Innovation starts with developing human resources

This call was made by Tran Thi Lan Anh, Secretary General of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), who said that increasing labour productivity in the near future would “rely mainly on innovation and application of scientific advances”. 

“If enterprises want to innovate, they must pay attention to developing human resources, including the professional skills development of workers, especially young workers,” she said at the “Dialogue on Business Engagement on Skills Development for Employability of Young People” in Hanoi recently.

At the same event, co-organised by VCCI and UNICEF Vietnam, Lesley Miller, Deputy Representative to UNICEF Vietnam, said that enterprises and business communities played a critical role in building and improving employability skills for young people. 

“In a global economy increasingly focused on high productivity and a skilled labour force, reliance on labour-intensive industries will no longer be a comparative edge,” said Miller. 

READ: Vietnam sees strong recovery in jobs numbers

Nguyen Thi Thuan, former Rector of the University of Labour and Social Affairs, said, “Today, besides job skills, businesses need workers with soft skills such as communication, teamwork, and problem-solving.”

According to her research, 83% of university graduates are assessed as lacking soft skills, and 37% of graduates cannot find suitable jobs due to weak skills. As such, 40% of new employees must be retrained, reported Vietnam+.