The School of Business led by Dean Lynn Lin, Zhang visited Sumitomo Bakelite Co., Ltd. in Suzhou in April, accompanied by Professor Evonne Chenyu, Xu and Professor Tony Yongtao, Shen, to have a field visit and discuss potential cooperation plans with the company. The aim was to help business students better understand the current employment situation in the industry and the demand of employers, while providing useful guidance on their career development.

The department head of Sumitomo Bakelite Co., Ltd. warmly welcomed and received the visiting professors from the School of Business and introduced the company's growth history, main businesses, and future prospects, including relocation to new plant and expansion of production capacity by 2025. The two parties discussed the importance of school-enterprise cooperation and explored more inclusive ways to cooperate. 

Regarding the topic of "student employment," the company's responsible person said that thanks to the strong support of the Suzhou Industrial Park government, manufacturing industries in the park have rapidly developed and business has improved. As a chip-related manufacturing and processing enterprise, the company's actual demand for employees has increased sharply. The head of the company's general affairs department pointed out that vocational college students can fully meet the company's and other small and medium-sized enterprises' demand for employees. Regardless of the position, the company needs hard-working and capable staff. At the same time, the company will also provide multiple opportunities and platforms for students to exercise and learn, and grow in actual work. Faced with the problem that many college students today are unwilling to work in manufacturing enterprises, the company hopes to increase the publicity efforts inside vocational colleges and change students' thinking and cognition in this regard, and encourage them to actively engage in manufacturing and processing industries.

 The participants also discussed the overall quality cultivation of students. Li, the head of the company's business department, talked about current school curricula, saying that although students have learned a lot of theoretical knowledge through classroom teaching, they are often in a passive position when facing practical production environments due to lack of operating experience. Therefore, developing and improving courses that promote hands-on practice for students is an urgent task to enhance their overall quality.

Through this field visit, the professors gained insight into the challenges that business students face in the workplace and a clearer understanding of the actual demands of enterprises. Sumitomo Bakelite Co., Ltd. actively shared industry information and valuable experience in student recruitment, which can help us better adjust our education and training strategies, cultivate more practical talent, better meet the needs of employers, and serve companies and society. At the end of this visit, the company expressed willingness to maintain communication and cooperation with the School of Business on recruitment needs for new plant construction and expansion of production capacity.

Written by: Tony Yongtao, Shen & Lu, Cui

Photos by: Tony Yongtao, Shen

Translated by: Eddy Leong