For each individual working in a fast-paced industry like IT, continual knowledge updates and skill enhancement are crucial for professionals. At FSOFT, technology engineers not only need to keep up with the latest tech trends but also cultivate soft skills essential for solving project challenges and collaborating with diverse global clients..

Over the past 25 years, FSOFT personnel have dedicatedly upgraded their skills, gradually earning project opportunities and affirming their capabilities. Starting with an almost “zero” knowledge base compared to the advanced tech industries of the US, Japan, and India, Vietnamese pioneers at FSOFT committed to “bringing Vietnamese intellectual values to the world”. The process of studying and conquering international certificates is proof of such determination.

Since FSOFT was born in 1999, having long-term stable human resources has become one of the top priorities of leadership at that time. FSOFT’s initial training unit is jokingly called “The Martial Arts School”, the official name is FIST –- FSOFT Internal School of Technology. This name also implies a “fist” in the excited atmosphere of going abroad at that time.

The curriculum at that time was still quite primitive: whatever needs arose, it has expanded from training new recruits, procedures, foreign languages (initially English and then Japanese… ) to technology certification exams. Over time, along with the company’s growth, training activities also cover more diverse needs.

FSOFT is “dreaming bigger and bigger”. What to teach and how to learn to improve the capacity and value of each individual, creating the collective strength of the whole team is what the Board of Directors is concerned about. In recent years, “Learning” is the keyword that FSOFT Chairwoman Chu Thi Thanh Ha affirmed will bring the company forward and further after the goal of “$-Billion Dollar World-Class Company”. Along with investing heavily in training programs, many high-quality learning programs and support campaigns for learning and certification exams are continuously launched such as Upskilling, Global SE, 20K Certificates etc…. bringing opportunities uUnlimited learning opportunities for thousands of employees. From groups to individuals, the learning spirit of FSOFT people has been more vibrant than ever.

On the journey of learning and development, FSOFTers constantly conquer the challenges and gain prestigious international certificates. Many FSOFTers are determined to “take down” super difficult and rare certificates to affirm their abilities, open up many career development opportunities and become excellent employees of a global company. 

In 2018, while working as a human resources manager at a unit with 2,000 employees, Ms. Nguyen Van Anh (currently Head of the FSOFT Human Resources Policy and Remuneration Department) became the first person at FSOFT to own a super certificate: Professional human resource management SHRM-SCP. Originally an IT professional, she has not gone through many human resources schools, but her desire to learn new things has always motivated her to constantly advance in this field. 

At that time, while working and balancing life matters, Ms. Van Anh used her free time to study for 5 months. Every morning, she woke up at 5:15 a.m, studied until 6:30 a.m, and spent another 2two hours in the evening reading books, memorizing concepts, and taking online tests.

The determination and support of the leadership is also the “leverage” for two “warriors” Ngo Minh Toan and Nhu Thi Phuong of GHC.COE to earn prestigious certificates in Healthcare domain. 

Recognizing the importance of Health Level Seven International (HL7), as SA Lead, Ngo Minh Toan volunteered to take on the responsibility of obtaining this certificate for the unit. Devoting over 3 months to intensive study for the certificate under challenging conditions – —limited availability of exam preparation materials, difficulty in sourcing them, and their high cost— – Toan emerged as the first FSOFTer and the second2nd individual in Vietnam to achieve HL7 certification. 

“With CTC supporting 100% of the costs and BUL Tran Dinh Cung creating the maximum conditions and supporting me in purchasing study outlines, I am even more determined not to disappoint everyone,” Toan said. 

“There is no path full of roses, but success will come when you don’t give up” – Nhu Thi Phuong shares about the process of conquering the super medical certificate CPHIMS when she officially became the first Vietnamese to obtain it. 

“6 consecutive months of studying while working in a different time zone than my customers, tight project deadlines, scarce study, and exam materials… I wanted to give up. But thinking about the expectations of my fellow unit members and the miracles that will come when I have CPHIMS, I told myself to be strong and decisive in pursuing my original goal.” 

When determination and vision are big enough, FSOFT people ‘hunt’ for certificates not only to assert themselves but also to elevate the organization. Le Thanh Nhan (FHN.GEN) is one of them. Realizing that the knowledge of the PMP certificate is not enough with FSOFT’s growing stature, increasingly complex projects and increasingly high customer requirements, the leader of FHN.GEN has set the goal of conquering consecutively with 2two difficult certificates PfMP and PgMP in 2021 and 2023, becoming the only current FPT person to own a set of 3 prestigious certificates from PMI. 

Organizations develop rapidly and need a training team that must also adapt quickly to provide timely support. The biggest pressure on trainers is how to become a companion, helping employees be happier on their learning path instead of instructing them on what, where, how, etc. to learn, which is easily achieved. 

The FSOFT Mentorship platform launched in 2022 is an example of such efforts. Concerned with the problem of “needing a system that provides enough tools for FSOFTers to be able to self-study, study anywhere, with anyone, on any topic with the person they want. From the days when the feature still had many errors and limitations, up to now the project has gone through many questions such as: Can Mentor –– Mentee really learn? How to measure and evaluate the quality of this self-study? Is this learning standardized?… 

“Up to now, the project board has not been able to fully answer these questions. But above all, I believe that at FSOFT with 30,000 people, everyone has strengths to share with others, and also has things to learn from each other. Above all, creating the habit of self-learning and mutual sharing among everyone, mentoring skills will also be honed along this sharing journey. I believe, the work results and capacity of FSOFTers will also be increased with the Mentorship system and will be measured once the learning data file is large enough”, Ms. Tran Thi Ai My (CTC.TOD.SG) – “author” of FSOFT Mentorship shared. 

In a Happy New Year 2024 letter sent to all FSOFT employees, FSOFT PresidentChairwoman Chu Thi Thanh Ha shared: “When we have reached the new level of ‘$-Billion Dollar Company’, we are more aware of our role in global IT landscape, proactively taking on new responsibilities. FSOFT’s strength has increased, and we are ready to face and overcome higher and bigger greater challenges to move faster towards the goal of FSOFT’s 3rd   3rd Decade. The FSOFT Board of Directors decided to take 2024 as the year of ‘Level Up’, so that each FSOFT person is aware of new position, new strength, and new challenges.“

In this “Level Up” year, in addition to the growth tasks like every year, each unit and individual will register and strive to overcome a world-class challenge, things that seem to be impossible, considering it as the starting point of their own World Class. 

Author: Quynh Huong
Designer: Minh Hân