Does Korea have global talent?

2014-03-16 13:26

Does Korea have global talent?

Lee Dong-geun
Last month, the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry and 11 foreign chambers of commerce in Korea co-hosted the sixth-annual Global Career Forum.
With CEOs and employees of multinational companies in Korea as speakers, the event provided practical guidance on the qualifications desired by global corporations, as well as their recruiting processes and general working environments.
For the second year in a row, more than 500 young people attended the event. This led me to realize not only how eager Korea’s youths are to secure the limited number of job openings with multinational companies, but also the growing level of interest in a global career path.
Like jobseekers, recruiters are facing hardships in the market. According to a survey released by the consulting firm PWC, 58 percent of CEOs at the 2012 Davos Forum reported that a lack of qualified job candidates is the biggest threat to growth.
One cannot emphasize enough the importance of a talented staff in developing a successful business. The late Chairman Lee Byung-chull, the founder of Samsung, stated, “Eighty percent of my life was spent finding and developing competent staff,” and Doosan, Korea’s oldest company with 118 years of history, believes that “people are the future.”
A talented workforce is important even at the national level. Human resources enabled Israel to achieve a per capita income of $30,000 with a population of just 8 million. This is also true for Korea, whose people overcame disadvantages from a lack of natural resources to be ranked near the top 10 world economies.
As advancements in information and communication technologies draw companies into a more globalized environment, corporations have intensified their search for globally minded recruits. Yet in last year’s Global Talent Competitiveness Index (GTCI), measured by INSEAD, a business school in France, Korea was ranked 28th among 103 countries.
So, what are the assets that globally minded individuals should possess? The CEOs of multinational companies and HR professionals at the Global Career Forum highlighted three principle aspects, which we ought to foster among our youth: communication skills, openness and tolerance, and professionalism and creativity.
Since English has expanded as a corporate lingua franca, people tend to mistake the ability to speak English as the sole barometer for communication skills. Yet, today’s global business environment requires more than basic English proficiency; debate and persuasive communication skills are in demand.
Indeed, younger generations in Korea are increasingly comfortable communicating in English, due to more practical English education and greater opportunities for cross-border experiences, such as student exchange programs and overseas travel.
However, the education sector should devote much greater attention to developing more refined communication skills in order to overcome cultural weaknesses and improve the competitiveness of Korean candidates in the global job market.
Multinational companies also uniformly emphasize diversity and inclusion. These companies recognize hiring employees with different backgrounds and openness to cultural diversity as a way of securing competitiveness, rather than as an overwhelming challenge.
I believe that the combination of cultural diversity and different perspectives leads to creativity, which can promote a competitive edge.
Among the 48 criteria of the GTCI, Korea was placed particularly low (66th) in openness. As the number of foreign residents in Korea now exceeds 1.5 million and Korea is more actively engaging in international activities, our society should embrace diversity and promote inclusion.
Experts often cite hands-on job experience and a professional edge as necessary assets for those seeking a global career. This is now especially important for careers in international organizations, as Secretary General Ban Ki-moon’s service at the United Nations has drawn increased interest to this field.
A proactive and creative mind is also indispensable for success on the global stage. This is well exemplified by K-pop star Psy, whose creativity led to global success.
Through free trade agreements, Korea has widely expanded its economic territory. It has stepped up cross-border business interactions and cooperation with foreign companies, and is further broadening its international reach through increased participation in international organizations.
Therefore, the demand for globally minded individuals will continue to increase. It is my aspiration to raise awareness of the importance of a global mindset, so that Korea may provide its youth the necessary support to successfully engage on the global stage.