Final Reflections

Being in my final year of school, I figured learning some resume-writing and job interview skills would come in handy. That was how I ended up taking ES2007S. I took the class not knowing what to expect, except having heard that Brad was a great guy to take the module under. It turned out to be a great experience as I realised that there was still a lot more room for improvement in terms of my communications skills.

The open discussion style facilitated by Brad, who often chipped in with his own experiences and knowledge, was extremely conducive to learning communications skills. The environment encouraged people to give their opinions and this was evident as people in the class started to open up and soon every class was a lively debate on the topic of the day. The various activities from the peer teaching to the mock interviews to the oral presentations were all good activities to put what we learnt into practice. What was best about this module was the fact that we got plenty of opportunities to speak. Contrary to my prior expectations, I learnt a lot from everyone in the class and not just from Brad alone. The open feedback and criticism were refreshing as they served as constant reminders that there was always more to learn and improve on.

My first major takeaway from this class is blogging. I realised how useful blogging was as a means to exchange thoughts and ideas (provided there are comments). It was interesting to read about different perspectives on the same topic on other blogs and the lively interaction that sometimes occurred in the “Comments” sections. My second important takeaway is on writing an application letter. I learnt how one should be written and how it should be targeted towards the job requirements. It also helped to convey a personal touch to the job application amidst the sea of resumes recruiters have to skim through today. My final takeaway is the interpersonal skills I may have inadvertently acquired through the formation of great friendships with everybody in the class. I am really glad I met all these people and I hope everyone had a great experience just as I did.

Oral Presentation Reflection

Presentation:

We attempted to deliver a presentation modelled after Steve Jobs’ style and succeeded to some extent. We put minimal information on the slides and conveyed most of our information verbally. However, we overdid it a little and some of our slides could definitely done with a little more detail. We did well in discussing at length about our recommendations but did not put enough emphasis on our methodology which we realised was important in order to convince the audience. I think that verbal delivery and charisma is extremely important to Steve Jobs’ presentation style which we might have overlooked. This method is indeed effective but I would need more practice to make it work well.

Delivery:

I forgot some of my points and had to go back to them later on in my part to fill in the gaps. I might have tried too hard to be different with pictures and quotes. As a result, I might have tried to rely on their impact too much and missed elaborating more on important points. I felt my delivery flowed rather smoothly with little stuttering with fairly good voice projection. I made a passable effort on an impactive introduction as well. I could have done with better use of emphases and more expressive gestures. Overall, I think I did okay.

Purpose & Problem Statements

Problem Statement

It has been emphasized in the background section that there is a need for communication skills in the conservation related workplace. The purpose of this study is to identify and recognize the need for specific communication skills in the conservation-related workplace, thereby introduce changes to the NUS Faculty of Science, Life Science majors’ curriculum to improve the communication skills of Life Science majors who may pursue their career in this area. This would require further research on the current situation in the local context.

Purpose Statement

The purpose of this proposal is to explain the methods that have been and will be used to determine the need for communication skills in the conservation-related workplace, identify the specific skills that are of greater emphasis, and study the NUS Life Science students’ attitude towards improving their communication skills. The team also hopes to have the opportunity to investigate further and be invited to present our findings and recommendations to the NUSEU via an oral presentation.

Evaluating Intercultural Behavior

I went into my boss’s office and told him I had completed the task he had assigned me. “Great job!” Darren said upon looking at the newsletter I had created for our marketing campaign. I thought I did well and was very pleased with myself. The same scene was to occur repeatedly over the course of my internship at the company. I got increasingly frustrated as I realized all the accolades I had been receiving from my work performance were just part of working in an American company. I wanted honest feedback from my boss on my work but it was just not the norm in the United States.

I discovered I was not the only one as my friends who were also interning at the other companies remarked that they were experiencing the same thing. Perhaps Americans tended to be more positive about things and my boss did not want me to feel bad. Nonetheless, I think this has resulted in a communication barrier between my boss and I. I found it hard to know when I really did my work well and what other improvements I need to make.

Contrary to what I had previously thought of Americans being upfront and direct, I realized this might not translate to workplace culture as well. Despite American influences and the westernized workplace environment in Singapore, there are still subtle differences that have to be taken note of. I could have taken more initiative and spoke to my boss about my concerns and tried to obtain forthright feedback on my work performance.

Application Letter 2nd Draft

For a summary of the job description, please look at the following link https://pg.taleo.net/careersection/10000/jobdetail.ftl

Application Letter:

5^th February 2010

(Address Line 1)
(Address Line 2)
(Address Line 3)

The Procter & Gamble Company
238A Thomson Road, #21-01/10
Novena Square, Tower A
Singapore 307684

Dear Sir/Mdm

Application for Marketing Internship position at Proctor & Gamble

I am sending my resume to apply for the Marketing – Intern position at Proctor & Gamble. I learnt about this internship opportunity through the NUS career center. Through this internship, I hope that I can better understand the nature of marketing at the company while I am assessed as a prospective employee. I am eager to apply my knowledge and skills to meet the challenge of working at Proctor & Gamble.

Coming from an engineering background, I possess the analytical and problem-solving skills necessary to perform this role effectively. My one year stint at XXX, Inc. in the United States also necessitated that I learn quickly and independently to take sole charge of marketing operations. In addition to the steep learning curve, I also adapted quickly to the environment as I had to work closely with my colleagues in rolling out promotions and marketing campaigns.

My work experience at XXX, Inc. is the reason for my interest in marketing. I derive great satisfaction from executing marketing campaigns and subsequently analyzing the results for effectiveness. I then did independent reading and took a few business classes to enhance my marketing knowledge.

I hope to start my career in marketing in an established institution like Proctor & Gamble, which is the leading fast moving consumer goods firm. The internship program offered by the company would also allow me to gain first-hand experience with the work, people, values, and culture. I believe the real responsibilities given to interns, under the program, would allow me to showcase my abilities. At the same time, I hope to interact and learn from experienced marketers in the company.

My resume is attached for your consideration. It will provide a brief summary of my educational and working experiences. Should you require additional information, I will be most obliged to furnish it. You can contact me at (mobile no.) or at (email address). I look forward to an opportunity to contribute to your company.

Best Regards

Chang Jie Ren

Resolving Interpersonal Conflict

Jason and John were friends and had known one another for sometime. They attended the University of Leeds in England on the Student Exchange Program together and were currently sharing a room at one of the hostels. One day, John came back to the room to find that the handle to lower the blinds had broken off. Annoyed, he questioned Jason as to why it had happened. Jason was not sure if it was spoilt due to him but maintained that the blinds were still working fine the last time he lowered them. John continued to wonder aloud about why it could have broke. Jason got irritated as he felt that it was no big deal and sarcastically told John he was making a mountain out of a mole hill. John exploded and muttered an expletive before stomping off angrily. Jason was taken aback by the huge reaction.

Subsequently, John gave Jason the cold shoulder and did not speak anymore of the earlier incident. Jason was both puzzled and irritated by this unwelcome reaction. Friends of both John and Jason learnt of what happened and attempted to mediate but were unsuccessful. However, Jason realized later from their mutual friends that John exploded that night because of the sarcastic comment and that he had been tolerating Jason’s attitude and speaking manner for awhile now. John was in a particular bad mood that day because of his personal problems and that incident just sparked off the negative reaction. When Jason asked their friends why John didn’t just confront him about his unhappiness, they said that John claimed he did and said it was no use. Jason, however, never felt that John really set him down to talk and thought that John probably did hint at an underlying problem and assumed Jason got it.

With both parties feeling aggrieved, neither was willing to end the “cold war”. Meanwhile, both their friends were stuck in the middle and did not know what to do. They had failed at mediating between them and both had stubborn personalities that were merely making the issue even harder to resolve.

What should Jason, John and their friends do respectively in this situation?

Effective Communication Skills

As the often-used line from “Meditation XVII,” by the English poet John Donne, goes ” No Man is an Island”. Humans are social creatures and tend to congregate to fulfill their need to belong. With communication being a way to convey information for companionship and survival, it has become a very important part of our lives. This is especially true in the workplace where communicating effectively with people e.g. superiors is essential to career success.

Of course, being a student, I am not at that stage of my life yet. However, I am currently in my final year of university and will be embarking on a job search very soon. Knowing this, I decided to take ES2007S so as to improve on essential job-hunting skills. With the module covering topics including “Effective Business Letters/E-mails” and “Performing at Job Interviews”, I feel that the class will be particularly useful as these are areas that I think I sorely lack knowledge in. What was added incentive for me to take ES2007S were the favorable reviews that my friends gave on the module. In particular, I liked the part where I needed to set up a blog and post regularly as part of my assignments. I had always wanted to start blogging but never found the discipline to actually get round to doing it. This was the perfect opportunity for me to finally get started and actually post content that is more meaningful than just a mundane description of my everyday life.