Work It

The government has been providing parental benefits to encourage people to have more children. But what do these increased benefits mean for companies and their bottom line? Will taking more childcare leave affect promotion prospects? Derrick Teo, CEO of human resource firm Elitez Group and senior professional at the Institute for Human Resource Professionals, explains. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dozing off at a meeting that’s going in circles and doesn’t seem to have a concrete agenda? Here’s how you can bring focus to these unproductive discussions. Have a work-related question to ask a career counsellor? Email us here.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In some employment contracts, there is a non-compete clause that limits an employee moving to a competitor. How does this impact your career? Jonathan Yuen, head of Commercial Litigation and Employment (Disputes) at Rajah & Tann Asia, breaks it down. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s the annual feedback time and you must rate your boss and co-workers. Is the 360 feedback worth the effort? How can you ensure it leads to real change, and what should you do if it doesn't? Have a work-related question to ask a career counsellor? Email us here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If your boss is not giving you clear development targets or excluding you from key meetings, you may be at risk of being quietly fired. How should you respond? Peter Hamilton, vice president and managing director (APAC) at KellyOCG, delves into the tactics employers use and offers crucial advice on how to protect your career.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Have you waited for a call after a job interview but never heard back from the company? How long should you wait before sending the HR person a nudge? Have a work-related question to ask a career counsellor? Email us here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Good grades and a fancy degree may not be enough to get you that dream job or sustain a successful career. Asher Ling, Chief Technology Officer and Managing Director, Singapore at Princeton Digital Group, and SGTech’s Talent Steering Committee member explains what and why skills-based hiring is on the rise. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s a high stakes conversation and you don’t see eye to eye with your manager. How do you disagree constructively without burning bridges? Have a work-related question to ask a career counsellor? Email us here.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you have a diagnosed mental health condition and you’re thinking of disclosing it to your workplace, what should you be aware of? How can your performance at work be rated with this consideration? Khairil Baharudin, senior HR business partner at a tech firm and certified professional with the Institute for HR Professionals, lays out the pros and cons.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You want to give effective feedback to a colleague or employee. But this person is likely going to be sensitive or defensive about it. How should you approach this situation? Have a burning work-related question to ask a career counsellor? Email us here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Career planning can help people commit to their goals and desires. But what if the best laid plans are derailed by changes in your life? Chris Lau, principal career coach from Workforce Singapore shares his personal journey about his career plan. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Your boss is asking subordinates to communicate with senior management. If you feel uncomfortable, how should you broach the topic? Have a burning work-related question to ask a career counsellor? Email us here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

CEOs may occupy an exclusive rank, but their decisions have a profound impact on many lives. What is the first order of business for new CEOs transiting into a company? “CEO whisperer” Dr Ty Wiggins from Russell Reynolds Associates shares his observations with Tiffany Ang and Gerald Tan after having built a career advising top business leaders. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How do I know if my manager is bullying me or just has high standards for my work? Here are some signs to look out for before you lodge a formal complaint. Have a burning work-related question to ask a career counsellor? Email us here.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Employers will soon be expected to consider staff requests around flexible work arrangements. But what are reasonable requests and can managers avoid bias in decision-making? Mukul Anand, head of HR in HSBC Singapore, talks about how companies can better serve their staff’s needs.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Have you sat in a job interview and was asked to produce your last drawn payslip? Here are steps you can follow if you are not comfortable to reveal it. Have a burning work-related question to ask a career counsellor? Email us here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Every department in a company - from legal to finance and HR - can use a basic AI tool to solve problems or work better. Agoda’s chief technology officer Idan Zalzberg explains why AI knowledge and tools do not have to be complicated and hard to implement.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Congratulations on your promotion. But you can’t shake the feeling that it didn’t sit well with your peers at work. How should you manage them? Have a burning work-related question to ask a career counsellor? Email us here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Being partners in both work and life may not be for every couple. But if you choose to work with your spouse, what boundaries should you have and how do you stay together through thick and thin? Christel Goh, chief executive officer at Grow Public Relations, joins the Work It podcast with her husband Kelvin Teo, the chief operating officer at the same company. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Calls and messages to check if you are on schedule and constantly watching over your work. What can you do if you have a boss who micromanages you? Here are some tips. Have a burning work-related question to ask a career counsellor? Email us here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tight schedules, endless tasks and demanding expectations – these are the daily realities for many working professionals. Emergency medicine physicians and authors Dr Adaira Landry and Dr Resa Lewiss share practical strategies on how to stay well despite busy lives.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It is common to hear people coming back from maternity leave, parental leave or a long sabbatical and being passed on for a promotion. Gerald Tan explains why that happens and offers tips on how to avoid feeling bitter. Have a burning work-related question to ask a career counsellor? Email us here.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

According to Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, your personal brand is what people say about you when you’re not in the room. How do you create one for your career so that others will notice you? Joy Seow, executive director and head of consumer practice at Kerry Consulting gives some tips.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Are you struggling with a tough work situation that is affecting your mental health? If so, should you reach out to a career coach or a therapist for help? Have a burning work-related question to ask a career counsellor? Email us here.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Some Gen Zs are making public videos of themselves getting fired or resigning, inspiring a phenomenon called Quit-Tok. What's driving them and how can companies better manage a younger generation that thrives on authenticity? Rachele Focardi, founder and CEO of XYZ@Work, shares her findings. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You could be in between jobs or considering your next career move. So taking on a contract role might be an option for you. But how do you negotiate for more money if the company refuses to give you a permanent position? Have a burning work-related question to ask a career counsellor? Email us hereSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

According to the latest salary survey guide by Robert Walters, three in four professionals are open to returning to their previous employers. Besides coming back to higher salaries and new job scopes, what other benefits do boomerang employees get when they return? Our guest Josephine Chua, HR director at Aloft Singapore hotel and master professional at the Institute for Human Resource Professionals, discusses the pros and cons of hiring boomerang employees.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Your co-worker is not pulling their weight and despite interventions, your manager is waiting for a resignation letter instead of firing them. What should you do? Have a burning work-related question to ask a career counsellor? Email us here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It is that little voice in your head shouting that you are not good enough for the job or that someone will soon figure out you are a fraud. How do you overcome imposter syndrome and how can bosses set their staff up for success when they are new to the job role? Yasmine Khater, founder of Sales Story Method, explains how she has learnt to silence that voice.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You’ve just started at your new job and your predecessor didn’t do a proper handover. On top of that, you get the feeling that your new colleagues aren’t so welcoming. What should you do? Have a burning work-related question to ask a career counsellor? Email us here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With new guidelines for flexible work arrangement requests kicking in by the end of the year, how can living and working spaces change to make hybrid work more accessible for all? Associate Professor Lilian Chee from the National University of Singapore and Associate Professor Ada Wong from the Singapore University of Social Sciences share their research. This podcast episode is in partnership with the inaugural Ideas Festival. You can find out more at www.ideasfestival.edu.sgSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You’re having a relaxing holiday when suddenly your phone goes off. Your boss is asking questions and your colleagues are chasing you for answers. Sounds familiar? What are some golden rules you should set before you go on leave? Do you have a burning work-related question to ask a career counsellor? Email us here.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With retirement and re-employment ages set to be raised, the truth is that there will be more mature workers in our workforce. What are some unique challenges senior workers face and how can companies help them feel more valued? Our guest this week is Professor Yow Wei Quin, head of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences at the Singapore University of Technology and Design. This podcast episode is in partnership with the inaugural Ideas Festival. You can find out more at www.ideasfestival.edu.sg See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What boundaries do you need at work if your boss happens to be your friend? Do you have a burning work-related question to ask a career counsellor? Email us here and Gerald Tan of Avodah People Solutions will answer them for you.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Setting work goals and reviewing them at the end of the year are important milestones for your career progression. What do bosses look for when conducting a performance review? How can you better prepare so that you’ll get constructive feedback from your employer? In the first episode of the new season of Work It, career counsellor Gerald Tan dishes out some useful tips while host Tiffany Ang puts her supervisor in the hot seat.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Adrian Tan and Crispina Robert call time on their role as hosts of this podcast. In their last episode together, they talk about the highlights of the last two seasons and delve into the purpose of an exit interview. What kind of feedback is given when someone is on his or her way out and how should HR share this information and with whom?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The executive director of the Singapore Human Resource Institute was Work It's very first guest. Two years on, we check back with Alvin Goh and chat about the future of work, changing work norms, the rise of artificial intelligence and the right to disconnect from work as the focus on mental health comes to the fore in the workplace.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Camilla Dahl Hansen, chief experience officer at Saxo, was once told to take a break for three weeks because she was overwhelmed with work-induced stress. What does she do to keep burnout at bay? She shares her views with Adrian Tan and Crispina Robert.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Immersed in a male-dominated industry, Jingjin Liu learnt how to navigate assumptions, judgement and outdated ideas about women as sole caregivers. The founder of ZaZaZu, a corporate platform aimed at helping women in their careers, is our guest in this episode. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In a volatile business world, the concept of leaders having "executive presence" has come into sharper focus. What exactly does it mean, and can it be cultivated? Entrepreneur, investor and CEO of Endeavor Linda Rottenberg is this week's guest.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After our episode on dealing with poor performers, listeners wrote in to ask us to discuss managers who were not doing their jobs well. From micromanagers to non-managers, how do you deal with people responsible for your renumeration and career growth? Leadership coach and founder of Designing Trust Audrey Low is our guest.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Not a day goes by without some news about generative artificial intelligence, particularly, its impact on jobs. Nick Eayrs from Databricks, an AI and data company, unpacks exactly how jobs will be affected and whose responsibility it is to be prepared. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Retrenchments in Singapore more than doubled in 2023 compared to a year before, according to the Ministry of Manpower. But what goes into the decision to cut jobs and which workers are more at risk? Jerviel Lim, head of people and culture at Tatsu Works, is this week’s guest. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One of the more challenging aspects of workplace management is dealing with workers who are not performing as well as they should. What steps can managers take to address missed outcomes or unhealthy attitudes? Michael Han of Han & Lu Law Chambers shares his experience with Crispina Robert and Adrian Tan.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Boards were in the limelight when OpenAI's CEO Sam Altman was fired by his board last year. Who gets to sit on the board of a company? How are they picked and how much power do they really have? Crispina Robert and Adrian Tan speak to Wong Su-Yen, the former president of Singapore Institute of Directors. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Talking about money is tricky but important. What goes into your pay? When is a good time to ask for more and can you refuse to disclose your last drawn salary? Ken Tan of Persolkelly, which recently published a salary guide, is our guest. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

CEO and founder of HR technology firm Visier, Ryan Wong, runs a company with "unicorn" status - it has reached US$1 billion in valuation. He was born, raised and educated in Singapore, but started his business in North America. He shares his journey, why he thinks Singaporeans should take more risks and what needs to change in human resources. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Here's the last of our three top episodes from our archives this year. Companies use assessment tools like the 360 and 180 systems which ask for peers and subordinates to assess their supervisors. What are the downsides of giving feedback about your manager? What does constructive criticism look like and why is it important? Norman Chua, director of group HR at the National Healthcare Group explains. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Here's the second of three top episodes from our archives this year. A life-threatening diagnosis usually means a chance to stop working, smell the flowers and look at life’s bucket list. But the former partner at TSMP Law Corporation explains why he bucked convention, what he thinks about quiet quitting and what makes a good leader. Adrian Tan died in July 2023.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Here's the first of three top episodes from our archives this year. DBS Bank CEO Piyush Gupta sits down with Crispina Robert and Adrian Tan to talk about why he calls himself “the accidental banker”, how experiencing failure changed his leadership style and what he really thinks about work-life balance. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.