Mr Stanley Lau shared his experience in delivering EPA

In Asia Pacific region, Employee Assistance Program (EAP) is a young but fast growing profession. Almost all enterprises management did not aware and understood the contributions of EAP to the human resources management of a company on or before 1980s. However, the numbers of corporations that have established their E A P policies and program have been increasing ever since mid-1990s. Even though it is still a new concept in the management field in China, the EAP profession has rapidly developed into a fast growing industry in some of the major cities in China, such as Shanghai, Beijing, Tianjin and Guangtong.

The first annual conference for the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) in China was held at Shanghai, China on October 24, 2003. It was the first forum held in China for the EAP professionals and the management of enterprises, designed for them to share their visions and expectations on the establishment of high quality worksite based programs for the employees in China. There were nearly one hundred participants from local, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and oversea professions, including human resources, management, consultancy and training, and academic fields. Our Chief Executive, Mr. Ng Shui Lai, the Service Adviser, Mr. Kenny Kor, and the General Manager, Mr. Stanley Lau were invited to participate in this fascinating event and to share their experiences in the Conference.

The Organizer invited several renowned experts from the EAP profession and human resources to share their experiences in the establishment and delivering of EAP in their home countries. Those speakers included the chairperson of Employee Assistance Professionals Association, Dr. Donald G. Jorgensen, the chairlady of Hong Kong Institute of Human Resource Management, Ms. Choi Wai Chum, and the General Manager of HKCS Employee Development Service (EDS).

The topic that Mr. Stanley Lau presented was on "Creating a Workplace Brand". As a pioneer and a leading EAP provider in Hong Kong, Employee Development Service had witnessed corporations who were committed to be caring and responsible. They were successful in building up and retaining reliable and stable workforce in their companies. Caring is a valuable attitude in people. It cannot be traded, but it can be cultivated. EAP is one of the most utilized strategies that had proven to be effective in cultivating a healthy and loyal corporate culture among employees. EAP is able to assist a company to improve and strengthen its communication and relationship between the management and the employees. Subsequently it also helps to enhance the corporate image and its profitability.

The organizer of the Employee Assistance Program Conference has successfully motivated the EAP and the management professionals to share their common concerns regarding the status of nowadays' human resource management in this first forum in China. It is anticipated that similar forums will be held continuously in the future. We are certain that in the 21st century, EAP will become one of the management's essential strategies to develop corporate culture and to retain a strong and stable workforce in China.