and Joe Biden’s inauguration are mixed blessings. All these make employees feel stressed about the uncertainties in the year 2021. Be that as it may, it is always advantageous to equip ourselves by receiving continuous education in order to stay responsive towards market changes. In this issue, we have interviewed several human resources experts, inviting them to share their thoughts on continuous education and the world economic outlook this year.

Fighting for Talents and Training New Blood Constantly

China Mobile Hong Kong took the lead to launch 5G services last year, and is committed to integrating the 5G network with artificial intelligence, Internet of Things (IoT), cloud computing and big data. Elaine said, “As 5G services have been launched, recruitment shall continue in many companies and the telecommunications industry is constantly fighting for talents. 5G technology is a breakthrough. There is a lack of talents in the market and the competition for talent acquisition among telecommunications companies is fierce. It is challenging to recruit or retain the talents. Our company has employed two strategies to tackle problems regarding manpower planning. Firstly, we conduct internal training sessions to transform our existing workforce. Secondly, we are recruiting experienced workers to join China Mobile Hong Kong in order to alleviate our pressure on the human resources management within the company. Owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, we have made changes in our recruitment methods accordingly, for instance, we have made use of ZOOM and other online applications to interview candidates effectively.”

Keeping Abreast of Technological Development; Meeting Qualification Requirements by Self-learning

In terms of continuous education, Elaine advised people who are interested in entering the telecommunications industry or taking relevant courses should pay attention to the latest trends and topics in the industry, such as artificial intelligence, Internet of Things, cloud computing, big data, and other hot topics. They should acquire more knowledge in these fields. When it comes to taking courses, they should pick accredited programmes. In this way, they can gain not only wisdom but also recognition from the industry.

Elain expressed that she had become an Amazon Web Services (AWS) Certified Cloud Practitioner last year, that cloud computer plays a significant role in artificial intelligence in the telecommunications industry. She continued, “I was not born an IT expert. It was challenging during the learning process. However, I had made up my mind to take the course together with my colleagues. This had increased our motivation in learning as we cared about one another’s learning progress. When we encountered an obstacle, we would discuss the matter in an attempt to solve it. Upon the completion of the course, we had a celebration together. The sense of satisfaction and joyfulness are shared among members of the group.”

Digital Transformation is a New Trend in Corporate Recruitment

Not long ago, a human resources consulting firm announced its survey result concerning the market trend in the year 2021. The report said only 28% of employers had an intention to hire new employees, whilst as many as 30% planned to lay off workers.

Freda, Superhub Marketing Director of Superhub Limited said, “the news report had mentioned fi ve times that corporates should drive digital transformation. Business owners of various industries are actively using digital and online platforms for sales and marketing, some of whom have even allocated more resources to incorporate cloud computing technology. Our company, Superhub, has been awarded by Microsoft as the Top Direct Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) and we are witnessing the ‘new normal ’ .” Freda cont inued that corporates have to improve in three areas if they would like to raise their efficiency of remote work- --equipment, work design and management methods, so that both the employees and the companies can benefit.

Lifelong Learning Brings Advantages in the Time of Constant Changes

As the knowledge-based economy develops, the importance of lifelong learning is as clear as crystal. In addition to taking interest courses, people may consider taking courses relevant to the future macroeconomy which award a professional qualification. This helps boosting a candidate’s employability in the market and increasing his or her opportunities of getting promoted or hired. Under the influence of globalization, different economic systems have become more interdependent, some of which have even merged, forming an integrated economic environment. There is an increasing need for knowledge workers who are flexible and dynamic. At this moment, not only theories and knowledge are needed, but also collaborative skills, communication skills and creativity are required.

Freda recalled, “As soon as I graduated from the university, I joined the telecommunications industry. After working for six years, I decided to take a full-time Master of Business Administration (MBA) programme at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. I chose a full-time programme because it offered overseas exchange opportunities. During the 18-month programme, I had spent one third of the time staying at HEC School of Management in France as an exchange student. It was an interesting experience as I could study and work with 200 classmates from 52 countries on different projects together.

“Among learners who were taking the MBA programme at CUHK, half of us had grasped the overseas exchange opportunities. While my Hong Kong classmates had different backgrounds, it was even more diversifying when we take our overseas classmates into consideration. One of the greatest features of an MBA programme is that it offers opportunities for learners to cooperate with classmates with different expertise, including accountants, chartered engineers and entrepreneurs. Collaborating with people from different fields enable me to unleash my cooperative and communication skills, and creativity. Up till now, I still consider it as a right choice.”