e-Commerce in Malaysia

Well, since many of us would be soon finishing our MSC IT for good, perhaps the free Saturdays would be put into good use by plunging into the e-commerce kinda thing (read ebay-ing). At least we're still going to be connected with IT innit?

These are some (Malaysianised) tips and info for those intending to venture into e-commerce:

E-COMMERCE SUCCESS TIPS

By CHRISTY LEE S.W.

BUDDING e-commerce merchants should keep one thing in mind: The Internet business platform is not immune to bad business practices, said Blooming.com.my’s managing director, Martin Cheah.

“You will still need a sound business model that works. The usual business basics apply to e-commerce, but keep in mind that there are also other factors to consider,” he said.

“Some business models may appear logical on paper, but it may not work online,” he said.

“And just because an idea worked in one place at one point in time does not mean it’ll work again at another place and time,” he said.

For example, several local companies failed when they tried to set up a virtual mall in Malaysia. But when Yahoo! did it, it was very successful, said Cheah.

“And what doesn’t work at one point doesn’t mean it would not always work – perhaps it is just not the right time or marketplace,” Lelong.com.my’s Tan added.

Also, not all products are suitable to be sold online, he said.

“You have to evaluate the type of product – whether it is breakable and how you’re going to ship it,” he said.

If you’re new to e-commerce, you need to find a way to differentiate yourself, he added.

“You need to bring something new to the table that others are not offering or cannot provide,” he said.

“Since the entry barriers to e-commerce are low, anyone else can easily come in and take over your market,” he said.

Traditional business might be more slow-moving and predictable, but the e-commerce landscape is not, said Cheah.

“It allows creative energy from anyone and anywhere to compete on the same platform,” he said.

He said those who want to venture into e-commerce have to understand that rapidly changes and continually evolves everyday.

“In this business, you need to expect surprises and be ready to react to it – you’ll never know when a young boy with a bright idea might just come and change everything,” he said.

10 Ways To Think Like A CEO

For those of you on the road to success, the term CEO is one that you will hear over and over again in the course of your career. The CEO of a company is the "Chief Executive Officer" and his job is to manage the executives at the company. The CEO is the big cheese; the buck stops with him.

CEOs are a very particular bunch. To become CEO means you have reached the top of the company, and your decisions -- even small ones -- will materially affect the company. CEOs usually have their act together more than the average guy (much more), and if you want to succeed in life, you should start thinking like the CEO way before you become one.

In order to become a champion, you have to think like one. When Muhammad Ali beat George Foreman in their classic fight, "The Rumble in the Jungle", everyone thought that Ali would get murdered by Foreman. But Ali saw things differently; he thought like a champion, talked like a champion and was the true champion. He won by knockout in the 8th round in one of the greatest fights of all time.

My point is that you need to have the right attitude and frame of mind if you want to achieve CEO-like success. Basically, you need to think like a CEO from day one. Once you learn a job, it becomes fairly simple. Thus if you learn the job you aspire to, it will be much easier to get because it will have become more simple in your mind (and in practice).

Most people will not become CEOs until much later in their careers, if at all. Furthermore, you don't need to become the CEO in order to be successful. However, you do need to think like a CEO in order to become someone powerful in this world.

At this point, you should be wondering: "How can I think and act like a CEO?" Keep reading and I'll tell you exactly which 10 crucial qualities you need in order to make it to the top and be the CEO of your own success.

Top 10 Ways To Think Like A CEO.

If you aspire to achieve success in your career, then check out many of the qualities you will need to acquire in order to make it to the top.

10. Confidence
You have to be secure in your abilities and confident that you can carry out the task. Never let anyone make you feel inferior; they can only do so if you give them "permission" to.

9. Persistence
As former US President Calvin Coolidge once said: "Nothing can take the place of persistence." Not talent, not genius and not education. "Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent." So don't quit easily.

8. Think (Bigger)
The higher you move up the ladder, the more complex the decisions. Thus, it only follows that you will have to think things through much more carefully and thoroughly, as each decision can potentially affect the whole organization in drastic ways.

7. Continuous Improvement
Always strive to be better than you are today. Don't be afraid to take risks and make mistakes. Remember, failure is only a temporary setback on the road to success.

6. Details, Details & More Details
Ultimately, every business comes down to details. If your strategy is solid but you botch the execution of the details of the plan, you'll end up in the doghouse. Pay attention to the details; small mistakes add up quickly.

5. Don't Be Afraid To Lead
Successful people are often leaders. Perhaps you're not the top guy (main leader) according to your job title, but if you're a leader in your field then you still have what it takes to become successful. You can be a great salesperson, so long as you excel at your job and take initiative. So pick up the torch when you see fit and make things happen.

4. Be Competitive
One of the basic tenets of capitalism is the competition that exists in a free market. You will either be the hunter or the prey. If you are not competitive, then you'll end up getting eaten for lunch. It's true and don't ever forget that this is the law of business.

3. Honesty Is The Best Policy
If you wanted to become a crook, you would've joined the mob. If you are in business, your reputation counts for a lot so be sure to be ethical in your dealings with your co-workers and clients. You have to set the example or you'll risk being the head henchman in a den of thieves.

2. Work With People
A big part of your success will consist of learning how to interact with others and how to manage human capital in order to make the most of the organization's resources. Make it a point to work on your people skills as much as possible because at the top, almost all your time will be spent dealing with people.

1. Be Positive
Be positive, infuse your personality and work with positive energy. This is catchy and will set the tone for your team. You'll get more done with a positive outlook rather than a negative one.

If you want to read more on thinking like the head honcho, take a look at Debra A. Benton's How To Think Like A CEO. Now that you know what you need to make it to the top, stop procrastinating, get out there and make it happen!

Optimise Self Development Towards Achieveing Emotional Intelligent (EQ)

Please take note the Emotional Intelligent is not known as EI but EQ!. This because Emotional Intelligent is measured as an Emotional Intelligence Quotient (EQ).

As my reply to Cikin post, there are five categories of people personality as follows:-
- Openness
- Neutral
- Analytical
- Relational
- Decisive

Definitely we will fall into one of this categories. Actually there is a set of question to assess which categories we are but unfortunately I could not found the question. I hope I can find that question in order to help you all in accessing your-self. For me I'm in R, A and N.

If we are creative imaginators (openness) we need to learn how to: -
- Communicate our ideas to others
- Be patient with formal structures
- Work along with others
- Deal with inflexible people
- Be part of a team
- Avoid the perception that they are argumentative
- Respect and value others' traditions
- Manage bureaucracy
- Cope with routine tasks
- Work within a system
- Advocate for changes in the rules when necessary
- Avoid being seen as implusive
- Avoid being misunderstood by others

If we are neutral experts we need to learn how to
- Cope with sudden changes
- Not to be too sensitive
- Get out of our comfort zone
- Take initiative when required
- Deal with conflict situations
- Not just wait for instructions
- Be less possessive
- Share our emotions with others
- Overcome our passiveness
- Manage aggressive people
- Be more confident of ourselves
- Not to accept others' opinions too easily
- Get more involved with life
- Become more assertive


If we are analytical thinkers we need to learn how to
- Express our feelings
- Become more approachable
- Make decissions more quickly
- Have more warmth in their interactions with others
- Use eye contact in communicating with others
- Be less formal
- Take calculated risks
- Be more flexible
- More tolerant of temporary inperfections
- Delegate task to others
- Not worry too much
- Not be easily hurt by criticisms from others


If we are relators we need to learn how to
- Be punctual
- Work alone
- Be more precise and accurate in our communications
- Be less emotional
- Think before we express an opinion
- Cope with not being limelight
- Just be part of crowd
- Not talk too much
- Be more organised
- Be more careful
- Describes things accurately
- Remember what we have promised to others

If we are decisives we need to learn how to
- Work with others in a team
- Listen to others
- Be more gentle with others
- Deal with slower people
- Be less competitive
- Sensitive to others feelings
- Work in a structure
- Learn to apologise quickly
- Deal with our quick temper
- Avoid being stubborn
- Be less argumentative
- Be realistic about risks involved in a situation

Hope this guide can help in achieving EQ.

Why ICT Needs Emotionally Intelligent Team Leaders?

This paper was written by John Batros (Information Age). He argues that Emotional Intelligence (EI) is a necessary if not sufficient condition for ICT team leaders. This paper described upon recent research into the EI of Australian managers and use Swinburne University of Technology's Genos EI model to introduce the concept. Using the five dimensions of the model as a platform, arguments were being mounted for the positive effects for leaders and followers in all groups, in particular ICT teams.

This paper will argue that ICT leaders will need to become more emotionally intelligent to ensure that optimal expression of emotion is brought to bear on rational ICT decisions in groups to maximize productivity. Here are five dimensions of EI discussed in this paper. (Ground rules for ICT team leaders)

1. Be aware of your emotions and express them

The ICT team leader must become an aware expresser and lead the way in modeling these behaviors, encouraging others to learn them. There are three zones of awareness - the Outer Zone (everything outside me including others and the tasks we have to do), the Middle Zone (thinking, judging, intellectualizing, analyzing, blaming) and the Inner Zone (feelings, emotions, sensations).

2. Recognize your ICT team members' emotions and empathize with them

• Empathy: Recognizing others' emotions helps ICT leaders enter the worlds of their followers.
• Understanding emotion in others produces trust.
• Reduces defensiveness in the team.
• Allows thoughts to find thinkers
• Recognizing emotion in others includes and acknowledges their worth in the team.
• Leader as empathizer.

3. Use your feelings to influence decision making in your ICT team

• Feelings enhance rational judgment.
• Gut feel produces intuition. When team members pay attention to the irrational, new ideas emerge by themselves. "Lose your mind and come to your senses" - (Herman & Korenich, 1977.)
• Emotions produce synergistic outcomes for the ICT team.
• The leader as team facilitator: The successful ICT team leader does not lose his or her critical faculties, but suspends them occasionally, inviting emotional expression to excite team members to their best efforts.

4. Manage the emotions in interpersonal relations with your ICT team members

• The leader as container
• Assertively managing conflict: ICT team leaders must adapt their management styles to each stage of group development. Each requires emotional management so that the social or maintenance needs of the team are met. Only when people's needs for inclusion, safety, influence, belonging, acceptance and respect are met can they get on with the task. It is critical that ICT team leaders have highly developed interpersonal skills as well as knowledge of their domains.
• Treating feelings as data about the team

5. Appropriately control your own emotions as ICT team leader

Control your own emotions when you are severely anxious.

For further understanding pls read the full article...