China-Europe forum focuses on tech talent exchange, cooperation

The second China-Europe Talent Forum was jointly hosted in Zurich, Switzerland, on Wednesday to explore a new model for companies to “bring, buy or build” talent as they expand internationally.

Co-hosted by the Chinese Embassy in Switzerland and the Swiss Adecco Group, the forum brought together more than 180 participants from firms, academic institutions, international organizations and government agencies.

Geng Wenbing, Chinese ambassador to Switzerland, said that China and Europe together hold a “treasure bowl” of the world’s best talent, but each side has their own strengths in the talent field.

Geng noted that China has a large amount of skilled talent, while Europe boasts innovative and entrepreneurial talent. The complementary advantages that follow are obvious, and the potential for exchange and cooperation is huge.

Geng said that China is happy to see local talent go international, and is willing to recruit talent from all over the world to participate in China’s construction and development. The forum, he said, intends to open up exchange channels between Chinese and European companies, schools and government departments.

“Through the cooperation of talent, we can enhance the innovation capability and mutual learning between China and Switzerland, as well as China and Europe, so that all sides can benefit together,” the ambassador said.

Rolf Dorig, chair of the Board of Directors of the Adecco Group, said that the very essence of how people earn their living today is changing very rapidly, as technology is generating completely new business models. Automation, artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning and big data are having a profound effect on how people work and the skills they need. These mega-trends are impacting the world of work every day and are fundamentally altering the business landscape from year to year.

This is why firms need to take the lead in shaping the future of work, and need to become agile in spotting and capitalizing on emerging trends in order to succeed, Dorig said.

The Adecco Group also released a white paper titled, “Optimizing Your Talent Mix: Bring, Buy or Build,” which reads that Chinese firms, which used to prefer bringing skilled labor from home when expanding overseas, are now turning to local labor markets or employing short-term experts on the ground.