Work It

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.

In a world of online social connections and easy networking opportunities, is the traditional, secretive headhunter still relevant? Crispina Robert and Adrian Tan speak to Michelle Koh, managing director of recruitment firm The Edge Partnership, who says good talent recruitment cannot be done online. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Increasingly soft skills in leaders are becoming as important as hard skills. But what exactly are the soft skills needed and what if top managers lack these? Yeo Chuen Chuen, Managing Director of ACESENCE Agile Leadership Coaching and Training, who coaches Fortune 500 leaders, is our guest. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The first female CEO of an American bank, Jane Fraser has a nickname: Fraser the razor. She talks to CNA presenter Dawn Tan about change management, the economic outlook, artificial intelligence (AI) and why leaders need to choose teams who can do better than them.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A Randstad survey showed that 67 per cent of Gen Z employees say poor company culture and leadership would make them quit. One of the hardest relationships to deal with is with their manager. What does it mean to "manage up"? 25-year-old account manager at HighSpark, Teo Jiayi is this week's guest. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Popular work communication tool Slack, used by 20 million users around the world, was recently bought by Salesforce for US$27 billion. Crispina Robert has a chat with its co-founder and Chief Technology Officer Cal Henderson on what building a successful business is like, what he looks for when he hires and what's his favourite emoji on Slack. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Yeoh Ying Ying was made general manager of pharmaceutical giant Roche Singapore at 39. She talks about rising up the ranks, the hard lessons she learnt early on as a young woman doing sales, and how she compartmentalises her time between work, children and self.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The great love affair workers had with working from home is over with more big firms wanting their staff back in the office four or five days a week. But the pushback from employees is real. Professor Mark Mortensen from INSEAD has studied hybrid working for 20 years and he explains how everyone can navigate this. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An ageing workforce is a top concern of CEOs, especially in places like Japan and Singapore. But talent management systems that cater to what older workers really want are still not up to scratch. James Root, partner at Bain and Company, gives practical ideas on what managers can do.  In this episode, we talk about a quiz that you can take to show the worker archetype you are. Here's the link. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Top among the discrimination complaints that TAFEP (Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices) receives is discrimination around nationality, followed by age. Next year, legislation will come into place, taking offenders to task. But where are the grey areas and what kinds of processes do companies have to put in place? Faith Li, general manager of the Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices (Tafep) gives an outline on this episode. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ng Jia Min was five years into her first job as an engineer when she decided to move to a completely new industry altogether. But there was just one twist – she didn’t have the skills for it. In this episode, she and her new manager, Melvin Fam, SEO head at digital agency OOm, share their journey on how they made the big move. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Help and support for neurodivergent employees should start at the hiring and onboarding stages. But what should companies look out for? Steven Ng, chief information officer at local cybersecurity firm Ensign InfoSecurity which has developed a programme to hire autistic individuals, and career coach Dawn Foo tell senior journalist Grace Yeoh how inclusion happens even before neurodivergent employees enter the workplace. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Having dyslexia hasn’t stopped AI ethicist Chan Pui Yan from holding down a job that requires extensive reading and writing to help craft policies. Coupled with dyslexia, she also has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). On the third episode of the limited series Wired Differently, she tells senior journalist Grace Yeoh about her struggles with coming to terms that she’s neurodivergent, and how she has learnt to tap into her natural strengths. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Individuals with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) often struggle with details, time management, organisation and prioritisation – skills required to be a good manager. Yvonne Zhang and Amrun Hisyam tell senior journalist Grace Yeoh how they handle the demands of managerial duties in the second episode of the limited series Wired Differently.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In a new limited series, CNA’s senior journalist Grace Yeoh gets the personal stories of neurodivergent people in the workplace. In this episode, she speaks with Wesley Loh, a tax associate, about how his autism presents itself at work and how he navigates workplace relationships.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In our final installment of our special series, the Leader's Chair, Crispina Robert and Adrian Tan speak to Verena Siow, Southeast Asia president and managing director at SAP, one of the world’s leading technology companies. She talks about her unconventional journey - including leaving university to follow her boyfriend to Budapest - and why she feels women have imposter syndrome more than men.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.