My 2023 summany

It is Tet holiday in Vietnam. Today is 1st day of the 2024 Lunar New Year. I want to note down some events and achievements I had in 2023. 

Work & Learn:

- Finished 2022 learning report and 2023 learning need analysis and learning plan for BD team at Shopee. It was the first time I conducted a learning need analysis for almost 1500 employees. I learned many things, from engaging and communicating with high-level stakeholders (Sr. Managers, Directors...) to designing surveys and collecting and analyzing data. 

- Delivered 15 training sessions and workshops for Warehouse, Shopee Express, Shopee, and Shopee Food. It was an incredible learning experience because I had a chance to work with various leaner's backgrounds and styles. From people working in the warehouse to people working in the office. From people who deal with sellers to people who deal with buyers. From gen Z to gen X. From the North to the Sought; expats and Vietnamese. Various topics from defining the problem (using Lego to understand MECE) to communication styles, change management, and collecting and analyzing data. I had to thank Shopee so much for giving me this awesome experience.

- I decided to leave Shopee and join RMIT in Apr 2023. It was the first time I had a full English interview. I was very nervous, but the interview with Haico and Nick was really good and I ended up joining RMIT. 

- I had a new team, both working in Saigon. I take care of all learning activities for RMIT staff in Hanoi. It is the first time I have had a Western boss, who has a very strong background and experience working in L&D for many big corporations. I enjoy working with him but sometimes, I struggle because of the difference in culture and expectation. Now, all good, I overcame some struggles to work better with my boss and my team.

- Launched Critical Thinking toolbox and Critical Thinking e-learning modules. It was the first time I worked with foreign suppliers. To create this toolbox, I had a meeting with more than 10 suppliers, from US, UK, Singapore, and India... I learned a lot after meeting with them. I am expecting the Critical Thinking toolbox will be the big hit this year (40 staff are learning elearning modules)

- I created the first flow on Power Automate and now I can use this tool to create simple and advanced flows for my team and my work. 

- I can use Articulate Storyline to design the first e-learning. Now I am quite familiar with Articulate and I will learn more about this tool in 2024. It is a powerful tool that I want to master. 

- AI. Luckily my boss is tech-savvy and really wants to apply new things in L&D (and our job as well). So I had the opportunity to learn more and more about AI. Now I can use AI to support my job effectively. Generative AI is a very hot topic at RMIT, I joined many groups, and workshops and learned many things about AI. 

- English is a big thing I need to mention this year. I was very hesitant to speak English at first but now I am more confident. Using English every day helps me a lot. There are still many things to learn in English and I need to improve more and more. However, I am confident that I can communicate and deliver full training in English. It is a big improvement. 

- My manager taught me many things this year: training with actors, facilitating skills, high performing team, how to conduct learning needs analysis... and many small things I learned when working with him that make me feel more confident doing my job. 

Life:

- It was the first time I experienced Tet far from home. I was enjoying Tet holiday in Hanoi, my wife's hometown.

- My brother got married. 

- My wife got a new job. Now she has been working for DVG for 1 year.

- Although I left Shopee, I keep a close connection with my friends there: Châu, a Bình, Kiều Anh, Kiều, Trang, chị Hoài, chị Hân, a Phúc, Jenna, Uyên, chị Nguyên, Đức, Quân, La Vy, chị Trúc, anh Tài (chồng c Nguyên), anh Minh (chống c Trúc), a Phuc, anh Huy HRBP, chị Hoài, em Đức Yul, em Giang.... They are always my friends. 

- I have more friends in 2023: my team for sure (Haico, chị Tuyền, Tiên, c Thảo), a Việt, Nhi, Hương, Tuna, Linh, Mai, Sao.... and meet a lot of new people. They are all very supportive. 

- Bà Huê, cụ ngoại passed away. 

I hope I don't miss any highlights last year. I will update when I remember. I hope that 2024 will have more beautiful stories to share. 

Happy New Year!