Soft skills tips from AmEx Vice President

(Front row, starting third from left): Jamie Azman, Dr Thanaseelan, Cynthia Lau and Pep (most right) with participants

Vice President of American Express (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd (AmEx) Jamie Azman emphasised on the importance of interpersonal communication and leadership skills during a talk organised by the Department of Mass Communication of Faculty of Creative Industries (FCI). The talk was held at UTAR Sungai Long Campus on 3 April 2019.

Present were FCI Head of Mass Communication Department Cynthia Lau Pui-Shan, FCI Dr Thanaseelen K.P. Rajasakran and students.

With 18 years of experience in AmEx, Jamie shared his thoughts and experience in interpersonal communication and leadership skills. He simply narrowed down the focus of the talk into three points, namely “set the agenda”, “bring others with you” and “do it the right way”.

He explained, “A clear vision and strategy are essential to the organisation’s culture. We aspire to provide the world’s best customer experience. The most important thing is how we lead the team to achieve the company’s objectives. We have to think about the customers, put them as the focal point and see how the organisation could provide the best experience for them. Try looking from that angle and you will see opportunities.”

He also encouraged the culture of learning and improving oneself at AmEx. “Learning is a continuous process. Even after you graduate, you have to master what you are doing. It is a life-long learning process. In AmEx, we provide platforms for our employees to grow,” said the Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) graduate.

Challenging the status quo is also viewed as a healthy practice when it is done in a positive manner. He said, “Open communication is very important. We even empower our frontline staff by allowing them to make decisions. We allow the employees to voice out in a constructive and professional manner by providing justification as well as suggestions.”

When it comes to leadership, there is no one way to do it. “There is no fixed style in leadership because each individual is at a different stage of skill set. After you have gained more knowledge and experience, you will move forward and learn new skills. At the same time, you will be coaching your subordinates. It is like a mentoring system,” said AmEx Recruitment Operations Manager Pep Sutaratada, chipping in his thoughts during the talk.

Being humble and respectful are highly valued in the local culture. However, there are times when a person has to stand up and be more outspoken on their achievements and thoughts. “It is important to not only do your job but also to communicate what you have done to others. Speak up and tell people what you have contributed. You cannot assume your leader to know everything you do without acknowledging them. You need to be able to showcase the value that you are contributing to the organisation. Also, do not be too respectful. You will be deemed as disengaged if you are too quiet. Balance between respect and interactivity,” said Jamie Azman, who has held 11 positions throughout his career in AmEx.

A person has to be able to cope with cultural differences in order to join the team of a multinational company. Replying to the inquiry during Q&A, Jamie Azman answered, “The rule of communication is the same. Treat the other party with respect and you will able to adapt to the different cultures in the world.” He also said that Malaysians can easily communicate with other nationalities due to the nature of the multicultural background of the people.

Cynthia Lau presenting the token of appreciation to Jamie Azman and Pep