The first Vietnamese to receive a US talent visa

Entrepreneur Ngo Cong Truong is the founder and professional director of John&Partners Consulting and Education Joint Stock Company, a consulting and business training company specializing in the Operational Excellence model. The company has been operating for about 15 years and provides services to more than 1,000 corporate and individual clients worldwide.

In 2022, businessman Ngo Cong Truong became the first Vietnamese to receive a talent visa (EB-1A) from the US Government and is currently living and working in the land of the stars and stripes. During his more than 2 years living in the US, he has established several new businesses, taking advantage of the Artificial Intelligence (AI) wave to optimize his capabilities. In addition, he is also the founder of an English-language business and management magazine called BizInsider.

In parallel, Mr. Truong also works in the field of franchising and business sales in the US. At the same time, he is a senior member of many non-governmental and non-profit organizations (NGOs) such as the American Society for Quality (ASQ), the Global Vietnam Real Estate Association - VNARP (Vietnamese Association of Realtor Professionals). In Vietnam, he is the chairman and founder of VSE, a community of outstanding experts to help Vietnam develop.

Poor boy overcomes difficulties

Contrary to what many people think, he is “someone else’s child” or “born at the finish line,” Dr. Ngo Cong Truong shared that his family used to be very poor. He himself was the first person in his family to have the opportunity to go to university. At that time, he chose the Mechatronics major at Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology, one of the most difficult majors.

“Because I was the first person in my family to go to university, I had no one to ask. I only thought that I had to choose the best school and the best major to study. At that time, Mechatronics was the most popular major at Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology, so it took a lot of courage to study it. Now that I think back, I feel very lucky to have made the right choice,” said Ngo Cong Truong.

Businessman Ngo Cong Truong is the first Vietnamese to receive a talent visa from the US Government as a business consultant on the Operational Excellence model.

Mr. Truong said that when he was a student, he also received several internship offers at famous corporations in the world such as Kimberly Clark, Intel or Unilever... and he chose Kimberly Clark. Here, he had the opportunity to participate in the trainee management program and became one of the four youngest managers in the history of the corporation.

After working for a while and having the opportunity to take on important positions in many large corporations, Mr. Truong still struggled because he could not fully develop his abilities and apply all the skills and knowledge he had learned. Accordingly, he decided to start a business in the field of education and consulting - training because this is the industry that can help him contribute to core social change.

Sharing more about this choice, the male businessman confided: “At that time, I chose a field that could easily change the core of society and I chose to be a training company. But training using only the word 'training' was not enough, so later the company I established chose the name education, which includes training, coaching, and mentoring. But education was not enough because it only changed the root, and the tip related to the leadership subjects could not be affected. That is why I also brought consulting into the company.”

To prepare for the start-up process, Mr. Truong actively improved his knowledge and skills. He studied for a master's degree and then a doctorate in business administration. Furthermore, to start a business in the field of education and training, he also studied the training system and higher education.

This knowledge and effort have become a solid foundation, laying the foundation for the operations of John&Partners company for over 15 years.

Recognized by the United States

In 2022, Mr. Ngo Cong Truong moved to the US to live and work as a talent recognized by the US Government. Sharing the reason for choosing the US, the founder of John&Partners confided that the first purpose was for his children, but more than that, he wanted to become a bridge and encourage many Vietnamese people to choose the same path as him and receive talent certification in the US.

“I believe that Vietnamese people, in terms of intelligence, are not inferior to any other country. At that time, I thought that if I applied for EB-1A and succeeded, I would create confidence in many people after that they could do it too. Many Vietnamese people are very talented,” Mr. Truong confided.

He shared that for the EB-1A visa, the US Government has many difficult requirements, including: having a PhD or higher; holding an important position in your organization; having influence in the community and society, having research achievements, having publications such as books, newspapers, appearing on TV, being a public figure; having to prove that you are the highest earner in that field, having international achievements... In addition, applicants for a talent visa also need up to 12 letters of recommendation from other globally influential experts.

With Industry 4.0, AI and the Internet as popular as they are today, this is an opportunity for Vietnam to reach out globally.

Fortunately, before that, in 2015 - 2016, Mr. Truong had the opportunity to go to the US to work as an expert. At that time, he had made many contributions, so asking for a letter of recommendation was not a difficult problem. In 2018, he was also recognized by the American Society for Quality (ASQ) as a talent in the top 40 outstanding global experts, and he also held the position of Director of ASQ in Vietnam. These factors combined made it easier for him to apply for a visa and he became the first Vietnamese person to be granted a talent certificate by the US Government in 2022.

Dr. Ngo Cong Truong received the award in his role as Director of the American Society for Quality in Vietnam, member of the board of directors of the American Automobile Association and member of the board of directors of ASQ (American Society for Quality) in Houston, Texas.

Changing the image of Vietnamese knowledge

As the first Vietnamese person to receive the EB-1A talent certification, Mr. Ngo Cong Truong has helped change the image and thinking about Vietnamese knowledge. Sharing more about the EB-1A visa application process, the businessman said that the two Asian countries with the most people participating in this talent visa program are India and China. This is especially understandable when the CEOs of large corporations in the world are mostly of Indian origin. To prepare for this powerful "green card", Mr. Truong said that many people have even been oriented by their parents since childhood to prepare for the strict conditions of EB-1A.

Meanwhile, the case of Mr. Truong, the first Vietnamese to receive EB-1A, is also highly appreciated, because most Vietnamese people apply for visas to live in the US in two ways: exporting labor or participating in investment in the host country. Having Vietnamese people recognized as talented in the US will help change the way foreigners perceive Vietnamese people and Vietnamese intellectuals. He added that after him, there were also a few more Vietnamese people applying for talent visa certification, which is an extremely positive change.

With a green card for talent, recognized by the US government, Mr. Truong said that people will also have much more favorable conditions when living, working and doing business in the US. The visa type granted will be printed on the green card, so people will understand the position and role of the person considered "talented".

"The green card has the type of visa you are staying in the US printed on it, so when people look at it, they will know what type of visa you are staying in the US under, and they will also treat you according to that type. Therefore, when looking at the file and seeing that you and your family are staying in the US under the EB-1A talent category, everything will be much easier. When you have this green card, it will be easier for you to work, just show this green card and people will understand who you are and will be given more favorable conditions," he recounted.

Success in a foreign land

After moving to the US, Mr. Ngo Cong Truong continued working at John&Partners, and at the same time, he also took advantage of opportunities to open several new businesses in the world's leading economy.

Sharing about his success in America, the businessman said that his key lies in his efforts. Mr. Truong shared that the important thing to have when starting a business is determination, even when he was recognized as a "talent", he was still dedicated to his work.

He said: "I am a person who works without weekends and without days off, always trying my best without stopping."

Mr. Ngo Cong Truong and John&Partners company have achieved many successes after 15 years of operation.

In addition, Mr. Truong shared that he also adapted to seize opportunities when living in the US. According to the businessman, in countries like Europe and the US, people benefit from existing development and advanced systems. Therefore, they are often afraid to step out of their comfort zone and try new things. This mindset is very different from Vietnam. Therefore, when he came to the US, he saw many opportunities and potential for starting a business here and quickly seized the opportunity.

Indeed, with talent and determination, Mr. Truong's business has "turned the tide" even during the time when the COVID-19 pandemic has caused the whole world to "struggle".

Mr. Truong shared that COVID-19 was a time when many businesses encountered problems and closed. But for him, on the contrary, this was the time when John&Partner grew the most and he earned millions of dollars during this time. When the US and many other countries imposed social distancing measures, companies had to move to work from home, the need for people to take additional skill courses also increased. His online learning system was effective at this time.

" When COVID-19 broke out, I just opened a course and attracted a lot of participants while other competitors were just starting to research and train employees to use the online learning system," he recalled.

For Mr. Truong, COVID-19 is both a challenge and an opportunity for startups to rise. Because COVID-19 has slowed down the whole society, including multinational companies with hundreds of years of experience. The larger the company, the more difficult it is to change and adapt because their machinery has been operating for a long time. Accordingly, he believes that seizing the "glimmer" opportunity from this challenge is the key to helping startups rise and catch up with large companies.

At the same time, Mr. Truong also noted that companies should be prepared. Having integrated automation into the company's system for a long time, when COVID-19 occurred, John&Partners was able to quickly adapt and seize the opportunity to rise. Thanks to that, his company is currently maintaining a steady growth momentum year after year.

Sharing more about the success of startups, the Vietnamese businessman said that another important thing to note is the mindset of “Think big, Do small” - that is, “think big but start from small things”. In addition, startups also need to work hard and smart. With the wave of artificial intelligence (AI) emerging, this is the right time for young people, those who cherish the dream of starting a business, to grasp and take advantage of this tool.

“With Industry 4.0, AI and the Internet as popular as they are today, this is an opportunity for Vietnam to reach out globally,” Mr. Truong affirmed.

Currently, Dr. Ngo Cong Truong and his team of colleagues in Silicon Valley are initiating many successful AI businesses, such as XpertPro.AI, AI SMARTUP, XpertBrains, RocketAgent, 10Metrics Realty, IVBB...

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Source: https://baolaocai.vn/nguoi-viet-dau-tien-nhan-visa-nhan-tai-cua-my-post383358.html