SHRI Member Spotlight – Han Kok Kwang

Han Kok Kwang is the 1st Singaporean Master Trainer of the National Career Development Association (US) in Asia, bestselling career author and winner of multiple national awards.

He virtually trained all the career advisors from the progressive universities in Singapore and helped them earn their international career credentials.

Since 2005, Han is the go-to Pro MINDEF & MHA calls when it’s time for their good people to career transit.

As a national HR professional award winner of SHRI, he has helped over 100,000 PMEs build rewarding careers since 2000. Connect with Han on LinkedIn to further your career conversation or become recession proof at nojobnosweat.com.

How would you explain your job to someone outside of HR?

I help PMEs build rewarding careers based on their strengths.

What’s something about you or your job that would surprise us?

I’ve been an SHRI member for over 34 years! I won the SHRI national HR professional award with my team at AIA back in 1997! After I pivoted to career development, I won the outstanding educator of career professionals award by the Asia Pacific Career Development Association in 2019. I’m also the author of 6 career management books, including 2 bestsellers. All can be found in NLB.

What has been the biggest highlight of your career so far?

Helping over 100,000 people in their career journeys.

What's a HR trend or space you're watching this year?

How HR must leverage AI to help employees and the company do better; otherwise, many HR functions risk being made redundant, as seen in the recent Big Tech right sizing of over 150,000 employees.

What advice would you give someone starting out in HR?

Think business before HR; help make the line manager’s job easier and you will do well in HR

What's one thing you can keep talking about for hours?

Lifelong learning and giving, not just learning

What's your favourite movie/TV show?

The Equaliser by Denzel Washington; just like how HR not only have to be fair, but must be seen to be fair, by all stakeholders

What's your go-to lunch around your workplace?

18 Tai Seng where possible, for the one star Michelin chicken rice

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