FP Posted

Tell me about yourself

Cathy Graham — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 22:20:00 GMT

A standard interview question, that, if not answered with the right degree of disclosure and confidence can derail the job interview almost before it has begun. This should be the one question that you know you can talk about, there is know right or wrong answer, but there is certainly a right and wrong way to respond to that typcial opening question. Some job seekers freeze, frantically wondering what is the interviewer really looking for? Some get angry because, after all, isn't it against the law to ask personal questions? What if the interviewer is really trying to find out something about you that can be used to eliminate you from the running?

An excellent guide to manoevering your way through the job interview minefield and this question in particular, can be found in the classic, Parting Company: How to Survive the Loss of a Job and Find Another One Successfully. Interviewers will often start an interview with a "tell me about yourself" question, because they are not that comfortable interviewing and want to get you talking so that they can feel more comfortable - it is the "warming up" stage. Or the question can be used because the interviewer is skilled and believes your response is indicative of your self-knowledge, your composure, your ability to perform. When crafting an answer do remember that is only an opener and resist the temptation to expand too much or provide too much information on inconsequential areas. Focus on what is relevant and germane to the position and the hiring organization. Keep it short, but go beyond one sentence. Practice rehearsing an answer by grouping your experiences into four categories: early years, education, work history and most recent career experience. Align your response with some aspect of the job. At this point you are telling a story about yourself, providing enough information to demonstrate you have insight, and enough to differentiate yourself from other candidates.

If you have been able to discover background information on the interviewer, you can stress aspects of your background that might appeal to the interviewer, that you might have in common. For example, you both are long distance runners, so mention your training program for your upcoming marathon and explain how it helps you perform better on the job: ie: focus, goal oriented, physically fit, high energy, etc. Touch upon something that is unique about your background (as long as it is positive), ie: your Dad was in the military so you moved a lot, making you adaptable and open to change, something that is required in the position for which you are interviewing. Discuss your education from the perspective of choice: I chose this college or university because I knew they had a great program in marketing or welding or aerospace engineeering, etc. Refer briefly to you work experience, perhaps highlighting a key learning from a particular job, and allude to accomplishments and responsibilities of your current position, if you are still working, or to your most recent position, if you are not working.

This is your chance to build rapport. Strike the rigth balance between humility and boasting, decide the impresssion you want to create, review your dates and the facts, don't fumble over your career progression and don't ramble. If the interviewer wants to probe more they will let you know. "Telling about yourself" is setting the stage for the rest of the interview so don't take too much time.

Cathy Graham is managing director, CV Management Inc, a search and recruitment consulting firm specializing in people intelligence for a competitive edge. She can be reached at cgraham@cvmanagement.ca.

FP Tech Desk: Google Canada is hiring

Matt Hartley — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 18:14:00 GMT

Ever wanted to work in an office where lunch is free, candy is plentiful and the break room has a copy of Rock Band set up so you can bash out a few tunes between meetings?

Good news. Google Canada is hiring.

Despite rising Canadian unemployment figures, Google -- the technology giant consistently ranked as one of the world's top employers -- is currently accepting applications for 16 positions at its Canadian offices, ranging from software engineering roles to administrative assistants and agency sales planners.

Fortune Magazine ranked Google the 4th best company to work for in 2009, and the best company to work for in both 2007 and 2008.

Positions are available in Montreal, Toronto and Ottawa.

Google was forced to trim its worker base in January of this year for the first time in the company's history, letting go about 1,000 employees as the economic downturn ravaged the technology industry.

FP Tech Desk: Canadians want the Internet to play a greater role in health care industry

Matt Hartley — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 17:54:00 GMT

Canadians love technology almost as much as they cherish their public health care, so perhaps it's no surprise that more than half of Canadians would be open to the Internet playing a greater role in the country's health care system.

According to a new survey from Deloitte, 51% of Canadians would be interested in using a secure health care website to schedule doctor visits, access their medical records, view test results, order prescription refills and to research available treatment options.

Nearly half of all Canadians (49%) would also like to be able to contact their physician via email while 61% believe someone -- be it the government, hospitals or physicians -- should be able to provide secure access to medical records online. Two thirds of respondents also wanted to be able to access the medical records of a family member.

The number one concern about placing health records online was, not surprisingly, privacy issues relating to the storage of online information.

Other findings from the study show that 75% of Canadians have private health insurance (primarily through their employer) but that only 25% of Canadians felt "well-insured" across their public and private insurance plans.

More than half of Canadians are open to the idea of expanding private care, provided it doesn't impact the public system and actually results in the reduction of wait times.

“This transition from a patient-orientation to a consumer-orientation will have far-reaching implications for all industry stakeholders and will place new demands on the health system and raise new challenges,” said Mark Fam, senior manager of Deloitte's National Health Services and lead author for the Canadian health consumer survey.

“Yet it also presents health care industry stakeholders with new opportunities to experiment, to innovate and to adapt to help Canadians improve both their health and wellness.”

For the survey, Deloitte polled 2,304 Canadian adults in November with a questionnaire consisting of 74 questions with 46 potential follow up questions.

Canadian house prices lofty, but rates to stay frozen

Alia McMullen — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 16:30:00 GMT

Canadian house prices have soared in the past decade and, despite the hiccup at the start of the recession, low interest rates have helped prices to continue to increase. Scotiabank economists said in a report that the run up in prices needed to be watched carefully because it could develop into a bubble. However, they said conditions did not warrant an interest rate increase just yet and that the pace of price increases would likely cool in about two to four years.

“Canadian house prices are rich no matter how one looks at it, but they are likely to become richer yet before material risks emerge later next year and beyond,” economists Derek Holt and Karen Cordes said in the report.

There are a number of ways to look at house prices. Canadian Real Estate Association data on homes sold through the Multiple Listing Service shows that the average resale price has more than doubled this decade. Statistics Canada’s new home price index has also risen by about 50% this decade. Canadian Teranet resale prices as of August have increased 86% this decade.

“All three Canadian measures point to lofty valuations,” the economists said. “If analysts were worried about Canadian house prices over 2007-08, it would be inconsistent to suddenly no longer believe them to be in lofty territory today especially insofar as the outright resale segment is concerned.”

To compare house prices to the broader economy, Mr. Holt and Ms. Cordes adjusted the increases to account for inflation, which resulted in a 70% rise so far this decade. Another alternate measure, comparing house prices with rental costs, was at a record high, while price-to-income was also elevated.

“While the hottest markets have tended to be Toronto and Vancouver, one cannot simply eliminate them as outliers, since they make up over one-fifth of the Canadian
market place,” the report said. “Regardless, all Provinces have experienced a strong pace of price gains since house prices started to rise at the beginning of the decade.”

The economists said the rise in house prices, while a concern, would not alone tempt the Bank of Canada to raise the benchmark interest rates from 0.25% before June, which is when the central bank has promised to keep the rate frozen until, conditional on inflation. Core inflation was at 1.8% in November, slightly below the Bank of Canada’s target of 2%. Owned accommodation accounts for about 16% of the consumer price index calculations.

“We expect the Bank of Canada to begin raising interest rates only in the second half of 2010, and only materially by 2011,” they said. “Low interest rates are driving healthy affordability right now, but this effect will wane in the next 2-4 years.”

Alia McMullen

FP Tech Desk: Rogers launches its own mini-Hulu

Matt Hartley — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 14:14:00 GMT

Rogers Communications Inc. plans to launch a new online video on demand service, reminiscent of the popular service Hulu in the United States, next week.

Rogers unveiled a private beta of the service at an event last night in Toronto, however a public version of the site is set to go live on Monday, Nov. 30.

Although some Canadian broadcasters and specialty channels already stream episodes of certain programs on their websites, Rogers' on demand portal will more closely resemble the U.S. site Hulu -- which is a joint venture of NBC Universal, News Corp.'s Fox Entertainment Group and The Walt Disney Company's ABC Inc.-- and features programming from multiple broadcasters.

The service will be free for Rogers customers who possess either a cable or wireless account and will feature programming from 16 broadcast partners, including 19 channels.

For Rogers, the new service not only provides the company with another video platform, but could also turn out to be a significant revenue driver for the company's cable division. Because the videos will be streamed in high resolution over the Internet, some customers may need to upgrade to bigger -- and more expensive -- Internet packages.

Rogers said it plans to launch new features -- such as a commenting system, integration with social networks including Facebook and live streaming of sporting events and concerts -- early next year.

The company is also planning a mobile application which would give customers access to the on demand site on a smart phone, such as an iPhone or BlackBerry, in the second quarter of next year.

Atlantic Canada resilient amid recession, growth story to continue: RBC Economics

Vieira — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 22:09:00 GMT

Atlantic Canada was at one time deemed the ugly duckling of the Canadian economy. My, how times have changed. In the past year, the region has put up the strongest resistance to the downturn. And according to a note from Robert Hogue, senior economist at Royal Bank of Canada, most signs point to continued positive momentum for the Atlantic provinces.

“The transformation of the region’s economy during the past decade or so has been significant and a renewed sense of dynamism and confidence now prevails,” Mr. Hogue said, adding much of this revolution has been powered by major energy and mining projects.

During the recession in Atlantic Canada, provincial unemployment rates have risen less rapidly than the national average (the rate in New Brunswick even declined modestly). Meanwhile, retail sales, although shrinking a little, have held up comparatively much better than those in the rest of the country.

As for the future, Mr. Hogue writes:

‘One of the clearest manifestations of renewed optimism in the Atlantic region has been the reversal of earlier net migration outflows to other provinces. Since the middle of 2007, however, the relatively brighter economic prospects in the region have not only worked to retain people in the region but also to attract other Canadians in greater numbers. … [Net] population growth, if maintained, represents a meaningful improvement in the long-term economic fundamentals for the region.’

Paul Vieira

Cleantech firm Vive Nano wins Ontario funding

Alia McMullen — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 20:46:00 GMT

Vive Nano, one of Corporate Knight’s Next 10 companies mentioned in Monday’s Financial Post article on emerging clean technology businesses, has been awarded almost $3.8-million in investment from the Ontario government.

The Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation announced Monday it would provide funding for the Toronto-based nanotechnology company using its Innovation Demonstration Fund to help the company build a pilot plant, refine its processes and come to full production levels. Vive Nano expects to create 19 new high-skill jobs over the next two years, including positions for chemists, technicians, engineers, project managers and a controller.

“Some of today’s most exciting scientific breakthroughs and commercial innovations are happening in the field of nanotechnology,” said John Milloy, Ontario’s minister of Research and Innovation. “That’s why we’re proud to help emerging companies like Vive Nano bring their technology to market, so that they can create jobs and seize what is already a multi-billion dollar global market opportunity.”

Vive Nano’s first product reformulates pesticides so that farmers can better protect their crops while using less chemicals, resulting in reduced emissions and less chemical run-off.

Keith Thomas, president and chief executive of Vive Nano said the company had a “game-changing” nanomaterials process that is environmentally friendly and solves major problems for global customers, including cost, quality, and complexity.

“I cannot think of a better fit, or a better place to grow this knowledge-based company than Ontario,” he said.

Alia McMullen

FP Tech Desk: Apple may refuse to fix your computer if you're a smoker

Matt Hartley — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 17:44:00 GMT

It's well known that Apple CEO Steve Jobs is a bit of a health nut, but this may be taking things too far.

If you're a smoker and a Mac user, Apple may refuse to fix your computer.

Consumerist is reporting that two Apple customers from different parts of the United States have seen their Applecare warranty packages voided because the computers were used by smokers and contained tar and second hand smoke.

Apparently, Apple won't let its technicians work on computers that come from smoking households due to risks associated with second hand smoke.

Photo: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images

FP Tech Desk: Intel inside ... your head

Matt Hartley — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 16:10:00 GMT

Conspiracy theorists, you may commence panicking.

Researchers with chip maker Intel Corp. are working on new technologies that may one day allow human beings to operate computers using only their brain waves with the help of tiny microchips implanted in the brain.

According to Computerworld magazine, scientists at Intel's research lab in Pittsburgh are hard at work developing technology that can "read and harness brain waves" so that humans could conceivably use the power of their thoughts to control computers, televisions, cell phones and other gadgets. Intel's scientists believe this technology could be ready as early as 2020.

If the whole thing sounds a bit too Big Brother or Minority Report for you, Intel's researchers believe consumers would want the freedom the chips offer and will ask to have them installed.

"I think human beings are remarkable adaptive," Andrew Chien, vice president of research and director of future technologies research at Intel Labs told Computerworld. "If you told people 20 years ago that they would be carrying computers all the time, they would have said, 'I don't want that. I don't need that.' Now you can't get them to stop [carrying devices]. There are a lot of things that have to be done first but I think [implanting chips into human brains] is well within the scope of possibility."

Anyone else thinks this sounds like a good plot for a new zombie flick?

FP Tech Desk: U.S.-based anti-video game group shutting down

Matt Hartley — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 15:50:00 GMT

There likely won't be too many folks in the video game industry shedding a tear over the demise of the National Institute on Media and the Family.

The non-profit Minneapolis-based NIMF -- the group responsible for the annual MediaWise Video Game Report Card -- was a staunch critic of the video game industry, often criticizing the industry for what it saw as indadequate rating systems and for producing violent and mature titles.

[Via Gamasutra]

FP Tech Desk: Morning Buzz (New BlackBerry Pearl, Globalive's retail outlet and what would Wired look like on an Apple tablet?)

Matt Hartley — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 15:30:00 GMT

Welcome to the Monday edition of the FP Tech Desk's Morning Buzz.

For all you BlackBerry geeks out there, some photos have surfaced of what appears to be an as-yet-to-be-announced BlackBerry -- the Pearl 9100 or "Stratus." Prefer video? Okay, here you go.

While Industry Minister Tony Clement decides whether to wade back into the Globalive ownership debate, that hasn't stopped the company from showing off one of its WIND retail outlets. [via Boy Genius Report]

Wondering what a magazine like Wired might look like on the maybe-they-will-maybe-they-won't rumoured Apple tablet computer? MacRumors has published a video of what that just might look like.

FP Tech Desk: Will Microsoft pay Rupert Murdoch for access to News Corp sites?

Matt Hartley — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 14:44:00 GMT

Rupert Murdoch seems to have something against Google.

The chairman of the News Corp media empire has made no secret of his long term plans to remove the stories produced by his newspapers from Google's search engine.

Now, in a move that could have far-reaching implications for news organizations, it appears Microsoft is working on a plan in conjunction with News Corp that would see the world's largest software company pay Mr. Murdoch's empire to "de-index" its news sites from Google.

According to The Financial Times, Microsoft has held early stage discussions with News Corp -- whose media properties include the Wall Street Journal -- and other big online publishers about pulling their content from Google in favour of Microsoft's own search engine, Bing.

The plan “puts enormous value on content if search engines are prepared to pay us to index with them,” said one Website publisher interviewed by the Financial Times.

If search engines suddenly had to start paying news organizations to index their stories, the result could result in millions of dollars in new revenue for publishers, and would conceivably cut into the profit margins of the big search providers, namely Google.

Google and other search engines currently index millions of news stories a day and provide them for free to readers across the Web.

For many news organizations which have blamed the Internet for falling circulation numbers and declining revenues, such a deal could increase the value of the content they produce without forcing readers to pay for online news -- just ask the music industry how difficult it can be to get consumers to start paying for a product again once they've grown accustomed to getting it for free.

For what it's worth, Twitter co-founder Biz Stone has said that Mr. Murdoch's plan to get search engines to pay for news stories and other published content is doomed to fail.

I'm sure many newspaper publishers will be watching closely to see how Mr. Murdoch's anti-Google gambit plays out.

Photo: Rupert Murdoch (Hyungwon Kang/Reuters)

FP Marketing for Nov. 20: Quaker powers up, and Ad Missions watches the Subaru vs. Snuggie ad

Drew Hasselback — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 15:20:00 GMT

If it's Friday, it's FP Marketing day! Today's edition includes Hollie Shaw's feature story Quaker Oats Co.'s decision to market its entire oat product portfolio under a single marketing umbrella. The resulting Canadian TV, print and online campaign is called "Go Humans Go."

Then there's Ad Missions. This week our team examines the Subaru Canada ad that erupts out of a Snuggie ad. We've included a link to a YouTube version below if you you haven't seen it find yourself saying "Huh?" after that description. The DDB Toronto ad certainly breaks some new ground.

FP Tech Desk: Morning Buzz (Batman uses Google, Steve Jobs answers his own email and Quebec woman loses disability insurance over Facebook photos)

Matt Hartley — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:13:00 GMT

Welcome to a very special Friday edition of the FP Tech Desk's morning buzz, featuring the best of what's making tech news around the Web.

Yesterday, Google peeled back the curtain on its forthcoming operating system, Chrome OS. While Microsoft isn't sweating Chrome OS just yet -- the new operating system won't be available until about this time next year -- Google's re-thinking of the operating system from its unique web-centric point of view has a lot of people very excited.

Speaking of Google, did you know that even Batman uses Google search? I wonder why this scene got left out of The Dark Knight?

Not to be outdone by Rogers' Fido brand, Virgin Mobile -- which is owned by Bell -- says it plans to begin offering the iPhone in the coming months.

Nice to know Apple CEO Steve Jobs actually answers his own emails sometimes. Fortune's CEO of the Decade recently took time out to respond to a frustrated developer, according to CrunchGear. When the developer couldn't get his app into the App Store, he wrote a lengthy email to Mr. Jobs. The response? "Change your apps name. Not that big of a deal."

Facebook is taking legal action against USocial, a service that sells followers on the world's most popular social network. [via BBC]

From our friends over at the CBC, a Quebec woman lost her disability benefits when her insurance company concluded she was no longer depressed. How did they figure that out? Simple, by creeping on her Facebook profile.

FP Tech Desk: Anti-domestic violence video game allows players to beat woman

Matt Hartley — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:00:00 GMT

Someone must have thought this sounded like a good idea.

A Danish non-governmental organization has created a simple online video game -- colourfully titled Hit the Bitch -- that allows players to slap a woman in the face, causing her to become bloody as bruised, as part of an advertising campaign designed to draw attention to domestic violence issues.

WARNING, the depictions of violence in the game are quite graphic.

The game was created by The NGO for Children exposed to Violence at Home as part of an online advocacy and awareness campaign.

The game starts with a video of a young woman walking towards the screen greeting the player in Danish. At a certain point, the video is paused and the name of the game is superimposed on the screen. Users can then choose to either use their mouse or a Webcam to control a realistic male hand.

By moving the mouse back and forth across the screen, the player can slap the woman in the face using the hand on the screen. With each smack the woman's face becomes increasingly bruised and her tone of voice grows increasingly angry.

After each slap, a power meter along the top of the screen grows from "pussy" to "gangsta." Once the game's power meter reaches the "100% Gangsta" side of the screen -- after roughly 8 or 10 slaps -- the game fades out and shows the player a "100% Idiot" screen.

The game then displays a video of the woman lying on the ground and crying, with what appear to be stats on domestic violence and ways to share the video via Facebook superimposed over her frame in Danish.

Outrage over the game is already beginning to spread online, with both The Huffington Post and Boing Boing weighing in on the game.

While I think most people would support just about any initiative that brings awareness to serious issues such as domestic violence and violence against women, Hit the Bitch is bound to push the boundaries of good taste for many in the video game world.

The Game Politics blog has more on the game here.