In recent weeks, there has been a lot of news about the weak labour market and the difficulties fresh graduates face in getting a job. What advice would you give these job-seekers, and is your company open to hiring fresh graduates or interns right now?
Patrick Liew
CEO
HSR Property Group
TO stand out from the crowd, fresh graduates can prove their worth by calling on potential employers instead of just responding to advertisements. They can research prospective employers, such as their corporate philosophy, modus operandi and aspirations. Use the job interview to show how they can fit into the company and contribute to its profit, advantage and growth.
HSR is constantly looking for talent, including fresh graduates or interns who can take the company to a higher level. We are mindful that we are not just in the real estate business, we are also in the relationship business.
Rajiv Singh
Managing director
Sims Group of companies
PREPARE a sharp resume with clearly defined skill sets, your ideology and your five-year goal. Send the resume to as many meaningful people as you can and ask them to pass on the word. Ask your friends and family members to do the same. Make a checklist of this and follow it up gently every fortnight bearing in mind not to be over aggressive when following up.
In parallel, young grads should try to upgrade their soft skills such as communication and inter-personal skills, presentation, personality, networking, etc.
In the current circumstances, the search for a job may take longer - but don't be disheartened or dissuaded. If you have financial difficulties, approach a family member or friend for a loan to tide you over the next six to 12 months.
If it's a study loan that's bothering you, seek advice and speak to a lender to structure this with a 12-month moratorium period.
At Sims, we still have an opening for one or two fresh business graduates willing to do some serious well documented and indexed market research in areas where we are looking to expand once our manufacturing subsidiary in Malaysia comes on stream in Q4 this year.
Dhirendra Shantilal
Senior vice-president (Asia Pacific)
Kelly Services
BESIDES keeping an open mind and considering jobs or internships that will give them real-world training, fresh graduates should adjust their salary expectations to get the necessary skills and experience they need, as well as be patient to achieve their aspirations over a longer period.
New job seekers need to be flexible and versatile in their outlook, and not let status or pay prevent them from taking jobs that are available. They should be able to adapt to new environments, learn from the job through on-site training and be prepared to pick up new skills and languages.
These real-life skills and working experience will be very useful for their career development, as some knowledge and skills gained are transferable and can be applied to a broad range of industries.
Andrew Chua
Executive chairman
EASB
IN times like these, employers prefer graduates who are employment-ready and able to contribute positively and immediately on the first day at work.
These are likely to be people who have completed their education in business and management-oriented programmes that emphasise hands-on skills and provide industrial and work attachment training. At EASB, we adopt the holistic education approach to ensure that all our graduates will be career-ready professionals - confident, competent, committed and creative. Our records indicate that almost all our graduates gain employment within six months of their graduation, because they are relevant to the needs and requirements of employers.
We are also hiring interns/fresh graduates to fulfil our recruitment needs.
Wilson Goh
Managing director
Team GPA
IN recessionary times, many companies either freeze the hiring of new staff or even retrench existing staff. But there are also companies that take advantage of tough times to expand. Team GPA, a dental practice, is taking advantage of the recession to expand its branch network. Currently, it has three branches. By June 2009, it will add two more.
In view of this expansion, Team GPA is looking to hire more staff, especially dentists. We are looking to hire not only experienced people but fresh graduates, especially those who are receptive to learning and adopting new technology in the dentistry field. We provide extensive in-house training for fresh graduates.
John Koh
Managing director
WMRC
I STRONGLY advise fresh graduates or even final-year students to start planning their job search before graduation. They should try as much as possible to secure internship positions with companies that are eager to train them, and see such opportunities as valuable means to gain a first step into the working world.
Apart from that, try all potential avenues to secure job interviews and create opportunities for themselves. They could take on volunteer activities that will help develop technical and soft skills needed.
Another avenue is to speak with recruitment specialists, or consider executive search work as a possible first job, as it gives a first-hand understanding of the key skills needed in the various job roles in a particular industry.
Understanding various job roles in a company enables fresh graduates to quickly grasp how work processes interlink with others - valuable knowledge to have if you aspire to a senior management role. At WMRC we are constantly looking for promising talent who see potential in executive search work.
In fact, we see this down period as an excellent time to improve our processes and sharpen our internal capabilities.
Chew Ker Yee
Vice-president
Wangi Industrial
WHEN I graduated in architecture in 2001, that was right in the middle of the construction slump. I looked elsewhere and found opportunities. Many of my classmates did the same. I hear that right now, the services and hospitality sectors are looking for bright candidates.
Be flexible and take this opportunity to get as much exposure as possible. Take Tom Stemberg, founder and ex-CEO of Staples, as an example. After graduating from Harvard Business School, he started working in a supermarket - and later founded the world's first office super-store.
Another example is Jack Ma of Alibaba, who was a teacher and a tour guide before he founded the world's largest B2B online portal. Do look beyond Singapore for opportunities - don't choose only world class cities.
Yes, we are always looking for interns and new graduates to inject our team with energy and fresh ideas. This is a good time for us to build our team to ride the post-recession wave.
Henry Tan
Managing director
Nexia TS
WE are still hiring fresh graduates. As a mid-tier accounting firm of about 90 staff, we always were at a disadvantage vis-a-vis the Big Four in getting graduates from the local universities.
This year we participated in the NTU career fair and received more than 60 job applications. We have short-listed about 10 people and we are looking for more who fit our vision and growth strategy. The average age at our firm is about 35 - we are young, but looking out for next-generation leaders.
My advice to fresh grads is to consider where a job will lead them in five to 10 years. The job of your dreams now, because it is glamorous, may not turn out to be the best career move down the track.
Many SMEs offer excellent career and ownership opportunities. Turn away from the mentality of being worker and think of yourself as a possible entrepreneur. With motivation, you can be an owner one day.
Cheryl Tong
Managing director (PowerPRO)
Pursuit
BE more flexible and open to exploring opportunities in industries that are less affected by the downturn. Fresh graduates should try to broaden their horizon and gain experience in a range of areas, rather than one particular industry. This will help them build a range of skill sets that will serve them well in the long run.
Another effective strategy for fresh graduates is to do an internship with companies they hope to work for. Internship is attractive to prospective employers because it is cost-effective. It is beneficial to the interns because it gives them the chance to demonstrate their capabilities, commitment and qualities.
Pursuit welcomes fresh graduates as long as they are driven and committed to excellence in whatever they do. We love to work with them since they often bring a fresh outlook and are easy to mould and teach, free from any rigid stereotypical work styles.
They are like a new sponge ready to absorb what you have to impart. They can also think and function out of the box, which is essential for us as we strive for constant growth and innovation in our business offerings.
Jackie Cheng
CEO
HISAKA Holdings
IT IS very important that job seekers set realistic expectations. Job seekers should invest time and effort to produce a CV that will help them gain interviews. They may need to set salary and designation expectations to the minimum.
At the interview, candidates must be able to exhibit how they can contribute positively to the company despite the downturn. Candidates with realistic and positive mindsets, who are eager to learn and excel and demonstrate high level of responsibility and responsiveness will remain attractive to employers.
Our company is trying to expand into non-traditional businesses, so we do foresee a need to hire candidates in those fields when the need arises.
Valerie Tan
CEO
Pinnacle International
I WOULD advise fresh graduates and interns to re-align their expectations and look for long-term growth potential rather than short-term satisfaction. It is important to strategise your job search by identifying your core competencies and leveraging on them to find a job with the best fit.
We have always been a firm believer in staff training and development. Even before the recession, our recruitment and selection process has taken an open approach to intrinsic and extrinsic candidate qualities. What we strive to do here is to maximise, and eventually capitalise, on each employee's potential.
As our expansion plans in the region materialise, and as opportunities arise amidst the crisis, we certainly welcome fresh perspectives from fresh graduates and interns that may prove to be valuable assets to us.
