Commentary

A trial date provides a timely reminder to Singapore firms

On August 8th two foreign nationals will stand trial in China accused of illegally purchasing personal information about Chinese Nationals. This is a timely reminder to Singaporean companies conducting due diligence outside of Singapore to exercise caution.

Commentary

A trial date provides a timely reminder to Singapore firms

Commentary

Is the Jobs Bank fair to Singapore?

The Jobs Bank is now live in Singapore. This is a "Singaporean-first" policy for all companies where this didn’t exist before. It’s a great principle apart from the small fact that in many people’s view everyone who wants a job in Singapore can find a job. It may not be their dream job with that million-dollar salary, presidential title, and corner office overlooking Marina Bay but it will be a good job for a good firm in a great place.

Commentary

What makes a good Singaporean bookkeeper

Being in the business of bookkeeping, we have often encountered people who have the wrong idea of the bookkeeping process. Bookkeeping is predominantly meant to record transactions pertaining to the business in the accounting system - and that is where bookkeeping ends.

Commentary

3 ideas to increase employee engagement in Singapore

Despite high GDP, living standards, and quality of jobs, we are still one of the unhappiest workers in Asia and globally, according to a newspaper report in January 2014.

Commentary

From transit to trendy: how Singapore evolved into a cosmopolitan travel destination

The first time I visited Singapore was way back in the mid-'80s.

Commentary

Fueling Singapore's Smart Nation drive with data

The days of science and technology being a niche subject are far over. Today, ask anyone why they use their smartphone model of choice and there's a good chance you'll get a lengthy exposition on the pros and cons of different operating systems, screen sizes, and the chips in the devices.

Commentary

What Singapore companies need to know about workplace learning

Despite more training days, Singapore’s productivity growth has not improved. Over the past decade, Singapore’s economy grew by an average of 5% per annum, compared to paltry productivity growth of 1% over the same period.

Commentary

Tasty branding strategies of Singapore firms

Singapore is a welcoming hub for international brands that seek to establish a base in Asia or specifically Southeast Asia. With the rise of competing products and service providers, it is imperative that businesses are able to distinguish their brands among their competitors.

Commentary

8 ways to shake up Inventory Management as demand weakens in Singapore

An eternal struggle at the heart of effective supply chain management is how much inventory to hold. It’s an equation organisations continually get wrong. As demand flattens across Singapore it’s more important than ever before to get it right. This requires a complete shake up the way inventory is being managed.

Commentary

Singapore's leadership role in food security

As food security becomes an increasing focus of concern among governments, multi-lateral lending institutions and impact investors globally, Singapore is well positioned to play a key role as a center for addressing Asian and global food security issues over the next decade and beyond due to its unique combination of assets and expertise.

Commentary

Here are the skills in demand in Singapore right now

Project Accountants, Quantity Surveyors, and IT Technology Risk Engineers are just some of the professionals in high demand, but inflated salary expectations are pricing some Singaporeans out of securing their next job.

Commentary

Why banks in Singapore should not let HR run their LinkedIn company pages

As a marketer I shudder when I see a valuable communications channel like a LinkedIn company page being misused by non-marketing people such as Human Resources (HR). What a missed opportunity to engage, inspire, and market your company.

Commentary

Here's why brands in Singapore should create engaging content all year round

Valentine’s Day, Chinese New Year, Father’s Day, Hari Raya -- the list of special hallmark days in Singapore is endless. Why do brands only share content that is themed around these days? Why don’t brands look more holistically and share content on every day of the year?

Commentary

What Singapore businesses need to know about two-factor authentication

Amid the escalating trend of online theft and identity fraud worldwide, and recent news of the eBay, Heartbleed Bug, and SingPass data breaches, it is time for businesses to seriously consider adopting two-factor authentication (2FA). The Singapore government has led the way by announcing the introduction of 2FA for e-government services involving sensitive data or transactions.

Commentary

CSR, Singapore-style: An untapped business strategy?

Can CSR be a business strategy to grow the business? The answer seems to be yes, according to a recent report from Nielsen.

Commentary

What Singaporeans need to know about the 20-year-old GST

On 1 April 2014, the Goods and Services Tax in Singapore passed its 20th year in the statute books. Although GST was new to Singapore, it was not a new tax. Value Added Tax (VAT) had been in use in the European Union (EU) for almost 30 years by 1994, and Singapore was able to take advantage of best practices and the bitter experience of other countries in its design and implementation of the tax.

Commentary

Innovating businesses in Singapore's services industry

At first glance, Singapore’s consumer culture presents a rosy climate to budding entrepreneurs venturing into the food and beverage (F&B) and retail industry. 6 out of 10 Singaporeans dine out at a daily basis, opening up demand in a cosmopolitan melting pot of local and expatriate flavours.

Commentary