Upon the conclusion of my Plus 3 trip to South Korea, I have reflected on my experiences in Seoul. This trip brought me lifelong experiences through our cultural visits, company visits, and the bonds that I created with my classmates that I will remember forever and helped me gain a more complete perspective on the world. I also gained insight into further understanding multiple different professional development topics, the first topic being ethical dilemmas within engineering and industry in general. Billions of dollars worldwide have been invested in the advancement of AI to make for a more efficient company. Efficiency comes in the form of a safer, faster, more precise, and cheaper workplace. Through company visits done at Fredit, Hyundai, and Seoul waterworks, I was able to observe the implementation of AI and smart systems in real life. At HY, which is a company that makes probiotic yogurt drinks, this came in the form of a fully automated production line, with machines being able to produce the plastic bottles for their drinks, filling them, sealing them, boxing them, and even being able to spot and discard flawed bottles in the matter of milliseconds. At Hyundai, we were told that parts of the car manufacturing process were up to 89% automated. At Seoul waterworks, they told us how a team of over 10 people had been reduced to 3 because they can monitor everything with smart systems. Although there have been countless dollars and years invested into the development of these smart systems, the ethical dilemma arises between putting people out of work and “efficiency.” A company’s goal is always to maximize profit; smart systems do that. They can remove human error, do tasks in a quarter of the time it takes for a human to do it, and there is no need to pay that machine a salary, give it medical insurance, or pay for time off. But I would argue that “efficiency” extends far beyond profit and margins. The ethical dilemma is that the rise of smart systems leads to mass unemployment, and then a domino effect of unemployment leading to less spending in the economy, a greater reliance on the government, which can lead to higher taxes, and an increase in struggling people and families. That is not an efficient economy, society, or world. South Korea is undoubtedly a global leader in smart systems, the development of new technology, and creating a “more efficient” world, but there is a lot of ethical gray area to consider when it comes to this.
Another topic is educational breadth. During my trip to Korea, I was exposed to a different country’s culture, history, and how their companies operate professionally. Being able to visit cultural sites such as the Gyeongbokgung Palace, Blue House, Seoul City Hall, the DMZ, and other places allowed me to learn more about Korean history and culture and how that affects their people in a professional and daily context. Through the combination of learning from our tour guide Jinny, who is native to South Korea, and making my observations, I was able to learn about Korean people’s behaviors, beliefs, and other actions, and how they affect the person they are. One of the biggest takeaways I had about Korean people was the hardworking nature of their people and the idea that their personal identity is strongly influenced by all of Korean society. I can apply these principles to my professional and personal life, for hard work will lead to me achieving my goals, and being united as a company, country, or any other important entity will lead to greater success. Being able to experience what life is like in a completely different culture, like South Korea’s, and learning about their experiences in their lives has affected me and taught me lessons that I have been able to reflect upon and hope to apply to my life.
The next professional development topic is the idea of lifelong learning and continuing education as professional development. Through our company visits and our visit to Yonsei University, I have learned that the top professionals in their industry never stop learning. Whether that learning is simply training to improve day-to-day operations or doing research and development into advanced topics, I have learned that one should always be ready and willing to learn. When speaking with the graduate students, professors, and researchers at the Yonsei University Neuroscience Lab, it was clear to me the fulfillment they found in doing this research. A life of learning can bring fulfillment through better output in the workplace, a feeling of personal accomplishment, or the idea of contributing to a larger goal. Although I may not want to do Neuroscience research, seeing these professionals sound so enthusiastic to share their research, which is simply just learning at a higher level, was inspiring to me. Even though I see myself as a curious person who will continue to seek out new information, I also learned that learning is an unavoidable part of having a career in engineering or any other industry. For example, at Seoul waterworks, learning more about the systems they are using and the quality of the water is imperative, for the livelihood of hundreds of thousands of people depends on their water. At TK Elevators, they need to continue to learn more about the market, update their technology, and keep improving and learning more to separate themselves from their competitors, such as Hyundai. Lifelong learning is something I will continue to seek in my life to be the best person and engineer I can be.
Another topic of professional development that this trip has allowed me to gain insight into is the social environment of professional life. Through observation at our company visits, specifically TK Elevators and Hyundai, I have learned the importance of teamwork and the unavoidable nature of it. At TK Elevators, when we walked through the office area, I saw ongoing discussions between workers and meetings being held, while at Hyundai, I saw teams of people on the assembly line working together to put together each car before it moved onto the next station. The teamwork at TK Elevators exemplifies the idea that collaboration between employees is imperative to facilitate innovation, and at Hyundai, they showed that to execute on that new product, it takes a team of employees working in harmony to create the product that was once just a vision in the office. Although these settings are different, it showcased the idea that teamwork is unavoidable, and one must be capable of working in a team, no matter what the task may be. Beyond teamwork, another piece of insight I gained on the social environment of professional life is the emphasis that some of these companies have on the well-being of their employees. At Samsung’s campus, we were told that they serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner for free for their employees, have a hospital, daycare, and other amenities and benefits for their employees. At TK Elevators, we got to tour and interact with their “lounge” for their employees, which included golf simulators, ping-pong tables, a pool table, and a gym. A company is nothing without its employees, and for its employees to be driven to do their best work, it is in the company’s best interest to take care of them. These amenities also provide opportunities for coworkers to relax and socialize with one another, tying it all back to the importance of camaraderie. My key takeaway is that the most important social aspect of a company is teamwork among employees.
The last topic of professional development that I gained valuable insight on during this trip is the idea of functioning in multi-disciplinary teams. On our trip, not only did I learn about this idea through our company visits, but also through personal experience. On our Plus3 trip, I was placed in a group with five of my peers. Three of us were engineers, and the other three were business majors. Throughout our whole trip, we had to work together on different tasks, but our main project was our final presentation, where we had to create a smart system and a business model with it. During our meetings, we combined to use the strengths of each other’s different skillsets to create the business-smart system and business model possible. Although everyone contributed ideas to each topic, we learned that utilizing each person’s strengths is extremely important. Regarding this topic of functioning in multi-disciplinary teams, each and every company visit displayed the importance and strength of this. Companies such as Hyundai and Samsung are global powerhouses when it comes to sales and are massively successful companies. The products that they produce are the result of engineers spending countless hours and brainpower to think up these products. But, without the factory workers, the idea is nothing but an idea. Once the product is created, it is the responsibility of the marketing department to get the product into the hands of the customers. Even in a company like HY that makes yogurt drinks, although one’s first thought is how technological advanced they are, the entire assembly process is a smart system that was created by engineers, and then the drinks are then marketed by the business-people, and even the ladies who drive the carts with the drinks on them.
My Plus3 Korea trip was an experience that I will cherish for my entire lifetime. I gained valuable insight into an array of different professional development topics, along with cultural experiences that will impact me for the rest of my life.
