Career Development and Job Expectations: the Gap between Chinese Generation Y Graduates of Thai Universities and Chinese General Managers in Thai Labor Markets

Abstract

                  The purpose of this study aims to close the job expectations gap between Chinese generation Y graduates of Thai universities and Chinese general managers in Thai labor market and to create a career development model that Chinese generation Y graduates can utilize to practice in a competitive job market. The purposes of this study are to explore the expectations of Chinese generation Y graduates from Thai universities and Chinese general managers in Thai labor market and to create a career development model that Chinese generation Y graduates can utilize to practice in a competitive job market. A mixed methods sequential exploratory strategy is employed in the study. In-depth interviews are used in collecting the data for qualitative study. The quantitative method used is a survey studying the perceptions of 88 Chinese Generation Y graduates and 109 Chinese/Taiwanese general managers who are currently working in Thailand. The research instrument is a questionnaire using a five-point Likert scale. The qualitative findings reveal that the expectations of Chinese generation Y graduates consist of 4 categories: expectation from working in Thailand, compensation and benefit, working environment, and expectations towards problem solving. The expectations of Chinese general managers consist of five categories: expectation on job competences, job attitude, job resume and interview, job performance improvement, and job positions needed. The career development model comprises five interrelated components, they are: (1) self-awareness and self-assessment; (2) career goal setting; (3) prediction for the future of the industry; (4) self-professional development; and the last step is (5) become an expert in the field. And five core factors for career success, which are: job competences; job attitudes, job opportunity, favorable working location, and interpersonal relationships. The quantitative method is aimed to support the results analyzed from the qualitative approach.