Chapter 5: Our people, our culture

John Harvey, Founding Partner, EY Vietnam  

First of all, I can’t believe that EY Vietnam is already celebrating its 30th anniversary in Vietnam. My heartfelt congratulations to you all. 

I have always believed in the potential of the countries in Asia and their peoples. Our plan with any emerging country is to build up and develop local talent. This is a challenge at first because we had to supply international auditing knowledge for Vietnam but also because independent audit was a new concept in the market. To kickstart our growth, there was no alternative but to bring in people from overseas with more experience. The experts who joined the practice in those early days came from Australia, Canada, France, New Zealand, the UK and, closer to home, from Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Sri Lanka. 

It would be wrong of me to single out any individual for fear of omitting others who also played a significant role in the development of our People Culture. Two events, however, have stuck in my mind. The first is Cuong receiving the Audit License in Hanoi, where we opened an office on Trang Thi Street - but there was an Electrolux sign above the front door which was larger than ours! The second is when Cuong brought three team members to Hong Kong for a month-long audit training. Apart from the professional side, they were exposed to a whole wealth of experiences.

Other challenges involved the country’s infrastructure which, while being repaired or upgraded, struggled to cope with the demands of the rapidly growing economy and the population. Power outages were common and while you could manage in a shirt and tie without air-conditioning, remembering to save your work regularly on the computer was paramount and being able to work by torchlight an advantage!

As we grew, finding the right office space in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City became more critical for morale. I have already mentioned Trang Thi in Hanoi. In Ho Chi Minh City, our humble beginnings were in one room on the fourth floor of the Ministry of Construction building, with no lift. We soon moved to a villa at 22A Nam Ky Khoi Nghia and by the end of the 90s, both offices in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City were relocated to newly constructed buildings.

Striking a balance between work and life was very difficult in the early 90s. With increasing amounts of work and resources fully stretched. A People Culture has to be top of mind in management. This is what you have achieved today.

Congratulations again for what you have achieved in this amazing journey of 30 years. I look forward to seeing you grow further in the years to come. 

Helping everyone become their best self

EY Vietnam provides the tools, learning materials and a flexible, diverse and inclusive culture so that our people can become the best version of themselves, and help others do the same.

Custom-built career development paths

With sufficient energy, drive and imagination, there is no limit to how far EY Vietnam people can go. As they grow and develop at EY Vietnam, the firm takes special care to give them the tools and the opportunities to reach their personal goals. Each member is different and EY Vietnam endeavor to make their journey with the firm as unique as they are.

Flexibility and mobility

Careers are changing. Today’s disruptive environment and automation are transforming what a job looks – and feels – like. At EY Vietnam, people can enjoy global opportunities with flexible working and mobility options.

Innovation-driven careers

Working with emerging technologies, pursuing new opportunities means that EY Vietnam has to reinvest itself and its people every day. The firm’s culture of innovation means embracing change in everything we do, from applying new technologies to fine-tuning existing processes. Powerful ideas will unlock the full potential of our people.

Building and maintaining a people culture

• We place people at the center of our corporate culture. 
• We bring diverse ideas, backgrounds and mindsets together.
• We embrace change in everything we do.
• We invest in technology to do more meaningful work.
• We build our business on diversity and inclusiveness.
• We support all our employees to achieve work-life harmony and promote their wellbeing.

Hang Thanh Ngo, Chairman, Delimera Group, EY Vietnam Alumni

Even on tight schedules, I always look forward to meeting with ex-colleagues from EY Vietnam at EY events or other occasions. My years with EY Vietnam were the most beautiful in my 40-year career. I love EY Vietnam because of the professional environment they maintain where people are still friendly and work together. In the following years, as I found and managed my own ventures, I always strove to mimic this culture. Our professional, friendly and cooperative culture helped us succeed in working with loyal customers and partners from Fortune 500 companies. Thank you EY Vietnam. I will always be proud to have been an EY. It warms my heart to revisit the office.”

Linh Kieu Nguyen, Chairwoman, FCE Vietnam Education Transformation Consultancy Company, EY Vietnam Alumni

Throughout my 10 years with EY, I was most impressed by the company’s people culture: I was provided endless learning opportunities and challenges to venture into new areasand was able to explore and step out of my comfort zone to reach what I thought was unimaginable. To be honest, I was frequently overwhelmed by the opportunities that came my way. I felt like a fish that followed the current from its small pond to the river, then to the great ocean: I went from tax to investment advisory, then enterprise transformation, CBK to internal integration for companies in 11 countries. Thanks to those experiences, while leading a firm in education transformation today, I truly understand the importance of a people-centric culture. In my current role, I am constantly trying to integrate the philosophy that “Every person has potential, and our job is to make them shine”. 

I am grateful to EY and my colleagues for the beautiful memories. Congratulations to EY Vietnam on your 30th anniversary. 

Tina (Thanh) Nguyen, CEO, Generali Vietnam

In 1997, I was honored to be one of the first two EY Vietnam staffs (the other being Cuong Dinh Tran, now the Country Managing Partner, EY Vietnam) to attend the EY International Exchange Program. Cuong was sent to the EY San Francisco office while I was sent to Montreal. Although there were a lot of new things to learn, the solid foundations I had built at EY Vietnam helped me get up to speed quickly in the new environment. Later I moved a few more times within the EY network in North America, mostly for personal reasons. My time at the different EY offices allowed me to learn about the different sectors, experience different markets and make friends with so many smart, hard-working people around the world. Many of the skills I picked up there came in handy later on in my career.

Over the past two decades, every time I spoke to an audience about career development, I always referred to the importance of choosing the first job. I was fortunate to have started at EY and would make the same choice if I had to do it all over again.”

Tina (Thanh) Nguyen started her career at EY Vietnam in 1994 and subsequently took up several assignments within the EY network in Asia and North America (Hong Kong, Montreal, Boston, Austin). Her background as an auditor at EY Vietnam provided a strong foundation for her professional success afterwards. She is currently CEO of Generali Vietnam. Tina is married to Andy Ho, Chief Investment Officer of VinaCapital. Andy is also an alumnus of EY Vietnam.

Andy Ho, Chief Investment Officer, VinaCapital, EY Vietnam Alumni

Throughout my time at EY Vietnam, I was blessed with being surrounded by smart, driven and team-oriented people. EY Vietnam recognizes that its people are its greatest asset and considers investing in its people priority number ONE. Today, I work in a large investment firm, and it too recognizes that people are its greatest assets. 

Over the years EY Vietnam and many investment firms, like VinaCapital, have invested a tremendous amount of resources into recruiting, developing and maintaining their greatest assets. And fortunately, training is a big component of this investment. I have been privileged to be part of the EY Vietnam training program from the beginning. Admittedly, if you test me today on the procedures, risks and the audit process, the results would be embarrassing. 

However, the fundamentals that I learned at EY Vietnam will forever be with me. They include strong financial and accounting skills and logical thinking; a healthy level of skepticism; and being ethical and living with integrity. And now, the best part, I get to pass down these traits to my son with Mrs. Tina Nguyen.”

Andy joined EY USA in 1993 as an auditor after graduating from the university. He earned a CPA in the US after a couple of years but has since stopped practicing. With his experience at EY, he successfully applied and attended to a top-rated MBA program, followed by time spent at Dell Ventures. In 2004, Andy and Tina moved back to Vietnam and joined Prudential on the investment and finance sides, respectively. In 2007 Andy left Prudential and joined VinaCapital where he remains today.

Nurturing people 

Placing people at the center of a corporate culture will drive a positive shift and unlock long-term values for your organization. EY Vietnam’s management always prioritizes upskilling and reskilling programs for employees. 

The more the firm supports its people in career and skills development, the better it serves its clients in the long run. Over the years, EY Vietnam has committed significant investments to employee training. Besides mandatory training and international qualifications for accounting and auditing, much effort has been made to enable EY people to customize their learning. 

Skills are the new currency of talent. One of the things EY have done is to make EY badges, which encouraged its people to shape their careers and prepare themselves for the future – whatever it may bring – by equipping themselves with new skills and setting themselves apart in the market. Since the program’s launch in 2017, more than 13,000 EY Badges have been earned, and over 55,000 more are in progress. 

EY Badges open a world of possibilities for our people. They can earn bronze, silver, gold and platinum digital badges for certain skills. Aside from sector-specific ones, many of these skills are future-focused such as data visualization, data science and artificial intelligence – skills that will help them in today's working world. Badges can be displayed on internal EY profiles as well as on external professional profiles and social media sites. The firm’s people can also take their badges with them if they leave EY.

Human resource development and community contribution

EY Vietnam is promoting learning, entrepreneurship and building a socially responsible country.

Throughout its history, the firm has been continuously creating and sharing knowledge about the economy and business – we have been involved and led many forums, research, market studies and posted many articles on these topics.

Realizing the need to develop talents and home-grown leaders, EY Vietnam pioneered providing sponsorship to scholarship programs to key universities in Vietnam to support young students. The success of the first scholarship program in 2007 led to closer cooperation with prestigious universities in the past 15 years. 

The EY Entrepreneur Of The Year Award

The EY Entrepreneur Of The Year award program, co-organized with the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), was first organized in Vietnam in 2011.

The award is granted based on six globally applied criteria: entrepreneur spirit, strategic vision, financial ability, innovation, impacts on community, international businesses scale and straightforwardness in terms of the economy, culture and society.

When our people thrive, we thrive! 

Well-being is integral for performance. Supporting people’s physical and emotional health will allow them to reach their full potential. EY Vietnam has a range of programs to support people to look after their wellbeing, from remote working options to financial assistance and wellness events.

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the management has consistently placed top priority on the health.

Contributing to the community

EY Vietnam leaders believe business must do more to foster sustainable and inclusive growth. At EY Vietnam, people have a duty to act responsibly and in the long-term interests of all stakeholders, guided by the firm’s purpose of building a better working world. Therefore, EY Vietnam always pride on its long-term commitment to supporting charitable institutions and non-governmental organizations that play a critical role in developing society, improving communities, and promoting better healthcare, education, environment and poverty alleviation. 

By working with organizations across the public, private and non-profit sectors and fostering systemic approaches, the firm can achieve together what it cannot achieve alone. Through the EY Ripples program, EY people in Vietnam and across the world are devoting their time to sustainable development goals-focused projects, bringing together the combined skills, knowledge, and experience of the global EY network in pursuit of one shared vision: to positively impact one billion lives by 2030.

Most people probably think that EY Vietnam is only about financial statements, reports and advisory. In its three decades of serving and supporting the development of Vietnam, the firm has been making a meaningful difference and has been building better communities. EY Vietnam have been working with organizations from childcare and poverty eradication such as SOS Children Village of Vietnam, Lux Development, Care International Vietnam, SIDA, Bread for the World, Oxfam – and our network of partners grows all the time. 

The year 2022 marks the 30th year of EY in Vietnam. Like all great successes, this one is rooted in the firm’s legacy of excellence in everything it does. But this is not only about the firm, it is also a story of its partners. Without whose invaluable contributions, EY Vietnam would not be here today.

Nitin Jain, International Tax and Transaction Service, EY India, Former Partner, EY Vietnam

Congratulations EY Vietnam on turning 30! 

I feel very fortunate to be part of this 30-year journey and cherish my 5 years (2010-2014) in Vietnam as the most memorable period of my 22-years with EY. 

Together, we achieved many milestones in Vietnam and won many accolades, including “Vietnam TP Firm of the year 2010” by Euromoney at the Asia Tax Awards, being on the front page of Saigon Times and more. This was only possible with the support, hard work, loyalty, endless energy and enthusiasm for excellence of our mentor partners, colleagues and team members.  

While some of us moved on, it is heartening to see so many familiar names still in the practice and doing exceedingly well in their fields. Onwards and upwards, EY Vietnam. Your future is even brighter than your very successful past!

Heartiest congratulations again and I look forward to many more celebrations of success.

Petrus Gimbad, Former Partner, EY Vietnam

“Congratulations EY Vietnam for reaching this auspicious milestone – 30 years is no mean feat and speaks volumes about your progress! 

I was with EY Vietnam for a regrettably short time. My first trip to Vietnam was somewhere in 2007 but I left on 1 July 2009 because of an unexpected illness which forced an early retirement from EY to take a long rest to get back my health. 

I was sent to Vietnam to lead the advisory practice and the IT assurance practice. At the time, I was already the Far East Quality Director for the Advisory Practice, and had to divide my time between Vietnam and my qualityrole for the Far East offices.  Because the level of skills of the Vietnam office was far from ready to deliver advisory work, I spent a lot of time on the ground showing how to think and write proposals and, to deliver projects and handle clients in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City offices as well as in Vientiane in Laos. 

I remember managers and staff from non-advisory services also coming to me to seek advise on their work.  I was impressed by the work ethics of the staff and their willingness to learn, especially about advisory work which are varied and demanding. Although I only had a short stint, I hope I have imparted something to those who have worked with me and they have progressed in their career.

My sincere thanks to Country Managing Partner Cuong Dinh Tran for inviting me from Malaysia to work at EY Vietnam. Without which, I would not know your beautiful country and the friends I have made.  I want to take this opportunity to those who had the patience to work with me and sacrifice of of their time to meet crazy deadlines especially in rescuing major overdue jobs in Vietnam and in Laos. My best wishes to Cuong, Partners, Managers and the staff at EY Vietnam. EY Vietnam will always remain in my heart and I look forward to hearing good news as the firm moves to greater heights in the future!”

Nam Nguyen, Managing Partner, Kreston NNC, Former Partner, EY Vietnam

EY Vietnam has been constantly changing in the last three decades, but one thing remains the same - it is always the firm that competitors look up to and look out for.

I was fortunate to be with EY Vietnam for 12 years and witnessed its first two milestones. I saw EY values in action - EY Vietnam stands for integrity, respect, team spirit and inclusiveness. It also stands for energy, enthusiasm and the courage to take the lead and do the right things. 

During the business crisis triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic, I heard people talking a lot about “people first” and “resilience”. These have been parts of EY Vietnam’s culture since its day one in Vietnam.  

Amid the financial crisis of the late 90s, EY Vietnam grew bigger and better to the envy of others. The EY Vietnam of today is very different from the one that I joined and the one that I left. Like any other business, EY Vietnam has been constantly changing in the last three decades, but one thing remains the same - it is always the firm competitors that look up to and look out for. 

Happy 30th anniversary to EY Vietnam, I wish you another 30 years (and more) of success.

Toan Quoc Nguyen, CEO/Chairman, EQuest Education Group, Former Partner, EY Vietnam

My tenure at EY Vietnam was 3 years and 7 months. This was the time in my life when I learned the most and lived some of the happiest memories of my professional career.

I left EY to embark on my journey of being an entrepreneur. I carried with me the experiences of making teamwork the most important working spirit, how to work smarter across regions and how to optimize limited resources from EY. I also learned good management lessons from our senior leaders and industrial leaders, business owners.

I was fortunate to work with some of the finest minds from business groups in Vietnam and overseas. I also learned the importance of good leadership, being disciplined and talent management in big corporations. These were invaluable lessons that I will always treasure.

In those years, we formed a great team in our division. Work was of course always stressful, but we have built lasting friendships where we treat each other with respect and we are always there for each other. This friendship has always been with me till today.

Only at EY Vietnam did I truly understand that helping others succeed without expecting anything in return was a success in itself. At all times, our team supported each other unconditionally, without anybody having to ask. This spirit of mutual support and true partnership made EY Vietnam an ideal working environment.

I left EY Vietnam being a better person: more confident but more humble, more experienced and more mature. While managing my company, I applied what I learned at EY Vietnam: true partnership, mutual respect, never-ending learning, professional management and treating people with respect.

My initial successes, if any, were strongly influenced by EY Vietnam and I will always be grateful for this.

Jun Torres, Assurance Partner, EY Philippines, Former Partner, EY Vietnam

It has been a wonderful experience with wonderful people.

It has been 7 years since I returned from EY Vietnam to my home firm, EY Philippines. The 10 years I spent with the firm left me with many good memories and deep friendships that will last a lifetime. This is also true for my family, my wife and our three children who spent their formative years in Vietnam and who would readily call the country their second home.

As a young partner, I was asked to join EY Vietnam after SGV, which at the time had just joined the EY Global Network and, with its long history of supporting partner firms across the region, had committed to support EY Vietnam as it furthered its development. I gladly welcomed the challenge after meeting Thanh Nguyen (Former Country Managing Partner) and Cuong Dinh Tran in Manila but also had a feeling of great uncertainty I just couldn’t shake. I was moving to a country where I knew practically no one, nor did I understand a single word of its language since English was not yet widely spoken. But, like a good soldier, I came, I stayed and the rest, as they say, is history. The two-year assignment eventually lasted for a good and fulfilling 10 years.

As I reflect on what made this journey so fulfilling, I think of the wonderful people I met, worked with and who taught me so much along the way. From the first time I stepped onto the 8th floor of Saigon Riverside Office Center, I felt the warmth of a home away from home. It did not matter that I did not understand Vietnamese, that I couldn’t read most of the audit work papers, or that communication was tricky at first with the staff or clients. All of that went away as soon as I realized there was a mutual desire to know and learn from each other, work together and develop friendships. EY Vietnam’s culture, reflected in the staff’s curiosity and eagerness to learn and develop, was remarkable. With their intelligence and diligence, the language barrier simply became irrelevant. 

As I walk down memory lane, I can’t help but remember with fondness the staff anniversary galas, family day, Ao Dai day, the alumni events, graduate recruitment activities, my VACPA examinations, the EY and VACPA trainings, the intense inter/intra-firm football and cheering competitions, trips to Hanoi and other provinces and to Laos and Cambodia to meet colleagues and clients, the summer outings and picnics to nature resorts, beaches and river banks, the planning meetings and, of course, the Tet celebrations. I wish I could mention all the people whom I had the privilege to share these fantastic experiences with. One thing is certain though, they have all been etched permanently into my heart and mind.

As EY Vietnam celebrates its 30th anniversary, I join the firm’s alumni community in congratulating Cuong Dinh Tran, the partners and the entire EY Vietnam family for their stewardship and dedication that brought the firm to where it is today. I am excited and proud to see EY Vietnam continue to grow and provide opportunities to young and ambitious graduates to thrive, help clients succeed and ultimately contribute to the country’s development.

Congratulations EY Vietnam and wish you success for another meaningful 30 years!

Gerard Holtzer

Former Partner, EY Vietnam

I came to Vietnam in 1993 through a trip organized by a French Chamber of Commerce inviting companies to invest in Vietnam few years after “Doi moi”. I was impressed and in addition to recommend others to invest in Vietnam, I did invest myself in becoming a Managing Partner of EY Vietnam in Hanoi. At that time, ten people in Trang Thi street, Hanoi and fifteen people in Nguyen Van Troi street, HCM City. Two Partners took care of 30 clients. Now, you have thousands of clients with nearly 100 Partners. Tremendous changes enabled by tremendous strategy of EY Vietnam leadership.

I retired in Montpellier at the age of 60 years in 2005 but the interest in Vietnam did not stop, as I came back to challenge the policy of privatization of large general companies for some months for another year.

When I stopped working, I looked back to Vietnam with different pair of glasses and discovered that art was around in paintings, visual art, music, design, architecture, dance, cinema and many others. So I wanted to understand Vietnam, not only for its economic outlook but also for its cultural environment.

I’ve graduated recently to a master’s degree on the topic “The world of contemporary art in Vietnam”. I discovered the world of Vietnamese artists, not only for their performances and their struggling with the official concept of art, but also their presence on the international scenery. I went to meet these artists on the back of motorbikes leading me to exhibitions, ateliers, concerts, museums, art universities, cafes, and other nice places I never knew during my professional life. There was passion in discovering, apart from the world of business plans and figures, different worlds like music, painting, performances, installations, street-art, architecture.

This led me to continue my research, digging in the history of Vietnam and I am currently doing a research on the history of Vietnamese culture and the relationship with the political powers during the 19th to the 20th century. Who knows what I will discover? I may need your help in this regard.

My wishes are first of all addressed to you. My advice is the same that the one I gave when leaving EY Vietnam 17 years ago. Your wellbeing is the wellbeing of EY Vietnam. But paraphrasing a well-known politician addressing the youth: “Don’t ask what EY Vietnam can do for you but ask yourself what you can do for EY Vietnam”. I am pretty sure that this is your daily question when you wake up in the middle of the night. My wish to EY Vietnam is that EY Vietnam can count on people like you, success and wellbeing will follow.

Vietnam once, Vietnam now, and Vietnam forever!

Part 4: From generation to generation