Speech to graduating class 2020

Delivered to the graduating class TAFE Queensland, 3rd March 2021

Congratulations to everyone graduating today.

I can’t imagine how difficult it has been for you to complete your studies over the last year. We’ve been very fortunate in Australia. We haven’t experienced the impact of the pandemic like other nations, but we have had to sacrifice our normal way of life.

Normally you’d be graduating together in person, not over video. Normally you’d be celebrating with your classmates, family and loved ones - probably over a few beers. Hopefully many of you will still get to celebrate in some way. 

Don’t let the fact that we are celebrating over zoom belittle the importance of today. You’ve accomplished a lot - so be proud of your achievement.  

Now, let me just say a few words about who I am - as you’re probably wondering why I’m talking to you today. Don’t worry, I only have 10 minutes, so I’ll be brief. 

Like many of you, I’ve had to work hard to create opportunities to be able to do the things I want to do. Right now, I run the data science team at a tech start-up called Faethm. Which is a dream job for me. But it was a long journey to get to this point. 

Before I graduated, I worked all sorts of jobs to make some money. I used to work as a bin man running behind a garbage truck, as a baker in a supermarket, I also delivered parcels as a post-boy and drove a forklift truck in a minus 20 degree warehouse for frozen food. I was even a bouncer at the student bar - which is funny as I was a scrawny geeky undergraduate. 

I mixed this work up with both day and night-school classes. 

I worked hard because I had a set goal I wanted to achieve. Back then, my goal was to study for a PhD. Without a goal, there is little reason to apply yourself. When you started your study, I’m sure you had a goal in mind. Now that you’ve completed your studies, it’s a great opportunity to reflect on your experiences and achievements, consider your original goals, then reset and rethink your next goal. 

My hard work paid off and I graduated in molecular biology from University College London. I reached that early goal and was fortunate to study for a PhD - my second graduation. And then I completed a masters of business here in Australia - my third graduation. So I’m probably one of the most experienced here today at graduating.

It is a great personal achievement for me to now speak to you, as you graduate and begin your new and exciting careers.

While I have graduated three times, my studying hasn’t finished - and If you thought you were done - I’m sorry to be the one to tell you, you haven’t. You’ll find that as your career progresses, you’ll be constantly learning new things as you continue to evolve with an ever-changing workplace. This may lead to more formal study for some of you, or on-the-job training. But it is never ending.

At the start-up I work at, we help organisations understand how work is changing so they can better equip their workforce for the future. My team of data scientists have built models to simulate the Australian workforce over the next 15 years to show how the impact of emerging technology would remove some tasks and help perform others, thereby changing the skills that are required to work in the future.

We identified 32 future capabilities that all employees will need to have, to be successful for the future. I’d like to share some of these with you now, as I believe they will be very important for you. I won’t have time to go through them all, but I will talk through my top 5. And, don’t worry about taking notes, I’ll find a way to share this transcript with you - either at the Faethm website or on linkedin.

At number 1, and I believe to be the most important, is Personal Learning and Mastery. As I’ve already said - work is changing rapidly, you will have to continually up-skill and re-skill. And as you have already proved, you know how to learn - don’t lose this capability.

At number 2, is Value Orientation. This means taking responsibility for the results of your own work. The companies and institutions you will work for will want individuals that can add value. You must ask yourself ‘What can I contribute that will significantly improve the performance and the results of this institution?’. 

So many new grads interview with me because of the skills or knowledge they think they might gain from me. A better frame would be for them to think about how they could contribute to the growth of my company. So consider this when interviewing or thinking about what you’ll be doing this week at work. Are you providing value?

Third. Cultural and social intelligence - being aware of others’ reactions and understanding why they react as they do. As organisations become more global and remote working more acceptable, cultural and social intelligence is becoming more important. We know having diversity in organisations and teams can increase creativity and productivity, but only if we have the capability to work together. 

Cultural and social intelligence is best developed through experience - so my advice is to seek out experiences. Go out and meet different people - while respecting social distancing of course. When you can, try working abroad, or work in different industries or companies and with different people. The more experiences you can collect, the more you will be open to a diversity of culture and thought.

The fourth capability is actually three capabilities bundled together into one big one - that is Critical Thinking, Problem Solving and Creativity. The world is experiencing immense change, be it from technology, climate change or political uncertainty - and employers will be seeking critical thinkers and creative problem solvers to help navigate this change. All these capabilities can be learnt. Just remember to - always question assumptions; use logical thinking when addressing problems; and be open to new ideas. The first two you can practice, the last one you will gain by seeking a variety of experiences. 

And just a few points on creativity - creativity shouldn’t be the domain of artists. We all need to be creative. My favourite quote on creativity and art is by Scott Adams who writes the Dilbert cartoon strips. He once said “Creativity is allowing oneself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep”. 

Making mistakes is the key to creativity - if you’re not trying, experimenting and failing, you are not being creative and will probably get stuck in the unremarkable routine of the everyday. If you want to learn more about the creative process I recommend reading up on design thinking and applying these creative techniques to your work and life.  

The fifth capability is being ethical. Ethics are the set of moral values that we live our lives by and that keep our behaviours in check. In the context of the workplace, we are impacted by major events and presented with choices on a daily basis that will demand us to respond ethically. 

Your work will demand that you push yourself to be successful - while maintaining integrity. I guarantee that you’ll be presented with a number of occasions where you will be challenged to make a decision to respond in an ethical way.  For example, how do you respond to the actions of your firm if it was negatively impacting the environment or leaving people unsafe in their workplace.

In the words of civil rights lawyer, Professor Derrick Bell  “We need not aim for sainthood, but by striving to choose ethically - no matter the 'success rate' - we will have a cumulative wealth of knowledge and experience to draw on, and pass on, that will pay dividends throughout our lives and beyond. Through our choices, day by day, we will be the success we aim for.” 

Follow these five capabilities and it will help you to be the best you can be. You all have the opportunity to play a part in Australia’s future and I wish you all the best. And remember to aim high, set ambitious goals, seek new experiences, and dare to take some risks.

Again, congratulations on this wonderful achievement. It was a privilege to be able to talk to you today.

Thank you.