Singapore Expats

This is not a joke and I sure hope not classified as rubbish? :D

Just wanted to share this with the Forum. This place has truly been helpful in so many ways. You guys are like family when I am 300km away from my family.

Very happy today. I made it into THE biggest giant of IT giants today on a direct permanent basis. Never in my wildest dreams could this have happened...
Out of the blue, this agency called about this prospect and the rest, as they always say, is history.

船到桥头自然直。Things fall into place on their own space and time?

This firm A has the unsightly policy of not helping EP holders with their PR applications. I took it on my own to apply with 6 months' payslips and made it! But you see, that in itself was a blessing in disguise. It reinforces my view that this place is not where I want to be...

Early this year the firm announced outsourcing its IT department to HP - which is in the trend this day and age. They are still trying their best to assuage us that we will be absorbed by HP, but as luck would have it:

#1 My sources in KL says HP has already started hiring for "A Operations".
#2 In an interview session a HP Manager told me A's account is going to India and KL.

That #2 is the last straw. Imagine the pants these people will burn just to prevent an exodus - at whose expense? The little potatoes like me - and those like me with personal and financial commitments back home will get more of the brunt.

Enough of the sad news hehe

My triumph lies in truly screwing over my competitors for this coveted role. If you were in Singapore IT market you would know that a direct permanent position with a Biggie is almost unheard of.
For one, the price of becoming a HP permanent staff is this - sign up for a 3-month contract (wowee) with another firm. This three months is your probation period. Fail it, and you are out. Pass it, and it gets renewed. The promise of conversion into a permanent position is an outright lie. I was told this by an ex-HP subcontractor.

My follow-up email to the interview consisted of two solutions of the problems he said he was facing at the moment. I adhered to the sacred rule of interviews "they have a problem they want the incumbent to fix."
The unenlightened ones (hehe) told me it was a suicide - with those solutions why should they hire you now?
Surely, a database environment with ONLY those two problems is not at all worth my time, I replied

The agent forwarded that email to the interviewer. Impressed, he was.
I bet my rivals didn't catch that email hehe

Now, it's history and I am about to embark on a career milestone for little me...

Thank you for listening! :D:D

Congrats riversandlakes, I do hope everything works out well for you.

Well done Riversandlakes!

To quote you:
Things fall into place on their own space and time.

Welcome to Big Bad Blue, from someone who works in "The Other IBM". I'll give you the same piece of good advice that the HR Manager gave me during my first week six years ago - "No one's ever going to look out for you in this organization...You have to look out for yourself if you want good things to happen to you".

What's "The Other Big Blue"?

Whatever happened to "spreading the love"?
Okay, okay, I got cha - CYA, right?

congrats R&L, let's talk again after 6 months or so

ex-IBMer

Ok, that will be Dec10...

To me, big five doesn't mean good. You have to see what you want to achieve. For me, I prefer to stay in small company cause you are in charge of more thing.

Easier to fly solo in future and get higher pay.

A friend who is a Functional SAP consultant for Material Management Module with 5 years experience is now with JAL as a contractor with an income of S$50000 per month. His job requires him to work in Japan, all relocation fee, accomodation and transport are provided. His contract is 6 months renewable. But it is still good.

This of'cos count on his experience working for a small firm and cover a lot of work on his own.

I strongly disagree, bud. Your friend's high-value is due to him being SPECIALIZED in the Material Management Module, not because he "covered a lot of ground" or "did more thing". That would have made him a generalist - a generalist is never worth squat, but of course much loved by most SMALL firms.
"You don't like it? Fine, leave! A/B/C can take over your job."

SAP consultants with a few years' experience under their belt are goldfingers now - that's well-known in the IT industry. Hey, JAL is a big firm. Would you have gotten there by being a generalist in the Material Management AND Human Resources AND Financial Modules at Ah Beng IT Consultancy Pte Ltd?
I doubt it.

I just have that bone to pick with pro-generalists

Hi Riversandlake.

You might be right on the first para. I am statig on my own experience too much. Was from Big 5 but notice I have more space and more chance to learn at a smaller company.

But, SAP is actually not like what you think. I am a SAP consultant too. But no chance to be like my friend because of : - experience, environment and project differences.

Some Ah Beng company might have chance to get big project or outsource their staff to some projects. Consultants are still able to pick up good skill.

They have higher chance of getting small project for manufacturing environment and their project is like one man show for each single module. Consultants need more responsibility instead of those big 5 throwing in new blood into big project with a few in a module to struggle.

Hello,

I am new to this forum. I am also a rookie consultant for SAP SD module currently looking for SD contacts to share experiences.

I wish to know almost everyone from every module.

Six months down the road, I am getting a little disillusioned.

riversandlakes wrote:Six months down the road, I am getting a little disillusioned.

r&l, sorry to hear that. Maybe EADG knew something you didn't know, eh? That's was a big boost for your ego I know but maybe there's still something to be gleaned from the whole experience. chalk it up to experience. You are definitely a wiser man today than you were 6 months ago. Right?