Commentary

In our global community, talented people are making more connections and career moves than ever before. Technology advancements are removing barriers to working across borders, and those with transferable skills can choose from multiple avenues of work. More than ever, people view their skills as a tradable asset, as their prime competitive advantage and the key to unlocking their future potential.

Many CEOs and CFOs have told me that the return-on-investment (ROI) of branding can’t be measured. I don’t blame them because the consulting industry has come up with complicated measures of branding success or nothing at all. Branding ROI can actually be measured but that requires you to first understand what a brand is.

Innovation is about finding better ways of doing - What?

What do you look for in an airport? Speed in and out, relaxation, convenience, F&B and shopping outlets, wi-fi….butterflies, forests, cinemas, massage oh sorry the last few are just in Singapore.

I confess…I am an Angry Birds addict. For the benefit of readers who have not experienced this phenomenon, Angry Birds is a puzzle video game, in which players have to throw angry birds on pigs that have stolen the birds’ eggs. Since its launch in December 2009, over 12 million copies have been downloaded from the Apple App Store, making it the number one paid app in over 50 stores from Moldova to Singapore. More compelling is the fact that the total number of hours consumed by Angry Birds players worldwide is roughly 200 million minutes a day, which translates into 1.2 billion hours a year.

Cloud computing is here and SMEs in Singapore need to embrace it. The transition to public or private clouds is gaining pace as companies in Singapore realize the potential for transforming business capabilities and driving new innovative services. Cloud computing in Singapore is expected to grow 43 per cent over the next five years, exceeding the forecast of 29 per cent in the region.

Since 2010, South-East Asia has consolidated its position as an important contributor to the global downstream market with Petronas’ recent announcement of its plan to build the new RAPID facility in Malaysia one further example of the region’s growing importance.

Despite global uncertainty our latest Hays Quarterly Report for the October-December quarter shows there are still a number of areas actively hiring as companies pursue aggressive growth and expansion plans. The market continues to remain active following ongoing investment by the government and private investors in a number of key sectors including oil and gas, pharmaceutical, R&D, banking and financial services and tourism.

During one of my career counselling sessions to a group of MBA students, almost every one of them would like to become a manager straight after their graduation. Knowing better that people management skills is something you pick up through years of working experience, i put it back that it may not be that realistic.

Branding is vital for the success of every business, no matter how big or small. A strong corporate image is the foundation for your company's success, and it determines who you are. In today's competitive business environment, companies spend millions of dollars every year on branding exercises to update and enhance their image and reputation. A large percentage of this expenditure includes advertising on traditional and online medium, corporate branding, events, product packaging, and association with worthy causes through corporate social responsibility projects and sponsorship programmes, and so on. Getting associated with the right brands, philosophy or presenting your company in a good light can enhance your company's image. But, what sort of image or impression does your client get at his first contact with your employees? Front-line Impressions Employees are often one of the most undermined and under-developed aspects of a company's foundation. Not only are they the face of your company and living representatives of your brand, they also differentiate your brand from your competitors, and deliver the ultimate brand experience you want your company to be known for. While you are setting aside a large budget for this year's branding exercise, consider this: The proof of the pudding is in the eating -- are your living, breathing brand ambassadors projecting the right corporate image to the outside world? Are your employees walking and breathing your brand according to your company philosophy? Consistency is Key Your employees and your corporate image are every successful organisation's two greatest assets. As long as your employees' appearance and behaviour are not in tandem with your corporate image, the repercussions can be detrimental to your business. I share a personal experience: A luxurious, internationally-acclaimed hotel located in town recently opened for business. Impressed by their claims to provide guests with a high-level of attentive and personalised service by a team of professional, impeccable staff, I thought the hotel could be a wonderful event venue and decided to visit. It being my first visit, I could not find my way around. Only after looking around for assistance that I noticed three service staff chatting and laughing among themselves away from the hotel entry, oblivious to guests entering the new hotel. Within a short time of its opening, the hotel had already stopped living up to its widely-publicised brand promise. On my second visit to the same hotel one week later, I encountered a very helpful staff who readily offered his assistance when I first entered the main hallway. Although he was very attentive and helpful, I saw a jarring inconsistency in the service level and found it difficult to erase my first not-so-nice encounter on my last visit. Needless to say, my first impression of the hotel did not match up to its brand promise, and I decided not to shortlist the hotel as a possible venue for my upcoming event. Employees -- the Face of the Company Fortunately or unfortunately, the buck does not end at your front-line employees. No doubt, employees working behind-the-scenes have less face-to-face meetings with potential clients and end-consumers, but they are no less important! They offer your brand experience to the outside world too. From security guards and accounts assistants, to IT managers and human resource directors, every employee has direct or indirect contact with your clients, shareholders, business counterparts, partners and suppliers, potential employees, etc. Showing up late for a meeting, dressing inappropriately or sloppily, using bad grammar in writing or speech, a limp handshake, poor dining etiquette, and not being clued-in on cross-cultural protocol and business practices are some of the bad and lasting impressions one can create. Only when your employees are united and aligned towards the same company philosophy, can your organisation begin operating at its full potential. Catherine Chan, Managing Consultant, Iconiq Image

According to one of the world’s leading military strategist – Karl von Clausewitz – in war, the big army will beat the small army. This is known as the principle of force. The army that can concentrate the most amount of force in the battlefield will prevail. It is not that much different in the business world. The big fish eats the small fish because the big fish is stronger than the small fish. And the bad news is: You Are The Small Fish. You can’t fight the big fish head on. You can’t outswim the big fish. You can try to hide and pray that the big fish doesn’t come into your playground and muscle you out. But there is something else that you can do. Instead of trying to hide or shield that weakness that you have, you can turn it into a weapon and use it to attack your bigger competitors. It may sound incredulous but it can be done and it has been done before. Here are some of the things that you can learn from companies that have done it. Enterprise Rent-A-Car Who’s No. 1 in rental cars? Most people will think of Hertz. Who’s No. 2? Most people will say Avis. Avis has a famous tagline that goes, “We Are No. 2 So We Try Harder”. So, if Hertz is No. 1 and Avis is No. 2, why would you buy from anyone else. That was Enterprise’s problem. It was the small fish in this battle – relatively speaking. What Enterprise did was brilliant. It turned its weakness – its relatively small size - into an advantage. It created the perception that it is more customer-oriented by offering delivery and pick-up service to its customers. When you rent a car from Enterprise, they will deliver it to your home or office. Once you are done with the car, they will pick it up again. Enterprise used the tagline “Pick Enterprise. We’ll Pick You Up.” to communicate this differentiating idea and it soon overtook the giants. Use your smaller size to do the things that your larger competitors cannot do. Danovel

Two out of every five new CEOs fail in the first 18 months (HBR, January 2005).

I had lunch the other day with a couple of friends. It was great catching up with each other. Joseph was not happy with his main course item. He was not satisfied with explanation from the waiter; and wanted to escalate to Restaurant manager.

The New Realities An unprecedented number of workers from four generations – Traditionalist, Baby Boomers, Gen Xers and Gen Yers – are working alongside one another and bringing their own values, goals and communication approaches to the workplace. Such generational dynamics in the workplace affect morale, productivity, recruitment and retention. Organizations are facing immediate challenges when it comes to optimizing productivity, protecting profits and growing their businesses.

In the field of public relations, there is a basic element that is often overlooked and given far too little importance, but when applied correctly it can give a solid foundation for success in dealing with the media. That is, good manners. Most successful PR agencies are made up of gracious and good mannered personnel. They do not compromise their decorum even if it’s hot and sweaty under the collar. While the sole intention is to achieve their media target they do not blame or make excuses about their shortcomings. In short, they inspire confidence and trust. The businesses they lead are empowered and success ensues.

At the recent Singapore Human Summit conference, Goh Chok Tong said that Singapore is becoming an Asian hub for human capital development. Indeed, many multinationals have set up regional and global headquarters and locate their senior management here. For executives taking on new senior roles here, the first 100 days are often seen as a rite of passage. At CTPartners, we find that the typical concerns from those who make their jump up the ladder often surround how they can transition into their new senior roles smoothly. Welcome to your first 100 days The key thing to remember is that your new job, whether it is an internal promotion or an external appointment, is not just an extension of the one you have just left. Your first 100 days will be used as a benchmark for how a new senior executive is faring as a leader. Wider stakeholders and investors – and even the chairman – may use this early period to determine whether you are off to a good start. Therefore, it’s important to start by formulating a communications strategy and timetable. Remember that you are ultimately measured by your ability to resolve issues, set strategy, grow the business and achieve objectives. 100 days gives you time to barely scratch the surface, but this crucial period will help to establish a base for the longer term when you will be scrutinised and judged by what you can really deliver. This is a time for making careful assessments about the task ahead, and winning the trust and confidence of those around you before implementing any changes. In the very early stages, it is crucial to size up the organisation and its people. Failing to understand the business and failing to develop the right relationships can undermine the position of any new executive. Every conversation that you have will be of value in providing insight into the company and its culture. You should be able to define the prevalent management style, identify the individuals who you need to build relationships with and to ascertain what the organisation expects of you. Make an effort to make your presence felt but in a subtle way, by engaging with the organisation, being visible, and communicating and enquiring among those you have identified as key stakeholders. Unless there are urgent issues to deal with, it helps to take some time to acquire the information you need, to gain a real sense of the organisational culture, identify what is important and to differentiate between the signals and the noise. Also, take time out to reflect on any unexpected issues that have arisen, so that this learning can be incorporated into your personal success plan for the role. Leading your team It’s important to develop strong relationships quickly with the key people in your executive team – usually, it’s the financial director, the chief human resources director and the key business leaders first. You’ll be very reliant on these leaders, as even if you’ve been working for the company a while, you won’t necessarily know the details of the other business divisions or their organisational dynamics. Form these alliances quickly to ensure you assimilate easily into the culture of the various businesses or you risk organisational ‘tissue rejection’ which can be hard to come back from. Meet regularly with those who report directly to you, as well as their own direct reports. This will help you understand what each person does, what their skills are, and where they are coming from more generally. Keep the meeting groups small in order to build rapport and trust with those who will be working closest to you. In days 60 to 90, you should be ready to reach out to the wider organisation. When it comes to communicating with employees and divisional teams, most senior executives now understand that an all-staff email won’t do. The best will offer employees a range of options, from town hall meetings to a webcast or video conferencing and small group Q&A sessions. Don’t risk disengaging the company’s employees by being inaccessible. Often, the expectations of a new CEO or Asia Pacific head are that he or she will make an early announcement of a change of strategy, but a new leader should resist the urge to act immediately, and instead spend time listening to colleagues and customers to gain insights about the business. Beware of trying to change the world before you’ve fully understood the world you’re changing. But likewise, don’t spend so long listening that you don’t act. There’s a balance to be struck; some go too far in the listening mode, leaving people to wonder whether they’ve hired an apprentice boss-in-training. Gregory J. Lovas, Partner at CTPartners in Singapore. Greg leads the firm’s Life Sciences Practice in Asia Pacific.