The plight of the assistant deputy director who ends up to be a
cleaner saddens me. Age had caught up on him, and fortunately his
mindset didn't failed him, he is taking MBA.
A positive mindset and altitude matters always. He articulates
well, he is positive, he got management experience, he got overseas
exposure, he is billingual, he drives, he is independent, he
doesn't seem someone who would have problem in seeking a more
decent job.
I am not discriminating a cleaner job.
I have a friend, who at the age of 40, realizes that he need to
'upgrade' to stay competitive, and enrol himself into a part time
SGD35K electrical degree course. Despite jobless for a year, he
willingly fork up the monies to 'upgrade' himself. Would he be
granted a job when he graduate?
Even a fresh graduate from school of lifescience still yet to
secure a job after a year.
from Today
A graduate with a degree in the life sciences, Lim still has not
found a job one year and 200 applications later. He identifies
three problems for fresh graduates out in the job market
today.
One must not deny the power of media, 'upgrade' probably appears
more often in recent years. One needs to certify to be a cleaner,
one needs to have a forklift license to be a warehouse assistant,
one needs to pass IPPT to be a security guard, one needs to attend
classes to be rewarded a 'taxi license', a spa
therapist......
It's really a long hard paper chase in Singapore.
Are we competitive in this globalised arena? Are those papers allow
us to stay more competitive? Knowledge is indeed power, a critical,
analytical and the ability to pass judgement and to think to me are
far more important.
Do we have critical, analytical, judgemental mindset, that enable
us to compete?
If my friend possesses an analytical mindset, he might think twice
before forking out $35k for an electronics degree. If my friend is
critical, he might pass the 'upgrading', as money rolling
businesses for some institutions.
Henry Ford on people management once said: "when he needed is
simply a pair of hand, however it always come along with a big
brain". Is our society truly welcome knowledge workers? Or do our
'top people' simply think like Henry Ford? Do we have an
environment to groom knowledge workers?
Our stock market was crazy the last couples of days, it went bull
for straight 6 days, it reminded me of the internet bubbles in the
97~98.
Is our economy really getting better?
What makes Chartered Shares an attractive buy? People buying
Creative shares on heresays rumours, even analysts say now is the
right time to 'go in'.... It only reminds me of Richdad
prophecy.
Singapore has probably bowed out from the electronics and
semiconductors. When is the last FDI?
We are generous in handling out millions to scholars and foreign
talents, we were told that they would spin off more jobs for the
locals.... Why can't it be you give millions to locals for them to
grow and network in the world....
Just a question:
If a foreign talent and a local graduate both drowned, who would
our government first rescue?
A recent survey reflected that we possessed little knowledge in
managing our investments, financial, retirements..., as a financial
hub and a cosmopolitan nation, it's surprising. On the other hand,
looking into our media industry, our papers, our publications, our
printed materials, are we exposed to these knowledge? All SPH
papers published the survey, and ...?
Besides financial knowledge, do we have a good grasp of competitive
edge, unique selling, value added, supply chain management, OEM,
ODM, branding, Kaisen, TQM.., perhaps we know and exposed more
about Zoe, Taufik, F4, Energy than those management gurus...
Reading into Taiwanese papers and publications, United dailies,
Economic Daily Times (money.udn.com), Commonwealth Magazines
(cw.com.tw), Money Magazines (moneymg.com.tw), I am embarassed on
my little knowledge on economics, managements, financial tools.
Despite having a daily read on Straits Times, Zaobao, Business
times, I know just too little.
The proliferation of the Taiwanese media industry may be a
contributing factor on the growth of their SME, entreprenuers ...,
the varied channels of information has probably equipped, armed the
Taiwanese with financial, business, management, risk-taking, legal
knowlege.
Just read an interesting article (Money, Jun 2005, pg 153, Central
Library L9), the article is about the starting and monies making of
a breakfast van business in Taipei by a 30yo Taiwanese.
Unlike our URA breakfast van, he is able to roam in Taipei in
searching for a most bustling location, and he is able to park his
van in various locations during different timings of a day. Like
our counterparts, he had few customers and lost monies on his
initial days, fortunately he is allow to roam in Taipei streets.
And 4 years later, his monthly turovers NT26000 and monthly
overheads NT13000. An handsome profit of NT13000 a month.
I pity our breakfast van sellers, many or most had lost greatly.
Many started to earn a living, unfortunately many ended with losses
instead. Why forbid them to roam in Orchard? Why shouldn't URA
extend their operating hours?
There is another news report in Economic Daily News on their dismay
estimated GDP growth @ 3.3%, and how South Korea had caught up with
with Taiwan with GDP, and the panel of gurus discusses and
suggested the difference in economy structure between the 2
parties, and how the skin deep profits from ODM services had eated
their GDP growth, and how they could take up LG and Sunsung . The
report was extensive.
On the other hand, how is our quarterly growth being reported by
Business Times and Straits Times?
GDP growth seen tepid
despite strong Q2
ANALYSTS have opted not to lift growth forecasts for Singapore this
year despite a strong second quarter, as a patchy recovery in
electronics casts a pall over the economy, a Reuters poll
shows.
Still cloudy: Singapore's export growth is seen slowing in the
second half as China's economy cools
The median forecast of 12 economists was for gross domestic product
to grow by 3.8 per cent in 2005, unchanged from a forecast in a
similar poll in May.
Between polls, the government estimated second-quarter GDP grew at
an annualised rate of 12.3 per cent in the second quarter after the
economy contracted in the first quarter. The government has
forecast growth of 2.5 to 4.5 per cent for 2005.
Economists attributed the second quarter rebound to a sudden swell
in the highly volatile pharmaceuticals sector - one which had
dragged down growth in the first quarter - but said the recovery in
the crucial electronics sector remained slow.
Electronics account for 32 per cent of Singapore's manufacturing
and about half of its non-oil domestic exports. The government
expects a global recovery in the electronics sector to pick up in
the second half of the year.
'Right now, it's hovering around the bottom, but it's not clear
enough if the upturn will come so soon,' said Wong Keng Siong,
economist at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi.
Analysts expect non-oil exports in South-east Asia's fourth-largest
economy to rise 4.9 per cent this year - slightly lower than the
government's forecast for 5 to 7 per cent growth. The forecast is
also below a 7.5 per cent rise expected in May's poll and sharply
weaker than the 17 per cent rise seen in 2004.
'Export growth will slow in the second half of the year as China's
economy cools and as the euro falls further because Asian goods
will be much more expensive,' said Nigel Rendell, senior economist
at CLSA Asia-Pacific Markets.
Mr Rendell has cut his forecast for export growth to one per cent
from 7 per cent.
Although the Singapore dollar was seen gaining after the yuan's
revaluation, the central bank's policy of allowing a modest and
gradual currency appreciation would limit the rise.
The Singapore dollar was expected to strengthen to 1.63 against the
US dollar by the end of the year, up from the current 1.66 per
dollar. - Reuters
It seems the above has become a template, where are our gurus to
advise us on how to break us from this trend?
I am looking forward for a bustling media industry, that would
probably make our people stronger and more confident in this ever
competitive world.
So should we spend still spend a million on a foreign talent, or
should be spend 100k to arm our citizens with a global
mindsets?
