FPT holds Software Human Resource for Japanese Market Seminar

In view of this fact, FPT University in coordination with Hanoi School of Business (HSB) organized the seminar “Software Human Resource for Japanese Market” on May 15^th, 2008 to discuss matters concerning this potential market.

Present at the seminar were Mr. Trần Đoàn Kim, Deputy Secretary General of Vietnam Software Association (VINASA); Mr. Takeo Ogawa, former President of Hitachi Software, strategic advisor to FPT University; and representatives from Vietnamese and Japanese software companies, and information technology training institutions in Vietnam.

FPT Software’s revenue grew quickly from USD 1.9 million in 2003 to USD 30 million in 2007. 57% of 2007 revenue came from Japanese companies. More than one thousand of its twenty three hundred employees are fluent in Japanese.

Vietnam ’s software industry is experiencing significant growth, about 30 to 40% annually, worth 0.4% of GDP, with more than 720 companies, and nearly nine thousand engineers, and information technology BAs being trained in educational institutions every year.

With some 1.5 million unfilled professional positions over the world, Vietnam ’s young population gives it a definite edge. Mr. Tran Doan Kim said about the prospects of Vietnam ’s software industry: “In the next 10 years, Vietnam will not have become the leader in the software industry, but it can become one of the leaders in software human resource.”

Representatives also discussed matters concerning the training and provision of human resource for the Japanese market. As employers, Vietnamese and Japanese software companies voiced their opinions about the requirements for software engineers working for Japanese partners. Training institutions also discussed solutions to bridge the gap between training and enterprises’ demands; the knowledge and skills necessary to trainees in satisfying the demands of Japanese partners.

Mr. Yokomizo, President of USOL Vietnam, gave practical advices to trainees concerning work culture, notably in Japanese companies.

“You must note down instructions at work. Even if you take note, there will still be things you do not understand. Should this happen, you must clarify murky instructions immediately. If you made a mistake, you must apologize. How to avoid making the same mistake again is much more important than making excuses. A model Japanese employee is one who observes regulations, can teamwork well, understands about the service industry, and able to work at a position for at least 3 years for career building and peer recognition.” Mr. Yokomizo said.

To solve the current human resource problem, VINASA’s representative voiced the opinion that Vietnam needs to strengthen the use of international text books and teachers in training, promote foreign language teaching, and form a network of information technology training institutions meeting international standards. The participation of software companies during training was also stressed.

This is specifically the model FPT University is following. FPT University current training curriculum applies American ACM, and Japanese ITSS standards. It have also initiated cooperation trainings with Japanese companies and universities to develop training curriculum, and facilitate students and teachers exchanges. FPT University ’s students will receive bilingual training, in both English and Japanese, and participate in internships starting from their second year of study.

On this occasion, Mr. Takeo Ogawa, formerly President of Hitachi Software, High Counselor to FPT University also presented the University with a Japanese – Japanese dictionary and a Japanese information technology dictionary set. With Japanese as a second language, FPT University ’s students have big advantages for their future.