Jennifer Ng Associate Director School of Professional and Continuing Education, The University of Hong Kong

"Marketing has increased considerably in popularity over the past few years," she says. "More people recognise it as a profession, and now students from all walks of life are upgrading their skills, from engineers to accountants, general managers and career switchers."

The choice is fairly straightforward for prospective marketers, with most institutions offering Bachelor and Master degree programmes or short courses - usually accredited by either the Hong Kong Institute of Marketing of the Chartered Institute of Marketing.

At Bachelor degree level, marketing covers a broad range of topics, including advertising, marketing research, marketing communications, international marketing, public relations, strategic marketing. Students are also given a basic grounding in law, finance and economics, as pertains to marketing.

"Generally speaking, the degree route is mainly taken by fresh school graduates as a direct academic path to a marketing career," says Ng. "For those who are already in employment, focused short courses are more popular."

That the subject has taken off in a city like Hong Kong is tribute to its effectiveness. The SAR has always been very pragmatic in terms of which subjects to study, and students usually choose a subject that will be useful in their career. Ng notes that the prospects for good marketing staff are very good, both locally and regionally.

In China, however, there are very few marketing courses available. "The trend is therefore towards mainland firms hiring Hong Kong professionals to bridge the skills gap," says Ng.

The route to becoming an effective marketer is not as complicated as some might believe, and Ng pinpoints three main attributes that should be developed to ensure success.

"Language ability, both in Chinese and English is very important; a marketer must have a good grasp of verbal and written expression - especially in a city like Hong Kong," she says. "Professionalism and an ethical outlook are also important.

Marketers must work by a code of conduct and ensure that they really understand the product they are marketing. Finally, it is essential to keep the wider picture in focus and maintain a good grasp of the local Hong Kong, mainland China and international business environments."

Especially in the current situation, many employees are keen to choose a career that has durability as well as potential. Ng assures prospective marketers that the field has both.

"During an economic downturn, marketing staff are never the first to be laid off: the first casualties are usually back office staff, such as administrators, accountants, and technicians," she says. Marketers help bring money into the firm, and so during a slump become especially important.

Text and Photo: Edward Chung

Taken from Career Times 2002/03/15