By Whitney Barnes, Director of Communication and Advocacy, Illinois Chamber of Commerce
This year, the Chamber participated in the American Council of Young Political Leaders (ACYPL) Program that is part of the White House Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative (YSEALI).
The Chamber hosted ACYPL Fellow Nguyen Tran Dieu My, known as My (pronounced ME), from Vietnam in the Chamber’s Chicago office for four weeks in May 2019, following the first phase of her program spent in Washington D.C.
“Back home I’m working in the Institute for Development Studies,” My said. “It is an advisory department for local governments, and we work on policies and recommendations related to international trade and implement international agreements.”
During her stay, My compiled research for her project related to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and export markets.
“I hope that in the future my project can help the local entrepreneurs to develop their business and international trade,” My said.
She explained that, while many international agreements have been signed in Vietnam, most Vietnamese companies are still SMEs.
“They may meet some difficulties in assessing the information of international markets, especially foreign markets like the U.S., Europe and Japan,” My said.
She added these difficulties could include language barriers and access to reliable information.
“That’s why I proposed a plan to create a portal relating to export markets for local entrepreneurs,” My said. To further investigate her project, My spent time speaking with Chamber staff and learning about the day-to-day business of a statewide chamber organization. She worked closely with Chamber Chief Operating Officer Candace Gerritsen and Executive Director of the Chamber International Business Council (IBC) Laura Ortega on IBC events and development meetings, including the Chamber’s 2019 Exports Conference.
“I learned how they connect businesses together and how they organize the event successfully,” My said.
She also met with union representatives and local and state officials in various communities to immerse herself in Illinois’ business community and toured elementary schools to learn more about the American education system.
My also received exposure to Illinois’ political system. She traveled to the Chamber office in Springfield to learn more about the legislative affairs process and meet with the Chamber’s legislative staff. She shadowed staff in various meetings in Springfield as well at the Illinois Statehouse where she sat in on legislative session activities including a House floor debate. While in Central Illinois, she also visited a rural farm to learn more about Illinois agribusiness.
“When I come back to Vietnam, I have the responsibility to implement my project in practice,” My said, adding that she was looking forward to Chamber staff ’s reciprocal visit to her home country during the implementation.
As part of the reciprocal program, in October 2019, Illinois Chamber Chief Operating Officer Candace Gerritsen traveled to Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam to meet with business people, government leaders, agencies and business organizations related to Small and Medium Enterprises. My put together a rigorous plan of meetings with government, private and association representatives to give Gerritsen an inside view of Vietnamese business.
“It allowed me to become immersed in a culture in a way one wouldn’t normally be able to just by being a tourist,” Gerritsen said.
Gerritsen was educated about available resources in various forms and entities to assist SMEs and met with stakeholders passionate about contributing to and growing the Vietnamese economy.
“We learned SMEs want business to grow, are interested in finding new markets, make customer connections, network with people and organizations that can lead to business development and contribute to growth,” Gerritsen said.
Through the visit, Gerritsen found many similarities of challenges facing U.S. SMEs, specifically that Vietnamese SMEs also need and want to be educated on other parts of running their businesses besides business development.
“They are grappling with regulations within their country or province/state that are complicated, antiquated, unnecessarily bureaucratic and expensive,” Gerritsen said. “Vietnamese SMEs have challenges with finding a qualified workforce to hire, follow correct accounting practices, and how to interact with financial institutions, etc. That all sounds similar to SMEs in the U.S.”
The experience helped remind Gerritsen of the importance of taking the time to learn the history and background of people and situations before formulating opinions, thoughts or solutions – specifically when it comes to business.
“They have similar needs, wants and aspirations,” Gerritsen said. “The environment, and of course, culture provides a different perspective and outlook. Likewise, taking time to really listen, working to put yourself in someone else’s shoes, brings a breadth of compassion, empathy and self- awareness that is easily forgotten in the fast paced, multi-faceted lives we all lead.”
Overall, the program was a wonderful lesson for professionals in both countries on how gaining mutual understanding, enhancing leadership and professional skills, and building lasting and sustainable partnerships are integral to progress in the global economy.
“I was reminded people are people no matter where they live,” Gerritsen said. “I couldn’t be more humbled to have been able to share in this program and as an extra bonus to have made some valuable friendships along the way.”
