McEwan Hall, located at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland, serves as a grand venue for hosting graduation ceremonies. Standing proudly on the campus for over a century, it exudes a classical and solemn atmosphere, witnessing the aspirations of countless young talents as they spread their wings to soar high.

For both the master's and doctoral commencement ceremonies, Assistant Professor Yeh has graced the stage at this hall, walking hand in hand with fellow students, adorned in black academic robes, descending the stairs with anticipation for the promising future ahead.

After gaining experience in various academic institutions, she joined the Institute of Human Resource Management at National Sun Yat-sen University as a full-time faculty member this semester (112-2).

 
 

Assistant Yeh's academic breadth and depth are evident from her direct pursuit of dual degrees in International Business and Sociology at National Taiwan University. The decision to undertake this challenge reflects her desire to explore the realms of business management, a field she has been intrigued by since high school. However, her deeper interest lies in the study of humanity. While business management explains markets and industries, she seeks to understand the underlying reasons behind human actions, such as why people work and why goods hold value. She aims to comprehend these aspects from a perspective that prioritizes non-market factors and human well-being, thereby achieving a balanced viewpoint.

Before going abroad, Assistant Professor Yeh was mainly involved in facilitating international cooperation between Taiwan and the European Union. Despite not having a background in medicine, Assistant Professor Wei Yi would diligently absorb relevant knowledge by understanding scholars' resumes, attending lectures, and engaging in collaborative processes.

Interdisciplinary interactions also led Assistant Professor Yeh to consider studying at the Institute for Science, Technology and Innovation in the United Kingdom. "Especially at the University of Edinburgh, which is one of the earliest institutions to establish this research field," the professor noted. Coupled with having studied the works of scholars from the University of Edinburgh while in Taiwan, this sparked a desire to pursue further education there, making it the professor's top choice for further studies.

How the technology industry cultivates talent: A sociological perspective

Steve and Cathie, two profoundly influential mentors to Assistant Professor Yeh, guided her hand in hand in a mentorship model. Reflecting on her academic journey, Assistant Professor Yeh recalls initially feeling scattered, wanting to do everything but lacking specialization. Her mentors, however, punctured her naivety, providing rigorous training to help her clarify the essence of her research topics and challenge her research methods. They taught her to supervise herself, to remove egocentric tendencies, and to avoid solely seeking literature reviews that resonated with her views, thereby breaking through habitual thinking patterns.

"As graduation approached, I began to feel more at ease, realizing the profound intentions behind my mentors' guidance. I am deeply grateful to them. They were willing to play the role of the stern taskmaster to ensure that their disciple learned solid fundamentals," Assistant Professor Yeh expressed with gratitude.

Graduation ceremonies are often the happiest days for everyone. Assistant Professor Yeh frequently reflects on past experiences. Her doctoral thesis focused on British physicists, comparing aspects of science policy and technology management. "I've always been curious about how a Ph.D. or academic knowledge contributes to society and industry," she mused. As the technology industry stands as a robust pillar of economic growth, she pondered how to influence the backend business practices from the source. Where lies the value in the manufacturing process, from research and development to application?

Assistant Professor Yeh shared an anecdote about a college classmate who followed advice to enter the lucrative technology sector in a sales role. However, she struggled with selling "invisible electronic components" and felt disconnected. She didn't know how to engage in sales or even lost sight of his career goals and motivation.

It wasn't until she witnessed the passion of physicists in the UK for their theories and experiments that she understood the value of people and knowledge. Reflecting on Taiwan, Assistant Professor Yeh believes that as a tech island, Taiwan boasts many outstanding tech talents. How to cultivate more elites to promote the industry and whether there's a need to prioritize foundational research and talent development are questions she intends to explore from a sociological perspective. She aims to establish a more comprehensive viewpoint rooted in scientific and technological innovation.

 

 

Using games to stimulate learning and simulate scenarios encourages innovation.

For Assistant Professor Yeh, her journey in teaching began upon returning to Taiwan from studying abroad. She started by teaching general education courses, gradually honing her teaching skills. She then taught at National Taichung University of Education before joining National Sun Yat-sen University last year.

Having been influenced by foreign education for many years, she had become accustomed to an atmosphere where international students actively expressed their opinions. However, upon returning to Taiwan, she noticed that Taiwanese students tended to be more reserved and accustomed to traditional lecture-style teaching. Assistant Professor Yeh hopes to break this pattern by encouraging students to be proactive. Thus, she designs various activities or games in her classes to engage students actively, providing opportunities for each student to participate and excel.

 

 

In the classroom, when it's not possible to take students on company visits or invite guest speakers, "utilizing games or activities to simulate scenarios and stimulate brainstorming is a great practical opportunity for learning organizational cooperation and interaction," explained Assistant Professor Yeh. Learning how organizations and human resources innovate involves whether a company can inspire its employees' creativity, and how employees can utilize their creative thinking abilities to provide value to the company. Assistant Professor Yeh aims to guide students to develop creative thinking abilities and, as scholars, to explore the antecedents and consequences of creative thinking, contributing to society and organizations.

Assistant Professor Yeh's humanistic care is also reflected in her curriculum. Currently, in terms of qualitative research methods, which are a research method for writing dissertations, conducting face-to-face interviews, participating in observations, or conducting case studies, "if only quantitative data is used, it's challenging to fully depict the complex aspects of businesses and individuals. Therefore, quantitative and qualitative methods should complement each other to present a more comprehensive picture," she said. Assistant Professor Yeh believes that people are multifaceted, and qualitative research methods can provide a more comprehensive perception of their complex emotions and experiences.

 

Coming from the perpetually rainy weather of Britain to the almost daily sunshine of NSYSU, Assistant Professor Yeh feels a sense of clarity. She expresses deep gratitude towards her colleagues at NSYSU for their understanding of her interdisciplinary background and their acceptance of her.

Regarding her students at NSYSU, she observes their innocence and joy, as many of them have yet to experience the challenges of the real world. She encourages them to pursue interests and passions beyond their academic and professional studies, believing that having diverse interests will give them a unique edge in their future careers and enable them to stand out in the workplace as distinctive individuals.

(Media report by School of Management, written and photographed by Shenyu)

葉老師鼓勵自我不設限，挑戰潛水是近期生活目標

 

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