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Silver Sponsor of Manly Relay for Life

Richard Burke — Wed, 15 Aug 2012 01:59:37 +0000

http://relay.cancercouncil.com.au/2012/manly_2012/41d7fc4234

Tell us a little about Charter Bridge Consultants:

Charter Bridge Consulting is a specialist IT recruitment and project resourcing company based in Sydney. It’s CEO, Richard Burke, has been a resident of the Manly area for 8 years.

Why are you supporting Manly Relay For Life?

All of the staff members of Charter Bridge Consulting have been directly affected by the effects of cancer, each having lost a close family member to cancer, and therefore feel a deep and very personal attachment to charities, and to help to continue to raise money for the continued research into finding cures to cancer.

What are you most looking forward to seeing the Relay achieve?

As local residents of Manly, we are especially pleased to be committed to support an event such as the Manly Relay for Life, and look forward to seeing it continue to help the Cancer Council raise awareness and lots of money to continue the great work it does.

Charter Bridge Consulting are sponsoring Manly’s Relay for Life!

Richard Burke — Wed, 15 Aug 2012 01:58:32 +0000

Relay For Life is an overnight, community event where teams of 10-15 participate in a relay-style walk or run to raise funds for Cancer Council.

The event brings the whole community together for a night of fun, entertainment, celebration and remembrance.

Charter Bridge Consulting are sponsoring Manly’s event to be held on Saturday 15th September. Please come along and check out all the action!

http://relay.cancercouncil.com.au/2012/manly_2012

IT Job Searches Decline 18%

Richard Burke — Mon, 18 Jun 2012 23:52:09 +0000

Media Contact – info@charter-bridge.com.au – 61 (0)2 9233 2155

www.charter-bridge.com.au

IT job searches fell 18% from June last year
The largest decrease was in “Visual basic jobs” and “Silverlight jobs” which saw a 50% decrease
Java development associated searches increased 30%
56% of execs click on mobile web ads and 51% click on mobile paid searches.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Research released today by Charter Bridge Consulting has found that over the last 12 months the number of people searching online for jobs in Information Technology has fallen overall by over 18%. The data comes from June last year where Charter Bridge looked at data from the major search engines, including the history of 300 specific skill keyword terms and the usage patterns of a range of websites.

Over the last few years the amount of job seeking carried out online has increased as well. Nearly 10% of searches and applications are carried out on a mobile device, compared to less than 2% 3 years ago. According to Google, 56% of IT execs click on mobile job ads and 51% click on mobile paid searches.

Charter Bridge found that the largest decrease in online users was for the keywords in the “visual basic jobs” category, which saw over a 50% decrease from the same time last year. Conversely, some areas increased in the number of searches, including “Java Development” which was up 30% and and SEO/SEM jobs which were up nearly 50%.

“The IT jobs searches fluctuate” said Richard Burke, Manager of Charter Bridge. “December is by far the quietest month for job searches, whereas January and February tend to be the biggest.”

“The last 12 months has seen a decline in people searching for particular jobs as these skills become less well paid compared to others”

About Charter Bridge

Charter Bridge Consulting is a full-service I.T. staffing and resourcing firm, providing top quality candidates to fill both contract consulting and permanent positions. Headquartered in Sydney, NSW, we service our client base spread nationwide across both Australia and New Zealand.

Servicing the I.T. market exclusively, Charter Bridge meets the evolving I.T. services needs of our clients companies through a full portfolio of professional staffing and resourcing.

9 Traits That Make Employees Outstanding

Richard Burke — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 04:07:25 +0000

A little bit “off.” The best employees are a little different: Quirky, sometimes irreverent, happy to be unusual… they seem slightly “off,” but in a really good way. Unusual personalities shake things up, make work more fun, and turn a vanilla group into a team with flavor and flair. People who aren’t afraid to be different stretch boundaries, challenge the status quo, and often come up with the best ideas. But for this to be a great quality, the people who are a little “off” also need to…
Know when to reel it in. A non-standard personality is a lot of fun until it isn’t. When times get tough, major challenges pop up, or situations become stressful, even the most eccentric should know when to set aside their desire to express their individuality and fit seamlessly into the team. Outstanding employees know when to play and when to be serious, when to be irreverent and when to conform, and when to challenge and when to back off. Tough balance to strike, but outstanding employees walk that fine line with ease.
Ignore job descriptions. The smaller the company the more important it is that employees think on their feet, adapt quickly to shifting priorities, and do whatever it takes, regardless of role or position, to get things done. When a key customer’s order is in danger of shipping late, outstanding employees know without being told there’s a problem — and jump in without being asked, even if it’s not “their job.”
Eager to prove others wrong. Self-motivation often springs from a desire to show that doubters are wrong. The kid without a college degree or the woman who was told she didn’t have leadership potential could have a burning desire to prove themselves. Education, intelligence, talent, skill — all are important, but drive is critical.
Praise in public. Few things can boost morale more than praise from a peer, especially a peer you look up to. Outstanding employees recognize the contributions of others, especially in group settings where the impact of their words is even greater. But they also know when to…
Complain in private. We all want employees to raise issues, but some problems are better handled one-on-one. Great employees often get more latitude to bring up controversial subjects because their performance allows greater freedom. The employee who comes to you after a meeting to discuss a sensitive issue that if brought up in a group setting would have set off a firestorm does you and the business a favor. And speaking of favors…
Ask questions for others. Some employees are hesitant to speak up in meetings. Some are even hesitant to speak up privately. For example, an employee once asked me a question about potential layoffs. After the meeting I said, “Why did you ask? You already know what’s going on.” He said, “Yeah, I did, but a lot of other people don’t — and they needed to hear the answer from you.” Outstanding employees have a feel for the issues and concerns of those around them and step up to ask questions others are hesitant.
Start work on time. What does “on time” mean? Walking in the front door on time? Getting to your desk on time? Outstanding employees start working when the workday starts; they don’t get their coffee, hang around and chat, take care of personal stuff… they hit the ground running, on time. Granted, this might just be a pet peeve, but if your start time is 8 a.m. shouldn’t you be working at 8 a.m.?
Tinker. Some people are rarely satisfied — in a good way — and are constantly playing around with something: Reworking a report, tweaking a process, experimenting with a different workflow. Great employees follow processes. Outstanding employees go a step farther and find ways to make those processes even better, not just because they are expected to but because they can’t just help themselves.

Source BNET

A story about Steve Jobs and Attention to Detail

Richard Burke — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 11:16:44 +0000

No doubt there are plenty of career retrospectives about the just-departed Apple CEO Steve Jobs today. He did, after all, lead Apple to become the world’s premiere technology company, and for a few moments earlier this month, Apple surpassed Exxon Mobil as the most valuable American company.

But there’s one story, perhaps, that’s piercing because it portrays the exacting nature of Apple’s former CEO. Vic Gundotra — the man behind Google +, the company’s entree into social media — posted a story about an interaction with Steve Jobs.

He writes that on a Sunday morning in 2008, he received a call during a religious service. He didn’t answer, but Jobs left a message saying he had something “urgent to discuss.” Gundotra returned his call almost immediately:

“Hey Steve — this is Vic,” I said. “I’m sorry I didn’t answer your call earlier. I was in religious services, and the caller ID said unknown, so I didn’t pick up.”

Steve laughed. He said, “Vic, unless the Caller ID said ‘GOD’, you should never pick up during services”.

I laughed nervously. After all, while it was customary for Steve to call during the week upset about something, it was unusual for him to call me on Sunday and ask me to call his home. I wondered what was so important?

“So Vic, we have an urgent issue, one that I need addressed right away. I’ve already assigned someone from my team to help you, and I hope you can fix this tomorrow,” said Steve.

“I’ve been looking at the Google logo on the iPhone and I’m not happy with the icon. The second O in Google doesn’t have the right yellow gradient. It’s just wrong and I’m going to have Greg fix it tomorrow. Is that okay with you?”

The CEO of Apple — the tech visionary who revolutionized personal computers, the way we listen to music and the way we think of mobile devices — was worried about the yellow in the second “O” in Google. Needless to say the problem was fixed, and Gundotra says it taught him a lesson on leadership and “passion and attention to detail.”

“It was a lesson I’ll never forget,” wrote Gundotra. “CEOs should care about details. Even shades of yellow. On a Sunday.”

Source: Linked In http://www.linkedin.com/news?actionBar=&articleID=729281402&ids=0Sd3wRdzwVczsIdzoPcjANej8Tb3cPcjsSdzAOdOMNdP4Uc30McPsIcz0QcjwOej8T&aag=true&freq=weekly&trk=eml-tod-b-ttle-96