Career 02 (Apr 10 - Apr 12)

[Aspellian]

A basic education is mostly sufficient. Beyond that all employees become useful only when he is able to contribute positively to his employer.. If that means earning an MBA will enhance his contribution, good and well.. Otherwise, it makes no difference if a cab driver is PhD holder..

Totally agree with both hands and feet.

I have friends who have gone thro' the MBA route and are still working as senior engineers... I got other engineering friends who did not take any MBA but constantly added value to their employer and are now directors in their company..

I guess MBA is needed if you want to pursue a career in finance... other than that, its more important to have the practical know how.

I know of many Fortune 500 CEOs that do not have MBAs.

My former boss says it best " I would rather hire an Chemical engineer who had only a decent pass but was the varsity basketball captain than a 1st class honors who did not take part in any activities".

Thanks to Kenny and MM for the valuable advice. much appreciated.

[millionairemind]

Facebook and other social media cost UK billions

By Paul Casciato
LONDON | Thu Aug 5, 2010 12:09pm EDT
(Reuters) - Employees who fritter time away on Facebook, Twitter and other social media Web sites are costing British businesses billions, new research suggests.

British employment website MyJobGroup.co.uk said it polled 1,000 British workers and found that nearly six percent, or 2 million, of Britain's 34 million-strong workforce spent over an hour per day on social media while at work, amounting to more than one eighth of their entire working day.

"Our results clearly show that UK workers are spending increased time whilst at work on social media networks, which, left unchecked, could have negative repercussions on the productivity of many companies across the country," Managing Director of Myjobgroup.co.uk Lee Fayer said in a statement with the results of the survey.

MyJobGroup.co.uk said that work time lost on Facebook, Twitter and other social media networks could potentially be costing Britain up to 14 billion pounds ($22.16 billion).

The research showed more than half of British workers (55 percent) confessed to accessing social media profiles at work, with many spending so much time friending, tweeting, adding photos and video, as well as updating their profiles, that companies' productivity was suffering as a result.

Despite the negative effects on the economy in the midst of a fragile recovery, many workers polled were in denial about the ill-effects of social media on their efficiency. Only 14 percent of respondents admitted to being less productive as a result of social media and 10 percent even claimed social media had made them more productive.

What's more, there was still widespread resistance to banning access to social networks at work, with over two thirds (68 percent) advocating some form of access during working hours. Only one third wanted sites like Facebook, Twitter, Flickr and YouTube barred during work time, demonstrating the growing importance of social media to the daily routine and the widespread resistance to its access being limited.

"Whilst we're certainly not kill-joys, people spending over an hour per day in work time on the likes of Facebook and Twitter are seriously hampering companies' efforts to boost productivity, which is more important than ever given the fragile state of our economy," Fayer said.

"Companies would do well to monitor use of social networking sites during work hours and ensure that their employees are not abusing their freedom of access to these sites."

[kennynah]

well...i thought the western world has always advocated the freedom to live in anyway they like...including twittering and facebooking?? no?

oh now...there's a boundary to freedom.... they are now allowed to twitter at work....

and later, they have to abide strictly by the lunch time hour..., then, no more tea breaks, then....they cant protest their grievances...then, the tanks will roll down 10 Downing ....and crush their dissidents...

[winston]

They were doing something as unproductive before eg. chatting at the coffee machine or having a smoke outside.

They are now moving from one unproductive activity to another.

Net effect still the same. No loss in productivity.

[kennynah]

[iam802]

So, those IT vendors can now use this report..and push for more firewall sales.

Block this site, block that site. Add this feature, add that feature.

Spend tons of money to recover little productivity.

[kennynah]

buy all these firewall s/w, cost to companies mah....i know many large MNCs already prohibit employees from accessing hotmail

anyways...nowadays...with pda phones, very easy to surf the net ... quite pointless to block company computers from accessing pornsites/tweeter/facebook/qq/etc

[millionairemind]

If they spend too much time on FB, means they are too free.. perhaps they need more work??

[kennynah]

They shd just go work for FB... Problem solved

[millionairemind]

Does this mean that they are currently slacking off??


8 in 10 would 'perform at a higher level' if given share of profits: Survey
05:55 AM Aug 11, 2010
SINGAPORE - Amid the Government's call to raise productivity, the responses of Singapore workers to a survey by recruitment agency Kelly Services could provide some pointers: Almost 8 in 10 of those surveyed said they would be motivated to "perform at a higher level" if they were able to share in profits or have an ownership stake in their employer's business.

The survey involved about 2,700 workers in Singapore and was conducted as part of a global survey focusing on workers' attitudes on productivity and their well-being.

When the respondents were asked if profit sharing or employee ownership was "something that would motivate you to perform at a higher level", 78 per cent replied in the affirmative.

The survey also found that 53 per cent of the respondents had part of their pay tied to performance targets. For those who were not under such an arrangement, more than half said they would be more productive if their earnings were linked to their work performance,

Commenting on the findings, Kelly Services Singapore managing director Mark Sparrow said: "Many employees are actually quite comfortable about some element of their compensation being tied to their individual or group performance. This indicates that many are confident in their ability to perform their jobs well and believe they can share in the rewards of improved workplace productivity."

The survey also found a "real groundswell of opinion urging employers to not only support, but to actively promote healthy employees and healthy workplaces", Mr Sparrow noted.

Almost three-quarters of the respondents felt employers should provide incentives to encourage a healthier lifestyle, including for quitting smoking, losing weight or taking up exercise.

Outside of salary, the respondents rated training as the most important benefit at their workplace, followed by health benefits, flexible hours, and vacation or personal time-off.

Among the health benefits provided by employers, the respondents felt health insurance was the most attractive, followed by gym access or discounts, corporate exercise programmes, and a smoke-free environment.