The 27th Dutch Vietnam Management Supporter

What is your image?

Have you ever found out that people have a wrong idea of what you are really doing? For example, you were once a sales rep, selling Japanese cameras. You did this for two years, then quit. That was a long time ago. Since then you have moved on. Now you have your own business, one that is completely un-related to cameras and/or Japan. Actually, you run a water engineering firm. For some reason you keep meeting people who still see you as that enthusiastic camera sales rep. Even when you explain that nowadays your expertise lies in water engineering, they keep addressing you as the camera man. Clearly, you have an image problem. The image you have created in the past persists and overshadows what you have accomplished ever since. Do you know how people see you? You may be in for a surprise. You may need to correct or upgrade your image. How? I may be able to help you. Loek Hopstaken
Prof. Loek Hopstaken Email: loek@hopstaken.com Mobile: 090 888 9450

7th year, no. 2 April 8, 2013

This magazine was first published in March 2007. It is digitally distributed among my Vietnamese and Dutch business & private associates. Purpose: to keep them informed about my activities in Vietnam and overseas This amazingly attractive and energetic country has rapidly conquered my soul, and become my home away from home. Loek Hopstaken

Enjoying a Vietnamese lunch while reading a recently published Dutch book.

In this issue:
What is your image? Activities April-May HRM: a broad field An MD program Strategic HRM Royal public courses Overview of Hopstakens services Overview of Hopstakens services (continued) Contact information 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

Ni v lm!
Nguyen Van Linh

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The 27th Dutch Vietnam Management Supporter

April 8, 2013 Sometimes I forget how recent Vietnamese history is. Born 6 years after the end of World War II, I grew up surrounded by people who had fresh memories of those awful war times. I belong to the western Baby Boom Generation. In Vietnam the majority of the population was born after the end of the wars with the USA, Cambodia & China. Those born before 1990 belong to the Vietnamese Baby Boom Generation. Although most wounds have healed, some of the hard times remain. But not with all Vietnamese. To paraphrase a famous song, very popular in Vietnam: some live to remember, some live to forget. Those who chose to remember, have built a replica of a French, and later American prison camp on Phu Quoc island. To me, seeing Amsterdams Anne Frank House as a kid made me aware of the fact that you cannot deny history. Its part of who you are. I have seen Vietnamese who visit this newly erected memorial of colonial and war times. Without doubt part of Vietnamese soul is determined by its past. It tells the Vietnamese: war, poverty, foreign domination: never ever again. Perhaps thats why young Vietnamese seem to be obsessed with finding their Vietnamese identity. In the 21st century, not the 20th.

Reconstructed French / American prison camp on Phu Quoc

For a comprehensive overview of Prof. Loek Hopstakens services, see pages 7 11

Activities in April & May:

Ongoing: executive coaching MBA Class: Strategic Human Resource Management (see p. 5) Development of a tailor made Job Evaluation (job ranking) System In-company Workshop Salary Structure Adjustment In-company Workshop Performance Appraisal Implementation Visit to The Netherlands (May) Corporate HR Meeting De Heus Group (in The Netherlands)

Living has yet to be recognized as Behavior is the mirror in which everyone shows their image. one of the arts.
E.E. Cummings Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

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The 27th Dutch Vietnam Management Supporter

The BROAD field of Human Resources

Since Tet most of my work concerned HR. When I say HR, many Vietnamese automatically think of recruitment & selection, and legal matters. Some will add performance management, but rarely in the sense of a fully functional system. Others will add: training advise. There is more. Just look at the broadness of HR issues I have been involved with: 1. Recruitment & selection: advise on selection, and how to monitor the new recruits start in his/her new job. (private Vietnamese company) 2. Performance Management: coaching managers to define the KPIs of their own departments, as part of a full job description for their own jobs. (state-owned company) 3. Organizational Culture: presenting a Code of Ethics & a Code of Conduct, tailor made for my client, to be implemented as an element of (fact-based) performance appraisal. (state-owned company) 4. Integrating HR functions in leadership, using Prof. Dave Ulrichs Leadership Code and linking its 5 Rules with key competencies needed to successfully function as a 21st Century Leader. (multinationals Vietnam branch; see page 4) 5. Exploring the full scope of Strategic HRM, with strategy the integral part of all that is done regarding staff & management. Strategy implies: proactive HR Planning, recruitment with an eye on what the company needs in 35 years, etc. (MBA; see page 5) 6. Career Planning & Training as part of a series of public courses that all address specific HR issues. (Royal Business School; see page 6)
(HR) is a key strategic function as important as finance and legal. In my role I spend at least 20 to 25% of my time with my HR leader. Succession planning, recruiting, meeting employees, talent retention, emerging market strategy, organizational challenges ... There is so much that a good HR team can do for you. Alain Bellemare (CEO Hamilton Sundstrand) Dr. Dave Ulrich

7.

Conflict Management: a request from one of my MBA students. As HR Manager she is expected to intervene, but didnt know how.

Clearly, HR Management is BROAD !

One company has a clever strategy. They call it two in a box, they take their western leader, who has kind of career plateaud, and they put him or her two in a box with a local leader and in the two years or three years they are there they have to transfer their knowledge to local leaders. Dave Ulrich (interview, 2011)

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The 27th Dutch Vietnam Management Supporter

3 days in Hai Phong with De Heus Management Team: The Leadership Code & Competency Management

CEO De Heus Vietnam Mr. Gabor Fluit Ms. Isolde Eleveld Dr. Khoa Co-trainer Ms. Edith Punt

Formal & Informal

We were supported by Dr. Khoa, who as ususal delivered excellent translations.

This training program was intended to make a major step forward in De Heus Vietnams Management Development. Ms. Isolde Eleveld, Director Human Resources, attended the program.

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Strategic Human Resource Management

April 6 the Academy of Finances MBA-5 group completed their Strategic Human Resource Management class. On the picture you can see they are all very happy its over ;-). Human Resource Management in Vietnam is still in its infancy. There is no HRM school or college. You can only get fragmented HRM know-how as part of an MBA program or as a public course. For example, at Royal Business School. Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM) covers the latest developments in the ever-changing world of HR. However, the book we used is too theoretical. Its mainly European and US-based cases are often hard to recognize, let alone appreciate by Vietnamese. On top of that it dates from 2007before the financial crisis. Since then changed viewpoints on HRM. So what to do as an MBA lecturer? 1. You pick what you consider to be the highlights from each chapter, using the slides that come with the book. 2. You update. For example: fact-based performance evaluation (KPIs). 3. You add topics that are not in the book (HR is a b-r-o-a-d field!) but you consider to be relevant for Vietnamese organizations. Example: conflict management. 4. You Vietnamize where you can: as HRM and SHRM in particular are relatively new in Vietnam, you localize different topics. For example, when talking about diversity management, you add your views on The Four Vietnamese Generations. 5. You stimulate Q&A and interaction. 6. You stress critical thinking: Do not believe everything the experts or your professors say. They may be completely wrong. All in all, it was an interesting learning experience for both sides: the students telling about their own business cases enriched their classmates knowledge, but also my insights in Vietnamese organizationsin 2013. Im curious to see my students assignments, arriving for grading mid May.

All the forces in the world are not so powerful as an idea whose time has come. Victor Hugo

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The 27th Dutch Vietnam Management Supporter

My Public Courses @ Royal

During a recent course at Royal Business School we discussed many actualities brought up by participants. As usual, an HRM topic leads to sharing experiences, both successes and frustrations. HRM is not so much about procedures and models and techniquesit is mostly about people and their behavior, and how to mobilize their talents to the benefit of the organization. While the wish to develop their organizations is genuine, the impatience of HR managersand more in particular, their CEO!often leads to a blind copy & paste of HR-tools that havent been properly checked for workability, and possible cultural issues. My courses at Royal Business School often feature spontaneous live consultancy sessions, usually the result of a Q&A session: the participants come up with urgent problems that demand their attentionand hope for practical solutions. One of the returning issues is reactive vs. proactive HRM. In Vietnam HRM is primarily reactive: company has a vacancy, HR organizes the recruitment, plus the admin and legal stuff that come along with it. HR may be involved in advising and organizing a training courseon (top management) demand. When I ask for the objective, I sometimes get: The CEO thinks it is time to do a course. It is not always clear if, and if yes, how the course fits into the overall corporate strategy. However, many modern HR-tools support a proactive approach: performance appraisal, competency management, career planning, employee engagement & relations, diversity management, even organizational design and salary system, compensation & benefits. Yes, HRM is a b-r-o-a-d field! (see page 3) From June 10-14 I will deliver the next HRM course HR Strategy & Planning. Planning is proactive. But how do you plan something unpredictable like people? Join our workshop @ Royal Business School (tel: 08 3930 2861; 186 Nguyen Thi Minh Khai, HCMC).

Never underestimate the power of human stupidity.

Robert A. Heinlein

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The 27th Dutch Vietnam Management Supporter

An overview of Hopstakens Services

This section provides an overview of the services I regularly deliver in Vietnam (besides teaching MBA). Time, Translation & Scheduling Time: all courses and workshops take 21 hours (3 days or 6 evenings). This includes the extra time needed for translation by a qualified interpreter. When translation is not needed, each workshop will take 2 days or 4 evenings (14 hours). When in doubt, get the interpreter. I have a network of skilled interpreters who know my work, whom I have worked with many times, and who have excellent reviews from my students, clients & participants: Mr. Phong, Mr. Hieu, Mr. Tuyen (all HCMC) and Dr. Khoa (Hanoi). As we are all busy people, I recommend to book in timemeor us, in case of an interpreter. To be safe, start scheduling at least two months in advance. Consultative Coaching All courses can be followed by consultative coaching of the participants to support implementation. Coaching is delivered on an hourly basis. See also page 8. Red invoice Since several years I cooperate with a Vietnamese company that competently takes care of the contracts, issues the red invoices, handles the fees, and pays the applicable taxes. I Interpersonal Communication Skills Objective: to improve two-way communication skills. Elements: 8 practical exercises covering all parts of communication Empathy, or the role of emotions in relationships Interpersonal Body Language Communications Intercultural Communication Building & Maintaining Trust Dealing with Difficult Peoplefrom openly to masked misbehaviors Leverage & Persuasion in Personal Communication Personal Branding II Presentation & Persuasion Skills Objective: to develop persuasive presentation skills. Elements: The 3 keys to effective, personal presentations Your Audiences: reaching out to their hearts & minds Presentation & Presentation Design: from message to delivery Persuasion Skills Stage Manners & Body Language Persuasion Techniques Interactive Presentations: involving & activating your audience Use of Presentation Media (PowerPoint; video) Leaving a Lasting Impression through presenting & networking

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The 27th Dutch Vietnam Management Supporter

An overview of Hopstakens Services

III Cross-cultural Cooperation & Communication Objective: To train Vietnamese to effectively cooperate with Foreigners, OR To train Foreigners to effectively cooperate with Vietnamese. Note: this workshop is usually delivered to all-Vietnamese teams, or to all-Foreigner teams. However, it can also be delivered to mixed teams of Vietnamese and Foreigners. Elements: The Global Village has arrived with a virtual twist The key to effortless & effective cross-cultural cooperation Norms & Beliefs: dealing with differences & similarities Diversity Management Cross-cultural Attitudes, Behaviors & Competencies International Body Language Manners, Protocol & Sense of History What to do when politics or religion dominate the scene Cross-cultural Cross-cultural Meetings & Negotiations

Communication

IV Public Relations: the Real PR Objectives: to know how to build and maintain mutual understanding between the organization and its publics apply PR techniques to boost marketing efforts make corporate branding a success. Elements: Marketing & Corporate Communications Corporate Branding: from identity to image Identifying your organizations publics Events, (social) media, and personal TV appearances Dealing with media representatives PR duties & responsibilities of the PR department The PR duty of every Staff Member V Consultative Coaching Objectives: to assist the clients decision making processes, by adding new viewpoints discuss business matters with a neutral yet knowledgeable sparring partner function as a mirror where effects of behavior on the environment are concerned. Note: in Consultative Coaching (also called: Personal Coaching, Executive Coaching, Consultancy) the Coach uses different communication techniques to help the client. In some cases he will come up with suggestions to solve imminent problems, in other situations he will challenge his client to do this. The topics of the coaching sessions may vary from dealing with staff or organizational matters to PR-issues and strategy development. Coaching is also used to support implementation of new HR systems.

The Real PR

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An overview of Hopstakens Services

VI Strategic Leadership Objective: to develop strategic leadership competencies decreasing the Power Distance a Leaders personality. Elements: The Leadership Code (Dave Ulrich) Strategic Leadership by Example: integrity, focus & courage Leadership Delegation dos & donts Leading Change (John P. Kotter) Management Skills for Leaders, Leadership skills for Managers Six Thinking Hats (Edward de Bono) Leadership Competencies identifying & improving VII Human Resource Management Program: 5 separate courses Overall objective: to become an allround Human Resources Manager 1. Recruitment & Career Start Objective: to become well-versed in strategic HR Planning recruitment & selection employee engagement from Day One onward. Elements: Strategic Human Resource Planning Preparing for Recruitment Recruitment Process & Interviews Selection Techniques & Testing Negotiations with Job Candidates Company Orientation & Job Settlement 2. Staff Engagement & Reward Policies Objective: to learn how to stimulate staff engagement & commitment implement a Code of Ethics & Code of Conduct make a tailor made, competitive Reward System. Elements: Commitment: creation & maintenance Employee Engagement strategies Diversity Management Downsizing & expansion Code of Ethics & Code of Conduct From Job Evaluation to Salary Structure Compensation & Benefits

Recruitment & Career Start

Staff Engagement & Reward Policies

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An overview of Hopstakens Services

3. Career Planning & Training Objective: to have the necessary know-how & skills to introduce & implement strategic HRM talent & career management staff training programs. Elements: Strategic Human Resources Leadership Six Learning Levels (Blooms Taxonomy) Talent Scouting & Mapping Human Capital Development Setting up a Company Academy Staff & Management Training & Development

Career Planning & Training

4. Result- & fact-based Performance Evaluation Objective: to develop a tailor made Performance Evaluation Program, based on facts. Note: some Performance Evaluation (appraisal) programs use skills, behaviors & attitudes as the main fields to take into account when evaluating performance. This approach however invites managers to come up with subjective and therefore often biased opinions. It ignores why staff is hired in the first place: to produce results and to contribute to the success of the organization. Hence, result and fact-based performance evaluation. Only result- and fact-based performance evaluation systems lead to real improvement of staff & organizations. Elements: Result-driven organizations: successful organizations SMARTER Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) Performance Evaluation: preparation & execution Performance Evaluation meetings Follow-up competency & skills improvement Strategic Performance Management Talent Management & Human Capital Development 5. Organizational Culture, Design & Development Objective: to develop & maintain a productive corporate culture design a lean and smooth organizational structure. Elements: The characteristics of corporate culture The 7 cornerstones of modern organizations How to create a result-focused corporate culture Motivation & Empowerment Basics of Change Management Internal Marketing & Public Relations

Result- & fact-based Performance Evaluation

Organizational Culture, Design & Development

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An overview of Hopstakens Services

VIII The Allround Manager program Objective: to train managers to wear the many hats they need to wear when managing. Note: leaders who want their organization to grow need to delegate many of their duties to their managers. Failing to do this will keep their organization small. Clever leaders delegate duties they dont excel at to their managers. These duties are sometimes called hats. When a company grows and its CEOs finds it hard to keep on wearing all those hats, modern managers are expected to take over more and more hats. It has been estimated that modern managers have to be able to wear up to 30 hatssee below. MBA programs often fail in showing the students how to translate theory into effective action. The business cases often dont appeal, as they are mostly overseas-based. The in-company Allround Manager Program turns this disadvantage into an advantage by using your own company as the primary business case. This program has been delivered in-company since 2001, is always tailor made and constantly being updated. Elements: In a series of sessions the participants learn the purpose and duties of one or two hats. The choice of hats and their sequence is determined after a meeting with the CEO and the managersparticipants. After a session the tailor made assignhat(s) on-the-job. available online to Best practice: one 22 months, to give time to complete *) 3 days: including an
People Manager Change Manager Commercial Advisor Strategist PR Manager Quality Manager HR Manager Budget Manager Capacity Planner Organizer Team/Project Manager Efficiency Guard Communicator Situational Manager Executor Talent Manager Human Capital Developer Coach / Mentor Researcher Performance Evaluator Governor / Steward Promoter / Motivator Presenter / Spokesperson Trouble Shooter Managem. Team Member Board Consultant / Advisor Deputy Leader Information Manager Coordinator Conflict Manager
People Manager Change Manager Commercial Advisor Strategist PR Manager Quality Manager HR Manager Budget Manager Capacity Planner Organizer Team/Project Manager Efficiency Guard Communicator Situational Manager Executor

participants make ments to practice the The Trainer is coach them. or 3-day session*) per the participants ample their assignment. interpreter.
Talent Manager Human Capital Developer Coach / Mentor Researcher Performance Evaluator Governor / Steward Promoter / Motivator Presenter / Spokesperson Trouble Shooter Managem. Team Member Board Consultant / Advisor Deputy Leader Information Manager Coordinator Conflict Manager

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Loek Hopstakens Clients

In Vietnam: a.o. business field Tan Thuan IPC (HCMC) Industrial development HCMC University of Technology Master of BA program RMIT (HCMC campus) Communication progr. Royal Business School (public courses) Courses & seminars Vietnam Airlines (RBS; ISM) International airline Vietnam Singapore I.P. (SPECTRA) Industrial park Petronas Vung Tau (SPECTRA) Chemical factory Nike (Tae Kwang Vina) (SPECTRA) Shoe factory Le & Associates Training & consultancy Training House Vietnam (Sacombank) Training & consultancy Ministry of L.I.S.A. (RBS) Civil Servants SONY Vietnam (RBS) Consumer electronics CapitaLand Vietnam (SPECTRA) Real estate Institute for Potential Leaders / PACE Courses & seminars Dalat Hasfarm (Agrivina) Pot plants, cut flowers Hoanggia Media Group Key to Success TV Show Fresh Green Earth Hi-tech agriculture Unique Design Interior Design ERC Institute Vietnam Vocational training Schoeller Bleckmann Vietnam Oilfield Equipment De Heus Vietnam Animal food Centre for Tropical MedicineOxford Uni. Clinical research Khue Van Academy Courses & seminars Training House Vietnam Courses & seminars Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) Business consultancy Academy of Finance MBA (Un. of Gloucester) In The Netherlands, a.o. ING Bank Philips Heineken Yamaha Voerman International Damen Shipyards Wittenborg University of Applied Sc. Voortman Machinery Royal Van Zanten Financial services Electronics Brewery Musical instruments Intern. relocations Ship repair wharfs IBABBA, MBA CNC-contr. machinery Pot plants, cut flowers

quotes
At Microsoft there are lots of brilliant ideas but the image is that they all come from the top - Im afraid thats not quite right. Bill Gates Integrity is not a conditional word. It doesnt blow in the wind or change with the weather. It is your inner image of yourself, and if you look in there and see a man who wont cheat, then you know he never will. John D. MacDonald I will never be an old man. To me, old age is always 15 years older than I am. Francis Bacon

The DVM Supporter is published by Prof. Loek Hopstaken.

Email: loek@hopstaken.com or loek.hopstaken@gmail.com Mobile: 090 888 9450 Assistant: Ms. Vo Ngoc Lien Huong Email: jane.hopstaken@gmail.com Mobile: 090 888 9451
Profile: http://www.linkedin.com/in/loekhopstaken