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April 30, 2005

Rude Interviewers

A lot of the discussion around the unemployment of fresh graduates centers around their inability to speak English or to market themselves correctly.

Is this always right?

What happened to job applicants in an interview situation?

Ee Fei sent me an interesting description of one of her interview experiences. Read on and tell me what you think.

"It's part of their (interviewers) job to help keep the interviewee at ease, so that they can see the real person on the other side of the table, not merely but intimidating, passing rude and shocking comments and asking questions with a demeaning intention.

(...)

COMPANY shocked me by asking me to talk about anything. Just about
anything. No clues, no indication or any sort. If the company wants to
see how well one talks (non-technically) then, the company might
consider having draw cards that has a random topic which the candidate
has to talk about for 15-30 minutes. It's way fucking better to know
beforehand that the topic is going to be random rather than to be
shocked when asked rudely to speak, because either way, the
interviewee will loose, as if they pick a simple topic like
i. Fast food
ii. Hair care
iii. Watch
iv. Punctuality

The interviewer will still not be satisfied because they might not be
interested in what the interviewee has to say."

Did this only happen to her, or are there other, similar stories out there?

Posted by Andreas at 07:10 PM | Comments (8) | TrackBack

Handicapped in Malaysia

I like Mack's initiative to assist Peter (and finally managed to link up - will I be the last one?).

To recall: Peter is paralysed. He is living on the 20th floor in a condominium in Penang, an island in Malaysia. Penang is one of those areas that were hit by the Tsunami last year and is currently frequently shaken by the reoccurring earthquakes.

He blogged during the last bad earthquake of end-March. Why? Because there is no evacuation route for handicapped people in his apartment area.

He has mentioned this a lot of times in writing to the management - to no avail. The label him a troublemaker!

People might ask, why he decided to live that high anyway, if he is disabled. There is more to this. Let me mention three points here.

First: Situations change. The one who is healthy today might be sick and in need tomorrow.

Secondly: Is it that just because someone is disabled or otherwise handicapped, we can put them away? Ask them to stay at lower floors? Don't they have a right to live where ever they chose to live?

Thirdly: Malaysia is a beautiful country, with very warm people. However, a lot has been done for the abled people. There is however, way too little comfort for disabled people. Be it in shopping malls, on the roadside (just take a look at the few available pavements!), or elsewhere. It is a country made for the healthy. Problem is: The Malaysian population is also aging. And sooner or later, there will be a need to accommodate the elderly and those that are not mobile anymore.

Help Peter. He is a great guy. His blog is called The Digital Awakening. I interpret it in a way that the Internet allows him to reach out. The same for me. But I can easily connect with others anywhere because I can walk.

Just like the Internet allows him to meet other people there should be a way for him to get out of his apartment when the building is shaking widely!

Posted by Andreas at 11:02 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

April 29, 2005

Watch your language

I like this entry over at DKBU about encouraging words.

The message basically is that the world you see depends on the type of words you chose (reminds me a bit of my earlier entry about "Don't Do That).

And words you use reflects the thoughts you carry and how you experience the world!

One of my favourite sentences, mentioned by a friend the other day, is:

If you don't like the rats to follow you, you should stop behaving like a cheese.

In other words: If you have negative thoughts, negative things will follow. If you look at things positively positive things will follow.

Or: Do you see what you face currently as a problem or as an opportunity?

Posted by Andreas at 03:04 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

Face to face with the sharks

What do you think about competition? Do you think that your competitor needs to be smashed, eliminated, erased, bullied?

Or do you believe that competition and cooperating with your competition could also have advantages?

I believe that it is good to have competition. If all the competitors beat the drum, the market is growing. I wouldn't be the only one who has to take care of the awareness of my services. The challenge then would be to raise my own standards above the competition, become more valuable to the customer than my competitor. This raises the overall bar, is challenging and in the end of the day, it benefits the customer.

"New research suggests that not only is it possible to make friends with your competitors -- it's advisable. No matter how competitive their industry, rival CEOs who form friendships are at a distinct advantage over those who go it alone."

A great confirmation of my own thinking. However how is the Asian environment? Is competition here in Asia laid out in such a way that smashing the competition is seen as the only way forward?

Posted by Andreas at 11:41 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

April 28, 2005

Hey - I see you. CCTV at the workplace

I overheard this short discussion on Traxx FM this morning. More and more companies in the US, but also increasingly organisations in Malaysia, install CCTV cameras in their premises to watch employees and their doing.

Do you know any such company? What is your opionion about this?

Mine is that it is useless. We are living in a high-tech environment where more and more jobs go mobile. In the nearer future, many workers will either work from home or elsewhere or be on the road to conduct their business. How to supervise them?

Worse, isn't this a total sign of mistrusting your employees? Okay, while basically, employees are paid to work by an employer to work 40 hours or so for a company, the limits of work are pushed to the back anyway.

We work longer hours, we are reachable 24/7, and frequently, push private life and family to the background to meet project and thus employers' needs.

If I would have a camera in the background, I would feel mistrusted, regulated, felt treated worse than a child that needs supervision.

It is clear that companies need to observe costs, but the social costs that come with a CCTV at a workplace are higher than companies might foresee.

I believe that an employee equipped with challenging work, having a clear careerpath and working with trusting and reliable leadership outperforms the requirements set.

On the other hand: Show me a CCTV in a company and I will show you a loser in the market place. Is this too hard a statement?

Posted by Andreas at 01:09 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

April 27, 2005

McDonalds new look

Mc Donalds is upgrading their image and rebranding itself. Their new (now already old) slogan is "I'm lovin' it". Not sure how successful it is, but as far as I remember, their revenue slide has been stopped.

In course of this action, they also upgrade their restaurants. It looks more classy, right?

McD 1.jpg

I have the feeling that their menu has also changed - the sets only contain two sizes - regular and large -, while earlier, I was able to able to get my Big Mac in small size.

The big question with rebranding is - how is the customer perceiving it? Does something really change, like, the food delivery is on time? Or does service still suck and long queues of impatient customers build up?

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Posted by Andreas at 06:26 PM | Comments (8) | TrackBack

Personal change

This is something that is written about personal change. Many times, I hear people saying that it is tough to change. Too many things influencing, cannot tahan, mah, what to do, it was always like that.

Ratatatatatata.

Do you know what is the organisation with the most successful personal change management programme? The Alcoholics Anonymous or AA. Talk to them or anybody for that matter who stopped some form of addiction.

You will find quickly find out that change is happening on a minute by minute base and second by second base. Nothing more, nothing less. Change now and keep it up. Simply keep going.

In the beginning, everything is new, because you start a new life. When I stopped smoking, about 11 years back, it was sheer willpower that kept me going. I had to drink my first coffee without a subsequent cigarette. And had to live through the change. I had a first meeting with business people and had to live through the change. I went to a pub for the first time and was surrounded by smokers. The internal urge to pick smoking up again was there and I had to cope with it.

I had a spare cigarette at home - just in case the urge to smoke would become to large to cope with and when I once had a huge fight with my girlfriend, who now is my wife. In between the fight, I had to stop and tell her - "give me a minute. I have to throw away those cigarettes into the toilet. If I don't do this now, I start to smoke." I threw them away and when I came back to continue the fight, well, we had forgotten what we fought about and had to laugh about the situation.

I had strong urge to smoke when my father died, about 6 months after I stopped smoking. This was also tough - but I managed, due to the willpower. I told myself, constantly, that I managed to stop smoking for 6 months, and all would ahve been wasted if I pick up the habit again.

So - what is the conclusion? I am no sure if those Tak Nak Campaigns work, because they don't address the personal circumstances. Change is possible, often painful, and all you need is the real willpower to go through with it - remember, in the end, you start a new life.

Commitment to change minute by minute. All you need is already within you. This goes for anything, from drug addiction to training, to procrastination to ... whatever. Go with it. See the outcome. Feel the change. Change!!!

Does this make sense?

Posted by Andreas at 04:26 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

April 26, 2005

Rebranding gone wrong?

The rebranding of Malaysian companies and entities continues. We had Telekom Malaysia becoming TM, Radio 4 became Traxx FM.

Now MMC gets a new logo, and a new identity (published today in The Star, not yet on the webpage).

My question: Did TM and MMC use the same agency?

Look at the logos: Don't they look similar? Blue colour, a very similar red line? Well, am I lucky to know that rebranding involves more than just a logo, right?


Logos.jpg

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Posted by Andreas at 01:52 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

April 25, 2005

War drums beating

Is it happening again? Since a couple of months, newspapers speculate that a new war is in the making, this time against Iran.

The UK is on the edge of a new election and Tony Blair is the frontrunner.

Liberal Democrat Charles Kennedy today accused "the US of plotting an attack on Iran within 18 months - and said there was "no reason to trust" the Prime Minister (Tony Blair) to stay out."

What do you think?

Posted by Andreas at 05:26 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack

The Apprentice

Finally, it is over. Kelly won in the second season of The Apprentice. Anybody who would have voted for Jen? (okay, Asia is in Season 2, while the US is planning Season 4 already)

How did you like the show? It is one of the few reality shows that I watch. There are a few tips from Donald Trump that I picked up along the way, but mainly, I like the dynamics that went on in the different team during the sessions.

A lot of in-fighting, back-stapping and so on. Fighting for survival in the boardroom. And so on. Not my way of doing things, actually, and I am not sure if I would like to work in such hyper-competitive environment. Nothing against competition, but internal competition could and should look different.

If you observe the way how the different candidates carried themselves in the sessions - their body and facial language, well, it didn't show a lot of respect for teamwork, something that I respect a lot. Neither did it show a lot of respect for others.

The candidates of the second season were selected from 1 million applicants. I am not sure about those who watch the show as well - but I am sure know that I wouldn't like to have any of the winners working with me. God Pity America if those were really the best of the best.

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Posted by Andreas at 04:14 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack

Monday Blues

Even so I recently said that I don't do too much on a Sunday I am pretty busy. And I have fun, a lot of fun.

In fact, I have so much fun that I don't like to go back to work on Monday. This has changed from earlier weeks and months. There was a time when I had a good weekend and still, I looked forward to working on Monday. Was energetic with projects and fun-filled activities.

I read somewhere that the engagement of an employee drops to "0" once he leaves the company for the evening. It is the motivation and power that a company provides, that lets the same employee get up in the morning and get back to work.

Engagement is a better word than employee satisfaction. I am saying that I can satisfied in my job by just hiding behind my computer and basically, and not do what I am paid to do - to help the company to succeed in the marketplace

I don't see myself too engaged currently. I am satisfied with what I am doing, but then, again, I have trouble becoming motivated and giving my best. Now I wonder: Are there magic tricks to get motivated? No - I don't believe in magic, but I am curious about what other people do to stay engaged and motivated in their job! Tell me.

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Posted by Andreas at 03:34 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

April 24, 2005

Goals written on a wooden plank

We all have goals. Somewhere inside of us.

In the first training module last week, we learnt to really formulate goals and make them actionable.

A second module in the training is still to come. In the end of the first module, our trainer gave us each of us wooden plank - and we will be required to break them before we get certificates of course completion.

To prepare us internally we have to write down our goal on the one side of the plank and on the other side, we have to write down what holds us back.

I just did just that and WoW, I feel great.

Here is a picture of the planks. One of those is mine. They are massive and real timber. No joke!

Planks.jpg

Posted by Andreas at 11:44 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Nagging Mat Sallehs

Mr. Brown had quite an interesting discussion at his blog that originated at Steve's blog who lamented the lack of matured blogs in Singapore. This discussion developed into the question, whether or not Ang Mohs or Mat Sallehs can nag about their socalled "host" country.

What about Malaysia? We have Jordan, ST, and, well, yours Truly.

Tell me, are we "allowed" to nag about things that happen to us in Malaysia? Not that I would stop it, anyway, but how is the tolerance level for this out there?

Posted by Andreas at 11:03 AM | Comments (10) | TrackBack

April 23, 2005

Stupid me

Last week I was in training. Training related to personal excellence. How to manage yourself, how to communicate better, how to frame conversations, how to understand others better, how to stay cool and so on. Great training, and yeah - I saw and felt and tasted a change.

Until today.

When I stuck in the jam and this taxi and other cars tried to cut the queue - it cut out of the line three cars behind me and, basically, would have ended up in front of me. If I would have let him in. But we drove so close that our side-mirrors bend.

I won. He gave me the finger, afterwards. No worries about that. I am just pissed off with me that I entered into this stupid confrontation. I guess traffic in Kuala Lumpur really is the test if you can succeed to stay calm and improve your personal excellence and standards!

Well, I take this as feedback, not failure. I still have a long, long way to go. And that is the fun part of it!

Posted by Andreas at 09:13 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

KFC - still nothing new

A longer time back, I nagged that it wasn't possible to change the by-orders at KFC. So whatever you order, mashed potatoes gotta stay mashed potatoes and won't turn into French Fries, or a Pepsi will not turn into a Milo on its own.

I tried it again today, half-heartily hoping that a change would be possible - but no, I had to order French Fries in addition to Mashed Potatoes.

Changes cost money - and the purse is ringing at KFC. They need it, since their revenue flow is basically flat.

Oh - by the way. They start to rebrand from KFC to Kentucky Fried Chicken. "The move, the chain's most aggressive yet in its roughly two years of trying to revitalize U.S. sales, is part of a broader plan to "move the brand into the future" by drawing on its Southern roots, the company said in a statement."

I however believe, that flexibility and customer orientation might be a better move to revitalise sales.

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Posted by Andreas at 02:21 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

April 22, 2005

Customer service - just leave me alone

Companies spend a lot of money to get their customers into the door - basically selling them. It is also well known that it is expensive to create a new customer - so my question, in general, is - why do companies treat us so badly?

Forget about the 80/20 rule that says that 80% of your business is created by 20% of your customer. While it might be true in hindsight, it is no feasible measurement during the moment of truth. No customer service assistant is able to check the statistics, when you come into their door. They won't be able to says "sorry - cannot serve you, you are in the wrong category."

Still, companies spend plenty on data collection. Everywhere you go, you see it - it is actually unbelievable how bad service is considering the fact that companies should know what is the desire of the customer. But instead, companies appear to focus on sales and marketing and lesser, much lesser, on aftersales service. Sure, this strange animal called service costs money - sales generate money. May be there needs to be more awareness that happy customers tell others about great service? But then, whom do I tell this, when companies don't actually listen!

CNet published a new study and the numbers they have are frightening. Okay, these are data from the US and the study relates to the responsiveness of companies to inquiries made by the consumers. Nevertheless, I believe we can leverage the data to Asia as well.

The study says that "70 percent of consumers go to a competitor's site if they don't receive a timely response to an online inquiry."

A bit further down in the article they write that "So what happens to the people who don't get an answer within a day? Some get a response the next day, but a third receive messages that deemed unhelpful, often involving canned text and stock answers directing users to the Web site. An amazing one out of five customers never receives a reply. The rest get replies that dribble in over the next three to four days, and they often ignore them, having since moved on."

Good morning to all of those who don't respond to e-mails and inquiry. May be instead of rebranding and spending on marketing companies should just start improving their customer service first?

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Posted by Andreas at 03:40 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Of networking and networking jerks

I am in the situation, where I have to go to a lot of meetings, conferences, seminars and award ceremonies. It makes for a great evening, most of the time, since I get to know a lot of different people from a variety of businesses.

Here are my general observations, and I am sure that at least some of you share these with me.

Let's start with the networking jerk. There are two types of the networking jerks. One of them is the hunter. He (or she, but let's make him a he) doesn't really look at you, when you talk to him. He graps your business cards, let's out some predefined questions - what is your name, where are you from, what are you doing - but while talking, starts looking around for the next target. He basically looks through you and is a business card collector. I am sure he won't know much about the people he met, but is the one who sends you a promotional e-mail straight after the meeting expressing his joy to have met you. Most of the time, I throw their business card away straight away.

I am not sure if the other one is actually worse, but at least, they are not that widespread. They are the rushers. They approach you especially during the last few minutes of a conference. With a pack of business cards in their hand, they just go around, shake anybody's hand and move on, straight away after the exchange of business cards. I also have no recollection of them, whatsoever, but at least, they didn't take my time away too much.

Next, we also have the Promoters. A nicer group of people, since they are the ones that send you a Thank You note, shortly after meeting you. The pity is that they also want to sell you something, straight away, without having build any reasonable relation. I give them a chance and respond to them, anyway, since may be, they are nicer in "real life". There is another Promoter group, actually - they are the ones who start selling early, best, after two minutes of talking. Introducing each other, exchanging business cards, scoping, what I am doing, and they are doing, and then, straight moving on to the sentence ... Oh - we should meet and talk business. I am sure we have something for you in our business that makes my business so much better. Thank you - while they are nicer, I am not happy with those who sell straight!

It is actually interesting to see, how people react when you respond to their promotional e-mail. It is something like an acid test. Most of the time, I tell them that I was happy to have met them, and it would be great to meet them again, but that I wasn't certain that I could use their product or service immediately. You know that most of the time, I never get a response again.

If there are any networkers or aspiring networkers out there, please read this carefully - this is not networking, or relationship building. I would describe your as businesscard collectors. Nothing more. All you get with all your effort is a piece of paper with a name on it. Because, to repeat - this is networking gone wrong.

Or am I wrong?

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Posted by Andreas at 01:27 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

April 15, 2005

Telekom Malaysia rebrands to TM

Telekom Malaysia no more? What, another rebranding in Malaysia? After Radio 4, that became Traxx FM, now the good old mother of telecommunications in Malaysia?

Well, Fedex saved US$60 million a year in painting their cars when they shortened their name from Federal Express to FedEx. This was clear cost savings.

Telekom - oh, sorry, TM, now spent RM8mil to RM9mil to develop its new brand identity - quite a lot of money, to come up with something smart like TM - did the consumer come up with the idea or just a clever ad-agency, PR Group, or Branding Company?

The only big advantage that I currently see is that they get rid of their legacy in the name. Overseas investments become simply easier, if a company's name doesn't reflect its origin.

Anyway, I hope that the service improves as promised. I hope that it all has a lasting effect.

But normally, my thinking, rebranding is more than just shorten the name - it is service, delivery, process, symbols, messages, and, of course, the whole exercise in the consumer's mind and the respective relevancy - mindset and mindshifts.

Now, if I would only know, what it was that TM is standing for?

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Posted by Andreas at 11:49 PM | Comments (12) | TrackBack

No SMS hotline anymore

I saw this yesterday in the New Straits Times and may be I have no clue what I am talking about. So please, if I get it wrong, just kick my butt.

There is this complaint line at the back of buses, taxis or lorries. People have the chance to complain, if the drivers drive ...., well, basically, uncivilised.

I complaint ones or twice, never got a feedback if anything happened. Would have been great, nevertheless.

They want to scrap the system - why?????

It is said that there are too many complaints. They expected to handle less than 150 SMS a day, and now, they receive 400.

Hello?? Hellllo? Don't the ones responsible drive car? Don't they read newspapers? Actually, I would expect 1,000 ++ of SMS per day, complaining about all those bad drivers.

Actually, I would have hoped for a thank you, we followed up your request, and this is what we have done!!!!

Commercial Vehicle Licensing Board (CVLB)chairman Baharom Mohamed says they want to install a new hotline soon.

What? For me, this is a way to tell the people - sorry, it is gone. Too many complaints as a reason to stop a service - what service is that? I would laugh, if I wouldn't think that this is so Un-WoW.

May be this is the reason why so many lorry drivers, bus drivers and taxi drivers drove that crazy today.

Posted by Andreas at 10:44 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

The Amazing Race: Another Winner

When I started the Amazing Race last weekend, there was one sentence in the related entry that has been ignored so far:

The sentence was:

"The race to win is already ongoing - only, and that is the fun part, the ones that are in the race don't know about it."

Sure, I provided the word riddle where words needed to be combined into sentence but there is more.

The real race was the celebration of those who comment. Blog live because of the comments provided. But very often, there are comments and that's it. Nothing more. The one who wrote the entry doesn't continue in the discussion but moves on. Some good bloggers post their response to an entry inthe comment box as well - which is already much better than just ignoring the comments.

This blog thrives because of the many, many comments. Thanks. This is what the other race was about.

The winner of this other race is the one person who submitted the most comments since I moved to Movable Types, basically, since January. Since January this year, I posted 200 entries and a bit. It generated more than 500 comments. WoW.

This is something to celebrate. But there are those regular visitors to this blog who constantly comment.

The one who commented the most is getting another price. Ivy, what is it that you want? Let's talk about it offline!

Ivy came here to my blog, sometimes in the middle of March and shook up the comments. There were hot contenters in this race - Lilian, once again with 27 comments, or Kim with 28 comments (so close), Jess with 26 comments, Silencer (22 comments). Thank you all. But thanks also to those that comment lesser - slightly lesser or a lot lesser, like Ee Fei, the big Mr B, Sashi, Hazel, Dhana, Norzu, BawangMerah, Kervin, Ms. Pink, Mack and so on. You are all great (I will link this entry to all mentioned, but need to run to a training)

But this price goes to Ivy alone - with her 29 comments. Give her a hand, please!!

Here is the chart that shows the ranking:

Download file

That's it - no more racing (but then, you never know!)

Posted by Andreas at 07:29 AM | Comments (6) | TrackBack

April 13, 2005

The Amazing Race - Winner Group Number One

This is fun - I really like to do this. Now, the proposal was to let everybody win but this can be tough. I want to thank all of you who participated - please remember, this is a thank you to those who commented so many times on my blog and the various entries. I am now beyond entry 200 and I still have fun!

Sashi - you deserve a great Cappucine, the moment we will meet, for guessing the theme right straight from the start. Thanks for participating.

Jess - You were so close, so close. Would you have just decided on one possibility alone, you would have got it. Well, I guess the next lunch is on me again, whatever you say and whatever we agreed before -I got you there.

Ivy - for you - well, I have a special for you in the next entry.

Ee Fei - Yeah - you deserve a price because you surely commented the most during the overall session. You were also close, but you came behind Lilian, who had it right first.

But the winner of the competition is Lilian. Thank you Lilian for your great participation. I don't know what you like - is a book, or lunch or a DVD or something in this direction. So please, provide me with a list of things that you like, okay (but hey - keep it affordable, my range of things gives you an idea, mah!)?

Dhana: I loved your idea - and you nearly got it right. On first trial. Can I invite you for lunch? Okay - I know this is impossible but how?

Now - let me go to Petalingstreet and sing some songs to finance my presents. And please don't forget to come back to comment on future entries.

Posted by Andreas at 09:11 PM | Comments (6) | TrackBack

The Amazing Race is over - but who is the winner?

And we should have some winners, right?

First, yeah - I had a "The" too much, my apologies - beat me up, but it is tougher to run a competition than I thought. I was aware of the missing "S" at submit as well.

Overall, you all did well. Thanks for participating.

The full sentence is:

"The Winner Of The Competition Is The One Who Submits The Most Comments"

However, I now have a problem, and I need your help in deciding.

So here is where I need your help:

First of all I want to give Sashi a consolidation price. He wrote me an email on Monday saying:

"Actually, my guess is that it has to do with who has posted the most number of comments in your blog so far (at least in MovableType)? Am I right?"

Pity he never continued. Sashi, when we meet next time, or whenever you want to meet me, at least one Cappucino on me.

But where it gets complicated is in the following:

Chasyss (Jess), at 11.07 minutes said:

1. the winner of the competition is the one who submit the most comments (?) ... or ... 2. the winner of the competition is the one who submit the most suggestions (?)

My comment: Not quite decisive.

Lilian at 11.53 AM today wrote:

"The winner of the competition is the one who submit the most......(comments)"

My comment: Actually okay, right?

Dhana said, at 1.30PM:

"The winner of the competition is the one who submits the most creative comments"

My comment: One word too much - so actually not correct.

Ee Fei tried it at 1.30 PM:

"The winner of the competition is the one who submit the most entries"

My comment: Is correct as well, isn't it, but then, Lilian was earlier? Ee Fei should also get a consolidation price, because she earlier in mail wrote:

"The Theme: The winnder of the competition is the one who submit the
most!"
, which is pretty close.

Tell me what you think:

Is Lilian the winner? (In case you want to read up on the comments, here is the link)

By the way - there is another winner and another race, but I have to do some more calculations!!

Posted by Andreas at 03:37 PM | Comments (12) | TrackBack

A few last meters - Submit by your suggestions by 3.00 Noon (And clue number 13)

Here are links to all the entries so far made.

Spread the word: The amazing race now at AlwaysWoW
http://www.alwayswow.com/archives/2005/04/index.html#000193

Another shake in Taman Desa
http://www.alwayswow.com/archives/2005/04/index.html#000194

Your Annual Report (includes clue number 3)
http://www.alwayswow.com/archives/2005/04/index.html#000195

What to make out of this? (Plus clue number four)
http://www.alwayswow.com/archives/2005/04/index.html#000196

A sandwich in The Curve (plus clue number 5 in the Amazing Race)
http://www.alwayswow.com/archives/2005/04/index.html#000197

Customer service in supermarkets (and clue number 6 in the Amazing Race)
http://www.alwayswow.com/archives/2005/04/index.html#000198

RSS advertising (and Clue Number 7 and 8 in the Amazing Race)
http://www.alwayswow.com/archives/2005/04/index.html#000199

The value of a phone call (and Clue Number 9, 10, 11 and 12 in the Amazing Race)
http://www.alwayswow.com/archives/2005/04/index.html#000200

Please submit any suggestions of the riddle by 3.00 Noon - no later than that. Remember, the first with the right answer wins!!

_______________________
The Amazing Race continues - one word is bold in this entry, one is missing. But then, what's the fun of revealing it? Suggest your solutions! I received some suggestions already, but none totally correct. So there is still a chance to win (does this sound corny?).

The Winner will be announced by 3.00 PM this afternoon.

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Posted by Andreas at 10:07 AM | Comments (10) | TrackBack

April 12, 2005

The value of a phone call (and Clue Number 9, 10, 11 and 12 in the Amazing Race)

How often do I call a company to inquire something? How often does it happen that the person that I want to talk to is not there? Is either in a meeting, or out, or just not around?

How often does it happen that the one that answers my call doesn't even ask, who I am? Doesn't even ask if I want to leave a message? Doesn't even ask, what the call was about? Doesn't even ask, if the person could call me back?

Is happy when I say that I call back later, another time, or when I just say "bye-bye" and put down the phone.

What would happen if I am calling to check out products or services. Have a long list in front of me with contact numbers. Might never call again?

There is a lost opportunity here. How much cash could be saved on advertisement and marketing when someone would just pay attention?

I know someone that is happy. The one competition that picks up the phone and cares for my call - they will profit the most from the carelessness of others.

Or, to put it into real perspective: What do you think of this scenario, this time from the side of a customer service agent?
_______________________
The Amazing Race continues - four words are bold in this entry, and two more to come. Anyone dares a guess?

Happy Belated Birthday to Ah Pink

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Posted by Andreas at 08:38 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

RSS advertising (and Clue Number 7 and 8 in the Amazing Race)

Mack sees it as a great opportunity to make money with blogging. I don't like it - RSS advertisements (and I know Mack will get back to me on this!).

I like Bloglines and RSS because it is free of advertising. I put Adsense on the side of my blog. Is this a contradiction? Not necessarily.

Adsense is non-intrusive. What will happen if Bloglines starts to advertise? I think it would piss off a lot of bloggers and blog readers, who want to have a space without advertisements.

Marketing is waiting for the chance to pounce on a new emerging trends. Uses are ready to run away.

What do you think?

________________
The Amazing Race heats up - there are two words in this entry!!!! Lilian - do you find it?

(and I am heading towards trouble... how to get the rest of the words into my blog?)

Posted by Andreas at 06:02 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

Customer service in supermarkets (and clue number 6 in the Amazing Race)

I am always amazed about the logic of supermarkets and grocery shops such as Giant, Tesco or Carrefour.

There are the preferential counters that serve those customers that have 10 items or less in their trolley.

They zoom through - woomms. Out they go.

On the other hand, you have customers which have their trolleyes piled up to the top and more. They envy those with 10 items or less.

But look at the logic from the customer point of view. Or even from the supermarket's point of view.

Compare the item value of those with 10 products with the one shopper that pushes more than 10 items. Ask yourself: Who is the better customer? Who creates more revenue? Who is the winner for a company?

Shouldn't those with more items be treated like Kings and Queens?
Tesco, for example, revolutionised the way shopping is done in the UK - the itnroduced the rule that if there are more than 2 or 3 customers waiting in line, the market has to open another casheer.

How is that for service?

______________
Clue Number Six in the Amazing Race at AlwaysWoW! Find the word in bold in this entry, combine it with the other ones published in the last 5 entries and win a price!!

Posted by Andreas at 03:19 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

A sandwich in The Curve (plus clue number 5 in the Amazing Race)

Everybody knows that I like The Curve and hey, my wife likes it even more. Specifically, the food section with the open spaces – it reminds me a bit of European cities, where you can walk through tiny roads filled with pubs, bars and restaurants.

That much as an introduction to the entry.

Last week, my wife and kid decided to eat in the foodcourt, while my appetite called for a sandwich. In order to try something new, I went to O’Briens Sandwich Bar and decided to order a Turkey Ham and Cheese Sandwich.

The attendant asked me if I want to have cheese on it, and well, sure I agreed. I didn’t realize that I actually committed to a second layer of cheese. The first layer is included in the price for the sandwich, and each additional layer costs something. It is easy to say yes to the additional layer, and if you are in a rush, you might not realize that there is an extra charge for it. Is this my own ignorance, or should I have known it?

While I have to say that the sandwich was filling, I also have to say that I felt pretty overcharged for what I received – it was not special, no value provided. Too little for too much money: I paid RM2.50 for the additional layer of cheese and as such, the total came up to RM12.50.

Look at the picture – what do you think? Am I wrong?

O Brien Sandwich.jpg

It is probably the high overall price that gives me a sour stomach.

How do you feel when you feel overcharged?

What experience do you leave behind in the consumer who carries such feeling?

________________
Can you find the next clue to the Amazing Race at AlwaysWoW!? Don't know what the Amazing Race is all about? Check it out here!


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April 11, 2005

What to make out of this? (Plus clue number four)

I don't want to frighten those who are looking for pictures on my blog - welcome to those.

This was suppose to be a totally different entry - but I became curious about the visitors to this blog.

Why? Well, over the past couple of days I observed that visitors used the following or similar strings to find my blog:

"images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.alwayswow.com/6.jpg&imgrefurl=http://alwayswow.com/&h=640&w=480&sz=41&tbnid=UUxNoWZZ0WMJ:&tbnh=135"

What does this mean? Who would be able to explain the meaning to me?

________________________________________________________________
Clue number for in the Amazing Race.

I am learning to count. As far as I know, I reached clue number four - can you see it up there in bold? Please help me if I get it wrong. Organising a competition is tougher that I thought, but I am having fun - do you?

For those who want to join and win a price, send me a mail to get an explanation or check the link and follow the signs

Posted by Andreas at 05:22 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Your Annual Report (includes clue number 3)

Last week, I wrote about the need to upgrade ones own skillset in order to stay competitive in the marketplace.

An easy way to put this into perspective is to compare my own development to that of a company.

A company needs to conduct R&D activities to stay competivive. Intel, for example, maintained their high R&D level after the dotcom crash in 2000. The company's R&D spending for 2005 is expected to be approximately $5.2 billion, as compared to US$4.8 billion in 2004. In the first quarter of 2005, revenues were expected to level between US$8.8 billion and US$9.4 billion.

Intel's R&D is thus about 14% of total revenue. Doesn't matter if I am wrong or right - what matters is the number.

Look at your total annual salary and take a share of 14% - This is how much you should spend as a high performing individual to develop your skills - and this might also mean to take courses, read books, listen to tapes - simply, to get better.

So that your Annual Report looks better and stronger from year to year. Just as good as Intel's. What do you think?

______________________________________________________________
Ahhh - coming to the clue in the Amazing Race at AlwaysWoW! Here, we had clue number one followed by clue number two given yesterday evening.

Have fun!!!! I sure have.

Posted by Andreas at 02:25 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

April 10, 2005

Another shake in Taman Desa

Update on 19.16 PM:

It is shaking again - and my sister in law called againa s well. Her building is shaking as well.


18.15
My wife called me while I played with my kid on the playground. Our building just shook again a bit.

My sister in law, the second one (first time I blog about her), who also stays in the area, called and confirmed that her building also shook.

The new normal? My wife didn't leave the building. Justification? Because the window grills didn't vibrate. So it wasn't a bad hit by another earthquake.

Ahhhh - remember the race? Another word in bold up there. Can you see it? Collect it and combine it with the first entry, this afternoon!

Posted by Andreas at 06:54 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

April 09, 2005

Spread the word: The amazing race now at AlwaysWoW

I have decided to organise a race, to celebrate my 200th entry at this blog to be reached within the next 7 entries. Its been 200 entries since I moved to this webpage from my old blog at Blogger in the beginning of January, and its been terrific.

What is the race about?
The race to win is already ongoing - only, and that is the fun part, the ones that are in the race don't know about it.

And let me tell you: There are some very strong contenters out there, but still, anybody can win - even those who haven't even started in the race.

There are prices for the winner but don't ask me about the prices - I have some ideas, but well....

I will announce the winners by Wednesday, in the evening!! Big Promise.

Secondly, don't ask me about the nature of the race - this would reveal too much about the nature of the race and take the fun out of it.

However, over the next couple of days, I will bold at least one word in each of the coming entries. Put together, they will reveal the nature of the race. The one who is putting the completed and correct sentence in the comments first will also win a price.

Here is example of the first word. The word is "The".

Most of all - I wish you fun and spread the word. There is a race ongoing at AlwaysWoW! and nobody know what it is all about.

I just hope that I do all of it correctly, lol.

Posted by Andreas at 09:02 PM | Comments (15) | TrackBack

Hop to the next job

Taylor Nelson Sofres (TNS)'s study about the employment market in Malaysia provides interesting statistics and even more interesting conclusions.

First, the data: "Data shows that 58% of currently employed adults have worked for up to three companies in the past five years, and this churn pattern will persist with 23% indicating that they intend to change jobs within the next two years."

Conclusion as expressed by TNS?

1.) What we are seeing today is a symptom of a potentially worrying future trend where employees increasingly tend to ‘job-hop.’ This presents a very real cost impact on businesses, not only in recruitment but also through resulting internal discord and inefficiencies. So organisations need to be more assertive in order to strengthen employee’s job commitment and this will absolutely be achieved through improved stakeholder relationship practices

2.) Weak employee relationships will result in even higher turnover rates amongst employees, creating a cycle of intense employment competition amongst the same workers taking jobs away from fresh graduates.

This in turn will force the country’s new graduates to accept lower entry positions that will ultimately force them to change jobs a number of times, or leave them with the alternative of remaining unemployed for an extended period.

Do I agree? Partially. There is nothing wrong with moving from job to job. Times have changed and if I am ready to move, based on my capabilities - so what! I move when the organisation is no longer able to provide me with growth opportunities. The same is valid for an organisation - if I don't provide value anymore, and become a low performer, well, talk to me, coach me, but in the end, they will kick me out. So employee turnover is not bad, all in all - think Jack Welsh and how he pruned his management.

While they are saying that 23% intend to change, the number can also be higher or lower - who knows what happens in 2, 3 or 5 years? I bet you do a study in 3 years time, or next year and the data look differently. This is the normal challenge with market research. At the point of answering the question, a respondent mostly answers very differently from real-life situations.

Honestly, I don't quite understand the second point of their conclusion. The notion of strong employee relationships in an organisation - may be defined by TNS as culture - is important. Culture is a competitive weapon, that is clear, and a company with a strong culture will be more successful than a company that faces related challenges.

Posted by Andreas at 08:45 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

The need for training

When I left school and then, university, I was relieved. I thought that now, the big money comes in and, best of all, I never need to go back to learning for grades and do tests and all that.

This was and increasingly is wrong thinking! If you ever thought that the degree you have secures you a job and will last forever, forget it. You are doomed already, basically.

It is wishful thinking that you will have a job with one company for the next 10, 20 or 30 years and that they take care of you until you retire. Companies only take care of you when you constantly upgrade your skills to add value to their operations. You are on your own!

The best thing is, don't expect your company to pay for your skill upgrade. Why is this the best? It is the best because it allows you to chart your own course. Imagine where you want to be in 3, 4, 5 years and start working towards it.

There is nothing that can hold you back. No HR manager, or CEO - go for it! It is great if your current employer supports your effort. It is fantastic when your plans and their plans go hand in hand. If not - go for it on your own, nevertheless.

I will soon embark on a 13 day training course that could throw me off to a totally new career - if I want.

The training will strengthen my ability to do something for a different company, or something on my own. Or something with my current company. My current employer supports the training and naturally, they want to have a return on their investment.

So whatever I learnt, I need to transfer those new skills to my colleagues.

Together with my boss we identified the potential outcome and benefits for the company through this training. I would have gone for it anyway - with or without support but by supporting me, the company created a win-win situation. Now, the company and my colleagues all across the region will benefit from it.

I now can have a new career with my company, or enhanced capabilities and responsibilities in my current job - anything goes.

Don't wait for your employer to do something for you. Invest in your own future - like any company needs to invest as well.

See training and related expenditure as your own personal R&D. R&D keeps a company competitive and so does training for you.

Remember, that your skills are outdated 6 months after you left university or school. In other words, your half-time is 6 months.

Have you done anything in the past 6 months that upgraded your skillset? That helps you to secure a place in the future.

That significantly improved your current resume?

Posted by Andreas at 03:34 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

What happened to HBO?

May be it is just me, but since a couple of days, HBO channel has gone black on my side. The remaining movie channels are still there, just HBO disappeared.

Did I miss anything? I checked their Webpage, but there was also no announcement. Something similar happening to others?

Posted by Andreas at 02:06 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

April 08, 2005

Pfizer to buy Merck?

Both are the giants of the pharmaceutical industry - and both are settled with huge problems.

Generic drugs eating into their market share and Pfizer worries will only increase with more patents to expire next year.

Good old Forbes writes: "But Vioxx is gone, and Zocor loses patent protection next year, probably driving sales of $5 billion to almost nothing. Pfizer's hypertension drug Norvasc loses patent protection around the same time." Shares are falling but still the company is worth a solid US$1198 billion.

Merck was a lot in the news recently - they also faced challenges with the looming patent expiration for Zocor and the withdrawal of Vioxx and as a consequence, their shares also fall - and suddenly, they are only worth US$75 billion in market capitalization.

Not affordable to me or you, but to giants like Pfizer, even if they would need to launch a hostile takeover bid.

So some are now thinking that it is good to combine businesses. Shareholder's saliver drops and they drool over potential gains.

Sorry, but for me, the calculation is that it is a minus plus minus and that doesn't add up to plus, this time.

Employees would surely lose out, once again.

Would it help the drug pipeline? Not necessarily, since big companies look for big gains to satisfy shareholders. Something that is small in revenues might be big for upcoming biotech companies but of no interest at all for giants. To put it plainly: something that brings in revenues of US$50 million or US$100 million might look big to you and me, but is peanuts to a Pfizer or Merck.

Just generally - why do companies see a need to merger when they cannot see growth in the market anymore (I am talking about big mergers, not small ones)? Or when they face problems? A merger is buying market share, but it doesn't make you stronger, if executed wrongly. A company that faces problems shouldn't even look at big mergers.

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Posted by Andreas at 08:23 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Alexandre Gueniot: This is a fantastic resume

How many resumes does one recruiter receives over a day? At the best time during the dotcom, companies like Cisco received about 20,000 resumes a month, I think. Unsolicited.

Wow.

How to stand out amongst all of those resumes, this is the big question on everybody's mind. There are plenty of tricks, of course.

Here is one that is being circulated on the web - another buzz, but for once, this is a real one.

Alexandre Gueniot - who has been hired by Microsoft as an intern in the beginning of March this year.

Click here or copy the link below into your browser:

http://blogs.msdn.com/jobsblog/comments/384704.aspx

Listen to the animated resume and ask yourself: If this is benchmark, how does my resume compare?

I am not saying that everbody needs an animated resume but the question is:

What are the three points in your resume that are so outstanding and differentiating that a recruiter would not only read your resume, but wants to talk to you or even hire you?

Posted by Andreas at 01:17 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

April 07, 2005

Discussing the state of tourism in Malaysia

Mack started an interesting discussion about "TVC: Investment in Hong Kong" and somehow, it is developing into a very fruitful discussion.

To generate discussions and conversations is something that bloggers are good at. So check it out and contribute.

I wrote about Hong Kong and its turnaround a while ago. The city was known earlier as being rude, and over the last couple of years, they have developed into a consumer heaven with friendly and helpful people.

In Mack's entry, I commented the following:

"It is crucial that the population participates, understands and contributes to the development of the nation (wah - heavy words), in all aspects. If there is a laissez-faire attitude - like: let them talk, the wind will blow over, anyway - nothing will change. If the Rakyat feels the need - commercially, economically, emotionally and whatever - and they buy in to the concept, then things will change - Malaysia will become paradise, so to speak."

SolbiKenobi responded correctly:

"Good point about the rakyat 'buying into the concept'.

I have to wonder out loud, tho', are we, at present, trying to sell anything? And if so, who's the audience?"

To keep the discussion going, I will comment that:

"Solbi: I do think "Malaysia is selling" something - if the selling something is related to the perception that is formed overseas and internally about Malaysia. This perception is there. People talk about Malaysia - its positive sides and its negative sides.

Not sure if Malaysia "needs" to identify a "target audience". I think it is better to manage those that come already in a better way, give them the experience they search for, want and appreciate, and they would then function as an ambassador of choice for Malaysia. The question is - how much do we actually know about those people that come here. What do they do here? Much much do they? Where do they spend money, and time? Do they get what they want? How much does this differ from their original plans etc.

In my opinion, the level of knowledge of visitors is limited. There might be a lot of data available and collected, but is there anyone really looking into it?"

It would be great to get the input from those overseas who read our blogs - what do you think about it?

Posted by Andreas at 10:53 AM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

April 06, 2005

Finally, the world is flat

I picked this up from my friend John in the US, who got it from the New York Times.

New revelations - the world is flat. Read it and read it again.

"Globalization 1.0 (1492 to 1800) shrank the world from a size large to a size medium, and the dynamic force in that era was countries globalizing for resources and imperial conquest. Globalization 2.0 (1800 to 2000) shrank the world from a size medium to a size small, and it was spearheaded by companies globalizing for markets and labor. Globalization 3.0 (which started around 2000) is shrinking the world from a size small to a size tiny and flattening the playing field at the same time. And while the dynamic force in Globalization 1.0 was countries globalizing and the dynamic force in Globalization 2.0 was companies globalizing, the dynamic force in Globalization 3.0 -- the thing that gives it its unique character -- is individuals and small groups globalizing. Individuals must, and can, now ask: where do I fit into the global competition and opportunities of the day, and how can I, on my own, collaborate with others globally? But Globalization 3.0 not only differs from the previous eras in how it is shrinking and flattening the world and in how it is empowering individuals. It is also different in that Globalization 1.0 and 2.0 were driven primarily by European and American companies and countries. But going forward, this will be less and less true. Globalization 3.0 is not only going to be driven more by individuals but also by a much more diverse -- non-Western, nonwhite -- group of individuals. In Globalization 3.0, you are going to see every color of the human rainbow take part."

The world is flat, after all.

Today, we all compete on the same playing field.

Marc Andreessen, a co-founder of Netscape says that "Today, the most profound thing to me is the fact that a 14-year-old in Romania or Bangalore or the Soviet Union or Vietnam has all the information, all the tools, all the software easily available to apply knowledge however they want."

There is much, much more in the article, so please, read it and you see, why we are all sitting in the same boat

Posted by Andreas at 07:58 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

Seacucumber embarking on next evolutionary stage!

The Star (Malaysia) writes that "thousands of gamat, the worm-like sea cucumber that is largely found in Langkawi, washed ashore across two kilometres of the Lukut beachfront. It calls this an unusual event."

Hey - this isn't unusual. These cucumbers tried to embark on the next evolutionary stage by crossing from the water to land. They wanted to learn how to walk. They probably saw humans before and benchmarked themselves against humans and thought - hey - outside there, this must be fun, let's do it.

And then, next thing they know they are collected in containers. We basically prevented the development of the next life on earth!!!

Let's think Darwin - What would have happened, if there would have been someone out there, collecting the first things that crawled out from the sea, millions and billions of years ago - those things, that then later developed into humans? We wouldn't be here!!!! Oh my God!!!

But on a more serious note: My wife told me that just before the Tsunami and before the last earthquake, fishermen fished a lot on sea. More than ever before. And than, the earth shook. Animals are known to run away if stuff like that happens. Hopefully this event was just a freak event, right?

Gamat.jpg

Posted by Andreas at 07:34 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack

From China to Thailand for US$0.12 cents

That is rock bottom and a sure way to celebrate.

"Southern Travel Service, a travel agent owned by China Southern Airlines, has announced a one yuan (US$0.12) tour of Thailand to celebrate its one hundred thousand Southeast Asia tourist record"

This includes return airfare, hotel and tickets to scenic attractions but visitors have to pay for airport taxes and for a visa application fee.

Still, way cheaper than a normal tour. A sure way to promote your business and to celebrate success, right?

I wonder what Mack is thinking about this in his tourism project?

Posted by Andreas at 04:45 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

Can't you leave the kids alone?

Okay - this is my view, and only my view.

I trust my boy - and have a great relation ongoing with him. He is seven years old now, and he shares a lot of deep thoughts with me - thoughts that are deep for a seven year old. I sure hope that this will continue - that I still am his buddy when he is seventeen, twentyseven or older.

It is my dream, and it really is, that he asks me out to follow him, when he starts to venture out and discovers the nightlife of Kuala Lumpur.

I remember when I went out the first time, together with my sister. We met her best friend and her brother - and from that point onwards, I was out a lot. I am still in touch with my best friend, and this is a couple of decades ago.

I remember the first time when I was drunk. Really, badly drunk - and it cured me from hard licor. It was something like a game, and my parents were shocked to see me drunk.

I remember the first time, when I came back at 6.00AM in the morning, and my mum was totally pissed off with me and my behaviour.

I remember, when I coloured my hair blue and orange, and hey - my aunty from East Germany was on visit - that was the time, when the Berlin Wall was still up and traveling was tough - and my parents said that they don't want to see me with my coloured hair, and I said, hey - I don't come to visit you. I want to see my aunty.

I remember how shocked my parents were when I bought my 500cc motorcycle and they were worried, when I drove taxi at night to finance my studies.

They were worried all their life about me, my sister and my older brother. We turned out well. Hey - we had huge problems, all along, we weren't the best in school, but we learnt life as life was back then.

Today, life is different, and it is different in Malaysia, of course. This is not the West and I understand cultural limitations. I understand, why my parents were worried - they simply loved me. I will be worried like shit, when my boy ventures out. Hell, I am worried when I see him jumping into the deep side of the swimming pool or when he climbs up some equipment.

But what I don't understand is what is sometimes happening in Malaysia.

I would be pissed off with those who would give my kid a crew cut after a fight - fighting is wrong, and dangerous (hey, we all did it, din't we?) - but a crew cut is a different thing all together. I would be pissed off with the media, who plays this out so badly.

I would be pissed off with those, who take him out of a cybercafe.

This is my job, damn it.

What happens here is that the confidence and the trust of children is destroyed - how can they trust authorities? How can I come and say that the police is catching the bad guys? Is here to help you? When the kids are treated like this? All of them?

Posted by Andreas at 12:43 PM | Comments (4)

What about a 3GB hard-drive in a mobile phone?

We have the storage wars amongst the Googles, Yahoos and Microsofts but who would have thought that a company comes up with a mobile phone that has a hard-drive of 3GB?

Well, it is Samsung's SGH-i300 - a 3GB Windows Mobile powered musicphone.

Isn't it fantastic? And look at this beauty!

What would you do with such a phone? This is competing against the IPod, Kodak's new online photoshop etc, all at once, and sets standards. Or do I see too much in it?

Samsung Mobile.jpg

(I pirated the picture from Engadget - sorry)

Posted by Andreas at 10:42 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

April 05, 2005

Chili's - the end of the story

Okay – Chili’s send Kim and me a last mail yesterday. Here is it – friendly and much more accommodating:


"Hi Andreas,

I hope you had a nice weekend.

I appreciate your thoughts on the purpose of your webpage, and also
bringing your concerns about the recent dining experience to our attention through our corporate website.

Although we could make use of e-mails to communicate, I would like to
do so over the phone, as I prefer this personal touch when dealing with
customer concerns or questions. If you could forward me either the phone number of you or Ms. Low, I would be happy to give you a ring.

Looking forward to hearing from you."

Thanks – I wonder how fast we would have been over this whole thing if their whole communication would have been like this, straight from the beginning (also, again, there was no empathy or apology – but I think that to do so, would have shown guilt and they might have opened themselves up to something they simply don’t want).

Anyway, I agreed to contact them today and had a wonderful discussion with their Market Director in Singapore.

According to him, Chili’s main concern after receiving such bad news is to make sure that the case is isolated, and not widespread. For them it also is a challenge to respond to the many emails that are posted via their corporate webpage in the US (he gave me the number of e-mails they receive, and well, I mentioned that Amazon receives more and responds faster, but so be it), and need to be distributed to the outlets across the world.

The person in charge actually found our entry first by doing a Google search, before being informed by corporate – well, the messages crossed (although this seems to contradict the statement made in the e-mail). This, I thought, is interesting – that a company actually finds out what is stated about them on the web by doing web searches.

He didn’t want to solve the issue via e-mail but preferred a personal touch, via telephone – that is the reason, why he "insisted" on having a personal call.

Well, I am okay with how the conversation went (corporate style, smooth, understanding, win-win situation). We discussed for 15 minutes or so. He asked to get back to him straight away, should something like this happen again. I think Chili’s is happy, when this sandstorm is over and so, let’s put it to rest. I am okay with it and hope, it won't happen again. However - what I just remember is: Will they actually check the outlet in Bangsar?

The End -

PS: I know it is a boring end, but please, may be you tell me how it could have been different?

Posted by Andreas at 05:10 PM | Comments (6) | TrackBack

Telekom VSS - spend the money wisely

Telekom's VSS involves 1,898 approved applicants that receive a pay-out of RM138.1 million.

On average, this makes around RM73,000. This is the average - there might be some higher level executives that will receive more, and subsequently a lot of the lower-level executives, that will receive less.

Be it as it is.

I don't know much about the average salary level in Telekom - but let's assume it is RM2,500 per month, than, well, the payout per person will last about 29 months.

If they don't spend too much. What might happen - when more than one person is at home during the weekday, costs tend to go up.

Let me hope that Telekom provides some assistance to employees that took the VSS. To counsel them about their "new life" and the dangers ahead.

Let's hope they don't fall victim to some fast-cash scams. Let's hope that they have a great idea to venture into business and become successful.

All the best to those who took the VSS. It is a decision that surely changes your life.

Posted by Andreas at 09:45 AM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

Dreams, passion and sleepwalking

Sometimes, when I am very busy with projects, I cannot stop thinking about it. It goes on and on in my mind. 24/7.

It is driving me so much that I am dreaming about it. One time, back in Indonesia, I was working on a market entry study for one of the telecommunications companies, called Telkomsel. It was about the usual stuff - growth, demand, supply, features, where and when do you use a handphone etc etc.

But it kept me busy. So busy that one night, I wanted to get up, about 3.00AM to go to work. My wife called me back, saying, that it is not yet time to get up. I was actually sleepwalking or something closely related.

I couldn't remember the incidence the next morning. But it is a feature that doesn'tgo away - no, I am not talking about sleepwalking, never did it again.

When I am busy, my mind rotates. I cannot stop talking about the one thing that keeps me busy. I look things up, search for more on the internet, talk to people about it, search input, 24/7. And yes, I sometimes wake up at night, and realise, I dreamt about the project. Sometimes, I even find solutions to problems in my dreams. May be this is also something that drives me to success?

Posted by Andreas at 08:11 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

April 04, 2005

Corporate Policies - Sorry, we cannot do this

Last Monday, I checked membership fees of Fitness First for Ivy. She studies in Canada and is back for four months in Malaysia on semester break. During the break, she would like to take advantage of Fitness First to do some exercise.

The basic question was how much does a membership costs for one month only, but for a duration of four months, so four times one month.

What I encountered was corporate policy versus better judgement - this, again, is my opinion.

The minimum duration of a membership is 3 months. There is no such thing as a monthly membership, so in order to safeguard her expenses, Ivy can only exercise 3 months. In addition, Ivy would have to inform Fitness First one month before she cancels her membership - which would then actually be after her second month.

Of course, there were administration fees etc. Whatever.

I asked the consultant why it is not possible to sign up for a month only? What would happen, if there is a one-month membership? How about enhancing customer satisfaction by offering a one-month memberships?

He couldn't answer, of course. He only apologised and said that this is corporate policy and he cannot change it. But he could offer me a special rate, which is only valid until the end of the month of March - no, no, no - this is not my need. I don't want to ask about this promotion, but my need is located differently!

This is a classic example of how corporate policies destroy customer value!

Corporate policies is often the language a company talks without considering a customers' needs. Would it hurt a company, such as Fitness First to offer 1-month memberships?

Are machines worn down faster by those who exercise on a one-monthly membership? I sure don't believe so. So what other reasons does it have?

May be they see a greater risk for lapses, but this could be worked around by paying advanced. So may be Fitness First has to handle more files, encounters greater bureaucracy and whatever, with a one month membership.

How often have you encounter the statement "sorry - we cannot do this for you, it is corporate policy!"

Posted by Andreas at 01:10 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

April 03, 2005

Aftershock and I am not a Chicken Licken

This morning, I sat with my boy at my desk in the study. He was doing his homework, while I read blogs.

Suddenly, I thought our building shook a little bit. I paused. Looking at my boy I asked: "Did you feel this?" He said he didn't feel anything. Then it happened again. The building swayed, ever so slightly.

My boy shouted,yes, this is an earthquake and I said, okay, let's go, you call Mama (who was still sleeping), I get our stuff.

My wife got up, we packed some essentials and went out. Eleven floors door. My boy was terrified. But then, strangely - there was nobody who ran down with us.

My wife asked me and my boy, if we really felt a shake. We both nodded, but then also thought that my boy might have THOUGHT he felt one, because I instilled the thought in him.

We went around the building - we were a bit worried, because, well, it could have been the building alone and no shock. Nothing. My boy was still terrified, and wanted to go to my sister-in-law again. We decided that may be I felt dizzy, because ... I don't know why.

A reason to calm my boy down.

Just now, my sister-in-law called me and she told me that there was a strong aftershock that jolted Nias. It is said that it was a "6.2 magnitude aftershock that hit at 7:59 am (local time) and was centred 157 kilometres south of the Nias island town of Gunungsitoli"

Am I now a Chicken Licken? Was I the only one in Kuala Lumpur who felt this?

Posted by Andreas at 08:43 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack

What to do on a Sunday?

That's been one lame Sunday.

I am usually up quite early, don't want to sleep tolong to have time to just do a lot of things.

Getting up, buying the newspaper, having breakfast with my boy (wife sleeps in, usually). Sharing stories with my boy, or reading the papers.

He is then doing homework, learns a bit for his school, while I sit at the computer, read my blogs that I subscribe to via Bloglines, scan through blogs at Petalingstreet, read my e-mails and respond and do some other stuff.

In the afternoon, we might either go out, or play games on the Playstation. Later, I read books, he watches TV. My wife reads, plays along us on the Playstation.

Sometimes, we go out to visit friends, go shopping or whatever. Sometimes, I sleep for one or two hours in the afternoon.

I bring my boy to bed at about 8.30 PM, read a story with him, watch some TV, the apprentice and that's it.

Does it sound boring? May be it is to some of you, but this is a way I currently enjoy. I do a lot of things that I really enjoy. May be in a couple of weeks time, I change the run-down. There were times, when I went swimming or to the playground to play soccer with my kid, so may be I start this again.

Today is a bit different, since my parents-in law are here. May be that makes the difference, but may be that is the reason why I don't like this Sunday.

How do you spend your Sundays?

Posted by Andreas at 06:28 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack

My condolences to all Catholics

Pope John Paul II is dead.

He was the longest serving Pope ever. He was known for his stand against communism and helped topple communism in Eastern Europe.

His strong willpower also showed in his fight against debilitating illness.

My thoughts and emotions are with you in these hours.

Posted by Andreas at 09:36 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack

April 02, 2005

Internship in companies, part 2

A while back, I wrote about Internships in companies and that I believe that interns should be able to reach out to their colleagues while being on the job? It was my opinion that this is a great opportunity for them to get contacts and may be have the chance to get a job after graduation.

May be I was wrong.

I received the following comment to the entry:

"Yeah, we talk, we learn, we ask questions, we get noticed, we get contacts :)

Don't you hate it when things stopped at getting contacts?

99% of the time, the company that takes interns, do not have a budget for another full time employee (do you think the company is taking interns to realise it's social obligation, maybe. Nothing guarantees things work out in the textbook like you just said) That's why the take 10 interns for the salary of a full an employee."

EF is right with the statement. Very right.

I was blinded by the fact that I had a great internship, way back in Germany - thorugh them, I got the experience I needed to get into the professional world and ultimately ended up in Malaysia.

There is also one great colleague of mine in my current company that worked as an intern when I started off with them. She joined us after her graduation and has moved up to a mid-level position in the meantime.

Companies which act to the description in the comment fail. Why do they fail?

The fail to identify great future colleagues. Those interns that have been exploited won't come back to them for work. Companies lose because they might just lose a future high-performer

Companies lose out, because their reputation is spoiled. Those interns talk amongst each other. Companies might not feel it, but they might receive lesser applications that they could have. Subsequently, they have less choice.

Companies lose out, because the interns that they exploited might end up at their fiercest competitor.

To all interns and students out there. It is tough to get started. Don't get frustrated with bad companies, bad bosses, or internal politics. If you do your homework, you will only work with companies that deserve your capabilities.

Easy said, right? I mean, okay, it might be tougher to find a job today that it wsa yesterday. But if you developed yourself, and bring the skills needed, who can stop you?

Feel free to continue the discussion. I am endlessly curious about the validity of my standpoint!

And thanks EF

Posted by Andreas at 07:42 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

April 01, 2005

Chili's - the saga continues

Kim and I are in a pretty interesting conversation with Chili’s in the moment. If you recall, Kim and I had lunch and she had some severe diarrhoea following that. She and I posted about it here (here
and here .

Being who I am with customer experience in my mind, I contacted them in the US via their homepage and informed them about the incidence.

After a while, they came back to me with this email mentioned in this entry here.

They asked me for Kim's contact details and she was okay that I forward her email address.

Today, she received the following mail from the COO of Chili's Malaysia, dated April 2, 2005 (in the future), asking her for her mobile number to discuss the issue with her:

“I have read your blog complaint about Chilis and would appreciate a telephone number where I can contact you about the details of the incident at your convenience or you can call me at …“

Naturally, she didn’t want to give her number straight away and replied with the following mail:

"As you've mentioned that you've read my blog regarding the incident, I do not understand the relevance of you obtaining my phone number. Also, since your email address does not originate from Chilli's private server, I find it distressing to reveal my number or call your number in that matter. I have written down everything that has happened, no more no less, in that particular post in my blog. Please refer to - http://kimberlycun.blogspot.com/2005/03/wahbiang.html

If you have any doubt, question or suggestion, we could communicate via emails."

Another e-mail followed from their Franchisee holder, vouching for the person mentioned in the other mail.

This new person in the conversation also said that

"Mr... is simply trying to contact you to address concerns you stated on your blog regarding your visit to Chili's. If he is able to talk with you on the phone (either he calls you, or you call him), this will help in resolving the issue. Alternatively, feel free to contact me if you wish to discuss the matter.”

I discussed with Kim and replied with the following mail just now:

Another e-mail followed from their Franchisee holder, vouching for the person mentioned in the other mail.

This new person in the conversation also said that

“…is simply trying to contact you to address concerns you stated on your blog regarding your visit to Chili's. If he is able to talk with you on the phone (either he calls you, or you call him), this will help in resolving the issue. Alternatively, feel free to contact me if you wish to discuss the matter.”

I replied to them just now:

"Dear Mr.
Thank you very much for your mail to Ms Low, which was cc-ed to me as well. We appreciate it tremendously and it might help in our understanding.

I am not quite sure, however, why you intend to contact us via phone but okay, this is our feeling and you might see it differently. It would be great, so, to share your objectives for a telephone call before we would contact you.

Honestly, we are feeling a bit awkward in the moment considering the fact that in none of the communication from Chili’s so far did anyone inquire about our well-being or just simply offered an apology for surely an unpleasant experience on her side!

Please allow me to further highlight my position in this overall situation. First of all, let me assure you that it is our concern for Chili’s that forced me to contact you in the first place via your webpage in the US.

You will see throughout my blog AlwaysWoW, that I frequently reach out to organizations such as yours in order to contribute to their business success.

I have the same intention for Chili’s, and I appreciate it very much that you seem to have similar intentions. In fact, Kim visited another outlet of yours, but this time, she went to the one in Megamall, without any problems. I think that this is great, considering the earlier experience.

In fact, you might have realized by reading the different comments following our entries from visitors to our blogs, that there are reoccurring issues especially with Chilis in Bangsar Shopping Mall.

This is the reason why I operate in a very transparent way – by describing my personal experiences, and to see the reaction of my readers, and also, of course, of corporations. I am observing and learning.

I will continue to post our conversation in my blog. For me, this is a way to share learning with my readers. Thank you very much and I wish you a great weekend!"

Any comments from your side?

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Posted by Andreas at 08:22 PM | Comments (13) | TrackBack

Such a growth in funds

I had to go to a bank again, today and saw the following advertisement that hangs on a pillar.

It speaks of your return on investment - the upper line assumes that you invest RM100,000. The row in the middle talks about the potential return while the last row states your profits.

Amazing profits.

Like: You invest RM100,000 in the EPF fund and have a return of 13.75%.

Or: The funds that are managed by a company starting with PRU. They write about returns of 74%, 86% or more.

Please be aware that these are 3 years. What is not mentioned in any of those advertisements is that a stock market can go up or down. It can give a return of 1% in one year and 15% in another year, or a negative value in yet another year.

I am not sure if any such fund can sustain such growth - or: I have some ideas, but I won't state those here. Please send me an e-mail if you want my opinion.

I believe that it is important to diversify your portfolio - don't leave your cash in the bank. Invest it and start early. As early as possible, and if it is RM20 in a week or a month. Start now, and those numbers grow. But take care of such forecast.

Fund Growth.jpg

Posted by Andreas at 04:24 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack