When interviewing Vietnamese candidates at your company, you may worry whether the same approach used with Japanese candidates is appropriate. Japanese and Vietnamese people have many cultural differences, and Vietnamese candidates do not always fully understand Japanese companies. What matters most for Japanese companies is retaining talent. Thorough interviews are essential so that new hires do not resign quickly. Here we explain three points you should ask Vietnamese candidates in interviews.

Interviewing Vietnamese Candidates ①: Motivation for Applying

Motivation for applying is an important question for Japanese candidates, of course, but it becomes even more important with Vietnamese candidates. That is because Vietnamese people tend to be motivated somewhat differently from Japanese people.

For most Vietnamese people, the main motivator is money

Vietnamese people place great importance on how much money they can earn from a company when they work. For that reason, words Japanese people often emphasize as motivators—such as “fulfillment”—rarely come up for Vietnamese candidates. When you ask about their reasons for applying, you may get vague answers even in an interview, such as “I want money” or “I applied on a whim.” In more than a few cases, it is completely unclear why they applied to your company.

Vague application motives mean a high risk of resignation

If the only purpose of taking the job is money, candidates may suddenly resign over minor reasons—too much to learn, irritation at being corrected, or simply losing interest. It is also common to hear that someone quietly applied to a better offer and switched as soon as they were hired. Companies often hire with growth potential in mind even when skills are somewhat lacking. If those hires leave quickly, retention suffers. That is why you need to determine through the interview whether there is any motivation for applying beyond money.

Interviewing Vietnamese Candidates ②: What They Can Do

No matter how fluent their Japanese is, candidates will not become productive team members without the ability to do the work. Use the interview to understand what they can actually do.

Be careful when they say they can “do” or “understand” everything

Vietnamese people are very good at promoting themselves. In interviews they actively sell their strengths, but it is also fair to say they can be smooth talkers. There are cases where a local company posted an accounting role, hired a Vietnamese candidate who claimed to have studied accounting at university and to have extensive accounting experience—and then found the person could not do accounting at all. Partly out of pride, Vietnamese candidates will often answer “yes” to every “Can you do this?” question. Taking those words at face value is not recommended.

Ask repeatedly to gauge real ability

To understand what candidates can do, hold multiple interview opportunities. Ask the same questions from different angles and have them explain specifically what they can do—clarifying what they can and cannot do is essential. After hiring, they also tend to reply “I understand” even when they do not. You may entrust work assuming they understand, only to discover problems later. Even with strong Japanese, people who claim they can do everything are highly likely to lead to such trouble. We recommend hiring Vietnamese candidates who can objectively assess what they can and cannot do.

Interviewing Vietnamese Candidates ③: Salary and Other Terms

In Vietnam, salary negotiation is normal. That makes discussion of pay essential during the interview.

For Vietnamese candidates, pay-raise negotiation is always expected

In Japan, except for some highly specialized roles, salary negotiation in interviews is rare. Vietnamese candidates, however, almost always negotiate for higher pay. Because money is their work motivation, they may demand terms far above what their abilities justify. If you easily change conditions simply because talent is scarce, they may assume requests always go through, and negotiations will continue after hiring. Set your company’s compensation standards in advance and clearly explain the rationale during the interview.

Prepare a solid employment contract

Japan tends toward trust-based agreements, and the smaller the company, the more ambiguous contract language often becomes. As noted above, Vietnamese people actively negotiate salary and other terms. Putting potential negotiation points into the contract in advance helps prevent endless demands. When issues arise with work attitude or job performance, clear standards in the contract also make it easier to review the employment relationship.

Conclusion

Vietnamese people adapt well to new environments and tend to be optimistic and unafraid, so they have strong potential to become valuable members of your company. At the same time, their views on work and their knowledge of how Japanese companies operate are not always sufficient. Do not assume that strong Japanese ability alone will be enough; use the interview to determine whether they are a good fit for the role.