Rabu, 30 September 2009

RM2bil Projects From Iskandar.

As economy recovers from crisis, good news comes a calling and one positive announcement is RM2 billion project over the next 12 months from Iskandar Investment Bhd (IIB) that would mean more employement.

IIB is the devleloper of Iskandar Malaysia. According to its president and chief executive Arlida Ariff the tenders would comprise projects under the Ninth Malaysia Plan (9MP), of which RM1bil had been allocated, and those investment committed by IIB.

The tenders to be awarded under the 9MP allocations are mainly infrastructure projects.

Meanwhile, 80% of the investment committed by IIB will be for infrastructure and the balance for mixed development,” Arlida was reported as saying.

She said the tenders would involve infrastucture in Medini and EduCity as well as accommodation units for students at Newcastle University Medicine Malaysia.The duration of contracts ranged from six to 24 months, depending on the job scope.

Senin, 28 September 2009

Not Another Rejection!

Job hunting is fast becoming a survival battle of the fittest-both physically and mentally. With the job market now akin to a battlefield, job seekers are a suffering lot, with some having their pride and dignity wounded and some limping with pain and anguish in their minds.

We should all face up to the facts of the market. Like a marathon race, job hunting not only consumes time but energy as well. And only those who have the most determination and endurance will cross that ultimate finishing line.

Not many candidates have the stamina to finish the race, with some dropping out along the way. However, those who have fallen out cannot afford to stay wrapped up in a safety blanket at home to escape the harsh reality of the job market. You may only be hurting yourself deeper when the interviewer questions the gap or the long holiday you took while you were nursing your wounds.

So, how can you toughen yourself to rise out of the rejection blues and get back into the race? Here are some valuable points to keep in your mental first aid kit:

Rejection is perfectly normal
Rejection is a part of daily life and everyone gets their fair share of rejection in every aspect of their lives every day. Therefore, job seekers need to understand that facing rejection while job hunting is normal. Rarely does a job seeker get hired through their first application. Think of job hunting as a learning process that aids you in your personal growth, because the more rejections you face, the more experience you gain, and the better you get at job hunting.

Being turned down for a job does not mean that you are a loser or that you are incompetent
While you may have gotten rejected at the end of the day, it does not mean that your qualifications are lacking because you weren't offered employment with the hiring company. Even highly experienced senior executives have been rejected for jobs. Often, hiring managers look at many other factors that may be out of your control while deciding on the right candidate.

Everyone goes through the same process as you did--even rejection
Understand that you are not that only one getting rejections for job applications. While you are out there flipping through the newspapers looking for a job, there are also others who may be doing the very same things at the same moment; the same people eyeing the job vacancy that you're interested in; the same people who get called up for the interview; but only one will eventually sign the letter of employment. And even the one who does may have gotten the job after ten rejections from other companies. Think about it.

Never give up
You may be just an application away from landing that job you wanted. So don't quit after just a few attempts, or even after a string of applications and interviews. Nothing good comes easy in life; you have to fight for what you really want.

Once you are standing up again after the rejection, analyze why you were rejected
For everything that happens, there must be a reason to it. Once you have gotten over the shock of rejection, sit down and start putting the entire jigsaw together. Did you not perform well enough during the interview? What could you have done to make it better? Or was it just the management's problem for not offering you the job? You may be qualified enough, but there may have been finer details of requirements that you did not know of. Try accepting the negative criticisms flung at you during interviews as constructive feedback.

Do not cut off all ties
Even if the hiring company did not pick you for the job, it doesn't mean that you should sever all connections to the company, or its personnel in charge of human resources. Instead, maintain a good relationship with them because it is not uncommon to be called up for another round of interview even if you were been rejected in the first round. You could even send them a thank-you note for taking the time to interview you. By doing that, you are selling a good impression of yourself; and perhaps the company may just contact you again should there be any job vacancy in the future.

When you've been called up for an interview, you've already been selected from a whole lot of others. So, learn to handle rejection and you will soon reach the finishing line of the race.

Rabu, 23 September 2009

Socso: More Erring Bosses.

It's fine galore at Social Security Organisation (SOCSO) when it noted that 4,173 employers have been slapped with RM500 compound notices since it launched its latest operation to identify those who fail to register with it.

The News Straits Times reported that they were among the 21,370 employers checked so far under the operation codenamed "Ops Kesan Perkeso 2009" which was launched last month.

Socso chief executive officer K. Selvarajah was quoted in the report as saying that the errant employers were given two weeks to settle the compound fine, failing which they would be charged in court.

If found guilty, they can be sentenced to two years' jail or a fine of RM10,000 or both under the Employees' Social Security Act 1969.


"The operation is also aimed at protecting employees under the Employment Injury Insurance Scheme (EIIS) and the Invalidity Pension Scheme (IPS)," he added.

The report also noted that many of the errant employers were identified through their employees who came to Socso offices to make claims under either the EIIS or IPS.

"Some employers deduct the money from the workers' pay for Socso but do not remit it to Socso," he said, adding many times employees lose out on their benefits due to their employers' failure to remit the contributions.

Bank Negara: More signs of recovery

Our economy is set for full recovery and more resources are saying so. According to the media report, Malaysia’s central bank (Bank Negara) has become more confident the South-East Asian nation is recovering from the global recession

It was quoting Credit Suisse Group said citing a meeting with deputy governor Datuk Ooi Sang Kuang.

The central bank’s “view is that the signs of an economic recovery seem evident,” Danny Goh, an analyst at Credit Suisse was quoted in the report.

He added that it is only unsure on whether the economic rebound will be modest or sharp,

Malaysia’s economic contraction eased to 3.9% last quarter from a 6.2% decline in the first three months, and policy makers expect gross domestic product (GDP) to resume growth at the end of the year.

The report also noted that the country’s export and manufacturing slump has abated as economies from Singapore to China emerge from the world’s deepest recession since the Great Depression.

Kamis, 17 September 2009

Clean Resume

It is important to keep your job application free from typo or grammatical errors. You may ask what is the big deal anyway with keeping your resumé error-free?

By not bothering to keep your resumé "clean", you are telling the person who reads your resumé that you could not be bothered to make extra efforts to check your spelling and grammar, hence you would be seen as "not being interested enough" in your job application.

A faultless job application will give no reason for the prospective employer to mull over petty mistakes that could have been easily avoided by clicking on the spell-check button.

By dotting all your I's and crossing all your T's, the recruiter will be focused only on your cover letter and resumé, allowing your application to be given due consideration.

Always make sure that you get your addresses right.

Get the proper address, i.e. the title of the recipient in your cover letter. Find out who will be the recipient of your job application. If you only know that your application should be sent to the Senior Manager or the Human Resource Manager, go the extra mile and find out who that person is. Call the company up or surf their website for more information. Personal touches never fail to touch, literally.

However, never ever spell the title wrongly or worse, to misspell the name.

A Ms Elisa Jon will not be amused if you spell her name: Mr Eliza John. If you want to do things right, do it right the first time. Never think that it does not matter. All the small things will add up to a lot and a job application tattered with minor errors all over will be regarded as messy and disorganised, jeopardising your chances of getting the interview.

Get the mailing address right too. The last thing you want is for the application to be sent back to you. Even if your application gets to the recruiter, getting the address wrong or misspelling some words in the address underlines the fact that you are careless and could not even copy a simple address onto the envelop and your cover letter.

Also avoid simple grammatical mistakes. By writing `I are' instead of `I am' you are only exposing your poor command of English. Get your subject and verb agreement correct too. Relearn the basic grammar that you learnt way back in primary school and avoid the mistakes when writing your cover letter or resumé.

Remember, some extra efforts to ensure that your resumé is "clean" will not guarantee you the job but will help to increase your chances of being shortlisted.

Jumat, 11 September 2009

7 Tips and Resources for Using Social Media - to Make Your Resume Stand Out

Normally 1 job vacancy can attract a lot job seekers apply, the HR department or related Head of department may not have time 1 by 1 go through the entire resume. And using the traditional way to apply job and submit resume and cover letter, the problem is you need to wait for the reply. Wait and wait and wait.

So how to make your resume stand out from other is very important.

Best use the social media, it will added value for your resume. If you build your social media resume properly, you’ll have more job opportunities increases. People cross by your social media site, if they find you are suitable candidate, they will contact you directly. Not necessary must be job vacancy, it can be some freelance works too (can earn some extra income).

By the way, don’t make me wrong, I’m not meant the traditional way is not good. It will be good if combine with the social media; it will make your resume more stand out from crowd.

The Social Media Resume: Making Your Mark in a Web 2.0 World

social media resume
Very clear explain what social media resume is.

Ten Ways to Use LinkedIn to Find a Job

social media resume
For those who are not familiar with LinkedIn, this is good for you.

HOW TO: Build the Ultimate Social Media Resume

social media resume
This useful article is written by Dan Schawbel. Dan Schawbel is the author of Me 2.0: Build a Powerful Brand to Achieve Career Success.

10 Social Media Job Search Tips

social media job search tips
Tips for finding a job using Twitter, Blogs, Facebook, YouTube and Search Engine Marketing.

Using Your Blog as a Job Search Tool

blog as a job search tool
Tips for how to use blog to find job.

Social Media + Job Search = Good For You

social media resume
Useful guideline for how to build social media resume.

Using Social Media Tools to Enhance Your Job Search Strategy

Kamis, 10 September 2009

Malaysia not business friendly?

Apparently the World Bank and the International Finance Corp think so. The belief is based on a report titled Doing Business 2010: Reforming Through Difficult Times, where Malaysia dropped two places to 23rd from 21st this year.

This is especially depressing when our neighbour, Singapore was ranked top in ease of doing business.

However, according to media report, it is still an achievement for the country which manages to retain its place in the top 30 of 183 countries or economies surveyed, owing to its transparent and efficient regulatory environment for businesses.

The report said Malaysia, alongside China, South Korea and Russia, had included reforms of regulations in economic recovery plans due to the global financial crisis.

This is because these governments recognise the importance of companies, especially small and medium enterprises, for creating jobs and revenue

Regulatory environment for businesses can influence how well companies cope with the crisis and are able to seize opportunities when recovery begins.

"Where business regulation is transparent and efficient, it is easier for companies to re-orient themselves and for new companies to start up," it said.