Glenn, tell us what you have been up to since your graduation?
After my graduation, I returned to Taiwan for the compulsory military training and to spend some time with my elderly “farmor” (grandma). By that time of my life, I had lived most of my formative years away from Taiwan across several different countries. For me, “returning” to Taiwan was just as moving to a new country. Sweden was the last place I lived, so while I was waiting to be called in to the military, I volunteered to help out at the Swedish Chamber of Commerce in Taipei to find a community and keep myself busy.
Through one of the events, I was helping out at the Swedish Chamber, I met the CEO of the European Chamber of Commerce Taiwan who also happens to be from Lund. So, I started working for the European Chamber’s Low Carbon Initiative. Later on, through the recommendation of my former supervisor at the European Chamber, I went to work for the then-Taiwanese Ministry of Science and Technology to help promote Taiwan’s science and technology international visibility and partnerships.
I find it fun and humbling being in a new place where I don’t understand the language or the culture.
Having also studied and lived in Australia, I got the opportunity to join the Australia New Zealand Chamber of Commerce in Taiwan (ANZCham Taiwan) around two years ago. I’m happy that I get to do what I love to do – connecting the countries I love together. Little did I know, what initially started as a five-month return for compulsory military training turned into a five-year stay.
What are the key insights from your studies at LUSEM that you find most useful in your life today?
I studied the Master’s in Management (MiM) programme at LUSEM. It’s a special programme where all my classmates were from a non-business background. At LUSEM, I learned to work with people coming from different perspective and working style. But also learned a lot about myself and reflect on the kind of values and leadership I would like to carry out. I think my biggest take away is learning that there’s not a single way of how one should be and things are done. During the programme, we had to write reflection journals about our personal development. I still constantly practice reflection now. It helps me better understand myself and practice to become a better colleague and partner in my work.
Just as importantly, I saw going to university as a way for me to leverage the university’s platform to do and try out the things I wanted to do. During my time at LUSEM, I spent most of my time engaging in extra-curricular activities. I was actively engaged with UPF Lund where I led study trips to Taipei and Brussels; as well as, participated in board work. In some ways, chamber work closely resembles what I did before, i.e. inviting business and political leaders to speak at events, organising company visits, putting together publications, and of course, working with a board and people who are passionate about the cause.
During the programme, we had to write reflection journals about our personal development. I still constantly practice reflection now. It helps me better understand myself and practice to become a better colleague and partner in my work.
I think one of the greatest things about Lund University is the vibrant student community and activities. It really showed me the power of community. There are so many community resources out there like mentorship programmes, grants, and events. But most importantly, through Lund, I met some of my best friends I still talk to on a weekly basis today and friends I can call whenever I have questions related to work. That’s why I spend my spare time to help promote Lund and Sweden as a study destination.
What items on your bucket list do you plan to check off this year?
- Focus more on the things and people who matter more in life. For starters, I would like to be better at keeping in touch with friends especially the ones who are far away.
- Visit at least two new countries this year. I find it fun and humbling being in a new place where I don’t understand the language or the culture – I miss that excitement of being a foreigner.
- Do more weekend trips to explore the nature and small towns of Taiwan.