Employability, skills and talent management in Zhejiang Province

This paper reports on a three-year PMI2 project con
ducted by Leeds
Metropolitan University and Zhejiang University of
Technology for the British
Council in 2008, one of seven to develop and streng
then partnerships with
Chinese institutions in employability and entrepren
eurship. The aim has been
to analyse the Hangzhou and Zhejiang economies and
examine current
Chinese company requirements for skills and talent
and the implications for
teaching and learning and graduate supply. The pape
r reports on eight
company case studies exploring talent/skills needs
and a survey of 21 ZJUT-
Leeds Metropolitan University alumni on their asses
sment of the Masters in
International Trade and Finance (MAITF) programme i
n enhancing their
employability. The paper argues that there is a nee
d for China to respond to a
new stage of globalisation- the recession, fiscal s
timulus and internal growth
adding to the search for Chinese globalisation. To
be successful, Chinese
companies need to have strong understanding of mark
ets and cultures and
business skills and methods, and the paper makes so
me recommendations
for policy and research in this area.