(Text by Ja'Pheth Toulson)

BEIJING, November 3, 2016 — Economic growth in China continues to slow as the demand for skilled workers steadily increases. In particular, many China-based companies have been unable to find the highly-trained workers they need, and China’s demographic changes – an ageing population and a shrinking workforce – have also created significant labor shortages. In the Human Capital Transformation Through Innovation in China symposium held in Beijing, academia, business and government leaders, and human resources experts gathered to discuss new solutions to address these critical labor market issues with the nation shifting toward a knowledge-based economy.

“We need to think about how we can improve education quality for our next generation and provide the right skills needed in the labor market,” said J.P. Morgan Managing Director and Head of Workforce Initiatives Chauncy Lennon. He Xian, former Vice Minister of Human Resources and Social Security of China and President of Chinese Talents Society, echoed the sentiment and suggested that a multipronged strategy would be required. "Developing a pool of domestic talents who can meet China’s economic and social development needs involves reforming several aspects related to the training, selection, evaluation, utilization, recognition and incentive system for talents,” he said.

The event was supported by J.P. Morgan in partnership with the Center for China and Globalization. 

Please click on the links below for the executive summary, and scroll down for the series's video highlights:

English version.
Chinese version.

Highlights of the J.P. Morgan-Asia Society One Step Ahead Series