SINGAPORE, 23 NOVEMBER 2009 - Datacraft Asia has signed a partnership agreement with Singapore telco StarHub to offer a comprehensive suite of business solutions for international connectivity to organisations across Asia.

Datacraft is a wholly owned subsidiary of Dimension Data, a US$4 billion leading global IT solutions and services provider.

“Datacraft Asia will be able to offer selected StarHub business solutions and connectivity services to 13 countries in Asia and the United States, expanding StarHub’s reach into those countries,” the IT services company told the media. “At the same time, the agreement will enhance Datacraft’s wide-ranging portfolio of business services to multinational corporations and small-to-medium enterprises around the region.”

Article from MIS Asia

Singaporeans are more open to contract roles as the job market remains soft, according to the latest Employee Insights Survey, by Robert Walters.

31% of Singapore candidates chose “premium salary” as the key motivator for taking on a contract role, with a quarter of local professionals saying they would consider contracting if there were a lack of permanent job options. 21% of Singaporeans view contracting as an opportunity to get their foot into the door of an industry or company that they really want to work for.

“For all those reasons, I love being contract staff but I have no job security and I have very little employee benefits like medical or child care leave,” said one contract employee, working for a year at a British bank in Singapore.

Companies usually hire contractors for several reasons: for maternity cover, short term projects or as an alternative workforce solution due to restrictions in getting permanent headcount, explains Andrea Ross, Managing Director of Robert Walters Singapore.

Article from HRM

Hitachi Data Systems (HDS) has appointed a new group product director.HDS senior vice president and general manager, Asia Pacific, Kevin Eggleston, has announced Phil Gann as the director of the solutions and products group, Asia Pacific, with immediate effect.

Eggleston said the rapidly growing services-led solutions are a key component behind the move. “A Hitachi Data Systems veteran of 18 years, Phil brings to the role strong technical expertise and a sound understanding of the company’s products, services and strategic software initiatives.”

Gann replaces Vivekanand Venugopal, who has moved on to assume his new role as the vice president and general manager of India. Gann will be based in Hong Kong.

Former CEO of MobileOne (M1) Neil Montefiore will take over as the new chief of StarHub at the turn of 2010, following the retirement of current CEO Terry Clontz.

Hans Vestburg will become Ericsson’s new president and CEO come Jan. 1, 2010. Vestburg, who currently serves as Ericsson’s CFO, replaces Carl-Henric Svanberg, who has accepted the position of chairman of BP.

As executives, we do at one point or another in our career, face some sort of crisis,  be it prolonged stress, realignment of priorities due to changes in family or life situation, and in some extreme cases, burnout.  Some people call it the mid-life crisis. How we manage the crisis is very important in determining our career direction. Some come out of the crisis very positive and resilient. Others do not.

Believe it or not, many companies also go through mid life crises. From home grown businesses to multinational companies, we witness organizations going through re-tuning, re-orientation or re-creation as part of organizational change and growth.

Resource Dynamics is no different. This year we celebrate our fifteenth year in business. We grew from a one-person operation to a globally represented boutique firm inSingapore that, during our prime, allied with over 100 partners around the world. However, the dot com bubble burst and Technology specialists like us rebuilt ourselves to stay relevant. Last year we faced another crisis, this time of a gargantuan measure. 

Looking back, Resource Dynamics experienced and weathered 3 different types of crisis, the currency crisis, dot com bust and the financial meltdown.  These and the rise of social networking have changed the landscape of search quite drastically.

We want to inform you that Resource Dynamics is reinventing itself after fifteen years. We are naming ourselves  360 Dynamics to strongly reflect our belief that executive search has to incorporate extensive 360 degree due diligence  and that search is not just about enabling  a convenient match.

We are ready to ride on the recovering economy.  Our core purpose has not changed – we are still in the business of helping clients build their competitive advantage by searching for the best and most committed talents. Our specialization is still in the High-Tech industry, which primarily comprise, Software, Enterprise Systems and Servers, Information Technology Solutions, Telecommunications, Internet, Security, Mobility Solutions, Consulting and Professional Services.

We have intentionally kept ourselves small, boutique and specialized so we can focus on searching for mid-to-senior-tier level executives. The next time you need to search for your executive talents, remember to contact 360 Dynamics.

Best regards,

The 360 Dynamics team

What happen to middle-aged managers after they got retrenched or feels they might be getting retrenched soon ? Some points to share from an article in BNET:  

- Be prepared to see a reduction in salary of 15% to 30%.

- Be ready for a widespread search effort, with “many, many interviews.”

- Remember that “NETWORKING is absolutely critical. Some 60% of the available jobs will not be posted on job search sites or other avenues.”

MobileOne Ltd (M1) announced that Ms Karen Kooi Lee Wah has been appointed Chief Executive Officer (CEO) after an extensive internal and external search and review by M1’s Nominating Committee for the best candidate for the position. Her appointment as CEO as well as Director of M1 took effect from 22 April 2009.

With effect from the same date, Ms Kooi will step down from the position of Chief Financial Officer (CFO). The appointment of a new CFO will be announced at a later date.

Ms Kooi, a long-standing and experienced stalwart of M1, has been acting CEO since February 2009. She joined M1 as CFO in August 1995 and was a key member of the senior management team responsible for the planning, development and launch of M1’s commercial operations. In addition, she was, together with other members of the senior management team, integral in achieving the successful IPO of the Company in 2002, and guiding the direction and strategies of the Company that have enabled M1 to establish significant inroads in the telecommunications industry today. She has been closely involved in the strategic and financial management of the Company for almost 14 years and has been instrumental in instilling in the Company its strong governance and compliance standards.

MAY 2009 - To strengthen its Asia Pacific (APAC) South business, the InfoPrint Solutions Company has appointed a new general manager.

According to InfoPrint, which is a joint venture between technology firms IBM and Ricoh, the appointment of Albert Koh as its Asia Pacific (APAC) South general manager would strengthen its development of the ASEAN territories, particularly Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, The Philippines, Vietnam as well as Australia and New Zealand.

InfoPrint vice president and general manager, Asia Pacific, Christopher Reid said that Koh brought with him more than 10 years experience in leading multi functional teams and driving multi-million dollar, complex outsourcing deals.

FEB 2009 - Global technology services provider EDS, an HP company, has promoted Kevin Jones to senior vice president of its Asia Pacific and Japan region. He reports directly to EDS senior vice president and general manager Joe Eazor. Jones most recently served as vice president and managing director of EDS’ UK department for work and pensions account, where he led sales, delivery and relationship development for one of EDS’ largest clients.