China’s leadership has always seen gross domestic product (GDP) numbers as the most important indicator of their ability of govern; thus their whole apparatus does whatever it can, in terms of policies, to make sure a politically acceptable growth rate is achieved.

With a persistent slowdown, the government has to adjust its target to a maximized but achievable goal. Between 2010 and 2015, the world’s second-largest economy witnessed a steady slowdown, with annual percentage growth rates of 10.5, 9.5, 7.9, 7.8, 7.3 and 6.9, respectively. Averaged annual GDP growth rates between 1989 and 2009 were around 10 per cent.

Last year, the government set a range of 6.5 per cent to 7 per cent as a growth target, the lowest in decades. As expected, China is on track to meet that 2016 goal after three straight quarters of 6.7 per cent expansion.

However, such growth was achieved with an expansive fiscal policy, higher government spending, a housing rally, ultra-loose monetary conditions and record bank lending, which have also led to an explosive increase in debt.

Reference: www.scmp.com

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Business networking is usually shortened to “networking”, which usually is confusing to many with computer networks, relating to net connections and accessibility to multiple computer systems. Business networking is different. It is an effective (proven through time by many businesses) low-cost marketing approach for developing or growing sales opportunities through contacts, referrals and introductions. These are usually done face-to-face, or through physical interactions through meetings, events, gatherings, and sometimes through phone calls, emails and now, through the increase of heavy users on social media and business networking platforms online.

Business networking is one marketing method wherein you make the saying “it’s not what you know, it’s who you know” work for you.

Here are tips you can use for to make your networking efforts work:

1. Be prepared.

Opportunities for networking may present themselves anytime, anywhere. It is important that you are always ready to meet new people. You have to know by heart what you can offer to these people. And not only that, you also have to know what information you actually need, so you don’t get lost in the middle of the conversations you’re going to have with the people you’re going to meet. You can start your preparation by keeping an open mind. Plan your networking events in advance; write down your schedules and whom you’re meeting. Be aggressive in knowing the next “it” events from the people you meet. Seek out like-minded individuals from the events you attend, as well as more experienced peers. Always have a business card on hand. Having a card available makes it so much easier for you to follow up with these people you meet, and for them to really remember who you are. Add keywords at the back of their name cards on topics you have discussed when you met personally for better recall in your next interaction.

2. Give.

All great relationships are built on give and take. To be able to play and work effectively at the same time, you must be willing to give. Humans are wired and driven by their desire to be reciprocal. As best-selling author and Professor Cialdini puts it, “reciprocity is one of the most powerful influence and communication techniques. The power of reciprocity, and our human desire to want to give back to others who have first given to us, is one of the most effective ways of building a supportive network.” Invest in giving and reap back its rewards in time.

3. Be in the right places.

Networking’s end goal of course, is closed sales. It is impossible to be able to do this by just depending on phone calls, and digital marketing efforts and staying in your office. It pays to actually get out in the open- to be where your customers are, or are likely to be. Determining which fields of businesses can best help you can be a great start, and then go where you see it is most likely to find the people you want to meet to reach your goal. Make sure you are subscribed to the e-newsletters of the biggest business associations in your industry or foreign chambers of commerce groups and take part in their regular activities. That is when and where you meet the right people for your business.

The post What Networking Techniques Work? appeared first on CEO SUITE.

By Reno Rafly, MS
CEO & Founder, Catalyst Global Consulting
www.cgcteam.com | @notepad

(New York, USA) – Having a bad hire is very costly to the business. Not only could it create a bad vibe to employee morale, it could also influence a poor workplace culture. According to a CareerBuilder.com 2012 study on the cost of hiring, 7 out 10 businesses experienced a bad hire, and 24% managers stated a bad hire cost them as much as US$50,000 (CareerBuilder, 2012). The cost is accumulative from the low productivity, the gap between hires, time to train a new hire, to lost opportunity cost of the business.
Business leaders often neglect to develop a people strategy when they develop a business strategy. The common practice to “just let HR handle this” is no longer acceptable in the era where good talent is hard to find. With competitors ready to gain your market share in the blink of an eye, you need to be ahead of the game by hiring the best talent. Having a good hiring strategy can make a big difference in your business productivity and growth.

Below are five tips to help you start thinking about your hiring strategy:
1. Be clear with your business goals
When you understand your business goals, you will have a better understanding of the skills you will need from your team to achieve these goals.

2. Develop a Hiring Needs Analysis
A Hiring Needs Analysis (HNA) can help you put together and document skills and knowledge that currently exist in your organization and skills that you will need. You can then create positions and put them into appropriate levels in the organizational structure.

3. Create a good job description
Having a clear and concise job description can save you hours of filtering out applicants. Be descriptive in what you’re looking for and the minimum levels of requirement. Understand that although it seems good to hire someone who has 10 years of experience with a master’s degree, the position may not need that level of qualification. Be realistic with what you need and the level of compensation you can provide.

4. Hire for attitude and skills
Hire people who love what they do and are good at it. These are the people that do not need to be motivated; they enjoy learning new things and they will thrive to achieve their goals by supporting your organizational goals. You can provide additional training for skills you might need in the future, but you cannot train positive attitude.

5. Create a good recruiting experience
Create a good experience for everyone that is involved in the process. Yes, this includes the rejected candidates. In the age of social media, bad news travels fast and the only thing you do not want to see after you celebrate your new hire is to hear that someone mentioned your firm and wrote how bad your recruiting process was. Remember, these people can potentially become your future clients and business partners, so being kind and respectful should be the slogan of your process.
Communicate this guideline to everyone in your organization and take the lead in ensuring your hiring strategy will be a turning point to the quality of hires that will support your business growth.

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