Nearly 60 attendees gathered on October 29, in the Flex Space at RISE at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa for “The Human Connection: Communication Skills for Professional & Personal Success,” an event designed to foster engagement between students and industry professionals. The program featured interactive activities and a lively panel discussion focused on cultivating essential workforce skills.
Professor Hye-ryeon Lee, chair of the School of Communication and Information, highlighted the importance of proactively developing these capacities.
“Students entering college need to understand that it takes some planning to cultivate and refine these essential skills. And, to those who seek it out, the university offers many wonderful opportunities for improving these skills,” she said.
Get out and connect
The career advice resonated with students preparing to enter the workforce. Exploratory Business major Gervase Ngo was inspired by the discussion on critical thinking, passion and purpose. Senior Aerospace Engineering student Savannah Dubois felt the immediate impact of the panel’s emphasis on connection.
“Something that really hit me was creating that connection with the interviewer or with the person you’re going to be working with,” Dubois said. “I want to be able to show my passion and drive for the work I’m doing.”
For pre-nursing major Triston Chavez, the most memorable piece of advice centered on practical preparation.
“Practice, practice, practice,” he said. “Get out there, talk to more people. Don’t feel afraid to talk in front of crowds.”
Authenticity on paper
Panelists—including Jeff Hui, founder and CEO of Jumpstart AI, Lori Lum of Anthology Marketing Group FINN Partners, and Lisa Park, RN and current doctor of nursing practice student—stressed the crucial role of authenticity in professional communication.
“Empathetic listening is really important,” Park advised.
Lum added, “Do you have an authentic voice and an authentic sense of ‘This is who I am, this is the way I think.’ I want to see that. I want to see that smile come through the paper. I want to be able to see that passion come through the paper.”
Hui encouraged students to use AI to “pressure test” their communication rather than communicate for them.
The event was organized by the School of Communication and Information and co-sponsored by the College of Social Sciences, PACE and the UH System Office of Workforce Development.
Workforce development is one of the core pillars of the UH System’s Strategic Plan.
