From Passion to Purpose: Transforming Research into Workforce & HR Innovation

Summary

The speaker recounts their journey influenced by Steve Jobs and J Bezos, leading to a career in software engineering and a passion for research. Initially, they pursued a PhD but realized it conflicted with their career goals. They then founded a nonprofit to improve healthcare service models, facing challenges in team management. After integrating HR solutions from their research, the nonprofit flourished. The speaker's mentor encouraged them to apply these solutions to companies, leading to the creation of VSR Pro Academy, which aims to solve HR issues and help individuals find their career paths and passions.

Takeaways

• 🚀 Passion is essential for success in both career and personal pursuits, as inspired by Steve Jobs and J. Biz.
• 🎯 The shift from viewing work as just a job to turning it into a meaningful career can be life-changing.
• 📝 Research became a key passion after publishing multiple papers on software engineering, which fueled the decision to pursue further academic goals like a PhD.
• 🤔 Balancing passion and career is crucial. The speaker realized that leaving a job for a PhD could derail their CIO career goals.
• 💡 Sometimes, obstacles require innovative thinking, like looking beyond initial challenges to discover new opportunities for growth.
• 🔍 The speaker's research shifted to societal issues, focusing on challenges faced by graduates in Vietnam, such as dissatisfaction with local management and work culture.
• 🌱 Founding a nonprofit helped address healthcare service issues, though managing the organization presented new challenges, especially with human resources.
• 💼 Applying expertise in HR and combining it with passion for research helped overcome the nonprofit’s struggles, ultimately leading to success and media recognition.
• 📈 The development and testing of new HR models in the nonprofit resulted in significant productivity improvements, with 200 volunteers completing 285,000 tasks across six cities.
• 🏢 This nonprofit success paved the way for founding VSR Pro Academy, which focuses on helping companies solve HR problems and guiding individuals to build careers, passions, and life missions.

Q & A

Who are the two influential figures mentioned in the script that had a significant impact on the speaker's career?

The two influential figures mentioned are Steve Jobs and J Biz. Steve Jobs emphasized the importance of passion in whatever one does in life, while J Biz's advice on turning a job into a career was particularly impactful for the speaker during the early stages of his career in information technology and software engineering.

What realization did the speaker have about their career and passion after listening to J Biz?

The speaker realized that they needed to stop thinking about the job they were doing and instead focus on what their career should be. They decided that their career should be in software engineering, with aspirations to reach roles such as Chief Information Officer (CIO) or Director of IT.

What was the speaker's initial reaction to the idea of finding a passion according to Bezos' advice?

Initially, the speaker was inspired by Bezos' advice that passion is something that will pick you up, and one needs to look for it. This led the speaker to reflect on their own passions and eventually realize their passion for research and publication in the field of software engineering.

Why did the speaker decide to pursue a PhD, and what was the turning point that made them reconsider this decision?

The speaker decided to pursue a PhD after recognizing their passion for research and being encouraged by a friend to take their passion to the next level. The turning point came when they realized that quitting their job to pursue a PhD full-time would likely mean giving up on their CIO career aspirations, as the path post-PhD would likely lead to academia rather than the corporate world.

What was the speaker's first significant realization about their life and career path?

The speaker's first significant realization was that they often made decisions without seeing the big picture, which led them to make a mistake by quitting their job to pursue a PhD. They learned that when mistakes are identified, they should be corrected immediately.

How did the speaker's experience with the nonprofit organization VSR start, and what was the initial challenge they faced?

The speaker started the nonprofit organization VSR to solve healthcare service model issues and to improve the experience for medical students and hospitals. The initial challenge was the high turnover rate of members and the organization not meeting its potential, which the speaker attributed to human resource issues.

What advice did the speaker receive from HR experts regarding the challenges faced by the VSR nonprofit, and why was it not effective?

The HR experts suggested using the carrot and stick approach to motivate the team, but the speaker found this ineffective for a nonprofit where most of the motivation comes from spiritual rewards rather than monetary ones.

How did the speaker turn around the VSR nonprofit's situation, and what was the outcome?

The speaker decided to apply their expertise in CIO and research on human resources and workforce to build models, frameworks, tools, and methods tailored for the nonprofit. This led to a remarkable change, with the organization growing to 200 members, increasing its impact, and attracting media attention.

What is the mission of VSR Pro Academy, and how does it help companies and individuals?

VSR Pro Academy helps companies by solving their HR problems to make them more productive, effective, and profitable. For individuals, it helps them find their career path, build their passion into impactful work, and discover their calling to ensure they have a sense of mission and drive in their daily work.

What was the final piece of advice given by the mentor that led the speaker to create VSR Pro Academy?

The mentor suggested that since the speaker had a level 10 skill set backed by research and testing in their own nonprofit for HR solutions, they should bring this expertise to companies to solve their problems and help them thrive.