A week ago, no-one had heard of Jeremy Lin. Since then he has electrified the NBA with his inspirational play and has become a media sensation and a fan favourite. The Jeremy Lin phenomenon continues to grow and has far reaching effects outside of the sports world.

Take a long hard look around your workplace – for those in management positions, is there a Jeremy Lin in our midsts who is a star in the making?

Our colleague Benny Lee from the Hong Kong office discusses about Jeremy Lin and maximising opportunities. Click here to read more.

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So the interview is going well, the hiring manager has asked questions to which you have provided brilliant answers, it feels more like a discussion than a question and answer session and everything you’ve read on the internet about how an interview should go is going that way.

You sense the interview is ending and the conversation is coming to a close and you’re just about to relax when the interviewer asks you the dreaded question, “Do you have any questions for me?”

Many professionals are unsure, about what questions to ask and as a result are sometimes unprepared. Generally, as a rule of thumb, questions on salary, holidays, and work hours are not looked upon favourably.

Great topics for questions are company culture, office environment, and posing questions on some of the recent projects the company might have worked on. However, you could also ask questions on what the interviewer thinks would make one successful for the role.

For instance, asking “what attributes are essential to have for someone who aspires to be successful in this role?”

Questions like these tend to work well in three ways:

• Firstly, it leaves the interviewer with a positive impression of you and it reinforces their idea that you do want the position.
• Secondly, it can help you gain an insight into how the interviewer thinks and some knowledge into the role itself.
• Additionally, it could also be a way you could sell yourself by giving examples of the qualities that the interviewer stated that could help you be successful in the role!

Overall these kinds of questions are insightful in nature and tells your future employer that you are positive, enthusiastic and keen on the position. Happy interviewing!

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Our colleague Anthony Truchot from the Tokyo office looks into how to survive in a tough market, providing you with tips for what you can do during this difficult time.

To read more, click here.

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IT recruitment within financial services in Singapore has remained comparatively strong in the wake of the latest economic slowdown. Let’s take a look at some of the recent and predicted trends in this busy jobs market.

Singapore trading up
There is healthy demand for IT trading support professionals, due in part to a new wave of trading houses setting up in Singapore. Historically, global banks focused their front office functions for Asia Pacific in Hong Kong. We are now seeing these banks increase their emphasis on front office functions in Singapore. The increased business focus has created demand for IT professionals that have good domain knowledge, leadership skills and above all good communication skills.

Off-shoring
Cost awareness has made way for continued off-shoring of more technically ‘hands on’ functions to lower cost countries. India has dominated here over recent years; however a shift in cost benefits is seeing a rise in off-shoring to countries such as Malaysia and the Philippines.

Conservative salary increases
After witnessing salary increases of around 6% in 2011, it is predicted that increases will be more conservative this year due to ongoing economic uncertainty. However hiring levels are expected to remain sturdy in response to restructuring and new start-ups.

Have you considered contracting?
Another trend that should continue into 2012 is the upsurge in contract openings within banks in Singapore. This follows more mature hiring trends in the West and is likely to affect most business functions. Contracting provides banks and other companies with increased autonomy and flexibility in their hiring, as approval processes for permanent roles have become stringent and more difficult for hiring managers to justify. Some professionals are wary that contract roles are less stable and this is an attitude that will take time to shift. It may be comforting to know however that over 65% of contractors we place in Singapore have their contracts extended or converted to permanent roles.

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Your CV or resume has probably been the first and possibly only tool you have been using to apply for jobs so far. You probably update it every time you decide to move jobs as you know recruiters always want a copy and employers often ask you to talk through it at the start of a job interview.

A resume or CV is not the only way to get noticed by potential employers

However – as well as keeping your CV/resume polished and up-to-date, it’s worth being aware of the other methods that companies are starting to employ in order to filter out strong candidates.

The Wall Street Journal yesterday reported that a venture capital firm, Union Square Ventures asked investment analyst job applicants to submit links representing their ‘web presence’ such as a Twitter profile or blog. They were also asked to supply short videos demonstrating their interest in the position.

The reason for employers’ interest in these new ways of sourcing candidates is that CVs can be a limited way to find out information about an individual.  They provide the important, but basic factual information on work experience and education.  However, there is little insight into personality and the possible ‘fit’ the candidate may have with the rest of the company.

In the current uncertain economic climate, every hire a company makes it crucial and employers are likely to be more interested than ever in finding out more about the person they might be interviewing.  So even if your recruiter or interviewer only asks for a CV or resume, it’s definitely worth spending time carefully creating and moulding your online persona as it may well help your next career move.

For advice on how to stand out from the crowd both in your CV/resume and online, contact Morgan McKinley at singapore@morganmckinley.com

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On behalf of everyone here at Morgan McKinley, we would like to wish you all a wealthy and prosperous year of the dragon!

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With the US and UK heavily reliant on banking and financial services, the worry in 2012 is that as the major players retrench staff and cease to recruit, that the employment market will be heavily affected.

The truth is however that in certain pockets of the commercial markets, activity remains fairly steady and where some specialist skills are concerned, companies continue to hire.

Throughout 2011, sales and marketing recruitment remained particularly buoyant as a number of organisations looked to add to their sales and marketing teams. There has also been a steady increase in the demand for digital marketing skills.

Whilst hiring in the accounting and finance sector remained slow at certain levels, experienced mid-senior professionals are still drawing competitive salaries and are in high demand particularly in roles where they are instrumental in saving/making a company money as opposed to “traditional” accountants.

Similarly in IT, Singapore continues to be a hive of activity as it proves once again that it is a hub for many businesses which are expanding their operations.  The demand for additional internal technical support has been steadily on the increase over the last 12 months and the volume of job opportunities for technology professionals continues to increase.

It is not all doom and gloom for banking and finance however, as the shift towards hiring project and change managers as well as contract staff means that a number of good roles are opening up on the interim side.  It is early days but 2012 may still pleasantly surprise us!

We recently surveyed over 1,050 senior level operational and HR managers working across the financial services and commercial sectors in Asia Pacific. We asked them about their hiring plans for 2012 and the challenges they expect to face in the Singaporean market. Click to view the findings – Morgan McKinley Singapore Hiring Market Update.

accounting and finance jobs, banking and financial services, commercial markets, contract jobs, digital marketing, it jobs, project and change jobs, recruitment, sales & marketing jobs, Singapore hiring market

On behalf of everyone here at Morgan McKinley, we would like to say thank you to our clients and candidates for your continued support throughout 2011. We would like to wish you all a very Happy Christmas and a prosperous New Year.

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Whilst considering the different ways to market my specialist area of recruitment, it was suggested that I use one single social networking website and with a single click of a button send my adverts, articles and discussions to Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.

I went away and personally evaluated each social network and their purpose. I have accounts with all three and based on my usage, I wondered if I could possibly communicate my job as a recruitment consultant via all three. I decided I couldn’t.

For me; Linkedin is my professional portal which connects me to employers, job seekers (both current and potential), globally based colleagues and Singapore based professionals with whom I aim to build my reputation. It is open on my desktop and updated many times a day and acts as my professional ‘megaphone’ to the market.

Facebook is more personal; people can reconnect with family and friends scattered around the world. For me, it’s about showing off my indulgent ex-pat life in Singapore and an easy way to send your greetings to your long lost friends especially during festive seasons!

Twitter is the place where I rant and rave. Oh, and to keep an eye on my daily horoscopes.

So based on my theory and personal experience online, there is a time and a place for each type of social networking platform and they may not be best combined.

What other social media websites do you use for job hunting? Let us know and maybe we’ll see you there!

Lastly, on behalf of the Morgan McKinley Singapore team, we wish you a merry Christmas.

Facebook, job hunting, job seekers, Linkedin, Social Media, social media usage, Twitter

In recruitment, there is no such thing as an informal interview. Our colleague Cheik Ballo from the Tokyo office discusses what to expect in these informal meetings.

Visit the blog to find out more!

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