This paper focuses on the current skills shortages across the Asia Pacific Region from work-ready Graduate intake to Talent within companies and the ongoing development of Managers and the Future Leadership pipeline. There is no doubt that the continuing economic growth, the accelerating need for Talented Managers and Teams within organisations (e.g. China's biggest stated talent gap) and a more globalised workplace are factors that should make this Region buoyant with Talent. There is no doubt that there are academically sound potential employees but the biggest gap evident is the crucial difference between academic know how and intelligence with the practical know how and common sense often needed in today's diverse workplace. Its open for debate! please read the paper and let me know your thoughts. Please fill out a contact form if you would like to download this paper.

1. Skills Shortages in the Asian Workplace –
Challenges and Solutions
Authored by:
Mr Jeremy BLAIN
Regional Managing Director, Cegos Asia Pacific
December 2013

2. Contents
Executive Summary
2
1.
Introduction – Today’s Skills Shortages in Asia
2
2.
The Roots of the Shortages
2.1 A Global Problem
2.2 A Failure of Education?
2.3 A Region That Has Grown Too Fast
2.4 Demographic Factors
2.5 Tight Labour Laws
2.6 Skills Migration
4
3.
The Areas of Shortage
3.1 Technical Competencies/Hard Skills
3.2 Soft Skills
3.3 Managing Skills – Plugging the Generation X Skills Gap
7
4.
The Impact
4.1 The Future Growth & Competitiveness of Asian Businesses
4.2 Rising Salaries & Employee Turnover
4.3 The Importing & Exporting of Talent
4.4 The Growth in Youth Unemployment
9
5.
Workforce Readiness – Preparing People for the Workforce
5.1 Partnering with Local Education Institutions
5.2 Improving the Education Sector
5.3 The Importance of Vocational Skills
5.4 Collaboration between Government & Industry
5.5 Partnering with Local Companies
11
6.
Up-Skilling the Workforce
6.1 The Importance of Graduate Development
6.2 The Importance of Soft Skills
6.3 Refocusing Talent Management Strategies
14
7.
The Crucial Role of L&D
7.1 The Growing Role of Technology
7.2 Coaching & Mentoring
7.3 Blended Learning & the Importance of Integration
7.4 The Level of Take-Up
16
8.
The Cross-Generational Challenge
18
9.
A Call for Action
19
10.
Final Thoughts
20
11.
References
21
12.
About Cegos Group
22
13.
About Jeremy Blain
23
1

3. Executive summary
Asia today is facing a skills shortage like never before – a skills shortage in regard to employees entering
the workforce and a skills shortage among existing employees within organisations. Such a shortage covers
everything from the lack of technical and vocational skills through to a deficit in soft skills and management
skills – the latter being particularly applicable to the Generation X grouping of employees set to take up senior
management roles over the next few years.
The impact of these shortages on Asia’s future can be devastating, leading to reduced growth and
competitiveness and the absurd situation of increasing youth unemployment at a time when employers are
desperately searching for employees with new skills. From educational institutions and governments through
to training providers and organisations’ HR departments, the time for action is now!
This paper sets up a blueprint for meeting the challenges of Asian skills shortages today and into the future.
There is an urgent need for greater collaboration between governments, educational institutions, sector trade
associations and the private sector and a need to put soft skills, management skills and vocational qualifications
at the top of the skills agenda.
Yet, employers should not expect the finished article when people join their organisation. Sure, they should
expect a strong level of soft skills and the necessary technical qualifications but it is also their responsibility to
manage their talent well, refocus their talent management strategies, provide the necessary skills and groom
those on the fast track for future management positions. Against this context, L&D will have a crucial role to
play through a flexible, customised and integrated approach that meets the learning needs of all employees –
whatever their generation. Our research shows that learners want to acquire the necessary skills, it’s up to HR
and L&D to deliver!
If addressed now, Asia has every chance of years of economic growth and competitiveness and a highly skilled
and innovative workforce. If not and the alternatives are too grim to consider.
1. Introduction – Today’s Skills Shortage in Asia
It may be the world’s most populous region and home to some of the world’s fastest growing economies and
most well-known organisations, but Asia today is facing a profound skills shortage that could affect the region’s
competitiveness and economic future for years to come.
There are a number of statistics to back up this claim. The Manpower Group’s 2013 Annual Talent Shortage
Survey [1], incorporating responses from over 8,600 hiring managers across Asia, found that talent shortages
are more widespread in Asia than any other region. More than half (51%) of Asia Pacific employers say that skills
gaps are posing difficulties in the hiring process.
Breaking this down by country, 85% of employers in Japan, 61% in India, 57% in Hong Kong and 51% in New
Zealand said that talent shortages were preventing them from hiring people with the necessary skills.
Equally worrying is that, according to Manpower, over 1 in 3 Chinese employers (35%) now see skills shortages
as a serious issue – a figure that is only likely to increase as the Chinese economy and its burgeoning middle
classes continue to grow. It is this growing affluence in China and elsewhere in Asia that is also putting pressure
on particular sectors, such as air travel (see case study).
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4. Japan’s Skills Shortages
Japan today is considered to have the world’s biggest skills shortage. Two decades
of poor growth, a rapidly ageing population and a lack of openness to immigration
has reduced the supply of new entrants into the workforce and created a mismatch
between the available workforce and the more innovative skills that employers want.
According to Manpower, the percentage of difficulty in finding skills employees
reported by employers in Japan is now the highest recorded in the eight-year history
of the survey.
It’s also clear that the problem of skills shortage is only likely to get worse with, according to Manpower’s surveys
in 2012 and 2013, a 6% increase from 45% to 51% in the percentage of employers who have difficulty in finding
skilled workers. When compared to the 2012 survey, the proportion of employers per country reporting skills
gaps has increasing dramatically – from 81% to 85% in Japan, 23% to 35% in China and 48% to 61% in India.
A December 2012 report from McKinsey [2] also found that only 43% of employers in the nine countries that it
had studied in depth (America, Brazil, Britain, Germany, India, Mexico, Morocco, Saudi Arabia and Turkey) think
that they can find enough skilled entry-level workers.
Looking at China, the 2013 Michael Page Salary & Employment Forecast for China [3] found that 48% of
Chinese employers expect their business will experience some staff turnover during 2013 and 51% believe
there will be a professional skills shortage.
Furthermore, the McKinsey Global Institute [2] predicts that 50% of all skills shortages worldwide will be found
in China by 2012. With many organisations expanding from first tier cities, such as Beijing and Shanghai, to
second and third tier cities, this insatiable demand for skills is only likely to grow.
It is in these fast growing, developing and labour intensive markets in Asia where skills shortages are likely to
be most prevalent over the coming years.
Yet are the skills shortages in Asia simply due to a lack of available people ready to enter the job market or is it
due to a lack of people with the right skills and qualifications? Is it a people crunch or talent crunch?
This paper will tackle this question and more, examining the root causes of skills shortages in Asia, where they are
most prevalent, and the current and future impact such shortages are having on the region’s competitiveness.
An Asian Pilot Shortage
The deregulation of the airline market across Asia and the increase in travel due to
growing wealth has caught the region out.
Boeing estimates that the broader Asian-Pacific region will require 185,600 new
pilots between 2012 and 2031 [4], accounting for 40% of global pilot demand and
the International Civil Aviation Organization estimates that 230,000 newly trained
pilots will be required [5].
The industry will also require a dramatic increase in maintenance personnel with Boeing estimating
that Asia will need 250,000 new technicians over the next two decades to keep pace with industry
expansion.
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5. In addition, the paper will look at how such shortages can be addressed through improving the workplace
readiness of potential employees, ‘up-skilling’ employees when they enter the workforce and the crucial roles of
Learning & Development and Talent Management. Ongoing challenges, such as different generations working
side-by-side, will also be addressed.
Finally, the paper will end with a call to action for organisations, educational institutions, training providers,
governments and any other bodies involved in skills development and talent management in Asia.
With Asia a hotbed of innovation, creativity and growth, we simply can’t allow the current skills shortage to act
as a brake on competitiveness and the region’s future prosperity. As I have already said, the time for action is
now!
2. The Roots of the Shortages
So what are the roots of the current shortages in Asia today? How has Asia managed to get itself into its current
situation?
2.1 A Global Problem
Firstly, it’s important to understand that Asia is not alone in facing a skills shortage. Many other regions of the
world are facing the same challenges.
The 2012 Hays Global Skills Index [6], for example, found the United States, Germany, Sweden, Hungary and
Mexico all ahead of the first Asian country (Australia) when it comes to difficulties in filling skilled vacancies.
Furthermore, when it comes to adult skills, such as literary and numeracy, the US and UK are among the
world’s worst, according to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)’s first adult
skills survey [7]. This being said, however, there are a number of reasons specific to Asia that we can point to.
2.2 A Failure of Education?
With skilled labour and technological capabilities seen as key to competiveness within an open and integrated
global economy, the role of higher education has become even more important.
For many, however, one of the root causes of the skills shortages in Asia is a failure of education in both quantity
and quality. According to the World Bank [8], in labour markets, such as Cambodia, China and Vietnam, the
quantity of higher education graduates is still too low and countries, such as Indonesia, face huge challenges in
building capacity and providing access to higher education. Today, Indonesia’s higher education system caters
for only 5.56 million students – 27% of 19-24 year olds, according to University World News [9].
One such example of this disconnect is in Malaysia and the Islamic Finance Industry where, according to
Malaysia’s Shariah Advisory Council, 40,000 more qualified employees will be required in Islamic Finance by
2020 [10]. Yet to date, few Malaysian Universities have offered courses in Islamic Finance with only a few
belatedly starting to open enrolment for such courses.
Furthermore, in terms of quality, in many cases schools and universities have simply been unable to keep up
with the skills required in today’s fast evolving workplace – a disconnect between what is taught in schools and
what is needed on the job front and what McKinsey describes as ‘parallel universes’ [2].
Another example is in the engineering sector in India where according to a recent World Bank working paper
[11] as many as 64% of Indian employers are not satisfied with the skill sets of recent engineering graduates.
The same disconnect between business and educational institutions can also be seen in China as the quote
from wireless communications provider, Qualcomm, testifies to.
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6. “Despite growing demand, Chinese universities and technical colleges have not kept up with
academic and industrial training to meet the needs of industries. Schools have been slow
and inadequate in modernising their curriculum and developing their graduates to meet the
demands of society.”
William Chin, Staffing Director, Qualcomm Asia Pacific
Source: HRM Asia
2.3 A Region That Has Grown Too Fast
There is also a case to be made for the fact that the region’s dramatic growth over the past two decades has
taken out many of the available talent with countries struggling to provide enough skilled employees for the
second stages of growth.
There’s something to be said for that with the speed of growth across the region truly remarkable – a trend that
is set to continue. The Organisation for Economic Cooperation & Development (OECD) estimates enormous
increases in Asia’s middle class over the next few years from 28% of the global middle class in 2009 to 66%
(or 3.2 billion people) by 2030 [12].
It is this new affluent middle class and consumption-driven growth which will put enormous pressure on a
variety of different sectors as they continue to try and serve the middle classes’ needs. To not be able to meet
this need is simply not an option for organisations in the region.
2.4 Demographic Factors
There are demographics issues at play as well, particularly when it comes to ageing populations seen in
countries, such as Japan.
According to the World Health Organisation, there were approximately 800 million individuals worldwide aged
above 60 in 2012 [13]. This number is likely to increase to 2 billion by 2050. Japan today has one of the
world’s oldest workforces and the World Health Organisation also predicts that 28% of the Chinese population
(currently only 11%) will be over 60 by 2040. Such ageing populations have already had and will continue to
have a significant impact on the demand for skills.
Yet, it is not just ageing populations that are having an impact on skills shortages, it is younger populations as
well. In India, for example, the average age is just 28 [14]. The UN Population Division also estimates that, over
the next 10 years, India’s working age population is set to grow by a cumulative 138 million, compared with an
increase of 33 million in China, 12 million in the US and declines of 8 million in Japan and 18 million in Europe [15].
In such cases, it is clearly not a people crunch but a talent crunch as well, leading to the paradox of significant
skills shortages but high youth unemployment.
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7. The Case of Singapore
Singapore is a country facing significant skills shortages. According to Grant
Thornton, 61% of business leaders have challenges hiring the skills they need,
with talent shortages seen particularly in the creative sector, such as advertising,
communications and digital media.
The country is also experiencing low unemployment and high employee turnover, further increasing
competition in finding skilled talent. With restrictions being placed on hiring from overseas, competition
for candidates is likely to continue to be intense.
2.5 Tight Labor Laws
Although countries, such as Hong Kong and Singapore tend to have relatively flexible labour laws, some Asian
countries have tight labor laws which can exacerbate skills shortages.
In China, for example, the Hays Global Skills Index [6] found that the relatively inflexible labor laws and largescale outward migration of skilled workers made it difficult for employers to find skilled workers.
The same is the case in Indonesia where the laws are very favourable towards employees with terminating
an employee contact due to poor performance a big challenge. “This makes it even more critical to hire the
right person for the job”, according to Ven Raman, Managing Director, South-East Asia for Carl Zeiss Group,
a German-based international corporate group in the optics and optoelectronics industries [16] [17]. Such
inflexibility also often puts off employees making long-term hires.
“Labor market flexibility is especially important to head off skills shortages as openness to inward migration
and relatively light labor regulations ensures employers can react swiftly to signs of stress in the labor market,”
according to Simon Lance, Regional Director of Hays in China [6].
2.6 Skills Migration
Finally, there is the issue of workforce and skills migration that can be of benefit to some countries when facing
skills shortages and have a negative impact on others. The continued migration of Taiwanese professionals to
other Asian countries, for example, is contributing to a skills shortage in the Taiwanese local recruitment market.
Yet, in Singapore, the last decade has seen a 170% increase in its non-resident workforce (which includes me!) [18].
Similarly at a global level, there has been a flow of talent predominately from west to east but from east to west
as well. A 2010 survey undertaken among 700 chief HR officers and senior executives in 61 countries around
the world by IBM’s Institute for Business Value, for example, revealed that some 45% of Indian firms and 33%
of Chinese ones said that they planned to take on staff in North America, while 44% and 14% respectively
expected to expand into Western Europe
Whether as a negative or a positive, workforce migration is a key issue in Asia.
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8. 3. The Areas of Shortage
So having examined some of the underlining reasons behind Asia’s skills shortages, it’s important to ask the
question where these shortages are being seen.
3.1 Technical Competencies & Hard Skills
One of the main areas of skills shortages in Asia today is a lack technical competencies among prospective
job candidates. According to the 2013 Manpower Survey [1], 31% of employers cited a lack of technical/hard
skills, relevant professional qualifications or skilled trade certifications.
The 2013 Hays Asia Salary Guide [19] backs this up with 22% of employers saying that they face difficulty in
recruiting junior to mid management-level candidates in engineering, while 20% said they have problems filling
sales roles. According to the Manpower survey [1], the hardest-to-fill vacancies in Asia Pacific were for sales
representatives, followed by the engineering and technician categories. The 2013 PWC survey of Asian CEOs
[20] also found 1 in 5 saying that there were significant shortages in technical skills, such as engineering and
research.
3.2 Soft Skills
Soft skills are also vital in today’s workforce. Today’s employers expect people entering the workforce to already
have skills such as critical thinking, a willingness to take risks, initiative, adaptability and flexibility. Yet, such skills
are again seen as lacking among many Asian employees and job candidates.
A lack of soft skills is cited in the Manpower survey [1] with candidates falling short of employer expectations in
regard to a lack of flexibility, adaptability, enthusiasm and motivation.
In addition, a recent survey Cegos undertook – ‘Leading & Managing in the 2020 multi-dimensional workforce’
[21] primarily among Generation X Singaporeans, found that the three most important skills leaders need today
are the ability to manage change – cited as being of high importance by 79% of respondents, negotiation and
conflict resolution skills (68%), and collaboration skills (68%). Many of these capabilities are grounded in strong
soft skills.
3.3 Management Skills – Plugging the Generation X Skills Gap
Another area where there is a significant skills gap in Asia today is in management skills, applicable to those
already within the workforce and those entering it.
The 2013 PWC survey of Asian CEOs [20], for example, found 57% of CEOS saying that there were some skills
shortages in managers. This management deficit is not surprising to Cegos and something that we have been
discussing for several years. The Cegos 2013 Pan-Asian survey [22], for example, found that only 12% of Asian
employees are undergoing management skills training as can be seen in the illustration below.
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9. A Lack of Management Skills across Asia – Cegos Pan-Asian Survey, 2013
There is also likely to be an increased focus on Generation X over the coming years. The Cegos August 2013
survey [21] also identified Generation X Managers as the most likely to transition to leadership positions within
organisations over the next five-to-seven years.
While this grouping are perceived to be tech-savvy and have networking, social media and collaboration skills,
the report found that they lacked many of the core ‘management’ skills required to lead effectively in a diverse
workplace. The study also revealed that there is a deep-rooted lack of self-belief among Generation X who
perceives their current skills to be lower than what is required, highlighting again the need to close the skills gap.
Against this context, it’s clear that management skills must evolve to meet the changing needs and demographics
in the workplace.
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10. 4. The Impact
So, given that Asia is facing a skills shortage, what is the likely impact on the region?
The answer should concern every investor, organisation or government in the region with the implications of
labour market imbalances covering everything from failed growth that should and could be achievable through
to restricted investment, wage inflation in some sectors and high levels of unemployment in others.
4.1 The Future Growth & Competitiveness of Asian Businesses
First and foremost, the current skills shortages has the potential to have a highly negative effect on the ability
of businesses to grow and their future competiveness and productivity. The 2013 Hays Asia Salary Guide [19]
found 93% of employers saying skills shortages have the potential to hamper their business, while almost half
(49%) said it would affect their operations ‘without a doubt’ – up from 38% in 2012. In the 2013 Manpower
survey [1], reduced competitiveness and productivity is named by 41% of employers as a negative outcome of
skills shortages and one in four believe that skills gaps will result in reduced innovation and creativity.
It is negative implications such as this that can lead to slow growth and a lack of future investment in the region.
The future of a country’s competitiveness is more and more dependent on talent.
“The success of any national or business model for competitiveness in the future
will be placed less on capital and much more on talent. We could say that the world
is moving from capitalism to talentism” – Klaus Schwab, Executive Chairman,
World Economic Forum [23]
4.2 Rising Salaries & Employee Turnover
The limited availability of staff with appropriate skills also has the potential to lead to salary increases, widening
pay differentials, and a growth in staff turnover with ‘sought-after’ employees able to make themselves available
to the highest bidder.
The 2013 Michael Page Salary & Employment Forecast, China [3] found that the majority of surveyed employers
(68%) believe that skills shortages in China will lead to salary levels increasing above the rate of inflation and
sometimes as high as 10%. Such salary increases are not across the board, however, with in Singapore a
widening pay differential between high and low skills industries,
Similarly, when it comes to staff attrition, while the culture of loyalty is prevalent in some Asian countries, such
as Japan, in others it couldn’t be less so. A recent study by HR specialists, Towers Watson [24], found attrition
rates of 17% across the Indian economy. According to Subeer Bakshi, Director, Talent and Rewards of Tower
Watson, “people who change jobs improve their financial position faster than those who stay. In such an
environment, loyalty does not pay.”
Singapore is another country with high attrition rates where Hays research in 2012 [6] indicated that up to 46%
of people change jobs as often as every one to two years and 31% every two to four years. This is a challenge
to all Singapore-based organisations, including Cegos!
In such circumstances, where loyalty cannot always be guaranteed, it is up to organisations to put in place
clear development paths to persuade employees to stay. We will discuss this in more detail later in the paper.
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11. 4.3 The Importing and Exporting of Talent
Seeking new talent outside existing talent pools is also an inevitable by-product of skills shortages in Asia.
Results from the Manpower 2013 survey [1] found that recruiting from overseas is a key strategy for 22% of
Asia Pacific employers. According to the 2013 Hays Asia Salary Guide [19], 68% of employers say they are
willing to hire or sponsor qualified overseas candidates in skill short areas – up from 66% in 2012. As already
mentioned in this paper, small countries, such as Taiwan, are particularly vulnerable to this.
A 2012 report on Asia by the UK-based Chartered Institute of Personnel & Development (CIPD) [25] also,
found that in Malaysia 75% of employees believe their country will be a net exporter of talent in five years’ time.
The overall findings show that there is a general concern about the drain of skills with the majority of Asian
organisations (62%) agreeing that their country would be a net exporter of talent in five years’ time.
Furthermore, it is this importing and exporting of talent which will also make multicultural leadership skills even
more essential in the future.
Bechtel Looks beyond its Borders
Australia-based engineering and construction giant, Bechtel found itself having a
talent challenge in 2011 that directly affected the bottom line. Riley Bechtel, the
company’s CEO, announced that the company would combat this by hiring foreign
labour. The result was that electricians, welders and other technical skills were all
imported to ensure that top line performance wasn’t adversely affected.
In addition, Bechtel is also focusing on adult apprentice programmes and in December 2011, hired 400
adult apprentices to help construct 3 LNG plans – the largest apprentice intake in Australia’s history [26].
4.4 The Growth in Youth Unemployment
Another huge and potentially destabilising effect of the skills gap in Asia is the growth in youth unemployment.
While if you are technician in China, a sales representative in Hong Kong or an engineer in Japan, you should
have no problem finding a job, the paradox remains that Asia is still a high area of unemployment despite a
shortage of skilled labour. Almost half of the world’s young people live in South Asia, the Middle East and Africa
and they also represent the highest share of people out of work [27].
In Japan, 700,000 young people are unemployed [28] despite the skills shortages in that country and when it
comes to graduate unemployment, the figure stands at 24% in Malaysia [29]. In China, while 7 million students
from institutions of higher learning will graduate this year, according to China’s Ministry of Human Resources
and Social Security (190,000 more than 2012) [30], many will struggle to find work.
According to Forbes Magazine [31], only 52.4% have signed job contracts so far – down 7% from a year ago
– and according to one survey by the Ministry of Education, graduate recruitment in 2013 is down 15% on a
year ago [32].
Nowhere is the mismatch and inadequacies of the current Asian labor market better seen than in a shortage of
both jobs and skills. It is clear that potential employees could be better prepared for entering the workforce –
what we will call workforce readiness which we will examine in the next section.
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12. 5. Workforce Readiness - Preparing People for the Workplace
Asia today has more higher education graduates than ever, again demonstrating that we are facing a talent
rather than a people crunch. Yet, how ready are they to enter the workforce?
As we have referenced in this paper, there are a number of glaring gaps in graduate and new employee skills
across Asia including both technical and soft skills deficits.
At Cegos, for example, we don’t hire simply based on degrees. That’s an important supporting factor but the
critical factor is the soft skills – the personality, the flexibility, the hunger to succeed and the ‘can do’ attitude.
Furthermore, with our experience in Singapore, many local job candidates simply don’t have the attitude and
workforce readiness required to join us. In some cases, this leads to us focusing on more experienced people
that already have a few years in the workforce behind them.
So how can countries ensure that individuals are better prepared to enter the workforce and ensure that
companies, such as Cegos, go straight for graduates? Here are some pointers.
5.1 Partnering with Local Educational Institutions
One of the best means of ensuring that local education institutions are developing the right workforce skills is
to make sure they are clear as to what organisations are looking for through the fostering of close partnerships
between these institutions and the private sector. The closer the links between workplace organisations and
colleges and universities, the better organisations will be able to communicate their specific needs.
Yet, partnerships between the educational and private sector today remain at an embryonic stage. The
Manpower 2013 survey [1] found that only 7% of employers are looking to address their skills shortages needs
by partnering with local educational institutions to ensure the curriculum is aligned with their talent needs.
More positive, however, were the results from PWC’s 15th Annual CEO Survey 2012 [33] where half of CEOs
in Asia said they are investing in formal education systems and adult or vocational programmes. What is clear
is that closer link-ups can go a long way towards improving workforce readiness.
5.2 Improving the Education Sector
There also needs to be an improving of the higher educational sector as a whole with the onus on governments
to achieve this. To this end, governments must have clarity on the skills that need to be acquired and support
schools, universities and technical colleges in developing these skills. Programmes, for example, might include
fiscal incentives for education institutions to meet certain skills shortage areas.
There are signs of success here. China has made significant progress over the past two decades in expanding
its higher education sector and a college education has become more accessible to hundreds of thousands
more Chinese. The number of new graduates in China per year increased from less than 1 million in 1990 to
more than 6 million in 2010 and a record 7 million in 2012 [30] and, in total, more than 40 million new college
graduates entered the labor force during this period. Furthermore, the percentage of the total population with
some form of tertiary education increased from 2% to 9% according to McKinsey [2].
While, as we have already argued, being a graduate doesn’t immediately solve skills shortages, increasing the
quantity of graduates in certain countries is a step in the right direction.
“Close to half of CEOs (47%) believe that fostering a skilled workforce is one of three
top priorities for their governments”
15th Annual Global PwC CEO Survey 2012 [33]
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13. 5.3 The Importance of Vocational Skills
Whereas many governments have poured money into universities, too often vocational training is left to fend
for itself, leading to a surplus of qualified graduates but a shortage in specific technical skills. According to the
National Skills Development Corporation India, for example, only about 5% of India’s 400-million labor force has
received any formal training, compared with 70% in Germany and 95% in Korea [34].
As one can see from the Korean ‘Meister’ schools case study, however (as well as China which has 500,000
vocational training centers), some countries are taking note. China Vocational Training Holdings [35], for
example, is a private company that works with automakers to provide training to 100,000 students a year.
Today, it provides more than half of the Chinese auto industry’s new workers
Bringing Back Vocational Training in South Korea
In direct response to an overqualified labour market and shortages of skilled
labour, the South Korean government has created a network of vocational
schools – known as ‘Meister’ schools to reduce the country’s shortage of
machine operators and plumbers and improve skills in other areas of industrial
training. There are currently 35 of these schools in South Korea, each of which
are fully funded by the Government and major business firms. According to
the Korea Herald [36], the first graduates from the Meister’ schools are showing an average 93%
employment rate, comparing well to the 50% full-time employment rate for university graduates in 2011.
5.4 Collaboration between Government and Industry
Collaboration between government and industry is also a key means of tackling skills shortages. This can
include a number of areas from offering employers tax incentives to provide training – particularly in areas where
there are significant skills shortages, such as engineering or sales skills. The example of TalentCorp in Malaysia
shows how government and industry can work together effectively.
And, as ever, the focus on soft skills will be vital for people’s chances of being recruited. A 2013 survey by the
International Association of Administrative Professionals (IAAP) [37] found that 67% of HR managers would hire
an applicant with soft skills whose technical abilities were lacking. In contrast, only 9% would hire someone with
strong technical expertise but weak interpersonal skills.
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14. TalentCorp Malaysia – Collaboration between Government and Industry
TalentCorp [38] was established in January 2011 to address the availability
of talent in Malaysia in line with the needs of the country’s economic
transformation. The organisation has three main goals: i) to optimise
Malaysian talent; ii) to attract and facilitate global talent; and iii) to build
networks of top talent.
TalentCorp provides incentives to bring skilled Malaysians back from overseas, and also builds other
channels to create a smooth supply of deployable talent in specific vocational areas.
Telecommunications company, Maxis, for example, participates in the Scholarship Talent and Retention
scheme (STAR) which enables Public Service Department scholars to serve their scholarship bonds
in the private sector. Through the STAR scheme, Maxis has been able to tap into a pool of previously
inaccessible high-achieving scholars.
Maxis is also a partner of TalentCorp’s Structured Internship Programme (SIP), encouraging companies
to provide a high-quality, practical learning experience through internships to students from local public
and private institutions of higher education. To date, Maxis has supported more than 400 interns.
As of now, nearly 2,500 Malaysian have also returned to work in Malaysia, due to the TalentCorp
program.
5.5 Partnering with Local Companies
Establishing local partnership on the ground is also a key means of fostering workplace readiness – in particularly
for global organisations.
The 2013 PWC survey of Asian CEOs [20], for example, found that over half of CEOs are changing their
strategies in relationships to partnerships, in recognition that having local partnerships in place is important in
local markets. The survey found that while the majority of CEOs believed their competitors to be multinational
companies, they would rather partner with local companies than international ones to help assuage skills
shortages.
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15. 6. Up-Skilling the Workforce
So having examined how we can improve workforce readiness prior to entering the workforce, the next question
is how can we ensure that employees acquire the necessary skills and organisations develop a strong talent
pipeline after having been recruited?
6.1 The Importance of Graduate Development
One crucial area in closing the skills gap is in the area of graduate development. How new staff are managed
into a business can be the difference between an ultimately successful hire and one that is destined to fail.
Barclays Bank [39], for example, has a strong graduate development programme in the Asia Pacific where each
Barclays business holds an initial training course that lasts between five and seven weeks.
The programmes, run by professional trainers, are designed to provide graduates with “a firm foundation
in business fundamentals, intensive technical and product skills, professional development and role-specific
skills.” Social and networking events are also provided so that graduates can get to know senior managers
and colleagues across the firm. Training then becomes more in-depth and customised with graduates able to
select a variety of practical and classroom-based training on everything from technical to software skills as well
as have access to 300 online learning resources.
Graduate Works [40] is another organisation that is passionate about improving graduate development
programmes outlining a focused approach to their design as can be seen in the case study box where business
strategy, skills, L&D and recruitment are closely integrated.
The 4D’s Behind a Successful Graduate Development Programme
•
•
•
•
Discover Business Strategy – Talent Gaps, Objectives, Target Roles
Define Skills – Behaviour & Knowledge Needed, Recruitment Profiles
Develop L&D Programmes – Line Manager Systems, Role Profiles, Measurement
Deliver Recruitment – Induction, Embedding, Experiences, Development & Measurement
Source: Graduate Works
Honing Graduate and Soft Skills – Maybank
Maybank [41] is Malaysia’s largest financial services group and one of the
leading banking groups in South East Asia.
When assessing graduate skills, it was clear that soft skills were a weakness. “Key soft skills competencies
such as leadership, communication, tenacity, self-confidence, and a high concern for achievement
are amongst the areas identified requiring improvement in graduates,” explained Nora Manaf, Senior
Executive Vice President – Group Human Capital, Maybank Berhad. “Many employers would like to see
more well-rounded graduates who are not only doing well academically but also demonstrate emotional
intelligence, maturity, and agility,” she continues.
It’s with this in mind and as a means of improving its graduate workforce that Maybank has moved away
from traditional classroom learning and adopted the 70:20:10 (experiential: coaching: formal learning)
development philosophy. The bank’s focus on mobilising experiential development interventions such
as international assignments, mentoring, job rotations and job expansions has seen an improvement in
readiness of graduates to take on key roles.
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16. 6.2 The Importance of Soft Skills
In graduate programmes and up-skilling workers throughout the organisation, the focus on soft skills, as has
already been demonstrated in this paper, will be vital and something with organisations and training providers
must take note of. There are also organisations, such as UNIMENTA [42], that provide an important resource
in this area.
Focusing on Soft Skills
UNIMENTA (www.unimeta.com) is a training network that supports people working in
the fields of delivering soft skills and personal development, helping teachers, trainers
and all practitioners develop the skills and qualities in their learners that employers
want. Skills, such as critical thinking, a willingness to take risks, use initiative,
confidence, adaptability, flexibility, project passion and enthusiasm, are all included
with membership free.
Similarly, as we will discuss in section 7, there are also highly effective L&D tools for soft skill capacity building,
such as e-learning modules.
6.3 Refocusing Talent Management Strategies
The last few years have seen a significant embracing of talent management strategies throughout Asia.
Today, according to the CIPD [25], nearly three-quarters (74%) of respondents in Asia report that their organisation
undertakes talent management activities with as many as 91% in China and 87% in South Korea (87%). This
compares favourably to Singapore where only 52% of employers have talent management strategies in place.
Yet, despite this embracing of talent management, the survey also finds that only 12% feel that the objectives of
their talent management activity is to address skills shortages (12%), redeployment of staff to other roles (11%)
and meeting the future skills needs of the organisation (11%). This is despite respondents in the survey also
acknowledging that a lack of people resources (46%) and high staff turnover (43%) are the biggest challenges
when conducting talent management activities.
In such cases and against an environment of skills shortages, it is crucial for organisations to review their talent
management strategies and ensure that they are specifically focused on up-skilling employees and creating a
strong talent pipeline.
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17. 7. The Crucial Role of L&D
It is, of course, Learning & Development (L&D) - whether it be part of external vocational training, graduate
development or in developing the leaders of the future - that will be central to Asia addressing the skills crisis.
It’s also reassuring to know that many Asian organisation are embracing training. The Cegos survey that looked
at 2013 learning trends [22] found a strong commitment to training in Asia Pacific with 87% of learners having
received training in 2012. In such cases, training covered everything from classroom and online training to
coaching, mentoring and on-the-job learning with many companies also increasingly adopting a blended
approach.
Let’s take a look at some different elements of L&D and the impact it can have on addressing skills shortages.
7.1 The Growing Role of Technology
With some of the world’s fastest broadband speeds, the growth in mobile broadband and an insatiable demand
for social networks, Asia today is at the forefront of technology-enabled learning with technology playing a key
role in addressing the skills deficit. This can cover everything from e-learning to social networks, online gaming
and informal learning.
When asked to rate the importance of technology for business, talent and learning practices, according to the
Cegos August 2013 survey [21], technology was seen to have the most important role to play in L&D today with
61% of leaders rating technology’s role in this area to be of high importance.
It is the flexible and collaborative nature of technology that makes it particularly appropriate in fostering skills
development across generations (we will discuss the cross-generational challenge in section 8). One such
example is Petronas Leadership Centre which uses technology to train all its employees across all generations.
The centre includes a number of social networking-related tools including an interactive learning portal, faculty
blog and a wide variety of online publications [43].
Furthermore, whilst once rooted in compliance, health & safety and IT skills training, employees are now also
increasingly using e-learning to brush up on their soft skills. In fact, across virtually every industry and profession
e-learning programmes are being used as a key component in the development of management and personal
effectiveness skills with areas such as leadership, time management, communications, team work and client
care all lending themselves well to e-learning.
7.2 Coaching & Mentoring
Coaching and mentoring is also playing a key role in plugging the skills gap, particularly in the area of enhancing
management skills. The Cegos August 2013 report [21], for example, found 60% of respondents rating this
method as being highly effective in terms of leadership development.
Coaching’s ability to adapt to different business scenarios and sit comfortably at almost all levels of an organisation
means that it can play a key role in addressing skill deficits at all levels of an organisation. Furthermore, it is this
focus on ‘experiential’ learning opportunities and the ‘human touch’ that is so key to coaching today and will
be a vital tool in plugging the skills gap as could be seen in the Maybank case study in section 6.1
7.3 Blended Learning & the Importance of Integration
At this time of significant change and where generations are working side-by-side, however, L&D can only be
truly effective if it provides a wide variety of options - from technology-based learning to classroom learning,
coaching or even communities of practice. It must, however, remain at the same time closely integrated.
This can be seen in the collaborative and flexible nature of blended learning, for example, where learning can
be tailored for different learning styles, generational approaches and, most importantly of all, for different skills.
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18. Today, there are marked variations in blended learning across Asia, according to a Cegos 2013 pan-Asian
survey [22]. In Australia, 100% of learners receive blended learning with Japan and South Korea and Hong
Kong following close behind. Individual learners in Singapore and China, however, have less variety in the
training methods used with only 17% of learners in Singapore and 7% in China receiving blended learning.
These are numbers, however, which I expect to see increasing. If they don’t, such countries will need reality
checks!
7.4 The Level of Take-Up/An Active and Frustrated (?) Learner Population
Yet are organisations putting more resources into L&D and giving it greater prominence as skills shortages
become more acute?
There are positive signs. Almost one in five (19%) Asia Pacific employers with a talent shortage issue are offering
additional training and development to current staff to help fill the gaps according the 2103 Manpower Survey [1].
In addition, the Cegos August 2013 report [21] found that developing and growing staff is the number one
leadership challenge facing leaders and managers both today (rated highly by 73% of respondents) and in the
future (71%).
Furthermore, as we have discussed in previous papers, it is employees who are likely to keep the pressure
up as well with a more active learner population intent on acquiring new skills. The Cegos 2013 pan-Asian
survey [22], for example, found that nearly one in three Asian learners are initiating training themselves – an
acknowledgement of a more active learner population but also a warning to organisations and HR departments
that they must meet their growing requirements.
What is also clear is that if organisations don’t provide the training and the skills, many employees will arrange
it themselves. The same Cegos survey found that 26% of Indian employees actually pay for training themselves
and in Indonesia 44% of employees train after office hours and 26% on rest days.
What we are seeing is an increasingly vocal learner population that is playing an active role in reducing the skills
deficit and, on occasion, putting organisations to shame. If the education system and corporations aren’t able
to provide would-be employees with the skills they need, they have little option but look to acquire these skills
themselves.
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19. 8. The Cross-Generational Challenge
It’s also important to understand the demographic context against which plugging the skills gaps activities
are taking place and in particular, the need for cross-generational teams to work effectively in the workplace –
something that has been referenced a number of times in this paper.
As the Baby Boomers continue to retire and as Generation Z (iGen) enters the workforce, knowledge transfer
across generations is becoming vital as a means of addressing skills shortages.
In the case of Generation X and their likely taking up of leadership positions over the next few years, they will
need to evolve their leadership style to reflect the changing demographics of the workplace and also address
the ever increasing demands of Generation Y (see separate box). The Cegos August 2013 study [21], for
example, found that there is likely to be a much greater focus on a more collaborative style of leadership.
There is also much that can be done to improve the leadership skills of Generation X. The same report
found 29% of respondents rating their Generation X leaders as having low skill levels for talent management
and retention and 27% of respondents rated their Generation X leaders as having low skill capabilities in
techniques for engaging different generations. Clearly, there needs to be focus on improving the leadership
skills of Generation X if the skills gap is not to become even more acute.
The Ever Increasing Demands of Generation Y
“Generation Y don’t realise that beyond the surface level, racking up a few projects
does not equate to depth of experience. Generation Ys will look for other employers
for career growth if it is not offered by their current employer. This contributes towards
the high turnover rate in China.” – William Chin, Qualcomm Asia Pacific
“When it comes to Generation Y, there is an even larger focus on individualism, and instant gratification
in India. The means that employers have to offer a lot of choice to Generation Y to allow them to
customise their work and have a say in their role.” - Subeer Bakshi, Towers Watson India
“Learning to calibrate their expectations is a big challenge for Generation Y. Gen Ys are famous for
their expectations regarding rapid advancement, feeling they can leapfrog over their Gen X brethren
and challenge the Baby Boomers.” - David Rodriguez, Executive Vice President & Chief Human
Resources Officer, Marriott International Inc.
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20. 9. A Call for Action
So what have we learned from this paper? Clearly, there is a growing need to tackle a skills shortage that has
the potential to have a highly negative effect on Asia’s future growth. Here’s an action plan divided into what
decisions need to be taken prior to employees entering the workforce and after they enter the workforce.
Before Entering the Workforce
• An Improvement in Both the Quality and Quantity of Higher Education. The quantity and quality of
higher education graduates is still too low in many Asian countries. All stakeholders from governments to
the private sector need to play a part in improving higher education throughout Asia so we don’t get
situations, such as the Islamic Finance sector in Malaysia (see section 2.2).
• Improved Vocational Training & Technical Skills. There needs to be improved and more accessible
formal vocational training systems that are more responsive to labour market needs and can ensure that
many potential employees have specific technical skills prior to entering the workforce. The examples from
Malaysia and China demonstrate what can be achieved in this area.
• Giving People a Reason to Stay. While a global workforce and talent mobility means that a steady stream
of incoming and outgoing workers is inevitable, it’s important for countries to give their job candidates and
employees a reason to stay both before they join the workforce and after they have entered it. This can
include factors from a strong educational systems to organisations willing to invest in their L&D and career
needs for the future. The example of TalentCorp in Malaysia (see section 5.5) demonstrates that employees
can be persuaded to come home.
• A Greater Focus on Soft Skills. Time and again Asian organisations complain about the lack of soft skills
from employees as they enter the workforce. From creativity and communication through to resilience and
confidence, soft skills are vital skills that need to be fully embedded in education systems alongside traditional
qualifications and vocational pathways. And, of course, enhancing these soft skills needs to continue in the
workforce. It’s up to training providers and organisations to find the best ways of delivering them.
• A Focus on Partnership. The bottom line in improving workplace readiness is that there needs to be a
greater partnership approach between all stakeholders. The closer the links between workplace organisations
and colleges and universities, for example, the better organisations will be able to communicate their specific
needs. Similarly, funding from government and National Skills Plans can make all the difference in reducing
the skills gap. Everyone must work together!
After Entering the Workforce
• The Need for a Clear Plan on Entry. It’s also crucial that once recruited, there is a clear plan on entry for
all employees. There will be a need to up-skill new employees and identify where learning & development is
most needed as well as identify potential top talent destined for senior positions within the organisations.
Here, areas such as graduate development is vital.
• A Greater Integration & a Greater Choice of Learning. Having a flexible but integrated learning
approach will be vital for up-skilling new employees, providing more options within a collaborative environment
and ensuring that the very specific learning needs of all employees are met (whatever their demographic).
This is where blended learning is so important with certain learning tools also particularly applicable for the
acquiring of certain skills - e-learning for technical training, for example.
• A Greater Focus on Management Skills. Management skills have never been more needed in the Asian
workplace – particularly due to the increased leadership responsibilities being taken on by Generation X. It’s
vital that organisations prioritise and invest accordingly.
• Groom Leaders from Within. There also needs to be a greater focus on grooming leaders from within
rather than looking externally to bring in new skills. This puts the onus on strong talent management
strategies and L&D.
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21. • A Changing Focus With Talent Management Strategies. There needs to be a subtle retuning of many talent
management strategies so that there here is a greater focus on skills shortages as well as retaining and growing
existing staff. This includes creating a strong talent pipeline for the future.
•
Emphasise the Skills of Every Generation. Every employee from every generation has different skills and
every employee has a skill or area of expertise they can share with another. It’s essential that all skills are nurtured
and celebrate in the modern-day Asian organisation.
• A Light Regulatory Touch. It’s important that organisations operate within a pro-business labour environment.
This doesn’t mean the ability to lay off employees ad nauseam but there is a need for flexibility and light labour
regulations to head off skills shortages. This includes openness to immigration with Japan’s strict immigration
policies serving as a warning.
• Meeting the Needs of an Increasingly Vocal Learner Population. Finally, it’s clear that employees want the
necessary skills to succeed and will do whatever it takes to acquire them – whether it be paying for their own
training or do training in their own time (see section 7.4). Against this context, it’s vital for HR departments and L&D
specialists to step up to the plate and deliver on what their learners need.
10. Final Thoughts
To deal with the skills gaps in Asia today requires collaboration and joined-up thinking and engagement from all
stakeholders from government agencies to training providers, schools, universities, consultants, coaches, and
employers. The essential building blocks are in place with growing economies and demand and populations
that are thirsty for knowledge and for acquiring new skills.
Yet, it’s easy to talk and easy to put forward recommendations. The time for action is now. Get it right and I fully
expect Asia to be the world’s economic powerhouse for many years to come.
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22. 11. References
[1]
[2]
[3]
[4]
[5]
[6]
[7]
[8]
[9]
[10]
[11]
[12]
[13]
[14]
[15]
[16]
[17]
[18]
[19]
[20]
[21]
[22]
[23]
[24]
[25]
[26]
[27]
[28]
[29]
[30]
[31]
[32]
[33]
[34]
[35]
[36]
[37]
[38]
[39]
[40]
[41]
[42]
[43]
Manpower Group Annual Talent Shortage Survey 2013, www.manpower.com
McKinsey Global Institute, ‘Talent Tensions Ahead, A CEO Briefing’, www.mckinsey.com
Michael Page, 2013 Salary & Employment Forecast China, www.michaelpage.com
Bloomberg News Asia, August 27 2012
UK Daily Telegraph, Dec 5 2011
Hays Group, 2012 Hays Global Skills Index, www.hays-index.com
Organisation for Economic Cooperation & Development (OECD), Adults Skill Survey, October 2013,
www.oecd.org
The World Bank, High Education in East Asia, October 2011 www.worldbank.org
University World News, March 16 2013 http://www.universityworldnews.com
HRM Asia, August 12 2012, www.hrmasia.com
World Bank Paper, ‘Employability and Skill Set of Newly Graduated Engineers in India’, October 2011,
www.worldbank.org
Organisation for Economic Cooperation & Development (OECD), ‘The Global Middle Class’, 2010
World Health Organisation, ‘Global Health Situation & Trends 1955-2025’, www.who.int
CNBC, Oct 24 2012, www.cnbc.com
India Economic Times, Dec 21 2009, http://economictimes.indiatimes.com
HRM Asia, March 23 2013, www.hrmasia.com
Carl Zeiss Group, www.zeiss.com
Migration Information Source, Country Profile: Singapore, April 2012, www.migrationinformation.org
The 2013 Hays Asia Salary Guide, March 2013, www.hays.cn
PwC 2013 APEC CEO Survey, www.pwc.com
Cegos Group, Temasek Polytechnic, TP-THT Centre for TransCultural Studies, ‘Leading & Managing in
the 2020 Multi-Dimensional Workforce’, August 2013, www.cegos.sg
Cegos Group, ‘Major Learning Trends & Indicators towards 2013 within the Asia Pacific Region’,
September 2012, www.cegos.sg
World Economic Forum, Global Agenda Councils: Skills & Talent Mobility, 2012, www.weforum.org
Towers Watson, Global Workforce Study 2012, www.towerswatson.com
Chartered Institute of Personnel & Development (CIPD), ‘Learning, Talent and Innovation in Asia’,
October 2012, www.cipd.org
Energy Skills Queensland, December 2011, www.energyskillsqld.com.au
The Economist, April 27 2013, www.economist.com
The Economist, December 8 2012, www.economist.com
Friends of Star, October 2012, www.staroba.my
Xinhua, August 5, 2013, news.xinhuanet.com/english/china/
Forbes Magazine, May 26 2013, www.forbes.com
BBC, August 7 2013, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-23588735
PWC 15th Annual CEO Survey 2012. www.pwc.com
National Skills Development Corporation India, www.nsdcindia.org
China Daily, June 6 2013, www.chinadaily.com.cn
Korea Herald, February 20 2013, www.koreaherald.com
HRM Asia, September 5 2013, www.hrmasia.com
Talent Corp Malaysia, www.talentcorp.com.my
Barclays Bank, Asia Pacific Graduate Programmes, http://joinus.barclays.com/apac/graduate-programmes
Graduate Works, www.graduateworks.com
HRM Asia, June 5 2013, www.hrmasia.com
UNIMENTA, www.unimenta.com
Cegos Group, ‘Technology Enhanced Learning in Asia Today – Benefits & Challenges’,
September 2013, www.cegos.sg
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23. 12. About Cegos Group
Cegos, Europe’s largest training organisation, is one of the major International players across the Asia Pacific
region, based at its Regional HQ in Singapore, and with operations in China and Hong Kong. A network
of region-wide Most Valued Partners, and Collaborators, ensures Cegos can support Client training and
development anywhere, in any language, consistently and with a truly “Think Global / Learn Local” approach
– meaning Cegos is experienced at driving training in the Asian context, not just in the context of the origin
country / company.
The Cegos Group was founded in 1926 in France, and is one of the world leaders in professional training for
managers and their teams. In 2012, the Cegos Group achieved a turnover of $230 Million USD and trained
more than 200,000 managers internationally.
www.cegos.com.sg
www.elearning-cegos.com
www.cegos.com.cn
For more details, debate or discussion, please contact: jeremy.blain@cegos.com.sg or + 65 9069 3291
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24. 13. About Jeremy Blain
Jeremy Blain is a Partner of Cegos Group and Regional Managing Director for
Cegos, Asia Pacific, where he heads up Cegos’s operations and activities from the
company’s Singapore hub, covering India in the West to the Pacific countries in the
East.
Prior to this, Jeremy was responsible for Cegos’ strategy for international expansion
through a value adding Global Distribution Partners Network and before that as
Managing Director of Cegos U.K.
A commercially minded L&D entrepreneur responsible for growing Cegos’ business
worldwide through his various roles within the company, Jeremy has 12 years’
experience in the industry as a managing director, partner, trainer, coach and
program author. In previous roles at Procter and Gamble, PepsiCo and as Managing
Partner of his own point-of-sale software business. Jeremy’s background includes
marketing, sales, operations and general management.
As one of Cegos’ senior executives, Jeremy is a frequent international conference
speaker and media commentator on topics related to the global L&D market.
Themes include: the integration of emerging and informal learning technologies;
the importance of performance measurement and proving ROI; developing ‘core’
leadership, management and commercial skills to achieve competitive business
advantage; and change management and how to implement successful international
training strategies.
For more details, debate or discussion, you can find Jeremy on LinkedIn
http://sg.linkedin.com/in/jeremyblain and also on Twitter at http://twitter.com/
learntheplanet
Jeremy has also published a series of white papers on issues relevant to L&D.
These are still current and available and can be viewed on Jeremy’s SlideShare
portal http://www.slideshare.net/JeremyBlain and include:
- Technology Enhanced Learning in Asia Today – Benefits & Challenges, September 2013,
- Leading & Managing in the 2020 Multi-Dimensional Workplace, August 2013 (a joint report with Temasek
Polytechnic and the TP-THT Centre for TransCultural Studies)
- Blended Learning – Truths, Mistakes and Vast Potential of Multi-Modal Learning, May 2013 (a joint paper
with TP3 Australia)
- Getting the Best out of Your Talent – Whatever the Generation, March 2013
- Major Learning Trends & Indicators towards 2013 within the Asia Pacific Region, September 2012
- Communities of Practice – A Guide to the Business Benefits for Asian Companies, May 2012
- Blended Learning and its Applications for Asian Companies Today, March 2012
- Developing Multicultural Leadership and Management Skills in Today’s Increasingly Globalised Workplace,
November 2011
- Global Themes & Trends – European, US and Brazilian Comparisons on the Key Drivers and Issues in L&D
Today, October 2011
- Learning in the Cloud – Opportunities & Threats, September 2011
- Cegos/ASTD global learning trends research: A comparison between what is happening among learners
today and the perceptions of learning professionals, July 2011
- ‘Training Today, Training Tomorrow - An Analysis of Learning Trends Across Europe and Global Comparisons’,
May 2011.
- ‘Corporate Philanthropy: How Strategies are Changing and How Cegos is Helping to Make an Impact’, May
2011
- ‘The Rise of Virtual Learning’, April 2011
- ‘What has L&D Learned from the Economic Slowdown’, March 2011
- ‘Informal Networks – How They Are Changing the World of Work’, December 2010- ‘Exploring and
Interpreting the Most Important Learning Trends across the Globe’, May 2010
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25. Copyright © Cegos Asia Pacific, 2013.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or
transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval
system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Requests for permission to make copies of any part of the work should be
emailed to: learn@cegos.com.sg
Cegos Asia Pacific presents the material in this report for informational
and future planning purposes only.
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26. Cegos subsidiaries
Partners
Cegos Asia Pacific Pte Ltd
460 Alexandra Road, Level 26, PSA Building, Singapore 119963
Tel: + 65 6809 3097 | Email: learn@cegos.com.sg | website: www.cegos.com.sg