Hong Kong and mainland enterprises "team up to go global", unlocking more possibilities for global talents.

The national 15th Five-Year Plan clearly puts forward the requirement of "coordinating the development of a strong country in education, science and technology, and talent", and makes systematic arrangements for cultivating, introducing and making full use of talents in all aspects. In line with the national 15th Five-Year Plan, the First Five-Year Plan of Hong Kong also proposes to build Hong Kong into an international high-end talent gathering hub, and formulates the strategy of "targetedly introducing talents needed for the development of the country and Hong Kong".

Against this backdrop, the "Hong Kong · Global Talent Opportunity Expo - London", hosted by the Hong Kong Talent Service Office (Hong Kong Talent Office) with the Office for Developing the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in London as cooperating units, was grandly held in London on October 17 and 18. The expo brought together more than 50 enterprises from Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai, Xi'an, and mainland cities in the Greater Bay Area, offering over 200 job vacancies covering banking and finance, innovative technology, engineering construction, and professional services. It not only expands more options for international elites, but also demonstrates the strong linkage between Hong Kong and mainland cities to jointly explore the global market.

For many professionals who are considering cross-border career development, the significance of this opportunity expo lies not only in its scale, but also in that it gathers job and industry information that is usually scattered across different channels into a space for face-to-face communication, so that choices are no longer a trade-off between one city and another, but a combination of multiple career paths across the entire region.

From Booth to Dialogue: How Does the Connection Happen?

The two-day event attracted more than 4,500 participants in total, among whom the career expo zone was the most lively place throughout the two days. Corporate recruitment representatives communicated face-to-face with participants, enthusiastically answered inquiries from job seekers, and shared job requirements, team culture, and visa procedures with attendees. The on-site communication also translated into practical results: the participating enterprises received more than 12,000 resumes in total, and some job seekers even got on-site interviews. For enterprises, this is an opportunity to precisely connect with global talents; for talents, this is a zero-distance, high-efficiency direct dialogue.

The Guangzhou Nansha Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Talent Cooperation Center is one of the exhibitors, and its director Luo Jingying was deeply impressed by the on-site response. She said: "We are very pleased to see that the enthusiasm at the scene exceeded expectations." The event received continuous inquiries from talents around the world as soon as it started, "Today we have received about a hundred resumes, but this is only the offline number; some talents also sent electronic resumes via email, and we will conduct in-depth matching and screening afterwards."

Some representatives of participating enterprises believe that the opportunity expo allows enterprises to communicate directly with global talents, identify talents with international vision and cross-cultural collaboration experience, and support business expansion.

In the field of innovation and technology, the participation of mainland enterprises is particularly concentrated. In the past few years, the global competitiveness of Chinese enterprises in artificial intelligence, intelligent manufacturing, biotechnology and other fields has continued to rise, and the demand for international talents has also grown accordingly. As an international financial center and international talent hub, Hong Kong provides a channel connecting global talents with the industrial needs of the mainland.

Luo Jingying also pointed out: "Whether in the fields of artificial intelligence, biomedicine, integrated circuits, or new energy, Nansha provides a very good environment and soil for industrial development. This event has given full play to Hong Kong's advantage as a 'super connector', helping our enterprises connect to many international talent resources."

The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area is developing into an important region for global innovation and industrial collaboration. As an international city in the region, Hong Kong plays an important role in connecting global talents with the industrial needs of the mainland, gradually extending from a transfer station for talents to enter the mainland to a destination for long-term settlement, life and career expansion.

In the future, Hong Kong will continue to extend its linkage advantages through large-scale projects such as the Northern Metropolis. Covering an area of about 300 square kilometers, the Hong Kong Park of the Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Cooperation Zone in the Northern Metropolis focuses on R&D, and the San Tin Technopole provides large-scale advanced manufacturing space, which will create a large number of high-value-added positions. These projects mean that more cross-city career paths will emerge within the Greater Bay Area in the next ten to twenty years.

Dr. Maisie CHENG, Commissioner for the Development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, also talked about the First Five-Year Plan of Hong Kong and the construction of the Greater Bay Area in her keynote speech at the opportunity expo, pointing out that Hong Kong will participate in the construction of the Greater Bay Area to build a world-class bay area and world-class urban agglomeration with global influence. As the main platform for Hong Kong's in-depth participation in the construction of the Greater Bay Area, the Northern Metropolis will promote the coordinated development of education, science and technology, industry, talent and urban construction. She encouraged local talents to develop in Hong Kong, take root in Hong Kong and seize the opportunities of the Greater Bay Area.

Forums and Workshops: Pass on Information and Expand Connections

This Global Talent Opportunity Expo not only "gathers opportunities" through the career expo, but also "transmits information" and "expands networks" with the help of forums and workshops.

The forum focused on development opportunities, talent profiles and market trends in Hong Kong and mainland China. The site brought together political and business leaders, international talents who have already come to Hong Kong for development, and senior human resources representatives, who broke down information from the perspectives of policy, industry and personal experience.

The workshops are more practice-oriented, with multiple themed sessions arranged over the two days, covering content from career paths to job hunting strategies and interview skills. The speakers include not only corporate executives, but also human resources representatives familiar with Hong Kong's recruitment market, as well as speakers working in international financial professional institutions and familiar with cross-border talent flow. At the same time, participants who complete designated event tasks can also get free resume consultation, ATS resume optimization and professional headshot shooting services.

Cross-border career decision-making is never a calculation of a single variable. While salary, tax rate and visa convenience are undoubtedly critical, factors such as job opportunities, industrial ecology, life and culture also affect choices. For the Hong Kong Talent Office, this opportunity expo is not only a platform to promote Hong Kong, but also a platform to present development opportunities to talents in a concrete way and assist them in making decisions.

Among them, Leo Wickert, a British college student, said that his father works in Hong Kong, which made him visit Hong Kong twice and fall in love with Hong Kong's lifestyle, food, natural environment, efficient pace and career development opportunities. At this expo, he focused on finance, especially audit positions, believing that face-to-face communication at the scene is more rewarding than checking information online, and the workshop also allowed him to better grasp industry trends and plan his development path as early as possible. He will actively seize any suitable opportunity that arises.

Hong Kong Talent Office: Build Bridges and Provide Continuous Support

As the event organizer, the Hong Kong Talent Office is responsible for forum topic design, booth organization and other work. Chen Haijing, Director of the Hong Kong Talent Office, said that the opportunity expo allows global talents to understand the career development opportunities in Hong Kong and mainland China, and communicate directly with enterprises for career matching. He emphasized that the support from the Hong Kong Talent Office will not end with the conclusion of the expo. It will continue to promote Hong Kong globally and targetedly introduce talents needed for the development of the country and Hong Kong.

The effectiveness of this event continues to emerge after the expo. According to the post-event questionnaire survey, nearly 90% of the respondents said that the event deepened their understanding of Hong Kong and mainland China, and more than 95% of the respondents said that the event made them more interested in exploring the development opportunities in Hong Kong and mainland China, which shows that the event has achieved positive results.

This London Opportunity Expo is one of more than 100 outbound visits carried out by the Hong Kong Talent Office. In the future, the Hong Kong Talent Office will continue to go global, holding promotion activities in the Asia-Pacific, Europe, North America and other regions, helping Hong Kong and mainland enterprises "go global in collaboration", assisting enterprises to precisely connect with global talents, and bringing Hong Kong's advantages and opportunities to talents.

To learn more about the upcoming events held by the Hong Kong Talent Office, you can follow the official website of the Hong Kong Talent Office for the latest updates.