Clarence Wong, M.Sc., P.Eng.

Education: Bachelor Degree in Architectural Engineering, California USA

Master Degree in Civil Engineering, California USA

Work Structural Engineering in California, Hong Experience: Kong and Vancouver, BC.

Currently working as Project Manager for GENIVAR Inc.

 Other APEGBC – Registration InterviewsActivities: Mentoring Programs by APEGBC,

S.U.C.C.E.S.S, and ISSBC

“Employers look for Technical Skills, Hire for

Attitude and Employability.”

A discussion by:

Clarence Wong, P.Eng.

Technical Skills

• Basic requirement to practice Engineering work

• ‘Given’ and ‘Expected’

“Employers look for technical skills, but hire for Attitude and

Employability.”

Attitude & Employability

• Non-Technical Skills

• “Soft” Skills

• Some believe the non-technical skills are JUST as important as the technical skills, if not MORE important.

• Borrowing from APEGBC’s online resource for Internationally Trained Engineers

In a US study of engineering firms by Gushgari, Francis and Sakiou (1997), the most critical skills for engineering project managers, in order of importance, are:

1. Communication 11. Result orientation

2. Listening 12. Financial Management

3. Project Management 13. Time Management

4. Decision Making 14. Technical Knowledge

5. Leadership and motivation 15. Negotiating

6. Problem Solving 16. Personal adaptability

7. Quality Management 17. Administration

8. Organizing 18. Project Acquisition

9. Delegating 19. Creativity

10. Planning and Goal Setting 20. Risk taking

What are “Attitude & Employability skills”?

“Soft” skills? 

Group them in:

• Communication

• Professional Skills

• Attitude and Traits

COMMUNICATION

• Listening

• Speaking

• Writing

• Gesture

PROFESSIONAL SKILLS

• Meeting commitment

• Time Management

• Team Participation

• Business Management

• Project Management

• Making the complex simple

• Multicultural understanding

• Leadership

ATTITUDE AND TRAITS

• Engineers need to develop principal attitudes and traits.

• Anticipating needs, problems and opportunities

• Observing the environment in which we work & live

• Attitudes towards ourselves and co-workers

• Fairness and directness when dealing with people

• Reliability of proposed solutions

• Ethical behavior at all times

• Proactive approach instead of sitting on the sidelines and waiting

Hire for attitude and employability. What jobinterviewers like to know:

• You have the skills to do the job. Not only technical skills, but soft skills

• You fit in• You understand the company and its

purpose• You stack up against the competition• You have the right mind set for the job and

the company• You want the job• You are flexible, able to multi-task, and can

adapt to changes• You are a team player

Conclusion - Soft Skills

• Not just finding a job, but keeping it

• It’s easier to teach technical skills than ‘soft skills’

• Among those qualities, what they are looking for is:

“A fierce sense of OPTIMISM"

“A POSITIVE attitude”