Ren Chang Soo in Malaysia
In this new blog series, I’d like to ask four questions to people from different countries, backgrounds, professions, and genders who have all one thing in common: volunteering. I hope you’ll get inspired by their journeys and take the leap into volunteering.
Notice: The positions, views and information contained published here are those of the interviewee and do not necessarily represent my views or opinions.
Ren Chang helps organisations get better at design thinking in real-world projects, as a creative collaboration & innovation consultant, and a teaching lead at IDEO U. He is a design thinking coach at HPI D-School in Potsdam, and co-delivered design thinking bootcamps alongside the Stanford d.school professors. In addition, he is a contributor to a service design practitioner's handbook entitled This is Service Design Doing.
Ren Chang continues perfecting his craft in hosting and harvesting conversations that matter. He has facilitated workshops in countries such as Vietnam, Turkey, India, Hong Kong, Singapore, Germany, and Malaysia.
Ren Chang's past experience includes talent management, and organisation effectiveness in the financial services industry. Additionally, he was a management consultant with renowed consulting firms.
Ren Chang was educated at University Putra Malaysia and holds a BEng in Computer & Communication Systems. In addition, he holds a MSc in Management Psychology from the University of Nottingham.
How did you begin to volunteer?
The earliest that I could remember that I started volunteering was after I graduated from university. I was part of a youth leadership organization, AIESEC, during my university days. And ,after university, I volunteered as an alumnus.
Why did you continue volunteering?
1. With AIESEC, it was paying it forward, as we had alumni who volunteered their time when I was in the organization during my university days. Recently, AIESEC Alumni Malaysia approached me to help design the future of the organization, and I was more than happy to do so.
2. With Teach for Malaysia (a not-for-profit organisation on a mission to give all children in Malaysia the opportunity to attain an excellent education). it was because I believed in their cause. Also, it was a former PwC colleague who approached me, and mentioned that they needed help and was curious if I was keen. And I jumped on board immediately!
3. With ADPList.org (an organization to democratize mentorship), it is being connected, and helping the global design community during these pandemic times.
How has volunteering helped you in your career? Could you share two examples/stories, please?
In most cases, it has given me the opportunity to share and hone my expertise with others, and to see how it can be applied in a non-corporate context. Most organizations that I volunteered for, are non-profit and not for profit.
Reflecting back in my early university days, there was once that I volunteered to be a team facilitator for a 1-day children’s nature workshop, which I had lots of fun! Unknowingly to me, the organizers were also scouting for part time facilitators and I was invited to join them. It started off with 2-3 days workshops for children during the semester breaks, which then led to being a support facilitator for a corporate programme. I would have never imagined that being a volunteer, would lead me to getting paid for having fun and learning to hone my skills as a facilitator.
Would you encourage other people to take up volunteering, and if so, why?
Yes, I would strongly encourage others to volunteer! You’ve probably heard a long list of benefits to volunteer. Though, one thing I’d recommend is to start with thinking about your goals for volunteering, and then look for opportunities which aligns with those goals.
And, if you aren’t sure of your goals, no worries! As being curious of what it means to be a volunteer is just as good as a reason to do so.
*disclaimer to check: the organizations mentioned are part of the interview: I am not responsible for any harmful content if there is today or in the future.
