Toast 2009 goodbye and say hello to a healthier and wealthier 2010!

Greetings!

Sorry for not posting my blog sooner, I was involved in revamping my company's IT system, creating a new website and other projects in the past few months.

We are now approaching the end of the full horror of 2009 and there are signs of momentum in the Tokyo job market. International companies in Japan are starting to realize that there is a limit to do “more with less” when it comes to staffing. Companies with headcount and recruiting budgets are trying to hire the best out of the hundreds or thousands of resumes they are receiving each month. Certainly there are many candidates in the job market who have been unemployed for more than 6 months and realizing that flexibility and persistence are the key elements to getting the interview and ultimately an offer. Partnering with a reliable agent with good contacts and strong channels will certainly help increasing your chances in landing a good job during this difficult times.

In terms of the big picture, the US finally showed some growth in the third quarter which was the strongest in the past few years.
Stock markets are showing signs of hope and we can see the Dow Jones hovering just over the 10,000 mark consistently. Countries like India and Taiwan which were hit hardest by the downturn are now showing signs of great improvement with nearly 10% growth. With the recent Dubai Crisis, it will be affecting markets abroad but I doubt it will have a severe global impact like we all felt in the fall of 2008 and early this year.

Al’s predictions for 2010:

The US Economy will steadily improve with a slight decrease in unemployment, the famed jobless recovery will apply here again. Talking to some analysts, they feel that the worst is over and the storm has passed but I predict it will take a little longer before we bask in the sunshine again. So, save the champagne for the third of fourth quarter of 2010.

Japan already experienced growth in the third quarter but now needs to tackle deflation. According to the Finance Minister, Hirohisa Fujii,
“ The recent price falls are not right and worrisome”. He is highlighting the fact that Japan’s economy is being severely affected by falling prices, excess capacity and a soon to be crippling deflation which may lead to more restructuring with large Japanese companies. If I were working for any of the big Japanese leading companies, I would be preparing my resume and/or my early retirement strategy as well as thinking about a second career. The wait and see attitude might not payoff this time around. I predict Japan will suffer from deflation in the coming three quarters.

This year in 2009, we saw several major consumer/luxury brand companies pull out of Japan while expanding operations in China. I believe we will be seeing more of this as Japanese consumer trends will continue to go toward the casual, less expensive, mass-produced and away from the megabrands. The Japanese have discovered H&M, IKEA and COSTCO and they’re liking it.

The IT industry will be steady with an increasing demand for contract workers with most of the jobs coming from the software, mobile and web related sectors.

Healthcare / Pharmaceutical and Medical Device will have continued growth with jobs for MRs, Medical specialists, Regulatory, Quality Assurance and related positions.

There will be continued demand for experienced engineers, accountants, HR professionals, legal specialists and sales professionals. These are the typical types of jobs that seem to be available in downturns. 2010 we will see more positions for marketing / advertising and PR specialists which we have been receiving in recent months.

Several top level Japanese executives said to me recently that Japan is finished and we are now seeing the beginning of the end. I disagree as there is plenty to boast about Japan’s technological edge in key areas, investment in R&D, political stability, educated workforce, purchasing power parity, household saving rate and with more reforms on the way. I am sure Japan will make a modest but noticeable recovery in 2010.

I wish you continued success for the remainder of 2009 and best wishes for the holiday season!!!

Al

Al Isago Parvez
CEO & Representative Director
Advance Inc.

Japan emerges from recession

Japan's economy grew 3.7 percent on an annualized basis from April to June this year, the first time the world's second largest economy has seen positive growth in 15 months.

The announcement of preliminary figures by Japan's Cabinet Office comes after France and Germany surprised economists last week by posting 0.3 percent growth for the second quarter of the year.

The news that Japan has rebounded -- the hardest hit of the major economies because of its reliance on exports -- gives economists cautious optimism that the worst of the global recession is over.

"The economy has seen a bottoming out of global demand, which has pushed out net exports ... especially in high tech industries and basic materials, such as chemical, steel and so on because of Chinese demand," said Hiromichi Shirakawa, chief economist in Japan for Credit Suisse.

Japan's GDP grew just under 1 percent during the three-month period and trade increased 1.6 percent.

The Japanese economy was buoyed by a historic ¥15 trillion ($150 billion) stimulus package in May, which included unemployment benefits, aid to struggling companies, promotion of green industries and a variety of tax breaks.The uptick marks the end of the worst recession in Japan since the end of World War II. Japan's GDP fell at a record pace during the January-March quarter, when GDP was 15.4 percent lower than the same time period last year.

"There are many times in the past when tax breaks and fiscal stimulus were offered and failed, but this time around, it worked," Shirakawa said.

Economists expect GDP to continue modest growth through the rest of the year, especially with an expected rebound in global auto sales this quarter. But whether the recovery can continue into the new year after the stimulus package runs its course remains a question.

"Japan's economy still is quite sensitive to global demand ... and for consumer demand to grow on a self-sustained basis still seems unlikely," Shirakawa said

Market Update 8-06-2009

Greetings from Advance!

Hoping you are taking time to enjoy the Summer this year. We're busy with new positions and currently working on 50 job openings ranging from Junior level Engineers to Country Manager. Feel free to inquire with us for details.

Job Market Outlook:

The unemployment in Japan has jumped to its highest level for six years, which will undoubtedly hamper the country's recovery for the coming months. The number of workers unemployed has risen to 31% (3.5 million people) which means that job availability is at a record low of 43 positions for every 100 job seekers which was announced by the Japanese government in late July, 2009.

This means that candidates who are searching for a new job need to be more aggressive and flexible than ever. Having a well-formatted and well-written resume with bulleted points showing clear achievements, accomplishments and outlining your level of responsibility in details. If you are in advertising, consumer goods, architecture, brand management or a chef then having an impressive portfolio in addition to your resume would sure to help you make a long lasting impact during the interview.

I still meet people who still think its the 90s when jobs were plentiful during the IT boom and don't want to face up to reality that the job market and the world has changed. What you want to do and what you can do and what is out there for you are completely different in this new world. You may need to come down a step or two on the corporate ladder in order to go up once the economy recovers. Your pride and ego should be held in check and monitored while keeping your motivation and confidence up during this time. Forget about what position you had before or what you lost financially or status, it is time to move on and have a positive and realistic outlook for your future.

Feel free to check out our new job openings posted on CareerCross!

http://www.careercross.com/en/03127819_careercross.html

We're looking forward to hearing from you.

Have a great and productive week!

Al

What if your interview is tomorrow?

Greetings from Advance! 

We are busy working on about 40 open positions and now actively recruiting for IT Sales, Network Engineers, Medical Reps, Regulatory Affairs Specialists and many others.  Feel free to contact us if interested.  

Here's an interesting article I read recently which has some good tips for candidates. 

Have a great day! 

Al

What if your interview is tomorrow?

By Doug Hardy, Monster Staff Writer

Adapted from Monster Careers: Interviewing

Even if you have less than a day before your job interview, you can outshine the competition with a little preparation. The following four tasks will take you about four hours (plus five minutes) to complete, and you'll walk into the interview confident you'll be successful.

Conduct Basic Interview Research

Find out as much as you can about the interview. Call the person who scheduled your appointment and ask:

• Who will you be talking to? Will you meet the manager you'd work for, or will you just talk to HR? What are the interviewer's expectations?
• What's the dress code? Dress better than suggested. Most times, it's best for men to wear a suit and women to wear a professional business outfit. You'd be amazed how many candidates show up looking like they're going to class, not presenting a professional demeanor.
• Get directions to the office. Plan to leave early. Keep a phone number to call if you get stuck on the bus or in traffic. If you arrive late and stressed, the interview will not go well.
• If you don't have a detailed job description, ask for one.

That's a five-minute phone call.

Learn About the Company Online

Do some fast Web research, which will give you something to talk about in addition to the job description. Go to the employer's Web site, or search the Web for information such as:

• How big is the company in terms of annual sales or employees?
• What does the company say about its products or services?
• What recent news (such as a new product, a press release, an interview with the CEO) can you discuss?
• If the company is public, the boilerplate at the bottom of its press releases will tell you a lot.

Basic research should take you about an hour.

Think of Some Stories

Write down and memorize three achievement stories. Tell about times you've really felt proud of an achievement at work or school. These stories demonstrate all those hard-to-measure qualities like judgment, initiative, teamwork or leadership. Wherever possible, quantify what you've done, e.g., "increased sales by 20 percent," "cut customer call waiting time in half," "streamlined delivery so that most customers had their job done in two days."

By the way, nonwork achievement stories are good too; if you volunteer for the local food pantry, write down a time you overcame a big challenge or a crisis there.

Achievement stories make you memorable, which is what you want. There's an exercise inMonster Careers: Interviewing called "Mastering the Freestyle Interview," which helps you develop these stories into compelling sales points.

Take the time you need -- at least three hours on this task.

Pick Your Outfit, and Go to Bed Early

Lay out your interview outfit the night before, get a good night's rest, and always get an early start. The last thing you want is to arrive at the interview flustered and panicked because you couldn't find a parking spot.

Our updated job posting on CareerCross!

We just updated our job postings on CareerCross! Feel free to contact us with your inquiries and you may send us your resumes to:  query@advance-tokyo.com 

Thank you and have a great week! 

AL

Meet JAL’s cafeteria-eating CEO

I thought I should share this article from CNN with you of a great CEO. He is truly an inspiration. AL

Meet JAL’s cafeteria-eating CEO

Posted: 905 GMT

You don’t really notice Haruka Nishimatsu when he passes you in the hall. A middle-aged man in a suit, he blends into the working crowd at Japan Airline’s headquarters in Tokyo.

JAL President Haruka Nishimatsu, center, shares a light moment in front of a jet engine.

“Why should I stick out?” Nishimatsu says out loud to me.

“Well, you are the CEO and Chairman of this multi-billion dollar international airline,” I replied.

“So?” says Nishimatsu. “That doesn’t make me special.”

That philosophy, that he’s just like everyone else trying to make it through Japan’s recession, is why he takes the city bus to work, eats in the cafeteria with his employees and strolls through the operations room at the airport. When the company looked to cut costs, he eliminated every single expensive perk of his job. He took away the corner office and chauffeur. Then he slashed his pay dramatically, so that in 2007 he made less than his pilots.

JAL can use every penny it saves. This fiscal year, the airline expects to lose $34 million dollars after passenger traffic fell 20 percent and cargo loads fell 40 percent. It’s a global company that lives and dies by the direction of the global consumer and economy.

“I understand there are different conditions in terms of the economy for each country, but I think these economic issues need to be solved globally, rather than solved country by country,” says Nishimatsu. “I hope the G20 will give a clear direction to the global economy.”

Nishimatsu also believes the solution must begin with the financial institutions and continue to tighter regulations.

But he points to corporate culture as the long-term solution. Like the AIG bonuses, Nishimatsu says, “shocked” him. “It’s like they’re from another planet,” he says.

A lesson of this recession, he hopes, will be that corporations don’t solely pursue profit and instead focus on the long-term financial health of the company and employ people and help society. Together with shared sacrifice, he believes, the global economy will recover — but only if everyone from the CEO to the entry-level employee works together.

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