Many analysts and people have supported the Ministry of Home Affairs' (MHA) proposal to allow public sector agencies and organizations to sign fixed-term labor contracts with leading experts, scientists, prominent entrepreneurs, and other personnel who can hold leadership positions for specific tasks.

VietNamNet reader Vu Xuan Hieu believes that leaders of large enterprises and corporations are experienced in management, have a good grasp of the market, and are close to people, so they should be encouraged to contribute their expertise to the public sector. Even retirees, if still healthy, can make valuable contributions.

Reader Pham Van Xuyen, appreciating the approach, said this is a “shortcut” enabling managers to deliver results immediately, speeding up task processing.

“In President Ho Chi Minh’s time, many intellectuals and scientists held key government positions. Why not now?” one reader remarked.

Alongside the mechanism for recruiting talented scientists and entrepreneurs to lead in state agencies, there must also be a special salary mechanism for talented people, as working in the public sector cannot solely rely on the spirit of dedication.

“To attract talent, salaries must be negotiated, not fixed at current levels,” reader Minh Lan said.

Recruiting talent must be associated with giving power

Duong Nguyen, another reader, thinks that the suggested mechanism seems to be useful, but in reality, it is difficult to attract talent to the public sector, because the sector’s machinery, in their eyes, is complicated and controlled by relationships.

That is why reader Chu Hao believes that a maximum two-year contract for such personnel is reasonable. If both sides (state agencies and talents) feel satisfied, they can extend the labor contracts, or even transition to civil servant status; if not, the contracts end. 

“Not everyone can adapt to the public sector,” the reader explained.

Most people think that recruiting talented individuals is difficult, but retaining them is even moreso. In reality, some localities tried this, but talents left after a short working period.

Tho Nguyen, who had worked in both private and public sectors, noted that corporate leaders face problems when shifting to the public sector.

At stage agencies, workers not only need to show their expertise, and optimize profits,  but also have to adapt to many things, including the working environment culture, ideology, and political tasks.

“Decisions made by entrepreneurial or expert leaders will face numerous state bureaucratic procedures and challenges with a cumbersome, multi-layered system. Can experts and entrepreneurs endure this?” a reader questioned.

“Talented leaders need capable subordinates. New talented leaders and old teams will not work,” one reader said, questioning whether entrepreneurial or expert leaders have the authority to dismiss or recruit new staff.

Le My believes a system only operates effectively with harmony, while personnel and cadres play an important role.

“Talented leaders with poor employees only create conflicts and issues. A reasonable model is a leader who knows how to use talented people. Using talents but not giving them power (select, use, appoint, or dismiss) will only waste talent,” she commented.

Dr Bui Man, Senior Engineer, Director of GTC Soil Analysis Services Laboratory in Dubai (United Arab Emirates), also supports the MHA’s idea of recruiting talent from different sources for the public sector.

“Talented individuals from outside the system bring not only expertise, solutions, and decision-making support but also new perspectives for problem-solving and a work culture that values individual responsibility and efficiency. They help achieve set goals, spread positivity, and plant seeds for long-term reforms,” he said.

He agreed that leaders need to be given enough power to operate organizations. If tasks are assigned without sufficient authority, hiring talent will be in vain.

Thus, allowing two-year contracts with experts is essential. This flexible mechanism enables the state to secure suitable resources for new goals amid rapidly changing global contexts.

It also opens doors for Vietnamese and Vietnamese-origin experts abroad to contribute to the country’s development.

Signing contracts with highly skilled, experienced experts to support projects is commonplace in companies and agencies worldwide.

He suggested that Vietnam can learn from successful examples of neighboring countries. South Korean President Park Chung Hee established the Economic Planning Board in the 1960s, recruiting, empowering, and protecting technocrats. 

Japan established the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) recruiting post-World War II, hiring outstanding technocrats. Taiwan adopted a “politically independent technocrat recruitment” mechanism for policy-planning committees. 

Nguyen Thao