Students seeking to join the workforce should prepare themselves with relevant technical and soft skills to best adapt to the rapidly evolving job market, said speakers at the opening plenary of the BYLC Career Expo 2022.

In a panel on essential leadership skills to build a career in a rapidly changing world moderated by BYLC President Ejaj Ahmad, speakers also stressed on the importance of accountability and learning through failure.

In his remarks to the expo held on Saturday (Feb 26) participants, Radwan Mujib Siddiq, Trustee for the Centre for Research and Information (CRI) said, “Youth today must prepare themselves adequately and take responsibility. If you make a mistake, own it instead of hiding it. However, you should be able to defend your thought process even if you make a mistake.”

In his address to the participants, Md. Shahriar Alam, State Minister for Foreign Affairs, underscored the importance of confidence, curiosity, and honest communication for success in the workplace.

“If you are confident about something, whether it is your choice of profession or educational degree, follow through with it. Your peers, mentors, teachers, and the society might have different expectations but you should do what feels right to you and what matters most to you,” he said.

Ambassador of the Netherlands in Bangladesh Anne van Leeuwen urged the participants to develop their leadership skills to thrive in the job market, “If you want to be a leader, you should be authentic and have a serving mindset. You have to invite your team members into your decision making process, give them safety and space, and make the best of their abilities,” he added.

Mercy Miyang Tembon, World Bank’s Country Director for Bangladesh and Bhutan, emphasised on the importance for young people to have a positive mindset and to develop both social as well as technical skills to thrive in a rapidly changing world.

“Artificial intelligence has disrupted the way we work and it will continue to do so to a greater extent in the future. Young people looking for jobs today have to be curious, creative, cooperative, and collaborative,” she said.

The two-week-long career expo organized by BYLC’s Office of Professional Development aims to train the 400 registered participants on critical 21st century skills through capacity building workshops, plenaries, networking opportunities with recruiters, and career counseling services. Participants will also get direct placement opportunities with more than 30 organizations taking part in the expo.