Monday, March 31, 2008

Effort into Online Postings –Extra time into your postings, can payoff.



Image taken from fnux.theuseless.com

I think its interesting how employers post ads on craigslist. The way employers write their employment ads, need to be realistic and also need to sell their company as much as the requirements they look for in a candidate. Employers have the responsibility to place appropriate ads, that don’t take advantage of potential employees, and post impossible requirements for potential candidates. Just as an employee has to present a cover letter and a resume, to sell themselves, employers too, should craft their postings, to create interest and enthusiasm in the business they’re in.

I read a cover letter posted on the Hong Kong craigslist by a person interested in a finance position. She graduate from Columbia University with an MBA in Finance, and seemed very eloquent and qualified for a trading job. If I was a hiring manager, seeking new graduates hires, I would have definitely contacted her for an interview. What impressed me was the long and detailed cover letter she provided and the specific skills and classes she took that would be applicable for the job. She highlighted all her main talents and achievements, such as being a scholarship recipient in Gaungzhao, China and achieved an impressive GPA at Columbia University.

I believe, through the Internet, you can make connections to potential employers, depending on how impressive your resume and cover letter looks. Spending the extra time in crafting your cover letter and resume, and customizing them for the job that you seek, can pay huge dividends. Likewise, employers posting job ads, can receive more responses from the right candidates, if they put more consideration into the audience they are reaching out to and the level of information on their ads.

Monday, March 24, 2008

Social News Websites


Picture taken from www.perezhilton.com

I believe there is great potential in social news website, where people can view stories they feel are most interesting and read other peoples comments and leave back their own. An interesting take on such a social news website is the celebrity gossip columnist, Perez Hilton's website. Its interesting how he digs up dirt on celebrities and posts it on his blog, with readers being allowed to add comments, which they are no shortage of. Its all in the name of fun and is often hilarious, yet surprisingly, the website is a good source of up to date and speedy information on celebrity gossip.

I think some of the things he posts, can sometimes go a bit too far, and is just aimed at creating shock. However, you could say this is in line with the trashy celebrity gossip business and that he is satisfying the market.

In some way, Youtube could be another social news websites, since it allows people to post their own videos and you can see how popular a video might be. People search for whatever interests them, and the most talked about news, hot topic or media figure may get the most searches. For example, when Britney Spears did a poor performance on the VH1 Music Awards, I tried to search it on youtube because I missed the show.

Some social news sites may have more integrity and discuss more serious topics, while others are more for entertainment. However, they have provided a useful means of accessing information and provide greater interaction and feedback from readers.

Monday, March 17, 2008

Virtual Meeting

Over spring break I visited San Francisco, CA and had the opportunity to visit reputable companies in the Silicon Valley. One such company was Cisco Systems. They are at the forefront of video conferencing, where they have developed meeting rooms with audio systems, plasma screens, and video cameras to simulate a board-room meeting, yet with counterparts in remote locations. They called their system “Telepresence.”

Although the package costs $300,000 USD to buy, it would serve large corporations very well, as they could gain huge cost savings from having managers being able to save time and money from traveling to far off locations for meetings. I was able to experience the video conferencing where fellow students were placed in separate meeting rooms. The desk, seating 10 people, were equipped with speakers and microphones. They were three cameras placed in different directions and three plasma screens next to each other, to create the platform. It worked surprisingly well and you could make eye contact with people across the screen.

You can watch a video about it from YouTube:



Video taken from www.youtube.com and provided by Cisco Systems

The disadvantage of such a live and realistic video-conferencing solution, was that you know if a person is not paying attention if they are reading emails, checking their blackberries etc, which you would not know over teleconferencing. In some ways, the meetings are too real and too transparent.

Also in some ways, it cannot overcome face-to-face meetings because you lose the personal touch, there is less trust and camaraderie and it cannot go that extra distance to close the gap. For example, we met a secretary through a plasma screen, and he looked very real. We did not realize he was on TV, until we came closer, as he could see us through video and therefore we could interact with him. It was a very funny experience. However, while on the tour of the Cisco building, we met him on the second floor, and he physically looked very different and seemed more approachable.

There are huge advantages to virtual teams and using the web to conduct meetings, which can create convenience, with possible time and cost reductions. However, for certain meetings such as meeting new clients, face-to-face contact may still be necessary to build trust.