23-year-old Hany shares her experiences discovering friendship and independence in the UK.

By Kevin Lim

Hany had, by her own admission, a “trouble-free childhood”.

Having lived her younger days safe in the comfort of home, Hany desired to take a leap of faith and challenge herself, and her ability to live independently, overseas.

Since young, Hany knew she wanted to be a lawyer and that was the reason why she chose to study a diploma in Law and Management instead of taking A-levels. In her opinion, it will provide a better foundation for her degree.

In fact, the internship opportunities during her polytechnic days made her even more determined to further her studies in Law.

The recent winner of Singapore Health Promotion Board’s Platinum Health Award 2010, TÜV SÜD PSB is an established and internationally recognized integrated solution provider, offering testing, inspection, product and management system certification services in Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam, We speak to three TÜV SÜD PSB employees to find out more about the career opportunities available at this established multinational corporation.

by Wendy Ng

The first thing that grabs the attention of anyone walking up to TÜV SÜD PSB’s reception counter is the huge shelf on the left, displaying rows of brochures each detailing a different aspect of this multi-faceted company.

This shelf of brochures is just a tiny hint of the diverse range of career options available within the company.

Providing certification, testing and inspection services, TÜV SÜD PSB aims to help companies achieve business excellence, and caters to multiple industries from manufacturing, aerospace, consumer products, food and healthcare etc. Formerly known as PSB Corporation, TÜV SÜD PSB is headquartered in Singapore and is part of the TÜV SÜD Group, which was established 140 years ago and now has over 15,000 employees in 600 locations worldwide.

A reputed name
“This company appealed to me because of the amount of recognition it has in the market,” says Ting Chye Cher, a Certification Executive with TÜV SÜD PSB.

Armed with a diploma in Civil and Environmental Engineering and past working experiences in construction, marine, oil and gas industries, the 32-year-old was drawn to TÜV SÜD PSB for its wide brand recognition among industry peers. “From where I was from, especially in the construction industry, you always hear about TÜV SÜD PSB. Before you buy a product, the first thing you ask is if it’s TÜV SÜD PSB-certified. When I found out that there was a job opportunity for me in TÜV SÜD PSB, I did not hesitate to try.”

Since joining TÜV SÜD PSB more than a year ago, Chye Cher has gone from helping customers on their product certification inquiries to playing an active role in the issuing of such certifications.

Seraphine Ng is the proud winner of the inaugural JobsCentral Learning Award. We find out why the process of learning has always been important to her.

by Wendy Ng

“It’s okay, I’ll try again next time,” were the words Seraphine Ng was prepared to say when she received a call about the results of the 2010 JobsCentral Learning Award.

“It was a sleepy afternoon in the office. I thought it was a polite call to tell me someone else had gotten the award and I had even prepared what to say. Suddenly I was told I had won. It woke me up instantly!” recalls Seraphine.

Like her fellow nominees, Seraphine signed up on the JobsCentral Learning portal and applied for the inaugural JobsCentral Learning Award. Nominees went through an interview process with a selection panel, and Seraphine was eventually chosen as the winner, receiving $1,000 in cash and an award certificate.

Aiming for career advancement
To Seraphine, the importance of upgrading herself through further studies has always been clear. “I have been doing accounts for the past 10 years, but I have never been able to get promoted to the position that I wanted. Even with a diploma in Accountancy, I could only get to positions such as Accounts Executive or Accounts Assistant,” shares the 29 year old, whose dream job is to be a Regional Accounts Manager.

“If I rely solely on my diploma, I will forever only be an Accounts Executive, I might become an Accounts Manager if I joined a small-medium enterprise, but that’s not what I really want. I want a regional post, which requires a lot of knowledge. That convinced me to further my studies after ten years,” explains Seraphine.

The Ngee Ann Polytechnic graduate shares a long and fulfilling relationship with JobsCentral spanning ten years of her working life. Having registered with JobsCentral since her polytechnic days, Seraphine proudly informs us that she found her current job through JobsCentral, one of Singapore’s largest job portals.

By Ernest Eng

Niwas Nallasamy hails from southern India and has been in Singapore ever since he decided to pursue his ‘A’ levels here. He soon found himself at crossroads after graduating.

“I initially had plans to further my studies in physics or engineering but at an education fair, I realised that the career development options in the accounting field would suit me better – so the choice then came down to where best to pursue my accounting education.”

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If you’ve received negative feedback about your job performance, don’t panic. The first step to recovering is to digest the news with poise. While it’s natural to feel defensive or angry during a bad review, career coaches advise against acting on these emotions to avoid making matters worse.

Take a day or two to let things soak in. Then schedule a meeting with your boss to find out why you received a bad grade. Listen carefully and take notes. If your boss doesn’t offer specific examples of poor performance, ask for a few. This way you can learn from your mistakes and also be sure that he or she isn’t making any false or misguided assertions. When the meeting is over, thank your boss for the feedback.

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Should you stay or should you go? There’s no surefire sign that it’s time to look for greener professional pastures. But there are a few clear reasons that could signal it’s time to change jobs.

First, ask yourself if there is a culture clash. Is your entrepreneurial nature always at odds with the collaborative style of your co-workers? Do you need a social, mobile work environment to keep your creative juices flowing, while your office is neatly divided up into closed office spaces? A company’s core culture isn’t likely to change over night, so if you’re not happy, it might be time to look elsewhere.

Another sign that a job change might be in order is a lack of performance-based rewards. Maybe you’ve received the standard raise yet again, but weren’t awarded a new title. Or you consistently exceed the limits of a company’s bonus structure. Most employees need incentives and rewards to feel valued, and if you’re not getting them, it might be time to dust off that résumé.

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by Arlene S. Hirsch
April 15, 2008

Work can be miserable when you and your boss don't get along. At times, quitting may seem to be the only option.

When she was a working journalist, Jill Geisler decided she didn't want to work for someone she remembers as a "gloriously imperfect" boss. "Picture Anthony Quinn, Vince Lombardi, and Hawkeye Pierce all rolled into one man," she says. "Volatile. Demanding. Larger than life."

Ms. Geisler, now a group leader in St. Petersburg, Fla., for the Poynter Institute, a training center for journalists, sought advice from a mentor, who counseled her to get to know her boss before making a rash career decision. Now she's glad she did.

She and the man she didn't want to work for are good friends who laugh about their rocky start 15 years ago. Despite differing styles, they both valued high-quality journalism and community service. Once Ms. Geisler had earned her supervisor's trust and respect, she could question and challenge his decisions and even nag him about his idiosyncrasies.

One reason the relationship succeeded is that Ms. Geisler took responsibility for making it work. Her candor became the foundation for a close and fruitful professional partnership.

If you work for an imperfect boss, what are you prepared to do about it? These suggestions from consultants and employment experts can help you to improve your relationship with a new or long-time supervisor:

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by Dennis Nishi
September 5, 2010

On her second round of interviews for an editorial job in Chicago, Jess Wangsness was asked: If you could be a giraffe without a neck or an elephant without a trunk, which would you choose and why?

"Even though none of it had anything to do with the job, we had a fairly animated conversation about elephant behavior," Ms. Wangsness says. She didn't get the job but still wonders about the question. "Perhaps employers simply like to gauge just how interesting their candidates really are?" she says.

Regardless of how offbeat some interview questions may sound, most employers have their own hidden reasons for asking them. Usually, such queries are a way to uncover information about you that standard interview questions don't suss out. And whether the goal is to gauge your leadership aptitude or test your ability to handle stress, experts say you should stay composed and answer concisely.

The way you react to a question or work through an answer can actually score more points with the interviewer than the answer you give.

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by Toddi Gutner
April 24, 2009

Armed with an M.B.A. from Arkansas State University, 24-year-old Dana Lund figured she had what she needed to succeed at her new job in the sales-training program at Acxiom Corp., a global interactive marketing firm.

But it wasn't until she took the Birkman Method personality assessment test -- a 45-minute assessment to identify an individual's work style and behavior -- that she really got the tools she needed. The Little Rock, Ark.-based Acxiom requires nearly every new employee to take the 298-question test. Ms. Lund, who joined the company last year, says she quickly learned she worked best by planning a task step-by-step, being creative and having time to reflect. "It has helped me to learn how to interact better with work teams and to leverage my strengths in the workplace," she says.

Many young people are facing this extra hurdle. These days, more than 80% of midsize and large companies use personality and ability assessments for entry and midlevel positions as either pre-employment or new-employee orientation tools, says Scott Erker, a senior vice president at Development Dimensions International, a global human-resources consultancy. These assessments have been widely used in retail positions but are quickly spreading to other industries, including finance, technology, health care and operations.