Bring On the Magic

Tim Wu first joined Chailease Holding Company as a junior HR specialist; he's now the financial services company's senior vice president. He is the first individual in Taiwan to achieve the Certified Professional in Talent Development credential. Another notable accomplishment for Wu, a recipient of ATD's 2025 Outstanding Professional Award, is establishing the Focus Makes MAGIC ecosystem and developing a series of learning programs within the MA-G-I-C project. The acronym derives from four initiatives: Management Associate Program, Greater ASEAN Internship and Employment Program, International Talent Program, and Chailease Talent Development Program.

What led you to brand the TD programs under the Focus Makes MAGIC umbrella?

Increased competition for talent in the financial industry, along with new expectations of the younger generation toward career paths, conflicted with the industry's formal onboarding and recruitment practices. Our talent development methods had to adapt. Focus Makes MAGIC fosters a recruitment and career development pipeline of capable high-potential talent.

What results has the company seen in terms of brand recognition and program participation?

By effectively branding Focus Makes MAGIC, Chailease has attracted ambitious and motivated candidates and is retaining top talent while building a reputation as a leading employer that actively invests in its employees.

MA-G-I-C's success has led it to become an organizational behavior case study at Taiwan's leading HR university, and a leading business magazine has published several complimentary reports on MA-G-I-C and Focus Makes MAGIC. Furthermore, many private and public institutions and schools have invited Chailease to share MA-G-I-C's success. These recognitions have positively promoted and advertised recruitment for Chailease.

Other than an acronym, what does the initiative represent in a holistic sense?

Most companies take a traditional, employer-centric approach, focusing on the qualities they expect of their employees. Chailease's talent initiatives evolve to support employees' growth, shifting the perspective to a talent-centric approach where they can achieve their short- and long-term goals.

MAGIC also represents a mindset that prioritizes talent development and support for success:

• Mobility. Employees have the ability to grow within the organization, domestically and abroad.

• Adaptability. Chailease talent development programs are always adapting to the ever-changing marketplace, supporting your success.

• Growth. With HR support, Chailease employees continue to grow and develop in the direction they wish, as they wish.

• Innovation. Career success requires HR innovation and is guided by our CEO's strategy of customized, efficient, original program development of TD programs.

• Community. You can be mobile, adaptable, grow, and succeed within a supportive and innovative community.

What advice do you have for other TD practitioners about designing learning programs that align with business strategy and meet learners' needs?

Deepen business understanding, with a strong grasp of how the company generates revenue, its market position, and the key drivers of success. Strengthen business acumen to create meaningful value for both internal and external stakeholders.

Also, balance learning journeys and assessments. Building a sustainable talent development ecosystem requires balancing process and outcomes with behavioral and performance indicators when implementing learning programs. Striking this balance ensures that learning initiatives drive measurable impact while fostering long-term growth.