Taiwan employers expect strong staff hiring in Q2: survey

2005/3/17
By Jason Tan The China Post

Taiwanese employers are slated to recruit more staff during the second quarter, with the most buoyant outlook reported by the finance, insurance, and real estate industries.

According to the latest survey by Manpower Services Taiwan, an employment services provider, 39 percent of the 1,432 organizations polled expect hiring to increase during April to June, while four percent project a decrease in hiring activities and 47 percent cited no change in manpower.

Taiwan's Net Employment Outlook index, the net percentage of employers planning to take on more staff, stands at 35 percent in Q2.

It will record the most manpower demand of all 21 countries and territories surveyed, alongside Japan, informed Dennis Lee, its general manager.

The seven Asia-Pacific countries in the survey comprise Taiwan, China, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong and Singapore. Taiwan and China are included for the first time.

"The Asian job market is going to be very hot in the next quarter, with Taiwan, Japan, China and New Zealand being the top four countries/territories showing the highest hiring intention among all 21," he said at a press conference announcing the results yesterday.

China records Net Employment Outlook index of 28 percent, with mid-level management staff as the most sought after candidates.

Hong Kong's index stands at 19 percent, maintaining the same pace with the last quarter. Singapore reports a low manpower requirement demand at only 12 percent.

On the local front, the positive index reflects the employer confidence in the current labor market, Lee said.

The finance, insurance and real estate sectors show the most positive outlook at 44 percent.

The second highest hiring intention comes from the manufacturing and services sectors at 36 percent.

Meanwhile, the mining and construction, wholesale and retail industries indicate positive prospects at 31 percent. The transportation and utilities sectors record an index of 30 percent.

Agreeing, Amy Han, senior vice president of human resources at SinoPac Holdings, noted that the demand of the local financial sector has been growing consistently.

She said that the sector has routine recruitment campaigns going on every year.

One of such events falls in every February and March, where a number of financial institutions will walk into university campuses to recruit new blood.

SinoPac Holdings, a financial company, is no exception. Han said that it is looking to hire 300 to 500 more staff this year, with positions mainly in the areas of wealth management, IT support and sales.

It is also in the search of Master's degree holders from overseas.

"Under the globalization trend, many enterprises are expanding overseas. We need talents with language ability to work in Taiwan to understand the local culture, then to be transferred to overseas branches," she added.

Union Bank of Taiwan unveils charity card

2005/3/15
By Jason Tan The China Post

Union Bank of Taiwan (UBT) has unveiled a new charity credit card, which is claimed to be the first to donate a portion of card expenses to as many as eight charity groups.

The "Bafu" charity credit card was launched last week. Bafu means eight social welfare organizations in Mandarin.

The card cooperates with the "Bafu Alliance", which is formed by eight social welfare groups, including the Eden Foundation for Social Welfare and the Garden of Hope Foundation, an organization fighting for women's rights.

The members of the alliance are also taking care of aborigines, laborers, AIDS patients, or those are afflicted by rare diseases.

UBT will donate NT$300 to the alliance for each approved card. For each NT$1,000 charged to the card, NT$3 will be channeled to the alliance, with the other NT$3 rebated to the user.

"This card is also the first charity credit card in Taiwan that offers a rebate to users," Chen Meiji, UBT assistant vice president, told the China Post.

He said that most charity cards are only tied to one nonprofit group, and the effect is limited as they fail to reach a wider population.

By combining all eight groups together, the Bafu card will have a greater influence on those in need.

"The tsunami tragedy did result in lot of money being collected from the public after extensive media coverage, but the effect was short-term. We launched the Bafu card for long-term donations as there are more charity organizations which need attention," he said.

The Bafu card will be targeted at the volunteers and those who donate to the alliance on a regular basis. There are currently around 200,000 such donors in the alliance, said Chen.

UBT aims to issue over 100,000 Bafu cards by the end of the year, translating into half of the volunteers and frequent donors to the alliance.

The target is to contribute NT$30 million to the alliance for the approved cards.

Provided that each user charges NT$3,000 per month to the card, the monthly donation can easily come up to a handsome NT$900,000, estimated Chen.

In another push, Citibank has a similar credit card aiming to help the mentally disabled. There are around 400,000 people with Down's Syndrome, autism or severe developmental disabilities nationwide.

For all spending charged to the "Xi Han Er" card, 0.275 percent of the amount will go to the Children Are Us Foundation, a nonprofit group aiding those individuals and offering them job training.

The card was launched in 1998, and is one of the pioneering charity cards here, according to an official from the corporate affairs department of Citibank Group Taiwan.

She said that the card has grown steadily over the years, contributing NT$8 million to the foundation every year on average.

The bank has stopped promoting the card as it has already gathered enough loyal users. Citibank is now partnering with nongovernmental organizations to launch donation campaigns for the needy, she added.

Bayer, Winterthur Life to move into 101 Tower in April

2005/3/9
By Jason Tan The China Post

Bayer Taiwan and Winterthur Life will join the list of first-batch tenants to move into Taiwan 101 Tower in April.

Bayer is a German enterprise focusing on healthcare, nutrition and high-tech materials, whereas Winterthur Life is the sole Swiss life insurance company on the island.

The other new tenants to move in later include Cosmos Bank, Fulland Securities, Royal Gold as well as the earlier announced Taiwan Stock Exchange Corp.

According to Taipei Financial Center Corp (TFCC), the land developer of Taipei 101, the other undisclosed lessees also consist of a Japanese car company, a jewelry company, a cosmetics outfit, as well as international consulting, trading and asset management firms.

TFCC said that the leasing is on schedule since it obtained the occupancy permit in last November. The confirmed occupancy rate currently stands at over 30 percent based on the office space rented out.

The other 30 percent is now under negotiations as over 10 firms are considering of residing at Taipei 101 Tower.

"I am confident that we can achieve 60 to 70 percent of occupancy rate by the end of this year," claimed Horace Lin, president of TFCC, in a media briefing yesterday.

Multinational corporations (MNCs), he said, are the initial leasing targets as these enterprises will beef up the image and popularity of Taipei 101 Tower.

It aims to lease up to 95 percent of office space by the end of next year, with 60 percent of MNCs and 40 percent of local corporations as main occupants.

Lin said that discounted rates will be offered to the first-batch firms, and the rent will be increased 10 to 15 percent this year for new tenants.

It is said that the current rent is over NT$2,000 per ping a month at Taipei 101 Tower.

According to Calvin Wang, country head of Jones Lang LaSalle, the lead leasing agent of Taipei 101 Tower, the supply of office buildings in Taipei will be mainly concentrate in Xinyi District over the next two years with rents expected to hike 10 percent in 2005.

Demand is consistently growing as companies want to move into newer buildings with enhanced facilities, security and services, Wang said, claiming that he is very optimistic of the tenancy rate of Taipei 101 Tower.

Meanwhile, TFCC said that it is now in search of restaurant operators for the top floors located at level 85, 86 and 88. These floors occupy a total space of 2,700 pings, and offer spectacular views for diners.

Cathy Yang, assistant vice president of TFCC, said that it has contacted 85 restaurant operators to date.

It will select eight outlets in total, with one to two international operators.

The outlets will provide diners with a selection of Chinese, Western, Japanese and Thai cuisines, as well as fusion and dining bar.

Fineart Technology appealing against Beijing IPR court case decision

2005/3/11
By Jason Tan The China Post

The Hsinchu-based Fineart Technology is currently appealing its recent conviction, which held it has infringed the intellectual property rights (IPR) of a handwriting recognition solution from a Chinese company.

The Beijing-based Hanwang Technology filed a case against Fineart Technology in 2000, alleging that the Fineart invaded its solution copyrights by breaking and re-editing the software code and selling it on line.

The lawsuit dragged on for four and a half years and the Beijing court ruled in favor of Hanwang Technology last month. Fineart Technology has to pay a fine of 300,000 renminbi.

Fineart Technology is said to be the first Taiwanese company to be fined for IPR infringement in China.

Its vice general manager Judy Chuang said that an appeal is currently underway but no timeframe exists for when the company's name will be cleared.

"The lawsuit definitely affects our company's reputation," she told the China Post.

She claimed that the company started research into handwriting recognition solutions in 1991, and gained rights for use in personal computers in 1993 in Taiwan.

It acquired the IPR for use in personal digital assistants in Taiwan in 1996.

Hanwang Technology, on the contrary, developed related software in June 1998 and acquired the IPR in China two years later.

This proved that Fineart Technology is not a copycat after all, Chuang asserted.

However, the accusation caused the company to pay a high price as it now learnt the importance of applying for IPR in China to protect the integrity of its company's offerings.

Tsai Lien-sheng, director general of the Intellectual Property Office, was quoted by a Chinese daily as saying it is imperative for Taiwanese companies to register their IPR in the mainland to protect their rights.

He commented that in fact, there are even greater possibilities of Taiwan copyrights being invaded by mainland counterparts.

According to Fineart Technology, its handwriting recognition product line contributed around one third to its total revenues last year.

The company expects the percentage to drop this year, but Chuang refused to provide any figures.

She added that the company will diversify its business focus to the information security area this year.

It will push related solutions including universal serial buses (USB), removable hard disks and waterwalls, a solution which defends network invasion from inside an organization instead of outside.

"We are banking on this sector this year as we will announce later this month our partnership with a client from Japan to sell solutions under our brand," she revealed.

Carrefour aims for more expansion this year

2005/3/5
By Jason Tan The China Post

After the remodeling of 18 stores last year, Carrefour has seen the traffic and sales of those outlets moved up five to 15 percent.

The increase was a result of grabbing the share from competitors and traditional retail markets, said Marc Oursin, its general manager at a media briefing yesterday.

The nation's leading hypermarket operator started reshuffling 18 of its total 34 stores since the end of 2003. The move includes renovation, as well as adding food courts and shopping outlets to the conventional hypermarket.

There will be five more stores to be remodeled this year.

He did not give out the investment figures, but said Carrefour intends to recoup the return of investment over the next three to six years.

The hypermarket industry reported NT$120 billion of turnover in total last year. Carrefour totaled NT$50 billion of revenue, translating to around 43 percent of market share.

It aims to grab over 50 percent of share and achieve single-digit revenue growth this year.

"We open three to four stores a year and this is the expansion pace similar to our competitors such as RT-Mart. This is one way for us to maintain current market share," he said.

To out win the rivals, Carrefour is slated to set up four stores this year.

Two of them will be hypermalls, which Carrefour defines as the malls including hypermarkets, food courts and shops, with floor space of around 2,500 pings.

The other two will be hyper commercial towns, which will occupy space of over 3,000 pings. These so-called commercial towns will not only cover the functions of hyerpermalls, but will also incorporate sports or entertainment venues such as message center, gym or golf course.

Oursin revealed that four stores with similar sizes are in the pipeline for next year, and it hopes to expand the total stores from the current 34 to 50 by 2008.

"We will leverage these different types of stores to meet market demands," he noted.

One of its competitors Tesco, the island's forth largest hypermarket operator, plans to open up four more stores by the end of next year.

Including its two outlets newly opened at Taichung and Xindian of Taipei County last December and January respectively, it will have a total of 10 stores by that timeframe.

"We know that we have limited stores if compared to other operators, but we will focus on beefing up the operations of the current ones and expand in the future," informed Sophia Chung, grocery category manager of Tesco Taiwan.

He said that it will continue to offer user-friendly and cozy environment to the shoppers to stand out from the competition.

There have been good results as its Taoyuan and Tainan stores clinched the No. 1 spot in terms of turnover compared to other operators in these two areas, he claimed.

Microsoft targeting local manufacturing sector

2005/3/4
By Jason Tan The China Post

Microsoft will be aiming at the local manufacturing sector this year to push its business process management solutions.

"Particularly in Asia, we see high growth in the manufacturing sector, as it highly emphasizes supply chain and inventory management. This presents unique opportunities to us," said Steven Martin, its group product manager of the business process and integration division, at the launch of the BizTalk Accelerator for RosettaNet 3.0 Chinese version yesterday.

The new version is an add-on component to the company's BizTalk Server and supports standards of RosettaNet, a consortium of IT, electronic, and manufacturing companies.

"We have about 100 new customers every month, as well as 300 existing customers buying more services and solutions from us every quarter," he said.

BizTalk Server is a business process management solution helping customers automate and manage complex business processes including applications, trading partners, employees and legacy systems within and across organizational boundaries.

The software giant has clinched major clients in most sectors locally, including manufacturing, logistics, finance, with government as the largest deployer, claimed Michael Lin, product marketing manager of server platform business group, Microsoft Taiwan.

Since the launch of BizTalk Server in December 2000, Microsoft said it has accumulated customer references amounting to over 4,000.

Lin, however, refused to reveal the number of customer references in Taiwan, except to say "the solutions are doing very well here."

The competition of the business process management market has become fierce as giants such as Microsoft, IBM, SAP, have laid out respective plans to capture larger market share.

"We see IBM as a primary competitor with its WebSphere solutions. And there are more competition as vendors like SAP participating in this space," Martin admitted.

However, the low-cost and ease-of-use natures of Microsoft products will be the competitive advantages, he asserted.

Meanwhile, IBM said that it will not only target big enterprises such as high-tech or manufacturing companies for its WebSphere product line.

"We will also look into telecommunications sector or small and mid-sized companies to push the solutions," said Benson Wu, manager, software group at IBM Taiwan.

He said that the company will lay out different pricing strategies for various industry segments as they have different needs.

WebSphere is IBM's brand for a line of server software products, including WebSphere Information Integrator, a middleware which links disparate systems together.

Carat Media eyes potential in new advertisement areas segments

2005/3/3
By Jason Tan The China Post

Carat Media Taiwan is eyeing more revenues from the Internet and out-of-home advertising segments this year, as local ad spending is set to grow around five to eight percent.

Gordon Chen, its executive assistant to CEO, informed that the markets for TV and print ads have reach saturation.

But when people leave their homes, billboards on the roads, banners of petrol stations, ads on the back of receipts or on the exterior of buses, all present new potential to the out-of-home ad segment.

Simultaneously, the Internet ad segment worldwide is predicted to grow around 20 percent this year. Since it only occupies three percent of the total ad spending, it has room for future expansion.

As such, the company is confident that these two segments will grow faster than others this year and it will come up with more creative ideas to grab larger share in the industry, Chen told the China Post on the sidelines at a media event yesterday.

To cope with the expanding business, Carat Media moved from Hengyang Road, to the new office at Minsheng East Road in Taipei late last year.

The new office occupies two floors, with each having a space of over 100 pings.

"A lot of media companies are located in the eastern area of Taipei due to transport convenience. Many of our clients are also based here. That's why we decided to move here," Chen added.

Carat Media, an independent media agency network, moved into the Taiwanese market in 2000.

Belonging to the Aegis Group listed on the London Stock Exchange, it claims to be the largest media agency in Europe and gain the No. 1 spot in Taiwan for two consecutive years since 2003.

The company reported revenues of NT$4.8 billion last year, and is estimated to garner NT$5.4 billion this year, according to Chen.

K. F. Lee, its chief executive officer, said that Carat Media currently offers five solutions in Taiwan. These tools provide clients with analysis covering consumer response, sales status and brand development trends.

"Media agencies nowadays are able to help clients strategize communication and media plans. They are not only dealing with media buying affairs, but also venturing into areas of marketing and communication," she added.