On March 24, 2019, the International Business Department and the Independent International
Business Forum (IIBF) hosted a seminar titled Youth Employment Scenario across the Regions.
The seminar was sponsored by the Bangladesh Enterprise Institute (BEI) and the International
Republican Institute (IRI). The main attraction of the seminar was a lecture delivered by Dr.
Micheal Shank, a professor of New York University who highlighted the role of practical skills
development as key to success for employability in the job sector. In this regard he laid emphasis
on some of the top essential skills that are sought by potential employers today. He highlighted
the role of communications, teamwork, problem solving, active listening, leadership, emotional
intelligence and conflict management, as some of the crucial skills that are needed to be
successful in today’s fast-changing competitive job market.
The topic was further enhanced by an address by the Vice Chancellor Professor Mohammed
Omar Rahman who highlighted the role of the Fourth Industrial Revolution and the need for
university students to develop new skills set and also linking the curricula for developing such
vital skills set. In that regard he stressed the need for students to acquire those skills and also
adapt themselves with the changing scenario. He also mentioned that the Independent University,
Bangladesh has made it a motto to develop lifelong learners and ingrain in its students
mandatory computing skills.
Another distinguished guest in the seminar Ambassador Farooq Sobhan highlighted the
importance of communications as a key measure for success in today’s challenging environment.
In that regard he urged the students to be aware of some of the positive and negative influences of
social media, how to better steer through this terrain and to use social media constructively.
These were then followed by a lively panel discussion participated by Dr. Micheal Shank,
Professor Mohammed Omar Rahman and Professor Raisul Awal Mahmood and also taking
questions from students. There were some very interesting questions from the student audience.
For example, one student asked about the Trash Tag Campaign and the role of influencers to run
business models in social media while another trying to know how to develop leadership skills.
The Dean of the Business School, Professor Md. Aminul Karim, Dr. Imtiaz A. Hossain, Dr.
Sarwar Uddin Ahmed, Dr. Nadim Jahangir, Professor Aminur Rahman, faculty members from
the International Business Department, representatives from the BEI and IRI and the IUB
students attended the seminar.
