Book Launch - CEO On the Go in Vietnam

Yes, that's Nhung (my wife) on the cover!

Dear Family & Friends,

Apologies for the radio silence over the past few months. I resigned from my desk job, started my own company, and been busy in the lab conjuring up my first eBook, CEO On the Go in Vietnam. I've co-authored it with a very wise and experienced Vietnamese friend of mine and we've published with pseudonyms for now (it's not for the reasons you're thinking).

The book's aimed at CEOs because we feel that they have the most influence to take action and make positive change in Vietnam.  However, whatever your seniority, if you're considering investing time/money in Vietnam or a professional move to Vietnam, I would urge you to read our book.  It will allow you to leapfrog the culture-shock and be effective immediately.

It's not another history book.  Instead, it's packed with secrets to the unique Vietnamese DNA today, which I've learned over my time in Vietnam as an observer and flows through the blood of my co-author.  We are LEGIT!  It's also short and simple read that's straight to the point, and can be read in an 1 or 2 afternoon/s.

You can purchase the book on Kindle (where you can get a free sneak peak sample of the book) via the ad on my blog.  If it's not for you, please do refer our book to others!

Here's our foreword to tickle your tastebuds:

If you’re making the courageous step to lead a corporate in Vietnam, their first year in leadership will be challenging.  Internal conflict is inevitable as you adjust to the Vietnamese DNA.

While Vietnam – a gold mine – attempts to leverage opportunities like the TPP to re-kindle economic growth, the FMCG sector – representing consumer power – remains flat.  

FMCG manufacturers that understand the Vietnamese DNA are going from strength to strength while others are sinking.

Read this succinct collection of Vietnamese secrets on the plane to Vietnam or over an iced Vietnamese coffee in one afternoon to optimise your integration to a challenging but highly rewarding environment.

CEO On the Go in Vietnam combines a unique blend of knowledge and experience of a native Vietnamese businessman and the perspective of an outsider behavioral economist looking in.

Take this example of insight, District 7 sub-municipality in Ho Chi Minh City – the commercial capital of Vietnam – is home to Vietnam’s first public surveillance system. As traditional on-the-beat policing and private investigation in Vietnam evolves and inter-class disparities widen, a huge opportunity emerges for B2C, B2B, and B2G private/public security specialists.

Here's another interesting case of how old ways of Vietnamese life affects trends today; everyday communications for Vietnamese had always been about proximity or word of mouth. Vietnamese life – family, friends, and work – in the past was very localised.  This meant that letter writing and sending occasion-based greetings cards never gained traction, despite the existence of a fairly effective national postal system. 

While word of mouth remains a key touch point for marketers, sons and daughters, and nuclear families are becoming more independent and are moving away from their hometowns in pursuit of better standards of living. With the cost of transport on the increase, especially during peak seasons and being a country where gifting is very important, greetings cards pose a significant opportunity for those that can successfully inspire Vietnamese.

It is the intention of the authors that this series of references will fuel your leadership in your corporate and in the market place in Vietnam, and ultimately brining sustained and balanced increases in the prosperity for Vietnamese.

We strongly believe that you gain deep and practical insight from this book.  All the best with your business venture in Vietnam!

A long day in the life of an ethnic minority sugar cane plantation labourer

The gentleman in the middle of the picture above is Chuong, a 32-year-old chap belonging to the Vietnamese ethnic minority group, Cham H'Roi.

I met him and some of his family members while travelling on a bus from Quy Nhon city (Binh Dinh Province) to Tuy Hoa city (Phu Yen Province) in March '16.  Chuong was returning home from a day's work on one of Binh Dinh's sugar cane plantations.

He and his family were making their daily 3-hour 100km return bus journey to his home in the hills of Phu Yen Province, to a small district called Son Hoa.  He was joined by his wife and some other family members (one of which is to the right in the photo above).

Chuong is the youngest of 8 brothers and sisters and there's a massive 22-year gap between Chuong and the eldest sibling, 54 years old, who was also on the bus and smoking like a chimney.

With 6 hours travel time to get to and from work each day, Chuong and his family had a long 14-hour day.  Chuong told me that his people didn't have many options for work where they lived and hence, he and his family members need their job.


---Foody plug---

As we talked, I shared some "nem chua", a delicious soured-pork sausage, wrapped delicately in banana leaf.  It's the perfect travel snack and typical of Northern Vietnamese cuisine (though I had actually bought them in Da Nang).  At VND 6,000 (GBP 0.20 or USD 0.30) per piece, it's a bargain.

Chuong and his family were trying it for the first time and I was overjoyed to see the smiles of contentment on their faces after taking their first bite.

I had also picked up some small and crispy, spiced crabs, which serve as a great beer snack (sorry, I didn't take a pic).  Chuong tried it and said that it would be great with rice wine, which in his town, they drink in the traditional way, from big clay pots and through straws made from fine cane.  So I gave the box of them to him to take on their way.

Livelihood story continued...

Chuong told me that he and other members of his family worked for an Indian company called KCP that's into sugar cane manufacturing (biofuels) and on-shore oil extraction.

Chuong shared that he and his family worked an 8-hour day cutting sugar cane (7-11am and 1-5pm) and for that, he received VND 100,000 (approx. GBP 3 or USD 5) per day.

If he worked every day of the week on that wage - I wouldn't be surprised if that were true - then that equates to a monthly salary of around VND 3 million (GBP 100 or USD 150).

As such, Chuong earns roughly 10% under the average annual income (GDP per capita) of a Vietnamese citizen, which stands at around USD 2,000 per annum (World Bank).

One might be shocked at the insignificance of this salary however, Chuong combines this salary with that of his wife to provide for them and their 2 kids (11 and 5 years old), who both attend school.

It's worth bearing in mind that a good number of Vietnamese families, especially those from rural areas, still own entitlements to land and therefore, rent/mortgage payments aren't such of a burden.

Such ownership will most often comprise of a humble 40-50m squared family house and around 1ha of land, generally used for subsistence paddy farming.  Though, in Phu Yen Province, corn is commonly grown.

I didn't have enough time with Chuong to validate his families land and property holdings but I assume that something similar to the above is the case.  Chuong and his family appeared in good health and were definitely not under-fed!, as you can see from his rounded face!

Chuong's family are doing well and with his kids in school, they make an exemplary rural working-class Vietnamese family.  I wished them well as I hopped off the bus.

I hope to visit them one day in their hometown and will update you as and when I do on their progress.

Purpose of LegitLivelihoods

Purpose of LegitLivelihoods:

To share legitimate stories about people's livelihoods that I have gathered over the past 4 years living and working in the UK, Vietnam and Myanmar, and travelling around fast-changing Asia.

I intend this blog to be read by those interested in learning about the Global South but may not be fortunate enough to be able to visit or live here to share such learning.  As such, this blog is aimed at current and aspiring academics and practitioners in the field of International Development.

I welcome research questions from all spheres relating to the lives of people living in the Asia (especially in Vietnam, where I currently reside) and will try to accommodate them as possible.

All photography is mine.  Please reach out if you'd like higher resolution copies.

I hope that you find inspiration from these remarkable people's stories.

Young couples hanging out on the banks of Inle Lake, Yangon, Myanmar (Dec '13)