Author Archives: Antonio Green

Issue 2.4
November 2004

Are you receiving CRS News properly?
Did You Know that the new Microsoft XP Service Pack 2 (SP2) automatically strips out and remove images from HTML emails sent to users who have SP2 installed and are using Microsoft Outlook Express on a Windows XP computer? This also happens with Outlook 2003. The idea is to provide safer E-Mail handling but it does degrade your reading experience.

Here are some ideas to get round this annoyance:
1. Add our address crsnews@crsitjobs.com to your address list.

2. Outlook Express – turn off the “Block images and other external content in HTML e-mail” option after selecting Tools and Options and clicking on the Security tab.

3. Outlook 2003 – right click on the suppressed image box, and choose to display it.

Another way to ensure you receive our newsletters every month is to “white-list” our E-Mail address with your ISP if you can, or add it to your “Safe Sender’s List” if appropriate.

In any case, all back issues are published at http://www.crsitjobs.com

The Magic Wand
While researching the recruitment business in the UK, I attended a seminar for recruitment specialists, and was particularly impressed by a session entitled “The Magic Wand”. It’s a simple technique to dramatically increase (40% claimed) a candidate’s chances at a job interview. So, if you would like an extra boost in that regard, read on ……

1. Write down on a pad at least 6 questions to ask about the job or company, e.g., career prospects, training provided, etc.
2. Make sure that you carry the pad and a pen to the interview.
3. Take notes of at least 2 things said by the interviewer (shows interest and is flattering).
4. When the interviewer asks “any questions?” there ought to be a couple of your questions still unanswered. If all are answered, say you had questions prepared but they were all covered during the interview. If you don’t get asked for questions, then politely say “May I ask some questions?” This shows that you are prepared and keen.
5. At the end of the interview,
make sure that they know that you want the job.

That’s it! It seems so simple and of course, you must do all the other good interview things, like research the company, dress smartly, be on time, etc., (see www.rileyguide.com for lots of tips). We have passed on this technique to some of our candidates and it certainly boosted their confidence, impressed their interviewer, and I am sure that it contributed to their getting job offers. Try it and tell me how you got on.

Tell Us What You Think
Letters to the Editor

We received no comments on last month’s article on contracting vs. permanent employment. If you’re thinking of seeking contract work, we at CRS would be happy to advise you on how to go about it ……….. Ed.

We would love to hear what you think of this issue of CRS News. And of course, if you have any suggestions for upcoming issues that you would like to share with us, please send those, too!

Editor’s Note

Time is going by so fast – this is our third issue of this version of our newsletter already! As there was a gap of a couple of years between this version and the previous, we had to prune our mailing list drastically because of out-of-date email addresses. If you know anyone who may have signed up previously but changed email, then please suggest that they re-subscribe as indicated below.

Although I have spent most of my I.T. career in permanent jobs, I loved the adventure of working for many different companies when I was a salaried consultant for a consultancy company in the UK. Later, I became totally freelance in the UK and in Trinidad. So, this month I thought I would share the benefits of consulting as a way of life.

Contract vs. Permanent

Have you ever thought of being your own boss, walking away from the security of your permanent job to manage your career as you wish? Imagine life without office politics, no waiting in line for a promotion, and not having to work on jobs you dislike!

For many I.T. professionals, this is a reality. The trend here in T&T is increasingly for companies to bring in consultants for high-cost specialist work such as Database Administration and Network Installation. Software development projects usually require expertise that is needed only for the life of the project. Companies may outsource to I.T. service companies, who in turn hire consultants to carry out the work.

There is great potential for skilled people willing to “chance it” out there. The lack of job security (what job is secure these days anyway) is not for everyone. You need to have a good business sense so that you can estimate and price work effectively. You have to keep your skills up to date by investing in training. You have to keep accounts, invoice and collect payments, and manage your taxes, though these functions can be outsourced elsewhere too. You need to be prepared to market your services to get the work. Signing up with agencies like CRS will help your chances here! You need to have a professional attitude, i.e., you do not walk out of a contract, leaving your client in the lurch, for a better opportunity elsewhere. The market is too small for a bad reputation to remain hidden.

If you are interested in reading more about how the demand for Contractors/Consultants is developing in Trinidad, click on www.crsitjobs.com/contracting.htm.

I would love to hear your views, pro and con, for contracting as a way of life. My own experience as an I.T. Consultant has convinced me that the freedom of being my own boss is the way for me!

Tell Us What You Think

Letters to the Editor
Working in the Caribbean

About the ‘so called’ Certificate of Recognition of Caribbean Community Skills Qualifications, I would suggest that your readers not get too excited.
I applied last year (December 2003) for a Certificate in Trinidad & Tobago, and as of today (September 2004) I am still waiting to hear from the committee.
On two separate occasions, I have provided them with additional documentation (extensive employment history, detailed resume etc) and still no word. The High Commission (in Canada) has been helpful, but their aide is limited to suggestions as to who to contact (which usually only results in an expensive telephone bill as the contact usually have no useful knowledge of the process much less your application).
Good luck to anyone who actually expects a response in six weeks …… CA

I hope this is not a typical scenario. Has anyone else had similar or different experiences? ……….. Ed.

We would love to hear what you think of this issue of CRS News. And of course, if you have any suggestions for upcoming issues that you would like to share with us, please send those, too!

Happy Independence Day!

For those us fortunate enough to be born in or associated with the lovely islands of Trinidad & Tobago, happy T&T Independence Day (August 31st). I celebrated with my family with wine and good food and a miniature T&T flag.

If you have been unfortunate enough to experience one of our recent hurricanes (Charley, Frances, Ivan) then I hope you weren’t too badly affected. Once again, Trinidad escaped though Tobago suffered damage.

Thank you for all the kind words sent to me on the re-launching of the CRS newsletter. We will feature emails discussing topics mentioned in previous newsletters in the “Tell Us What You Think” section.

This month I am highlighting the CSME and how it will affect IT people in the Caribbean.

Working in the Caribbean

There has been quite a bit of publicity recently about the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) which is expected to come on stream in 2008. The CSME comprises the 13 member states of CARICOM and will facilitate the pooling of the region’s financial, human and natural resources so that we can effectively respond to globalisation. The Single Market is already in operation and allows for free movement of certain categories of person throughout the CSME member states.

This means, for example, that if you are a CARICOM national and a University Graduate and you wish to work in another CARICOM state, then you do not have to get your prospective employer to apply for a work permit for you any more. Now, you just apply yourself for a Certificate of Recognition of Caribbean Community Skills Qualifications from your appropriate ministry (the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the case of Trinidad & Tobago), a process which takes about six to eight weeks, and off you go! You can even become a resident of that country eventually.

For more information see http://www.caricom.org/archives/csme/freemovementskills_socialsecurity.pdf

Additionally, Self-Employed Service Providers can work in other CARICOM States by setting up an office in the particular country, where managerial, technical and supervisory staff can relocate for the life of the business in that country.

Also, if a Self-Employed Service Provider wins a contract in another CARICOM State, then he/she may work there for the period of the contract.

All this is great news for our regional I.T. consultants. Now, it seems you can work in any CARICOM state without hindrance from immigration officials. I would love to know of your own experiences with this. CRS gets job requirements from around the Caribbean so keep checking our job vacancies if you would like to travel.

Tell Us What You Think

Letters to the Editor

It’s good to see that there is some consideration being given to the Legislations which are evolving in present eCommerce. As you have discovered the legislation from the US, similar Acts exist in Europe and the UK governing from Data Protection to Distance selling regulations.
Has the T&T government made any steps toward these issues or are they adopting a wait and see attitude?
It would be good to think that some effort is being made in the Caribbean as a whole to address these issues, since whether they like it or not they will be forced more and more into the position of eTrade. It is always better to be prepared! ………….. Perry

I am not aware of any movement to legislate against unsolicited emails in the Caribbean. Can anyone else comment on this? ……….. Ed.

What a pleasure to see the newsletter out again. I am very impressed. The look, layout and format is very good. In a way all things turned out for the good, as I am sure you value what you had to learn to make this work. Keep it up! …………… Allan

Thanks for your support. I will keep striving to bring quality and value. …… Ed.

We would love to hear what you think of this issue of CRS News. And of course, if you have any suggestions for upcoming issues that you would like to share with us, please send those, too!

Issue 2.1
August 2004

We are back!

It has been many moons since the CRS Newsletter graced your screens. We were stonewalled by anti-spam software, including being blacklisted by our own server! It became very difficult to overcome all the barriers out there, despite the fact that ours was a legitimate opt-in newsletter.

So, I retreated and subscribed to a few how-to-run-your-own-internet-marketing-business type newsletters to find out how they managed to get their newsletters through to me. In the process, I learnt a lot, and our resurrected newsletter is in a completely new style and format. I hope you like it. If you wish, you may unsubscribe as indicated elsewhere in this newsletter.

We have now acquired state-of-the-art email marketing software to handle our newsletter more efficiently and to overcome the problems that we encountered previously. Do not worry, we will not spam you. If you are receiving this, then you had subscribed to us at some point.

 

Anti-Spam Legislation

If you are like me, you get tons of unwanted junk mail every day. There is a variety of software (many are marketed through spam, ironically) that can effectively manage this for you. I have been using Outlook 2003 and I’m very impressed at how this filters junk mail. I have not found a single valid email filtered out by mistake yet.

Did you know that there are now US laws regulating commercial mailings? Amongst other things, newsletters must have a working opt-out link in each email. Each unsubscribe request must be suppressed from future mailings and the address must be removed from the mailing list within 10 business days. So, in theory, you should be able to get rid off unwanted mailings by simply unsubscribing from them.

This is an excellent analysis of the legislation in PDF: http://www.customerparadigm.com/can-spam/can-spam-act.pdf

Getting caught breaking the law can result in a jail sentence in the USA. I wonder how that will stop the European junk mail! It is still best to avoid displaying your email address out there on a website or to enter it into any web based database. Difficult, I know, in this age of global communication.

I do promise that I will do my best to comply with these laws even though I am not governed by them as I live in Trinidad & Tobago.

 

Tell Us What You Think

We would love to hear what you think of this issue of CRS News. And of course, if you have any suggestions for upcoming issues that you would like to share with us, please send those, too!