Interview with Mr. Siew Chin Kiang, staff partner of KPMG, Malaysia about his view on The Role of Youth in Today's Economy and The Differences Between Local & Foreign Undergraduates.

 An interview session form our Public Relation team mate with Mr Siew Chin Kiang, one of our speaker in MASC 2010.

(The Role of Youth in Today's Economy) 

Every year, a thousand or more fresh accountancy graduates leave the safe confines of Malaysian universities and colleges to compete with each other for positions in the top accounting firms. Such a surplus of qualified graduates necessitates a grueling filtering system put in place by the firms to ensure that they obtain the best candidates for the job.

The question then arises: What can a fresh graduate do to stand out from the crowd?

To find out, we talked to Mr. Siew Chin Kiang, staff partner of one of the largest and most prestigious professional services firms, KPMG Malaysia.  He shared with us his views on the role of youths in today’s economy.

According to Mr. Siew, honing their technical skills is the very first step that youths need to take in order to succeed in the future. Why did he say that? This is because the basic criteria that firms look into when reviewing potential applicants is whether they have a good knowledge of the fundamentals. This will then allow the youth to progress and develop quickly.

Mr. Siew also discussed about how quickly today’s economy is changing.  What we experience upon entering the workforce may not be the same as what we have studied in school or university. Nowadays, in order to succeed in their chosen careers, youths must possess both technical and soft skills.

Soft skills, such as the ability to communicate and socialize well, can often determine whether or not candidates succeed in attaining their desired job. Mr. Siew emphasized that during the interview sessions, candidates must be able to ‘sell’ themselves to the potential employer and demonstrate their strengths in comparison to the other applicants. To that end, their answers to interview questions should not be too generic as this is their opportunity to impress the interviewer with their uniqueness.

 In other words: Don’t put the interviewer to sleep.

On the subject of technology, Mr. Siew’s said that there are different challenges posed by the level playing field that technology promotes by granting everyone the same access to extra knowledge, as well as the added distractions of modern life. The youths today must use technology as a tool and focus their energies on what they need and want to achieve in the future. Youths must be determined and adaptable in going after the future that they have set their minds on.

In addition, Mr. Siew stressed that a successful youth must also be independent and adaptable irrespective of the economic conditions that they experience upon graduation. Success also depends on how good the youths are in targeting and selecting the opportunities that come directly or indirectly to them in their careers. Thus, they must always stay alert and prepare themselves to be ready when the opportunity is before them. This preparation will involve going through and learning from the different kinds of obstacles and difficulties along their career.

(Local Undergraduates vs Foreign Undergraduate)

The remainder of our interview session concerned the differences between local and foreign undergraduates. While he did not deny that foreign undergraduates are often more adapt in terms of soft skills, local undergraduates often have the upper hand when it comes to technical skills. 

However, all differences aside, both local and foreign undergraduates are treated the same during recruitment sessions and getting the job depends on who is better able to ‘sell’ themselves to the interviewer.

In conclusion, Mr. Siew’s parting advice to the youth of today was to learn from others, focus on what they are trying to achieve and develop each year, be hard-working and be able to work in a team. Other than that, Mr. Siew also stressed that there is no shortcut in moving up in a career and everything must be done step by step in order to obtain a successful life in the future.

To know more about this topic, join MASC 2010 as this will be your great life time opportunity to explore this topic deeply with professional body like Mr. Siew Chin Kiang.

See you! ^^