From scores to skills

THIS WEEK'S TOPIC: What is essential in education to prepare the young for tomorrow's world and encourage lifelong learning? How might this change the way employers evaluate prospective hires?

Victor Mills Chief Executive Singapore International Chamber of Commerce

FOR education to be effective and applied, everyone needs an open and questioning mind - not just young people at school and college.

Having an open and questioning mind helps us develop and apply the positive attitude we need to cope with change.

It also enables us to keep adapting and learning as we apply our knowledge. Gone are the days when most education was frontloaded to our first 25 years. We all have to keep learning to stay relevant. The other key transferable skills employers will continue to look for are effective, respectful communication and the ability to work in cross-cultural teams across borders.

Mario Singh CEO Fullerton Markets

THERE are two important components that are essential to lifelong learning: Curiosity and resilience. Curiosity is important because it allows the mind to question and engage various possibilities to the task at hand. We wouldn't have some of the brilliant innovations we have today if not for the curious minds of Thomas Edison or Steve Jobs.

Next, resilience. Whether it's school or the workplace, it's easy to find things that will discourage or dampen our spirit. However, there is huge power in someone who just refuses to quit. If we look at Thomas Edison, we certainly wouldn't have the lightbulb if he didn't have the curiosity to start the experiments nor the resilience to finish them. As an employer myself, I look for these two traits when I hire. Academic qualifications alone are a poor barometer of how a person will blossom and tackle challenges in the future.

John Bittleston Founder & Chair Terrific Mentors International Pte Ltd

EDUCATION is about learning to think first and acquiring skills second. We have turned it into a skills-acquiring process focused on industries and technologies. The processes taught for jobs are broadly accepted as correct. They need to be examined, questioned and challenged so that we can forecast the consequences of their adoption.

Education authorities must turn our traditional system upside down. Employers are the drivers of education. More importantly, given the United Nations' climate panel's latest recommendations, in order to prepare the young for tomorrow's world, we need to ensure we still have a world tomorrow. Education must focus on the wider role everyone plays in saving the planet. If this had been the case 20 years ago we would not have climate doom to deal with today.

Philip Yuen Chief Executive Officer Deloitte South-east Asia and Singapore

WORK as we know it is transforming. Soft skills, industry-specific technical skills and entrepreneurship have become fundamental qualities that young people need to succeed in today's increasingly technology augmented workforce.

Many skills learned today only remain relevant for as little as five years, so there is impetus for educational institutions to respond and adapt curricula to embrace the constantly evolving skills that the digital age demands. Governments and businesses too will have to profoundly change their approach to education, skills and employment.

Employers will be redesigning their talent models, factoring in the new mindset that continuous reskilling and lifelong learning will be a way of life at work. Workers who are able to augment technology with higher value insights, and possess strong soft skills such as the ability to adapt, communicate and think creatively, use emotional intelligence, and make value judgements, will emerge as winners in the new world of work.

Matthew Lim Group Managing Director WE! Interactive

AS an ex-lecturer, I understand the difficulties for institutions to plan a system that accommodates everyone since every individual student has their own way of learning.

Many jobs are now being automated or taken over by robots and machines. The edge we have over the machines is our soft skills. Students are so used to being spoon-fed by the school that they lack the initiative to learn. This takes a lot of discipline given that there so many distractions. Therefore, it is important that these values are being cultivated at home. Parents should not just leave the responsibility to the school.

Sumir Bhatia President Lenovo Singapore

"LEARN for Life" is a mantra that stayed with me throughout my career. In today's world, disruption and innovation are the only constants, and it's important for everyone to be able to "recalibrate and relearn", and be agile enough to surf these waves of change.

This ability to adapt and transform needs to start at an early age, with schools and education playing a big part of nurturing children.

Having a curriculum that is more practical than the outdated rote learning, along with teachers who are willing to encourage out-of-the-box thinking, will be critical in showing students how things can be done differently - even at an early age.

Personally, I don't ever recall looking at prospective hires' grades or where they stood in class. Instead, I look for people who demonstrate innovative thinking and are willing to challenge the status quo: individuals who are able to adapt to change and inspire others to contribute to that transformation.

Steve Settle Regional Director The CFO Centre

EDUCATION should not be about which student is "the best" but about all students becoming the best that they can be. We learn in different ways and the more schools can get away from structured exams and move towards building a child's curiosity and willingness to learn, the better.

I would also suggest that there is a huge gap in the school curriculum around teaching the skills needed the most as we grow up - more EQ than IQ - centred upon mindfulness, compassion, understanding and respect for others.

Likewise, prospective employers should always be looking beyond the CV to understand the person behind the grades. Who we are speaks far louder than the certificates we hold and is far more relevant for any employer trying to assess whether an applicant can make a meaningful contribution to the organisation and current team.

Chris Burton Managing Director Vistra Singapore and Malaysia

IN a world increasingly dominated by big data, ever-faster computer processing and connectivity, the pursuit of knowledge for its own sake is becoming superfluous. A single individual no longer has the capacity to outperform a computer on information learning.

However, it will be in the distant future only that AI will be able to supersede humans on matters of social interaction, for example involving complex services requiring trust, or teaching and care industries. Education should develop towards stimulating innovation and creativity/adaptability, team activities, and maximising social experiences amongst different settings and cultures. Aside from preparing our young people for the jobs of the future, these experiences should also be more emotionally rewarding.

Anders Liss Country Manager, Scania Singapore Regional Manager, Scania South Region

THE business-driven focus will still continue in recruitment. To reflect the global nature of business challenges, we aim to capture cognitive diversity by recruiting individuals with the right skills and motivation from a broad range of cultures, nationalities, ages and genders.

As business agility has come to the forefront, there is also a pressing need to identify individuals who view lifelong learning as a necessary part of building sustainable careers. This attitude must be rooted from a young age, by schools that emphasise the joy of learning. When learning is fun, meaningful and rewarding, students will develop a lifelong curiosity for new knowledge and skills. Education lasts only for a few years; learning continues for life.

Dileep Nair Independent Director Thakral Corporation Limited

WE live in a competitive fast-changing world where we are bombarded with various demands on our time and attention. The life-skills needed to cope with this milieu are what should be imbued into our young. Besides basic numeracy and literacy, fundamental values of morality, family, frugality and healthy lifestyle should be inculcated. Likewise, positive attitudes such as grit, gumption and generosity of spirit must be nurtured.

Putting students through tests that focus on these attitudes can actually help develop these qualities, especially if the assessments are team-based and use peer-rankings.

Exams on subject-matter competency must remain. So long as these results are taken together with character assessments, employers will be well placed to make appropriate hiring decisions.

Lance Wang General Manager of South-east Asia, Hong Kong, and Macau YITU Technology

ARTIFICIAL intelligence (AI) is increasingly transforming the way we live, work and play. Beyond the traditional emphasis on developing science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) skills, education systems need to equip our youth with the skills and mindsets necessary to work and thrive in a rapidly changing AI-driven world.

This entails critical thinking skills, a willingness to learn and relearn, and being adaptable to change. At YITU Technology, our focus on nurturing future AI industry leaders reflects our commitment towards contributing to Singapore's future-ready and AI-savvy workforce.

Edwin Khew Teck Fook Immediate Past President The Institution of Engineers, Singapore

IT is important for education to emphasise on learning out of passion than necessity. In engineering, it is often passion that produces innovation and creativity that will improve lives and our world. Passion turns students into engineers and engineers into pivotal contributors to the economy and society.

The education process could ignite this passion by giving students opportunities to discover and innovate at a young age. Employers would also need to consider passion as a hiring requirement, as it brings an innovative mind-set that is valued in all organisations. Passion also motivates continuous education and training (CET) which is a requirement for the extension of Professional Engineers and Chartered Engineer registration status through Professional Development Units (PDUs).

Matthew Sullivan Head of School NPS International School, Singapore

FOR us, education is not about exams at all. It is about the personal growth of character, confidence, and competencies of our students. Schools should be a place where students are given the opportunities to think creatively, inquire creatively, cross-fertilise ideas and articulate their thoughts confidently as well as leverage technology in learning.

It also should be a platform that enables students to sharpen their social skills and confidence, foster friendship and collaboration, and have fun. We believe learning is a natural consequence of these enabling circumstances. Employers need to design their workplaces as educational institutions. Like schools, companies should offer intellectual and social opportunities for multi-dimensional personal growth of the employee. The workplace needs to be a nurturing source of creativity, collaboration, friendship, and personal learning.

Andrew J Calvert Managing Director APAC AchieveForum

FOR those currently in fulltime education, the workplace they will move into is still evolving. Everyone leads every day - everyone needs to coach, motivate, problem-solve, reframe situations, communicate. Those are the skills the workforce needs. And employers need to evaluate how the workforce - new and tenured can learn, unlearn and adapt on a daily basis.

Those coming out of the education system know they have not learned everything . . . t is often their managers and leaders who need to let go of out-of-date notions and embrace the new!

Snehal Patel CEO & Co-Founder MyDoc Pte Ltd

IRONICALLY, in a fast-moving world, a focus on time-tested classical literature is essential. Children need a proper foundation to adapt to changing circumstances and show resilience and creativity in the face of challenge and failure.

And what has proved more resilient and relevant throughout the centuries than the universal lessons present in the Iliad, the Oresteian Trilogy or in the works of Shakespeare? Critical creative thinking is key in this day and age, and as an employer, we would benefit from employees with a classical education who have the ability to connect dots that go beyond their narrow job description.

Cheong Hoe Wai President, Oil and Gas Business Black & Veatch Group

THE essential element of education of the future is to prepare the young to be creative, to think outside the box. It is not about getting top grades but about understanding concepts and principles and more importantly how and where to apply them.

Students should be encouraged to be adaptable and flexible in their thinking, and that there are always numerous solutions to any problem. The learning of social skills is a major part of the education process - how to work and solve problems in a team environment. Ultimately, being an inspiring leader is about working and leading others to their maximum potential.

Peh Yi Han Chief Operating Officer Global EduHub

CHILDREN are born with a natural curiosity and hunger to learn. It is important for educators to focus on growing that fire and fuelling that passion, rather than merely chasing grades.

While facts acquired today may be obsolete in this age of continual disruption, the inner habits and core mindsets ingrained withstand the test of time, and the ability to adapt to new scenarios is ever more critical for success. Continuous learning, creativity, critical thinking, communication, confidence and collaborative skills are the new 6Cs of the future, and astute employers will increasingly favour these competencies, over and above the usual technical skills or education metrics.

Bicky Bhangu President British Chamber of Commerce Singapore

IN a recent speech attended by our members, Education Minister Ong Ye Kung relayed his vision for Singapore's educational system with a focus on lifelong learning, transferable skills, and opportunities for students to engage in more experiential learning.

The Chamber applauds the Singapore government for taking steps to ensure a lifetime of interest in learning for today's students and the resulting increase in transferable skills which our member companies will continually require for their businesses to grow. This mission mirrors the Chamber's own Future of Work agenda which is driving a series of activities and conversations across all industries, including addressing the skills required for the future.

Maren Schweizer Director Schweizer World Pte Ltd

I BELIEVE in the importance of independent thinking, questioning things, having opinions and willingness to debate that opinion.

Education must not just be about the next exam-based obstacle. It should be about personal development and schools should offer a holistic preparation that enables children to make a real difference in the field they choose. It's also crucial to have a global perspective and ability to think beyond boundaries.

Forward-looking education includes the 3Cs:

These will become increasingly important in hiring and helping one to navigate through a constantly shifting work landscape.

Dolly Goh CEO Singapore National Co-operative Federation (SNCF)

THE transformation of Singapore's education system from being academic-focused to one that advocates lifelong learning is a timely move. It is important that the young stay relevant amid the rapid changes and shifts faced at the workplace.

We can build a culture with the attitude that embraces lifelong learning and skills mastery in institutions of learning where the drive to innovate, be inquisitive, and to have a thirst for knowledge can be inculcated. As an employer, we believe in these qualities and bring programmes to schools to teach life skills and build character. As an organisation, we value staff who are resilient, creative, have diverse exposure and possess a positive attitude and team spirit.

Magesvaran Suranjan President, P&G Asia-Pacific and P&G India Subcontinental, Middle East & Africa

IN our rapidly evolving world, children who are entering school today will grow up to hold jobs that don't yet exist. Digitisation is changing the way we work and building the right digital capabilities is an imperative for any business to grow.

In this context, P&G is committed to nurture future hires while helping our current employees to match the pace of digital innovation and foster a culture of openness, forward thinking and entrepreneurship. P&G collaborates with leading universities to create programmes that support students to develop the skills that will help them stay ahead of the region's digital transformation.

We nurture talents and encourage lifelong learning along their careers by driving their leadership skills and helping them to extend their digital capabilities and embrace the digital transformation in every aspect of our operations. Annually, we conduct over 20,000 hours of corporate training in Asia-Pacific and train over 500 managers.

Aarti Ramaswami Deputy Dean ESSEC Asia-Pacific

EDUCATION should enable learners to think critically, be curious and creative, and reflect on how their strengths might best serve the needs of business and society in sustainable ways. The world is ever more connected, and our workplaces, schools, and neighbourhoods are more international.

Embracing diversity, and the diverse meanings of success; staying relevant and positively impactful on communities: all this is ultimately about developing a future generation of responsible leaders. And this should interest employers as they need talent to manage organisational transformation, to think of creative and sustainable business models, and to stay resilient in the face of future challenges.

Chris J Reed Global CEO and Founder The Dark Art of Marketing and Black Marketing

PRACTICAL and real life business skills dealing with opportunities and challenges that they will face at work and that also empower and inspire them to want to leave their comfort zones of family, friends, expectations, culture and country and find themselves are essential. In other cultures they are taught to pitch business ideas and sell themselves when they are at primary/middle/high school which prepares them for business life.

Entrepreneurial employers like me are already evaluating employees based on their EQ, their presence, their charisma, their personal brand, business acumen, potential as well as their relationship building and leadership skills rather than degrees or schooling. That's the future.

Violet Lim CEO & Co-Founder Lunch Actually Group

IN the upcoming decades, AI and automation will be taking over many current jobs. For our young to stay relevant, they need 3Cs: Curiosity, Creativity, Collaboration. By being curious, they will constantly be probing and asking questions. By being creative, they will think out of the box and be great problem solvers. As the world becomes more complex, we need people who can collaborate and solve problems together.

Having two children in primary school, my impression of the education system is that it does not encourage the 3Cs.

Children are expected to rote-learn, follow instructions and talk only when asked. Children who do not learn the way school expects them to will feel bored and learning becomes a chore. While the government is taking action to address the gap, it is our responsibility as parents to facilitate a home environment that encourages and instils lifelong learning for our children.

Rathakrishnan Govind CEO London School of Business and Finance

THERE'S a lot of talk on learning, and teaching the new generation of students - largely contributed by the penetration of technology in education. Today's students learn as much outside of a classroom environment as they do inside.

While information is literally at their finger-tips, the danger of mis-information also looms, corrupting their knowledge, and in some cases reducing their confidence in the resource. The role of educators such as LSBF is to equip the students with critical thinking skills, people skills and research skills to sieve out false information and find alternative views for analysis and deduction.

In the age of constant change driven by technology, what one learns today will quickly become obsolete, sometimes in a matter of months, if not years! Therefore, it is only wise to invest in continued learning.

Educators will have to find ways to keep subject matters short and applicable for ease of implementation at workplace. However, one must avoid the notion that an academic degree is no longer relevant. The purpose of a degree is to lay the foundation in critical thinking skills and subject matter knowledge. What we need in education of today is workplace relevance and employers as partners in education. For employers, it time to move away from which university one graduates from, to what thinking and people skills one brings to the organisation.

At the pace of change, the organisation that adopts this thinking will see a greater leap of success than others that do not.

Jayajyoti Sengupta Head, Asia-Pacific Cognizant

THE phrase "People are our most important asset" holds more weight than ever today. Not only do companies and education institutions need to train people for jobs that are currently available, they also need to prepare them for jobs that don't exist yet.

While it's extremely important to prepare workers and students to work alongside emerging digital technologies, employers will increasingly start placing a premium on job applicants who demonstrate skills like flexibility, self-motivation, empathy, creativity and effective communication, as they know humanness will become a competitive advantage when working with intelligent systems.

Both businesses and educators will need to identify the future skills, and overhaul existing curriculum and teaching approaches to develop those skills and instil 'Learn for Life' values. This process cannot take place in a vacuum - collaboration between businesses and educators will be critical to successfully manage the transformative and disruptive impact of the new machine age.

Bent Rye CEO & Chairman Temasys Communications

FROM a business prospective, these changes in Singapore's educational system are very important. As a business leader, I'm looking for talent who are able to think for themselves, ask critical questions and bring a vibrant curiosity to my company.

An overt focus on exams and grades teaches students to be great at recitals without applying critical thinking. I applaud these changes to improve education in Singapore. Learning is truly a lifelong endeavour and should be fun and stimulate discussions which result in positive change for businesses and society as a whole.

Helen Ng Chief Executive Officer General Storage Company Pte Ltd

WHAT our current education system lacks is a programme to inculcate life skills and key character traits such as grit, independence and the ability to cope with failure so as to prepare our students for an increasingly complex and competitive working world.

As a mother of two school-going children, I am concerned about the pervasive tuition culture in Singapore and the growing involvement of parents in every aspect of their children's school lives. Our education system needs to remove these "crutches" and enable students to navigate their own learning.

Stephen Wang Managing Director, Asia Pacific Talent Plus Pte Ltd.

TO encourage lifelong learning adults must "model" behaviour for their young, by constantly stimulating intellectual curiosity. Curiosity leads to learning agility - defined as applying learning to perform under new situations. Very key for employers in hiring decisions is an applicant's innate ability to solve problems.

Problem solving requires using sound judgement that emanates from the person's intellectual curiosity to learn about alternatives to consider towards reaching desired outcomes. An exchange overheard recently between an adult and youth: "What have you learned today that made the day worth living? I'll share mine." How about asking this question every day?

Karl Hamann Chief Executive Officer QBE Insurance (Singapore) Pte Ltd

OUR world is evolving at an unprecedented pace, with disruption now a mainstay in today's digital economy. Our education system needs to respond by nurturing versatility, agility, and renewed problem-solving skills in the next generation.

Some employers have already de-emphasised the importance of academic results. Instead, today's hirers value creativity and out-of-the-box thinking in candidates, as well as reliable indicators for leadership potential and an ability to thrive in high-pressure situations.

Candidates who exhibit these qualities can really help companies break out of their usual thinking and enable them to respond to emerging problems that don't have traditional solutions.

Phil Teeman CEO Dentsu Aegis Network South-east Asia & Singapore

THE digital economy offers huge benefits to society but also carries some risks. Educating our children about these challenges early on is crucial. Underprivileged children - those most affected by the digital divide - need to know how to safeguard themselves and one way is understanding cybersecurity.

As marketers in the digital economy, we have a responsibility to nurture skills that are key to helping our young talents excel in this rapidly changing landscape. Fostering creativity, encouraging diversity and promoting empowerment are soft skills that can give students a head start in the digital economy and eventually the future workforce.

Tan Chong Huat Managing Partner RHTLaw Taylor Wessing LLP

I BELIEVE the sole purpose of education is to enrich one's life through learning and acquiring new skills, knowledge, values and ethics. To achieve this on a massive scale, educators and policymakers need to work towards developing a learning environment which encourages students to seek fulfilment from learning new things, and not from achieving a certain test score.

Grades are measures that unwittingly blemish the learning experience and the fulfilment journey. As an employer, we look beyond grades to search for talents who demonstrate qualities that are not examinable - these include innovative thinking, resilience, tenacity and passion for lifelong learning. These are qualities that will strengthen any organisation to stay relevant and adapt to varying market conditions.

Jayaprakash Jagateesan Chief Executive Officer RHT Holdings Pte Ltd

RECENT forward-looking changes to Singapore's education policies will help develop a workforce that is able to adapt to the complex and constantly disruptive business landscape.

Bringing joy back into learning will drive the right behaviours and help develop the life skills that are key to future business success.

Innovative thinking and self-motivation for continuous personal development are crucial to build a resilient future workforce to meet both national and global needs of our businesses. This is a crucial piece in our own learning and development human capital initiatives.

Employers will increasingly be looking out for talents who are driven by passion and possess soft leadership skills beyond just academic grades to build successful organisations.

Mark Billington Regional Director ICAEW South-East Asia

AT ICAEW, we believe in continuous learning and development. Similarly, the education system and educators should not stay static in today's fast-paced and competitive environment.

Instead, regular research and consultations must be conducted to assess whether the curriculum remains relevant and useful for students. Educational institutes should also find a balance between knowledge-based and skill-based learning. As we evolve to a more agile pedagogy, this will help inspire and encourage lifelong learning as students recognise the need to continuously improve and develop themselves in today's world.

To prepare our students for the workforce, we develop programmes that can help students acquire soft skills such as communications, decision making, problem-solving and teamwork, all of which are easily transferable across careers. In the long run, a dynamic education system that focuses on a set of flexible skills to manage change in an uncertain future will prove beneficial for both employers and employees.

Lee Fook Chiew Chief Executive Officer Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants

IT is important for everyone to adopt a mindset of continuous learning. In this environment of rapid change, employers are looking for people who can continually learn, unlearn and relearn new skills. At ISCA, through our specialisation pathways and continuing professional education courses, we have been equipping the accountancy profession with new skills and encouraging an attitude of lifelong learning.

For instance, ISCA has produced learning roadmaps for accounting and finance professionals in different roles. With these, they are empowered to take charge of their learning journey by selecting relevant learning opportunities to meet their professional development needs.

Sheena Chin Country Director, Singapore Veritas

WITH rapid technological and economic shifts, we cannot anticipate with certainty the challenges that the young will face. The young will need to reinvent themselves and constantly adapt to changes. This means education should focus even more on learning how to learn even as literacy and numeracy continue to be the fundamental building blocks.

It is also important for schools to develop a framework that encourages students to adopt a positive learning mindset and a global outlook, engage in deep learning and build competencies such as critical thinking and problem solving skills.

The shift from scores to lifelong learning will not be easy, given that competition is always here to stay as Singapore progresses. Employers can play a catalytic role by evaluating prospective hires beyond grades, to illustrate that academic excellence is not the only pathway to success.

Martin Mackay President and General Manager for Asia-Pacific & Japan CA Technologies

A WORLD Economic Forum report estimates that 65 per cent of children who enter primary school today will hold jobs that do not currently exist. Evidently, education systems need to evolve in order to effectively prepare the next generation for the digital future.

Besides providing strong fundamentals, education institutions need to look beyond the basic curriculum and instil soft skills such as creativity, collaboration and agility. With waves of new technologies transforming the economy and the work environment, the next generation of workforce needs new skills to capitalise on these changes.

Today, reskilling and upskilling are the norm for the workforce. Schools need to enable students to embrace lifelong learning and new technologies to remain relevant throughout their careers. As a leader, I'm always looking to mentor young executives who are eager to learn. Their hunger for knowledge and desire to constantly improve themselves are vital attributes that I keep an eye out for when evaluating prospective hires.

Cherian Varghese Regional Managing Director & Vice President, Asean Oracle

EXPECTATIONS of today's workforce are vastly different from before, with the impact of digital disruption on industry and business. It is heartening to see the education system responding to these changes. This has also led to a growing demand for cross-collaborations between organisations and educational institutes to right-skill the future workforce.

At Oracle, we believe in supporting lifelong learning by advancing computing education globally. Our Oracle Academy provides students and their teachers the opportunities and technologies to encourage computer science upskilling in the classroom.

As businesses continually evolve, we need adaptability and innovation, forged through education, to create competitive advantage, and ultimately create long-term success for our future leaders.

Lee Siang Chief Executive Officer Dyslexia Association of Singapore

IT is important for education to support all children in identifying and embracing their strengths and weaknesses. No two children are the same and educators must appreciate that children have different learning styles.

Education needs to give children varying pathways to develop to their full potential. The Dyslexia Association of Singapore emphasises the varied ways children with specific learning differences can reach their goals and contribute to their community.

Many have gone out to have outstanding lives and careers. Rather than focusing on academic grades, it would be to an employer's advantage to hire based on a holistic view of a potential employee's talents, attitude and resilience.

Imad Abou Haidar Managing Director, Apac Finastra

AS technology impacts evermore our day-to-day life and continues to disrupt and redefine the jobs of today, acquiring skills has become as important as acquiring knowledge. The jobs of tomorrow will require a level of adaptability and flexibility that we can't even imagine today. That's why it is vital to create an environment that cultivates lifelong learning by instilling a culture of innovation, curiosity and eagerness to try new things and take risks.

And this can only be achieved in and outside the classroom, with one objective in mind: equipping our future generations with leadership skills, adaptability and the ability to collaborate across geographies and cultures. Our aim should be to unlock the potential of people and businesses in order to progress towards the Smart Nation.

Jessie Xia Managing Director, South-east Asia ThoughtWorks

GIVEN the rate of technological advancement, tomorrow's world is going to be vastly different from today's. Our workforce will need to embrace lifelong learning in order to stay relevant and productive.

Digital literacy skills will be highly important as the future economy becomes increasingly data- and innovation-driven. Beyond academic institutions, businesses also need to start prioritising curiosity, passion and a culture of learning in the working environment. At ThoughtWorks, we believe passion goes a long way in transforming skills for the intelligent future, and are currently partnering with various organisations to train individuals from non-ICT backgrounds for a career in technology.

Hari V Krishnan CEO PropertyGuru Group

THE education system in all countries have a big reason to be constantly adaptive and responsive to changing industries - technology has disrupted many industries and is creating new ones as well. This trend is here to stay as technology is getting more powerful and cheaper. In catering to this, the education system needs to infuse 'flexibility' in the discipline that enables future talent to be adaptable to change as industries continue to morph.

Another aspect is the need to encourage and build "creative and curious thinking": as Artificial Intelligence automates all repeatable activities, our very human curiosity and creative thinking will help us find the best ways to use this technology. Lastly, the education system must encourage higher ambitions and the ability to question the status quo in the young minds so they become adept to "solve real problems" - more and more, technology is enabling humans to tackle what previously were unsolvable in areas such as healthcare, security and environmental issues.

Eylon Cohen Vice-President and General Manager, Asia Pacific - Enterprise and Education Kaltura

BEYOND the traditional bounds of classrooms, today's digital natives learn through crowdsourcing information and social interactions. This needs to be taken into consideration when creating the learning framework for the next generation. Educational technologies such as video platforms will continue to be a key enabler of a more interactive and engaging approach to education that can be accessed anytime, anywhere.

Materials on-demand, teacher-learner interactions through video, and other video-based activities can help boost creativity, build community, and add an element of fun and satisfaction for both educators and students. This could ultimately be a catalyst for a lifelong learning mindset, and could help enhance future employability, with firms increasingly shifting the emphasis away from paper qualifications towards skills-based assessment and continuous upgrading in today's highly volatile economy.

Lim Soon Hock Managing Director PLAN-B ICAG Pte Ltd

A GOOD attribute to have in the new millennium is an entrepreneurial mindset and/or having invaluable lifelong skills in entrepreneurship. This is even more critical in resource- poor Singapore, where our only resource is human capital and talents.

Singapore needs a critical mass of large local companies with global footprints to complement foreign investment. Our educational system can contribute to this in a big way by taking a revolutionary step to introduce entrepreneurship education nation-wide. It has to be structured, non-examinable and encourage more of the next generation to become entrepreneurs by commercialising their passions.

I would think that having an entrepreneurial mindset would appeal to employers, more so if one has failed in a business and has learnt from it. Failure can be a badge of honour.

Daniel Soh Managing Partner Leadership Advisory Inc

IN our rapidly-changing environment, knowing what you do not know can be as valuable as what you know. Hence the personal characteristic of "curiosity" is what the young "must have" to stay ahead of the game, keep informed, and remain intellectually sharp.

Soft skills will also play an instrumental role in the volatile era of AI. Besides possessing the hard science of knowledge, the young needs to demonstrate the highest standards of integrity, adaptability, flexibility and agility to respond quickly to changing environments. This shift requires us to create a culture of continuous improvement and learning.

Many employers are evaluating prospective hires according to the specific needs of the business, including the implications of AI and globalisation. What is more obvious to me is that many amongst the younger talents are less prepared to venture overseas, and less ready to take up challenges.

Leslie Ong Country Manager, Southeast Asia Tableau Software

FOR students to excel in this rapidly evolving landscape that impacts how people live, work and play, it is imperative to effect a holistic education which places value on both soft skills such as communication, artistic design and even curiosity, and the more recognised hard skills.

In today's climate of disruption, data underpins the transformation companies (and even the nation) are undergoing to become digital. This trend is pointing to the importance for more people to be able to use data to succeed in their jobs, and with this, an urgent need to bridge hard and soft skills for people to thrive in the workforce of today and tomorrow.

However, soft skills can be harder to identify in a job candidate. The onus is therefore on businesses to re-evaluate how they assess applicants to ensure they are not missed and are valued appropriately, to deliver the most business impact. Only then will companies be able to reap the true benefits of their data.

Charles Stacey President and CEO Cerecin

Cerecin is a global biopharmaceutical company that is developing the next generation of drugs and therapeutics for some of the world's most devastating brain health diseases.

Innovation and entrepreneurism is central to everything that we do. Drug development, particularly in neurology, is highly complex, extremely expensive and takes many years. Challenges and elements of failure are not a possibility but are an inevitable step within such programmes. We recognise this and seek team members who are dynamic, agile and who understand that failure is not absolute but rather part of the innovation process.

We cultivate a dynamic and entrepreneurial culture at Cerecin where new ideas and questions are applauded and failure is not penalised. These attitudes are commonplace in places like Silicon Valley and Boston but need to be nurtured elsewhere.

Comfort with uncertainty and ambiguity are essential in today's changing world. As innovation and entrepreneurism become an important part of Singapore's economy, employers such as Cerecin will be looking for skills that are best suited to overcome these challenges.

Sharon Solomon Founder & CEO The Winstedt School

Employers are not interested in how well students navigate the standardised system. We want individuals who show they have the ability to collaborate homogeneously and heterogenously, take risks, are resilient, understand that mistakes do not necessarily result in demotions but are opportunities to learn from.

The need to be adaptable and have initiative is stellar. The hunger to learn and seek enlightenment is more often than not chipped away when schools force kids to climb slippery slopes when they can barely walk. Too often we're faced with staff who work in their sad silos, who do not think deep and wide - a "play safe" attitude that, more often than not, is anathema.

That leaves no room for creativity and discovery, and we need critical thinkers who challenge the status quo and can handle change. We have to create environments that fit the individual, where blinders do not exist; remove ranking and sorting. We look for individuals who have character, who have a story to tell (not from a textbook), who defied the odds and have interests beyond academia.

Annie Yap CEO AYP HR Group

Reflecting back as a student, one area in school often overlooked was "learning how to learn". There are many learning techniques which teachers and parents can share with their students and children. Take the Pomodoro Technique, for instance, where studying in intervals of 25 minutes followed by a 5-minute break can significantly enhance focus.

Grades alone do not reflect one's capabilities. Employers may look at how a candidate responds to challenges to assess their suitability (and skill set). Cultural fit remains imperative. A candidate's beliefs and values which appear congruent with the organisation's mission will make for a sustainable partnership that benefits both parties.

Tony Ang General Manager, South-east Asia Crestron Electronics

Technology has become very much a part of our lives today. It may seem like it impacts only where we work, where we eat, where we shop, but it is inevitable that it will change the way we learn. In fact, it already has - for instance, we see more schools conducting classes through e-learning and disseminating study materials through digital platforms.

Digitalisation is paving the way and transforming the shape of tomorrow. To better encourage lifelong learning, it is important that classes are engaging and interactive for students to enjoy learning. Technology solutions such as DigitalMedia NVX and Fusion by Crestron make it easier for schools and educators to create a conducive learning environment and execute classes more effectively.

Dora Hoan Group CEO Best World International Ltd

IT'S not easy to build schools that will cater to the needs of the fast-changing world of the 21st century, because technology has changed the world, automation is replacing the labour force, and the amount of information in the world is doubling almost every two years.

In the face of such tremendous changes, our students will need to have different skills and we must develop strategies to encourage lifelong learning. It is essential that our education should reform and adapt to the social changes, teach people useful skills to cope with future challenges.

Hence, education will no longer be just about "knowing", but will require us to focus on the development of soft skills, to produce learners who can solve problems independently, communicate effectively, think creatively and compete in a fast-changing world. In the learning process, students should be offered a variety of ways to learn. This can greatly inspire their interest in learning.

When employers evaluate prospective hires, the factors to be considered would no longer be limited to the candidate's academic qualifications. They would also consider the applicant's actual work experience, specific industry-related skills, socialising skills, and whether the candidate would add value to the company.

Marcus Loh Council Member and Accreditation Board Member Institute of Public Relations of Singapore

AS data is the language of tomorrow's economy, the mastery of data is akin to literacy for the 21st century. In a report 'The Age of Analytics', McKinsey found that 70 per cent of the world's most valuable enterprises displaced their peers by predicating their business models on data.

To prepare our young for tomorrow, more tertiary institutions across Asia-Pacific are teaching visual analytics, especially in fields regarded as 'soft skills', such as public relations. Tomorrow's PR practitioner must embrace analytics to bring greater accountability and responsiveness to the craft of brand and reputation management because data literacy is no longer a vertical, IT discipline but a horizontal skill that anyone can master to varying degrees.

Toby Koh Group Managing Director Ademco Security Group

IT is my belief that we have no clear idea what type of talent the Future Economy may need. Hence, I feel that Singapore should simply nurture our youth to pursue their area of interest and be the best they can be in their chosen field of academic pursuit.

We should also introduce lessons in entrepreneurship to our youth perhaps from Secondary One. Inspire them with the stories of how the likes of AirBnB, Uber, Amazon, Alibaba started. Allow them to run a small business in school to enrich their experience. We need a new generation of entrepreneurs. Let's start them young.

We should also be exploring how we can use the latest psychometric tools to help our youth, parents and educators uncover their interests and inclinations. Interest is a very powerful self-motivating asset in any subject of study. Lifelong study will be a natural extension to interest.

Lynette Seah, Founder & CEO Alpha7

AS a student from the "old system", I find the move away from emphasising grades refreshing - on one hand some might argue that students won't try as hard for academic excellence, but on the other hand, their creativity, interests in various subjects in and out of classroom will be piqued and this can only benefit the nation in the long run.

I look forward to seeing the next generation of business leaders from this crop.

Zaheer K Merchant Regional Director (Singapore & Europe) QI Group of Companies

FUNDAMENTALLY, traditional skills like reading, writing and arithmetic are still very much the building blocks of a successful education for without these, higher order learning and more complex skills cannot be developed. But these skills are no longer sufficient for today. At the core, however, educators must teach students to find and make meaning in their learning, and not simply to master a list of skills; by so doing, students appreciate and develop their skills by testing ideas and solving real problems - much like what the German system of vocational education espouses.

Consequently, the employers of tomorrow will find that students who are critical and reflective, open to a lifetime of learning and relearning, who are comfortable with change, and have empathy and a global outlook, make the best employees.

Lelia Lim Managing Partner, Asia-Pacific Lim-Loges & Masters

THE Concept of play has long been overwhelmed in Singapore by the civilisation of children through its education system. It's a pity: these are the years of youth, freedom, ideas, creativity all couched in fun. Fun involves human interaction. It requires human communication. It requires outwitting the other through games. It requires negotiation and understanding. It requires coming together with ideas and solutions. These are skills today, with the advent of AI, the continuous learner needs to be encouraged.

David Leong Managing Director PeopleWorldwide Consulting Pte Ltd.

PRAGMATISM dictates that education and applied studies must lead to meaningful jobs of the day. If the education is misaligned with the job market, structural unemployment will arise. In today's context, the job market is changing and with the advent of robotics, automation and artificial intelligence, job contents will morph. Workers need to be continuously skilled up for the new job needs.

"Learn for Life" needs to sink into the psyche of every Singaporean. Learning does not end with schooling. Our SkillsFuture movement is to build the continuous learning to become an uplifting habit.

Employers will still hire based on needs and to work with government agencies to train workers for the job. It's all about alignment - workplace learning, work itself and the worker to be enabled by proactive government intervention through SkillsFuture Singapore and Workforce Singapore.