In the Eyes of a High-Schooler: Asia P3 Hub
Sabine Galvez
This May, I had the opportunity to come to Asia P3 Hub and observe the workplace environment for three days. This was part of a program at my high school called World of Work — wherein Grade 10 students are required to go to a workplace of their choice on the designated three days and do what tasks they can. The aim of this programme is to prepare students for future careers so that we get an idea of what we want to do in the future and what to expect from working.
Over the course of those three days, I mostly sat in during meetings and observed. I was also able to do some small tasks such as writing notes on the board and participating in group discussions. One of the main aspects of working at Asia P3 Hub I have observed was that they are very people-oriented; they placed a great deal of importance on working/interacting with, and recognising the opinions and viewpoints of others. I felt that the environment there was very friendly and open; by the end of the first day, I was already feeling quite comfortable with the setting and the people there despite the fact that I was nervous going in. Furthermore, I discovered that the Asia P3 Hub team was highly passionate about various social issues and thinking of innovative ways to solve them. This is something I feel is necessary for creating an environment where these social issues are in the spotlight.
In addition, I detected the value of certain life skills during World of Work. For example, I found that collaboration and time management were integral to working efficiently and effectively. I also gained knowledge of the certain conventions of the workplace: how meetings are conducted and what exactly happens during them. Previously, I had been unaware of even the general schedule in an office space, much less an unconventional one like Asia P3 Hub. I have also learned more about multi-sector partnerships, and how they can ultimately impact and improve certain global issues like water, sanitation and hygiene.
In my opinion, working at Asia P3 Hub was most definitely a valuable experience, one that I feel will benefit me greatly in the future. Although I am quite inexperienced in the realm of office work, I think that this has really informed my expectations of the future and is good preparation for what is to come. If given the opportunity, I would certainly enjoy working at Asia P3 Hub again.
