[IBMBA] Global Insights: Navigating Tech and Business Landscapes with Paskal Semerdzhiev

Mr. Paskal Semerdzhiev is our distinguished alumnus of IBMBA at the College of Management, National Sun Yat-Sen University (NSYSU). With a background in software development and data analysis, coupled with his experience in the Netherlands, he brings a wealth of knowledge and insight to students interested in pursuing careers in the tech industry. His sharing demonstrates the global opportunities available to students, inspiring them to explore possibilities both locally and abroad.

He was always an enthusiastic engineer, eager to create and research technologies related to data analysis, past and present. But in 2016, he decided to take a break from his daily job as a data analysis engineer at ASML, one of the biggest suppliers to the Semiconductor Industry, to pursue an MBA degree in International Business. This step, as he quoted, was a speed-up step in his career and fulfilled all of his curiosity about Business Management in general and Business Models in particular. That crucial decision led the Management Department of National Sun Yat-Sen University to gain an amazing alumnus.

In Mr. Paskal's role, he works closely with a diverse range of individuals, including both technical and non-technical team members, particularly within the customer support department. His company has a significant presence in Taiwan, with a large team at TSMC, as well as partnerships with firms in the US. His primary focus is on enhancing data analysis related to upgrades. Within the upgrade department, customers often require guidance from the company due to the complexity of the machines they sell and the frequency with which require upgrades. As someone with a background in data analysis, he plays a key role in helping company managers and product owners understand their machine upgrade plans. This involves providing detailed explanations through reports and addressing customer inquiries to improve their understanding of company upgrade processes. A critical aspect of his daily responsibilities is organizing and structuring the vast amount of data generated during upgrade projects. Through conscientiously prepared reports, customers can gain insight into their machine upgrade plans, associated costs, and the actions taken by ASML. However, one of the greatest challenges he faces in this role is the global nature of his company. The information must be clear, accurate, and accessible to thousands of individuals, including customers and managers across different locations. Continuous updates to these reports are necessary to ensure everyone remains informed and aligned with the company’s objectives. He expressed his fondness for his role as it doesn't involve managing others, allowing him to focus on contributing to various projects either independently or with his team. This balance enables him to nurture his creativity while also collaborating with teammates based on the requirements of each task. Despite his extensive experience in data analysis spanning over a decade, he remains humble, as evidenced by his willingness to share insights with alumni.

Sharing more about his working environment, the Netherlands, he had some heads-up for anyone who wants to live and work here. First, there will be a culture shock for Taiwanese students or other Asian students. Here, people are strong in what they want to say and go directly to the topic, they will point out where you are wrong detail and ask you to solve the problem. In the “Saving face (Mianzi)” culture, we learn to communicate with others without making them feel disrespected or embarrassed. But in the Netherlands, people do not spend time circling the topic, they have precious time, and they believe going straight to the point will help get work done and reduce misunderstanding. Second, like most European countries, recruitment is not based on your excellent grades; they will go through your CV and your LinkedIn profiles to understand more about your social skills, and how you can apply the theory you learned in school to any projects. If you want to apply to ASML, depending on the position, you need to show your technical comprehension and adaptive ability to the new environment. Lastly, he advised everyone to focus on building their LinkedIn profile better if they are interested in working in Europe, since companies and candidates both find opportunities here. Besides your clean resume, they also look at your activities and experiences through this platform to evaluate the candidates.

During his Master's studies, he worked with many Taiwanese, and learned more about their culture. Now, he works with local companies frequently and he blends in just fine. All the courses in the IBMBA Program about the business models are still

memorized well in his head. He believes having general knowledge about management and organizational behavior supports his daily job function, depending on different tasks.

We appreciate Mr. Paskal Semerdzhiev's support in allowing the SA Team to interview and write about his valuable sharing. We hope the article can help every student learn more about the Netherlands working environment and what an Upgrade Date Analyst’s daily tasks are. From this article, we want students of the College of Management to know more about their alumni and understand abroad work market standards when they want to work in other different countries in their career path.

( Written by Tran Anh Loan, GHRM department, Vice Association student )