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Loading ...IBM confirms layoffs, but won’t say who or how many
Rumours have around 5,000 of IBM jobs being shipped off to India, but IBM is only admitting that it is informing some employees today that they’ve lost their jobs.
The job losses are confined to North America, although IBM isn’t disclosing the location or types of positions being eliminated. Some will find new jobs at IBM, while others will be getting seperation benefits.
Whispers have it that the global business services unit is going to be hit the hardest.
Thanks to IDG News Service (Bangalore Bureau).
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(Rate This Article) Loading ...Out of work? Try teleworking.
Toronto-based work-from-home job search site WhyDoWork.com recently expanded its job search engine, making it the most comprehensive telework site out there. IT jobs are listed here as well.
Managing partner Matthew Rivard said in a release, “Freelance contracts and home-based employment can help provide stability in times of economic uncertainty.”
The site also includes a user community.
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(Rate This Article) Loading ...Recession means more all-star candidates
Job-hunters, polish up those resumés: according to a recent poll by career site Jobfox, employers think the recession is an opportunity to hire the best and the brightest.
The site polled American 200 recruiters last December and found that 76 per cent of respondees were excited for the higher level of talent that a scarcity of jobs might herald.
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(Rate This Article) Loading ...Would you apologize?
One of the videos making the rounds recently was of a woman throwing a massive hissy fit at the Hong Kong airport when she arrived too late at her gate and wasn’t allowed to board her Cathay Pacific flight. The clip’s been viewed over 5 million times on YouTube.
Now, Cathay Pacific has issued an apology for the videotaping the incident, and “the inconvenience and embarrassment she may have suffered as a result.” They claim that, while their employee shot the incident, someone else posted it online (not sure how that happened).
They’ve also offered her free upgrades in the future, and sat through a four-hour meeting to discuss her grievances (although she is not requesting any compensation).
This brings up an interesting intersection between the workplace and technology. Employees are often carrying powerful technology in their hands, whether it’s the latest netbook or a smartphone with a great camera.
What does this mean for IT managers? Will they be called in more often to help draft policies for what employees can film or not film, and what penalties might await them if they post the offending footage on YouTube?
In this case, I side with the airline. Granted, in this media-crazy age, it wouldn’t be in their best interest to do nothing if the woman put up a fuss in the newspapers and TV show rounds. But, in principle, what’s really wrong with this scenario?
The woman was acting ridiculous in a public place, and was in the wrong (she arrived too late for her flight). I suppose it’s a slippery-slope fear that the public and now corporations have: customers might get mighty cranky, for instance, if they thought their complaints at customer service booths were being filmed, or their dance moves while testing a CD.
In this case, however, the woman comes out looking ridiculous, and the airline as a little bit put upon. As IT decisionmakers, it might become more common to urge employees to use discretion when making videos, but, in this case, this lady got the comeuppance she deserved, five million times over.
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(1 votes, average: 8 out of 10) Loading ...Two cool job titles: Chief Restructuring Officer & Chief Philanthropy Evangelist
Two recent announcements out of a couple of tech giants (well, including one felled IT giant) showed a pair of pretty cool job titles, showing once again the breadth of job opportunities for IT pros.
The beleaguered Nortel is facing its troubles head-on by having its CFO, Pavi Binning, also serve now as the “chief restructuring officer.”
Over at Google, Google.org head Larry Brilliant will be relinquishing the nitty-gritty management of the company’s philanthropic arm to vice-president of new business development, Megan Smith.
Now, he will act as “chief philanthropy evangelist.”
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(2 votes, average: 10 out of 10) Loading ...How to negotiate severance after being laid off
Being laid off can be a frustrating and scary time for any IT professional, but keeping a level head is vital – especially when it comes to negotiating your severance package.
Even if you haven’t been laid off, it’s valuable to know your rights and your options when dealing with your employer.
Be sure to check out this recently published story about how to ensure you get a fair severance package.
Or if you don’t like reading, check out my one-on-one interview with Toronto-based employment lawyer, Stacey Ball.
And for those thinking about leaving IT after being laid off (or if you anticipate being laid off), head on over to this week’s story about why laid off IT pros shouldn’t change careers.
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(Rate This Article) Loading ...Intuit giving away QuickBooks for free
Who likes free stuff? Everyone!
Intuit is tapping into this universal love of free stuff–and our sadly starving pocketbooks–and offering up copies of QuickBooks EasyStart Free Starter Edition.
“Today’s tough economy is challenging small businesses to become more efficient and better manage their finances,” said the press release.
The full-featured Starter Edition will allow users to input up to 20 customers or vendors.
Head to www.quickbooks.ca/easyfree to give it a try.
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(Rate This Article) Loading ...VIDEO: Your weekly dose of doom n’ gloom
Now, we here at Career Corner like spreading good news about the industry instead of gleefully spreading about the bad, but this week was chock-a-block enough with IT industry layoffs that we thought we should share.
Monday: Texas Instruments slashes 3,400 jobs, while Sprint is to give 8,000 staffers the boot
Tuesday: IBM to lay off plant workers in the United States, with a rumoured sacked toll of around 4,200
Wednesday: SAP to cut 3,000 jobs worldwide. Over at AOL, 700 people will be losing their livelihood.
But we don’t want to leave you on a bad note, so, here: enjoy this hilarious short-film about the perils of being a knowledge worker in this day and age!
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(1 votes, average: 10 out of 10) Loading ...U of T’s Faculty of Information gets new dean
The University of Toronto announced last week the appointment of a new dean for its Faculty of Information, which includes the department of information studies, the Knowledg Media Design Institute, and the Adaptive Technology Resource Centre.
Seamus Ross will be taking on a seven-year term; his areas of interest include preserving cultural heritage and scientific digital objects, humanities informatics, and the application of IT to libraries, archives, and museums.
Ross is the founding director of Glasgow’s Humanities Advanced Technology and Information Institute.
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(Rate This Article) Loading ...How to recession-proof your career
Cher Murphy PR sent along a list of tips—courtesy of business forecasting firm Kiplinger—on how to recession-proof your career, and we thought them useful enough to share here.
1. Remain noticeably active on the job. Regardless of what type of field you work in, it is important that you let people see that you are busy. If you look like you aren’t doing much, it gives others the idea that you are not needed.
2. Document your contributions. Keep a file of everything that you do to help the company, no matter how small you may think it is. That information can be quite handy later, if you have to defend your position by explaining your contribution to the company.
3. Help make cuts. Many businesses need to make economic cuts right now. Offer a list of ideas that you think can help your company lower their bottom line. They will appreciate your input and the fact that you care enough to help with this issue.
4. Reduce your overhead. If you own small business, consider taking it home if it can be done there, rather than from a rented space, which could save a great deal of money each month. Also, re-evaluate how you are getting your business name out to the public. Now is the time to utilize public relations, in order to increase brand-name recognition and sales.
5. Don’t complain. The last thing your employer wants to hear is you whining about taking on additional tasks or having to be more flexible in order to help them stay afloat. Vent your complaints in the car as you head home, rather than to your employer.
6. Improve your skills. If there is a class, degree, convention, or some other skill-building tool you can undertake or experience, you should do it. It will make you that much more valuable at your current job, and it can help with future ones, as well.
7. Network. While you may have heard it a million times before, it’s true that networking can help you in your career. You never know who is going to be instrumental in helping you when you need it most.
8. Switch careers. If you are not happy in the field in which you work, you may want to choose a new path – one that is considered recession-proof. According to Kiplinger, those fields include health care, education (e.g., math, science, bilingual education), security, environmental sciences, globalization, and government positions.
9. Polish resume. Be sure to keep your resume polished and updated, so that if you need it right away (or someone you network with would like to see it), you have it ready to hand over.
10. Stay optimistic. Attitudes are like colds – they are very contagious. Keeping an optimistic attitude will keep you in much better graces than if you bring others down.
