This article is not being written! And it is being composed faster than any other article in this issue, even those much shorter. Quite literally, this contribution to our technology section was created at the speed of sound. At last there is a technology that will allow you to print as fast as you can speak!
“I’d like to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn.” These words are familiar to over 40 million LinkedIn users in over 200 countries and territories around the world who use the webbased program, valued at $1 billion USD, to connect to friends, business associates, industry experts, potential clients, and potential employees. Interesting, while the company started in 2003 in the USA, by the end of that same year half of the users were actually from outside the US, emphasizing the program’s universal attractiveness. Today, it is almost unprofessional not to be a member. There are members from all 500 of the Fortune 500 companies and 499 of them are represented by director-level and above employees. LinkedIn members also comprise over 130 different industries, and include 130,000 recruiters. That’s right – LinkedIn is a fantastic HR tool.
Why do they even bother to put speakers in laptops? The sounds they produce are incredibly tinny, and are lost in any room bigger than a home toilet. However, to set up a surround sound system in your
company’s meeting room can be both bureaucratically difficult (ie. expensive) and physically challenging (ie. no one in the office has the skills).
Create a great first impression ... even in cyberspace
You only get one chance to make a first impression. How many times have you heard this sentence? Too many to count, I am sure. Good business etiquette ensures that the first impression you create is the very best that it can be. However, let's be realistic. How many times do you get to demonstrate your etiquette by making that first impression in person? As many multinational organisations expand to increasingly dispersed locations, the frequency of old fashioned face-to-face interaction is diminishing. To illustrate this, just think about the emails you sent today. How many went to people you have actually met? For most of us, around50% of our online communication is with people we have never seen in person. Often, our first interaction with a new contact is via an email, a profile on a webpage or even an instant message. Sadly, this takes away your chance to dazzle with your new suit, firm handshake and winning smile.
By the time you read this article the Beijing Olympics will be just days away. I am sure many of you will be tremendously excited to see the world's top athletes competing right here in China on the ultimate stage. Thanks to their exploits on the sports field, many of these performers will leave us all with lasting memories. The organisers also hope that a successful event will boost China's image on the world scene. However, Beijing 2008 will leave China with another far more ‘concrete' legacy, although that is certainly not the most apt word. Many of the venues created for the Olympics point China in a new architectural direction and offer fantastic examples of ‘green building' and sustainable development.
In the last issue of Network HR, Allan Nee of Baode Law in Tianjin wrote a detailed and insightful article about the ways in which your organisation needs to adapt to China's new Labour Laws. Allan offered a myriad of fantastic advice. However, there was one factor he mentioned that really captured my attention - transparency.Read More
Benefits
The Power of Acknowledgement
he seeds of this article were sewn as I put together the last edition of Network HR. First, as I edited the Training & Development section, I read the following prophetic words from Jennifer Peterson, "If you want your customers to feel cared for, you must care for the employees that serve them." This started me musing about the way organisations across China treat employees.Read More
Training
Synchronicity for Success
A single droplet of sweat trickled down my neck as the glowing amber sun beat down on us. I glanced out of the corner of my eye and saw our competitors lined up alongside us. It was the moment we had been preparing for over the last 5 years. Our goal was crystal clear and I had visualised this very occasion countless times.Read More
Recuitment
War, what is it good for?
I believe I can bring the War for Talent to a peaceful end. I came to this realisation two
months ago after I was invited to present at the ‘Corporate Travel and Technology
World' conference in Shanghai. The topic, "Selecting Potential Leaders and Turning a Company from Good to Great", was
provided some months earlier, giving me time to source opinions from
around China. Read More
In the last issue of Network HR, Allan Nee of Baode Law in Tianjin wrote a detailed and insightful article about the ways in which your organisation needs to adapt to China's new Labour Laws. Allan offered a myriad of fantastic advice. However, there was one factor he mentioned that really captured my attention - transparency.Read More
he seeds of this article were sewn as I put together the last edition of Network HR. First, as I edited the Training & Development section, I read the following prophetic words from Jennifer Peterson, "If you want your customers to feel cared for, you must care for the employees that serve them." This started me musing about the way organisations across China treat employees.Read More
A single droplet of sweat trickled down my neck as the glowing amber sun beat down on us. I glanced out of the corner of my eye and saw our competitors lined up alongside us. It was the moment we had been preparing for over the last 5 years. Our goal was crystal clear and I had visualised this very occasion countless times.Read More
I believe I can bring the War for Talent to a peaceful end. I came to this realisation two
months ago after I was invited to present at the ‘Corporate Travel and Technology
World' conference in Shanghai. The topic, "Selecting Potential Leaders and Turning a Company from Good to Great", was
provided some months earlier, giving me time to source opinions from
around China. Read More
“I’d like to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn.” These words are familiar to over 40 million LinkedIn users in over 200 countries and territories around the world who use the webbased program, valued at $1 billion USD, to connect to friends, business associates, industry experts, potential clients, and potential employees. Interesting, while the company started in 2003 in the USA, by the end of that same year half of the users were actually from outside the US, emphasizing the program’s universal attractiveness. Today, it is almost unprofessional not to be a member. There are members from all 500 of the Fortune 500 companies and 499 of them are represented by director-level and above employees. LinkedIn members also comprise over 130 different industries, and include 130,000 recruiters. That’s right – LinkedIn is a fantastic HR tool.
