Apple hiring smartwatch talent

Sources claim Apple is looking for help in getting its first wearable technology device ready for a 2014 launch. An article in the Financial Times claims that Apple has been encountering "hard engineering problems that they're unable to solve" and as a result is set to start recruiting new blood with wearable technology experience in order to get the so-called ‘iWatch' project back on track. According to sources quoted by the publication, Apple is aiming to get the product out by the end of 2014.

Most rumors surrounding the highly-buzzed device have pointed to a 2013 launch date as have similar reports focused on Apple's closest competitors, i.e., Microsoft, Samsung, Google and, to a lesser extent, LG, all of which have been officially or unofficially confirmed as developing similar devices for a 2013 launch.

If the report turns out to be accurate -- and the FT has a pretty good track record, being one of the first publications to report on iTunes radio and the obstacles it was encountering -- Apple will also have the benefits of seeing what the competition is up to and tweaking its device to suit. However, with the current rate of consumer technological advances, the wearable computing may already be mainstream by the time the iWatch launches.

BlackBerry plans more layoffs, fired U.S. sales chief: report

The ailing smartphone maker is eyeing additional layoffs beyond the 5,000 announced during its previous fiscal year, says The Wall Street Journal. BlackBerry is eyeing another round of layoffs as part of its ongoing restructuring, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Citing "people familiar with the matter," the Journal said Wednesday that the job cuts would affect middle management across the sales and support divisions. The new layoffs would come on top of the 5,000 cuts planned during the company's last fiscal year.

One person already hit by a job loss is Richard Piasentin, BlackBerry's vice president of sales in the U.S. The Journal's sources say the U.S. sales chief was fired in June. A BlackBerry spokesman confirmed Piasentin's departure to the Journal but declined to comment about any layoffs.

How to prepare for a video job interview

Discussing your qualifications for a new job via a video interview sounds easy enough and even appealing. No worrying if your palms are clammy when you shake hands, since you won't be shaking hands. You don't have to travel farther than your own home. As long as you look presentable from the waist up, you could even skip a shower and interview in sweatpants.

But interviewing over video and doing it well can take more preparation than an in-person meeting. After all, if you are not looking at the camera properly, you may come off as distracted or unhinged. If the video set-up is poor, you appear technically incompetent. Your smudged walls or home office clutter may suggest things you do not wish to convey about your work habits.

Read more @ http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/jobs/how-to-prepare-for-a-video-job-interview/articleshow/20929438.cms

Firms target social, professional networking sites for hires

Companies are increasingly tapping the social and professional networking websites to find right talent in India and abroad, says a new survey.

Further, more than half of the talent acquisition leaders in India surveyed by professional networking site LinkedIn are planning to hire more people in 2013 than last year.

The findings are based on 'LinkedIn Recruiting Trends' survey that covered 3,300 talent acquisition leaders across 19 countries. From India, there were about 274 respondents.

"Since 2011, there has been a 20 per cent increase in recruiters considering social and professional networks as a key source to find quality talent; at 41 per cent in 2013 compared to 21 per cent in 2011," LinkedIn said today.

Globally, one of the key trends in the eyes of recruiters is that social professional networks are increasingly impacting quality of hire.

Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/jobs/firms-target-social-professional-networking-sites-for-hires/articleshow/20987048.cms

Infy, iGate others in queue for Rs. 1,00,000-cr govt IT contracts

While visa restrictions and business slowdown pose challenges in their traditional strongholds, such US and Europe, upcoming mega government projects seem to offer a degree of comfort for the Indian IT companies.

Indian IT service companies TCS, Infosys, HCL, Wipro, Tech Mahindra and iGate and multinational companies such as IBM, Accenture, HP and Dell are vying for a sizable pie of various e-governance projects, the total cost of which would run into anywhere between Rs. 80,000 crore and Rs. 1,00,000 crore.

“For Indian IT industry, the government continues to be the major source of business,” said CN Raghupathi, vice-president, India business, Infosys. “With various e-governance initiatives at its nascent stage, the opportunity is enormous.”

“The rollout of Aadhar itself provides a lot of opportunities,” said Apporva Ruparel, head, India business, iGate. “There are 17 categories of direct cash subsidy… to be rolled out in 643 districts. In value terms this would throw up a huge number.”

Apart from Aadhar, various Central and state e-governance projects, such as digitisation of land records, implementation of smart-grids in electricity distribution companies and the computerisation of state treasuries will result in sizable contracts.

Tamil Nadu has finished bidding process for computerisation of its state tax department. Other states including Maharashtra are soon expected to come up with bids. For the smart-grid implementation, eight bids are underway.

All this does not necessarily mean a smooth flow of business for IT companies. "There is a fair degree of unpredictability as these are government projects," said a senior executive, who wished to be not identified.

The government is expected to play a major role in the future of the Indian IT market.

India’s IT market is expected to grow from $10.3 billion (Rs 61,800 crore) in 2012-13 to $13.4 billion (Rs 80,400 crore) this year, and to touch $20 billion (Rs 120,000 crore) by 2020.

Source: http://www.hindustantimes.com/business-news/SectorsBPOs/Infy-iGate-others-in-queue-for-Rs-1-00-000-cr-govt-IT-contracts/Article1-1092418.aspx

iGate Gets 5-Year $100M Outsourcing Order from US MetLife

Outsourcing services company iGate Corp. (IGTE) Tuesday said it has received a five-year contract worth more than $100 million to offer information technology infrastructure solutions to U.S. life insurer MetLife Inc. (MET).

As part of the deal, iGate said in a statement, it will manage the IT systems of the U.S. company and provide applications support and enterprise network services. iGate is U.S.-based and listed on the Nasdaq Stock Market, employing 28,000 people, mainly in India.

Some parts of the contract were previously managed by a major U.S. IT services company and one of the top Indian outsourcing companies, Sanjay Tugnait, executive vice president and head of sales for North America at iGate, told the Wall Street Journal.

iGate, which already has a 10-year outsourcing partnership with MetLife, said the deal will be based on a business model where the company charges the client using an outcome-based pricing approach.