Saturday, October 07, 2006

Things not to do during an interview

Ok, I feel I need to share a thing or two here about what not to do during job interviews. One of the things about being a headhunter is that you really see all sorts of people, and some of them really do the darnest things.

For starters, there is nothing fashionable about turning late for an interview. It’s basic courtesy: nobody likes to be held up. A candidate who turns up late already creates a bad impression in the mind of the interviewer, and it’s kinda like a self-imagined sense of importance, really. It doesn’t matter if you are highly qualified, you DON’T ever turn up late. If you lived in Changi and don’t drive, and if the interview is in Tuas, then kindly make sure you invest in a taxi trip to ensure you turn up on time, and if you insist on taking the bus or the MRT, then kindly leave your house with more than enough time on hand to the interview venue. Every 5 minutes the interviewers have to wait for you diminishes your credibility—we’re all busy people, so don’t make a potential boss frustrated even before you’re given a chance to strut your stuff.

Next, please turn up appropriately dressed for the interview. I know dressing is a very subjective thing, and I don’t care if you firmly believe in expressing your style, make sure you turn up looking PROFESSIONAL. Be conservative to be safe—it’s only for that 15 minutes at most. I don’t think I need to go on to what you should wear, but note that even if it’s a junior position you’ve applied for, don’t turn up looking like you don’t think much of the job. I always taught that it only takes 20 seconds for someone to form a first impression of you in my effective communications workshops, so whether you want to create a positive or negative impression is really your decision.

Things to note during the interview:

  1. NEVER badmouth your last workplace or previous boss. You’ll never know what underlying connections there may be between people, and this is especially so if you are applying for jobs in the same industry. Even if you had an unpleasant experience at the last workplace, try to find something nice to say about why you’ve decided to leave; saying “I don’t get along well with my boss” isn’t the smartest thing to say. (see point 2)
  1. Don’t give the interviewer an opportunity to question if there is something wrong with your interpersonal skills. Previous colleagues may backstab or scheme against you, but to say “I can’t get really get along with my superiors/ex-colleagues” will inevitably suggest that you are not easy to get along with. And interviewers are quick to note statements like that.
  1. You don’t really have to spend a lot of time emphasizing about your achievements or trying to overplay them. I’m not saying you don’t say anything at all—if anything, it obviously helps if you talk about your roles, responsibilities and past accomplishments on the job—but don’t make it sound like you’re bragging or boasting. Headhunters are resourceful and well-connected, so if anything, they would have known about you if you really were that good, and we would be the ones to help you market your outstanding achievements, so don’t try to over-credit yourself.
  1. Don’t lie. It’s something your parents or teachers would have taught you in school, and believe me, it is sound advice. If you got dismissed from a job, I’d rather you be upfront to me about it and leave it to me to speak to your potential employer about your concerns instead of trying to make it sound like your previous workplace went on a “retrenchment exercise” and you were one of those that got displaced. Like I said, headhunters and employers are well-connected and resourceful, and don’t you think we would know if people were being retrenched? In any case, there’s this thing called a “background check”, and I don’t think it is to your advantage if ultimately we found out that you were asked to leave because you were underperforming on a job.
  1. If you had a bad track record, don’t try to cover it up by not including references, because that would only make it show up even more. Whenever I get a resume that lists out good organisations the candidate has worked at, I start questioning why he or she doesn’t try to include previous supervisors or managers as references. Who better than someone you’ve worked with at a public listed company, for instance, to give testimony to your contributions? And you have nothing to worry about—in most cases, professional ethics apply, and I’ve had more cases of positive affirmations and testimonies than really bad ones. In any case, the more references you can provide, the better. That way, I will be able to discern if it is indeed a case of just one manager who hates you, or if you really are not suited for a particular industry.
  1. There is no such thing as a lousy candidate to me. There is however, a difference between one who possesses all the right attributes and competencies that match a job, and one that doesn’t. So the point here again is this: don’t try to cover up for your inadequacies just because there is a job you really like. In any case, even if you lied in your resume, companies that use personality and behavioural profiling tools like Draco HR will reveal these inadequacies. Technical data don’t tell lies.
  1. If you have concerns about a job, kindly voice them out instead of saying, “I have no questions.” I like candidates who ask a lot of questions about the job, however minor, because it’s an indication of their level of interest in the job. Don’t be overly concerned that people will start thinking less of you if you really have concerns you’re dying to voice out: employers, if they are interested in hiring you, will actually try to address your concerns—if you are someone we feel can contribute positively to the organization, don’t you think we’ll take steps to ensure nothing hinders you from doing what you do best?
  1. This may sound stupid, but don’t give the interviewers the impression that you are trying to flirt with them, or suck up to them. No matter how much you want the job, don’t give them reason to think you are begging them for the job. Have some dignity for yourself, and don’t beg. We want to give you a job based on a recognition of your abilities, experience and qualifications, not because we feel sorry for you. In any case, I am a mercenary, and I won’t sympathise with you nor will I recommend you just because you’ve been jobless for nine months and have 5 other younger siblings to feed at home. We don’t operate that way.

Ultimately, confidence and faith in yourself will win the day. If you don’t believe in yourself, then you can’t expect me to have reason to believe in your abilities and competencies.

Give me—and your potential employers—reason to believe in you.

***

Thursday, October 05, 2006

Note to applicants

Thank you for choosing Draco Human Resource, LLP. If you are responding to a job ad or seeking to do a resume drop, please ensure the following:

  • Resumes in MS Word format
  • Updated contact details and personal information (e.g. marital status etc)
  • Updated academic qualifications-- please state whether a course you are doing is ongoing, or if you have completed/graduated, i.e. B.Eng (currently in final year) or MBA, completed 2005.
  • State roles and responsibilities in previous jobs as part of the work experience column.
  • If possible, highlight your outstanding attributes, e.g. "Determined individual/aggressive sales/creative thinker"

Ref 051006-2: Senior Network Support Engineer

Location: Singapore

Coverage: APAC

Travel: 0%. All support will be provided via telephone and email

Compensation: Annual base of between SGD 60 - 80 K + a 4 K bonus based on performance

Position Brief:

The Senior Network Support Engineer will report to the Manager of Customer Support based in Singapore, and will be responsible for providing technical support for network hardware products running on various operating systems for customers based primarily in APAC.

The successful candidate will be expected to resolve customer technical issues. This will encompass trouble-shooting, case creation, resolution and documentation.

You will be providing Level 2 support and dealing with technical customers with some of the world's largest MNCs.

This role will be ideal for a person already in a technical or a person who wants to move from a pure technical role into a customer interfacing role. This role will enable you to get more customer interaction skills and position you for an eventual move into a consulting role.

We are looking for a person with 3 fundamental skill sets:

  • Solid Networking skills
  • Solid Communication skills. That means fluent English with no accent.
  • Some Systems experience on a UNIX system.


Must have (No Exceptions):

  • Must have experience in troubleshooting on a UNIX platform.
  • You must be a network guru. No novices need apply. Experience working with LAN and WAN topologies, TCP/IP protocol, and routers/switches required.
  • Knowledge of DNS Server or competitive products is needed.
  • You must have expert level knowledge of layer 3, 4 and 7 of the OSI model.
  • Additional skills required are customer service skills, troubleshooting methods, case management follow-up and ability to work with customers at varying levels of experience or technical capability under varying time constraints.
  • You must communicate well in English without a heavy accent.
  • You must have prior support experience. We are not looking for network Administrators. We need network experts who have an extensive amount of customer interaction skills (whether internal or external) and who have excellent communication skills.
  • You must already be based in Singapore. Candidates from other countries will NOT be considered.


Nice to have:

  • Successful candidate is likely to have worked in a brand-name international technology company in the past. Examples of companies that the ideal candidate would have worked in are: Pacnet, AT & T, Cable & Wireless, IBM, Cisco, and Alcatel/Lucent, NCS.


Interested applicants, please forward detailed resume with last drawn/current salary to recruiter@dracohr.com. We regret only shortlisted candidates will be notified.

Ref 051006-1: Senior Consulting Manager

Location: Singapore

Coverage: ASEAN

Travel: 40 %

Compensation: Total package SGD 200 K– 280 K (Depending on experience) (70-30 split)

Position Brief:

The Senior Consulting Manager will lead all a small consulting team of 10 people in ASEAN.

He will be responsible for:

  • Consulting revenue
  • Project delivery timeliness
  • Consultant Utilization

This person will have experience with managing large scale implementations (200 man day minimum).

He will ensure that consulting review targets are met or exceeded and that projects are managed and delivered on him.


Must Have (No Exceptions):

  • Worked in a brand-name international technology company in the past. Examples of companies that the ideal candidate would have worked in are EMC, IBM, Accenture, CSC, BEA, TIBCO, Unisys, BMC, SSA, SAP, IBM, Oracle, HP, Microsoft, SAS, Business Objects, Sun Microsystems, BEA Systems, Hyperion, Siebel, Interwoven, Cognos, Documentum, and Computer Associates.
  • Extensive experience in consulting with a minimum of 5 years in managing a team of consultants
  • Some regional experience. ASEAN preferred
  • Experience selling consulting services in tandem with sales people that are looking after license revenue

Interested applicants, please forward detailed resume with most recent salary to recruiter@dracohr.com. We regret only shortlisted candidates will be notified.

Monday, October 02, 2006

Ref 021006-2: Business Development Executive

Multi-disciplinary medical specialist centre seeking candidates for the position of BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT EXECUTIVES.

Job Descriptions:


* Relational building and provide support to pool of General Practitioners (GP).
* Handle medical services enquiries and leads.
* Cold calls.
* Support in marketing activities including GP newsletters, promotions, events, forums and other promotions activities.


Job Requirements:

* Diploma or degree in Sales & Marketing, preferably with minimum 2 years of related experience.
* Excellent command of English and Mandarin (both written & spoken).
* Well-organized, self-motivated, reliable and resourceful.
* Friendly disposition, confident and well articulated.
* Able to work independently & multi-task in a fast-paced environment.
* Experience in medical/pharmaceutical sales will have added advantage.

Interested applicants, please forward a detailed CV quoting the reference number to recruiter@dracohr.com citing latest contact information and expected salary. We regret that only shortlisted candidates will be notified.

Ref 021006-1: Junior Network Engineer

Company specialising in VoIP and web-based applications seeking a dedicated and motivated full-time team player for the position of JUNIOR NETWORK ENGINEER.


Requirements:

  • Candidate should possess at least basic PHP knowledge.
  • Candidate should preferably possess a minimum of 1 year experience in Linux and Windows Server environment (NT,2000,2003).
  • Candidate should also be familiar with network hardware such as routers / firewalls / switches.
  • Candidate should preferably have a minimum of 1 year experience working with WAN/LAN technology and is familiar with networked systems design principles.
  • Knowledge of IP Telephony, Frame Relay, VoIP and/or QoS are added advantages.
  • Candidate has to be fluent in English, have good communication skills and a strong customer service background that includes troubleshooting, creating trouble tickets and aiding with problem resolution.
  • Fresh ITE / diploma holders are encouraged to apply.
  • Possessing a Class 3 driving license is an added advantage.
  • Must be able to start work immediately.
  • Applicants should be Singaporean citizens or hold relevant residence status.

Interested applicants, please forward a detailed CV quoting the reference number to recruiter@dracohr.com citing latest contact information and expected salary. We regret that only shortlisted candidates will be notified.