The Star Online: Lifestyle: Bookshelf
The Star Online: Lifestyle: Bookshelf |
- Who has the better chance of bagging that high-salary post?
- Google makes the world go round
- Snapshorts
| Who has the better chance of bagging that high-salary post? Posted: 24 May 2013 07:46 PM PDT WHEN it comes to hiring suitable talents, it would be ideal to have a potential employee with the relevant qualifications as well as one that has practical experience. But what if there was just one vacancy available – and the organisation had to choose between the two candidates? In a hypothetical situation between a candidate that's "book smart" (has the relevant qualifications) and one that's "street smart" (has the practical experience), who would be the more likely choice? More importantly, is a high-paying job unattainable for those without formal education? Or is there still a chance for a candidate that does not have that oh-so-important diploma or degree? The book smart candidate Heera Training and Management Consultancy principal consultant Heera Singh believes a candidate with the relevant qualifications would generally be "technically competent" in that job. "It certainly brings credibility to the job. For example, if someone has a Masters in Human Resources (HR) Management, then the qualification enhances his credibility," he tells StarBizWeek. "It also assists greatly in the recruitment and selection of employees. For example, if a job is advertised and does not specify technical qualifications, but only states practical experience required, then every Tom, Dick and Harry will apply and this will ensure lots of extra work for the HR department," Heera says. Leaderonomics finance and human resources leader Ang Hui Ming concurs that having the right qualifications adds more credibility to an individual seeking employment – at least on paper. "Generally, the employee might probably have a wider knowledge-base theoretically of the function he is hired for and has some form of certification of his ability to understand at least the basic concepts of the function," she says. However, it has often been said that what one learns in theory can be quite different in practice. Heera believes that the "book smart" candidate, though technically qualified, still lacks experience – an important element that may be vital in certain jobs. "Being technically qualified does not mean that they can do the jobs well. They may be more academically inclined rather than hands-on. "They may be technically qualified but may not like the job. Many people, for example, go to university and do courses that their parents want them to do, or courses which their friends are doing. All they want to do is to get their qualifications." Ang, meanwhile, feels that not having the relevant experience is not a big deal – as it is something that can be acquired over time. "There is no real disadvantage, experience is to meant to be built anyway. "At most, it's the lack of reality. If a person is all academic, it is uncertain how he or she will handle real life situations where the theories they learn needs to be adapted to the situation, environment and culture of any given place and time." The street-smart candidate The advantage of hiring an employee with experience means that they can do the job straight away with minimal disruptions, says Heera. "There is minimum need for any job orientation and at interviews, you can ascertain the type of practical experience they have and see if it suits or meets your job expectations." Ang concurs: "Generally, the employee might have deeper expertise in the function and would have experienced real-life situations in the function. This makes the person more adaptable and adept to handle similar natured situations more wisely and calmly." "The type of experience is important. If they have the wrong type of experience, then it is of no use to the company. For example, if a person has worked in a HR capacity in a government department, then his experience may not necessarily gel with what is wanted in the HR department in the private sector. "Experience can be a bad teacher as it is always difficult to mould a person who has the experience but has picked up some bad habits along the way." Ang feels there's no real disadvantage to hiring someone that has no paper qualifications but is oozing with experience. "At most, probably a possible lack of what's new in the market, or what's happening on a global scale or what new technology is out there that can better equip him or her in the function. "This is only an assumption as people that are hands-on can still learn market trends and future technology if they read up and do research on their own. There is just no paper qualification – that's all." Does it really matter? According to an article on online investment site Investopedia, "Is It Better To Be Book Smart Or Street Smart," its author, Tim Parker, points out that one does not need to have the relevant paper qualifications to be truly successful. "Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple, is widely regarded as one of the best businessmen of his day. He didn't have a college degree and neither did Steve Wozniak, the other founder of Apple. "Other successful businessmen without college degrees include Dell Computer founder Michael Dell, Microsoft founder Bill Gates and Virgin Brands founder Sir Richard Branson. People all over the world have found success without a college degree," he writes. But is that the rule or the exception, he then asks. "Unemployment data shows that more than 8% of the population looking for a job (in the US) can't find one. However, for those with a bachelor's degree, the unemployment rate is only 3.9%. The unemployment rate is 13% for people without a high school diploma. "A college degree doesn't guarantee success, but Bureau of Labour Statistics unemployment statistics show book smarts more than double your chances of finding a job." Of course, having an employee with both the relevant paper qualifications and practical experience would be the optimum choice, naturally. "This would definitely be an ideal combination," says Heera. Ang says having both qualities would indeed be a plus point, adding however that having both relevant qualification and practical experience does not make one a best employee. "It's a person's character, values and attitude that makes him or her a good employee. Qualifications and experience are all things that can be accumulated as long as one has the right attitude and desire." |
| Google makes the world go round Posted: 24 May 2013 07:46 PM PDT The New Digital Age Author: Eric Schmidt & Jared Cohen Publisher: Reshaping the Future, People, Nations and Business "So, what do we think we know about our future world?" This seems like a fair question to ask. What's currently emerging from human technological prowess indeed is beyond one's ability to articulate. Apart from connectivity, convenience and advancement, we laymen know not much. Who else is more qualified to answer that question than someone from Google, which nearly is the generic name for the word "search"? Let's google then about what the world would be like in the near future. The answer we get may be way too many for us to handle. So, let's instead take a glimpse of it through this wonderful book called The New Digital Age, co-authored by two Googleans, Eric Schmidt (executive chairman) and Jared Cohen (director of Google Ideas). What we find may shock us. The New Digital Age is wonderful because of its near-perfect organisation. Succinctly, in little less than 300 pages, it presents to us the contour of a future digital world that already is showing the tell-tale signs of fully emerging. Its emergence is the result of the penetration of electronic networking into every corner of the globe and every part of people's lives. While at present, we only have just over a third of the world's population connected, we will eventually have the rest of the 5 billion joining us as Netizens in the future. Schmidt and Cohen think information technology, in a much quicker pace than we have predicted, will soon be omnipresent, as readily-available as electricity. As connectivity ushers in billions more people into technology, everyone wanting to be connected will be connected. The future, inevitably, is one with two worlds – physical and virtual. These two civilisations will coexist, contradict, and compliment in a way never before seen. They will affect and shape each other, and the balance they strike, or fail to strike, will pretty much affect us all. The virtual world will offer much of what we lack in the physical world, while the physical world tries to retain what it is losing. The virtual world will provide freedom from repressive state control and the necessary means to demand accountability and change. In the virtual world population revolts, venting long-held grievances or new concerns with tenacity and conviction; governments, in turn, extend their oppression into the virtual world, trying desperately to contain the people. Many countries will have to practise two domestic policies and two foreign policies with its counterparts. These policies, not only are they wasteful, will also be contradictory. For example, hackers will be torn between terrorists and governments in the future of conflict, combat and intervention. The underappreciated nations will be able to punch their superpowers in the face, stirring and complicating geopolitical issues in the virtual world. Strange to say for now but not at all in the future that what gives terror groups in the future an edge is not their members' dying wish, but their technological prowess, and that wars will shed no blood as they will be cyber wars. Puff! A nation can be easily wiped out, and an ethic group disliked by its states can disappear from the country's demographics. Fighting for identity protection? In the future we will, give it all up in order to be connected. Who wouldn't want to be a part of the connectivity, and who could afford not to? All these may sound far-fetch to some, and to those who jet in and out of the tech world, Schmidt and Cohen sound like primary school principals explaining to wide-eye children about the adult world that is taking place. But the endearing part of the book is not only the authors' presentations of a world soon to take place, it is also the message – while it is inevitable the world is headed that way because of information technology, it is also technology that will help tame the myriad of problems arising from it. So in the end, this book is not necessarily that frightening. It in fact gives hope. Technology helps all parties, allowing small actors to have advantage. "Connectivity benefits everyone. Those who have none will have some, and those who have a lot will have even more." This will empower the underdogs, the underprivileged, and autocracies will decry the erosion of their power, their control. And those who resist or underestimate the technology do so at their perils. Thorough though, Schmidt and Cohen may be in their coverage of the new digital age, they have left out, nonetheless, themselves in the picture. How big will companies such as Google and Facebook be? How will our lives be impacted, and controlled, by these giants that seem to pull the strings of connectivity? That part is omitted. So what do we think we know about the future world? I think it is not only a world Google envisions it to be, but also one that Google makes, if not already. |
| Posted: 24 May 2013 07:46 PM PDT The 3 secrets to effective time investment Author: Elizabeth Grace Saunders Publisher: McGraw-Hill The book takes you beyond simple time management to provide you with the skills and outlook you need to completely revamp the quality of your life. It does more than help you make the best of the time you have. It gives you the tools, insight and guidance you need to overhaul your entire life. Becoming an effective mentoring leader Author: Dr Peter Chee Publisher: McGraw-Hill Pressure on managers are ever present. With the need to cut cost, streamline operations and increase productivity, the role of mentors has become more critical than ever. Studies has shown that leaders who mentor get promoted faster and earn significantly more than those who don't. The little book that still saves your assets Author: David M. Darst Publisher: Wiley You wonder why affluent people tend to manage their money better than most. It's because of asset allocation. Asset allocation is not just smart investing; it's the ultimate determinant of success in the markets and it's the proven strategy the wealthy use to survive financial chaos and profit even in down markets. |
| You are subscribed to email updates from The Star Online: Lifestyle: Bookshelf To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
| Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610 | |
0 ulasan:
Catat Ulasan