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- A + A SINGAPORE (June 28): When Canadian expat Michelle went to renew the lease on her three-story house in Singapore in May, her landlord wanted to raise the rent by almost 40%. Michelle tried to negotiate but the owner wouldn’t budge on the S$10,000 (US$7,200) a month asking price. She’s moving her family into a three-bedroom apartment next month. “I took what I could get,” said Michelle, who asked not to use her full name on concern it may impact her business in the city-state. There’s “a lot of greed at the moment.” Rents are skyrocketing in Singapore, particularly in the prime accommodation favored by expatriate residents, as surging demand from locals and newer arrivals collides with pandemic-induced delays in supply. Rental prices for the private properties leased by expats are rising on average by 20% to 40%, according to 10 real estate agents interviewed by Bloomberg , though some landlords are even asking for double the previous rent. The island’s … [Read more...] about Singapore’s surging rents shock expats and encourage scammers

- A + A KUALA LUMPUR (June 28): Bina Darulaman Bhd (BDB) is expecting phase one of Langkawi Premium Outlet (LPO) to be ready by the end of October. BDB executive chairman Che Had Dhali said the project is 95% completed. “I am very happy about the impending opening of the project and that 36 out of 38 units in LPO have been rented to local entrepreneurs, which is a good achievement for BDB,” he said during a visit to Wisma Bernama here on Tuesday (June 28). At the same time, he said phase two of the project is expected to be ready in 2024 covering an overall area of 17.40 hectares. “Now, we are using more than 10% of the land to accommodate 38 units of shops or outlets besides other facilities such as surau, rest areas, lobby and so on,” he said. In September last year, Bernama reported BDB announced the joint venture company with Menteri Besar Kedah Incorporated  (MBI), BDBMBI Langkawi Ventures Sdn Bhd would be developing an integrated commercial “Premium … [Read more...] about Bina Darulaman to complete Langkawi Premium Outlet phase one in October

New York (CNN Business) The coronavirus pandemic has forced everyone to get creative. Whether through Zoom meetings , online fitness classes or take-out cocktails , companies in nearly every industry are pivoting to get through the crisis. Some work-arounds have been especially creative, such as individual exercise "pods" to get people back into gyms. But beyond short-term fixes, many innovative new strategies and business models have emerged that are likely to stick, even as many jurisdictions begin to reopen in some capacity. In many cases, these transformations are thanks to the increased adoption of technology and the digitization of businesses. Many of these changes were underway pre-coronavirus; the pandemic has just accelerated them. "What's important to customers has changed," John Roese, Dell ( DELL ) Technologies chief technology officer , told CNN Business. "We've broken through a bunch of psychological or … [Read more...] about Here are some of the creative new business models and strategies that have come out of the coronavirus pandemic

The past two years have seen more than a tenth of Americans move from low-paying labor jobs to positions in tech. Dubbed as “new collar workers,” many of these people used recent lockdowns to learn new skills that have helped them find higher salary roles with greater flexibility. This workforce of people from non-conventional backgrounds can bridge the tech talent shortage, but only if companies can adapt their recruitment processes accordingly. advertisement advertisement Players like Google, Apple, and IBM have taken the step of dropping college degree requirements to attract new collar workers, but bringing on board new workers requires more than eliminating formal education requisites. Even before the pandemic, nearly one third of developers considered themselves self-taught, meaning the relevance of the college degree had already slipped. With the tech industry adding 12,300 jobs from February to March this year, … [Read more...] about How ‘new collar workers’ can help companies push past the Great Resignation

Like many companies, manufacturing technology firm Augury ditched its New York City office during the pandemic. With few people coming in, and most work able to be done remotely, paying rent on an empty office was a waste. advertisement advertisement But the need for an office didn’t go away completely, and now the company is fitting out a new space in the city. As it does, it’s fundamentally rethinking how the space will work by looking at who will actually be using it. To help guide the new design, the company surveyed its teams to understand how different departments expected to use the space, especially in a more hybrid work mode. “When we were talking about that, we started asking what kind of people will be there?” says Tiffany Millar, Augury’s workplace experience director. Home Away From Home The first persona is what Augury calls Home Away From Home, or people who live in the tristate area who may come into the office once or more per … [Read more...] about What does a hybrid office look like? This company has 5 ideas

Today we make more clothing than ever before. And the driver for this is primarily economic, rather than human need. Over the past decade, the term “circular economy” has entered the fashion industry lexicon, wherein materials are made to be reused and recycled by design. advertisement advertisement Yet we haven’t seen the same level of recycling in fashion as we have in other spaces – such as with plastic recycling, for instance. And this is mainly because clothing-to-clothing recycling is much more difficult. The use of recycled polyester and cotton by brands such as H&M and Cotton On are key aspects of these companies’ sustainability initiatives – but the source of these recycled fibers usually isn’t clothing. Recycled polyester tends to come from plastic bottles , and recycled cotton is usually made from manufacturing waste. The fact is most clothing is simply not designed to be recycled. Even when it is, the fashion industry lacks the kind … [Read more...] about Why ‘recycled’ clothes are so hard to recycle

When you’re hiring new candidates, how much do you prioritize cultural fit? Your answer to this question may depend on whether you’d consider your company’s culture a broth or a gumbo. advertisement advertisement A broth has exactly one consistency and flavor, while a gumbo features distinct ingredients, each one retaining its unique flavor while contributing perfectly to the overall taste. In my years within the DEI space, I’ve observed quite a few companies adopt a “broth” recruiting approach, vetting candidates based on how seamlessly they believe they’ll fit into their existing corporate culture. Ideally, this practice should revolve around assessing how well candidates align with a company’s values and vision. In reality, it may mean something more arbitrary—using the same jargon and lingo, laughing at the same jokes, adopting the “right” business casual look, etc. Some diverse candidates do check these boxes but many others do not—and their … [Read more...] about When the push for ‘cultural fit’ creates a DEI blindspot

Devotees join the fluvial parade in honor of St. Peter on his feast day in Apalit town, Pampanga province on Tuesday, June 28. (Photo by Tonette Orejas) APALIT, Pampanga — The 177th fluvial parade of the image of St. Peter has resumed on a modest start, drawing fewer devotees on Tuesday, June 27. The couple Paulino and Arlyn de Leon, who have been coming to the feast for the last 44 years, observed that fewer people streamed to a private chapel in Barangay Capalangan here from 7 a.m. to 12 noon when the image was fetched by hundreds of men belonging to the Knights of St. Peter. “Pre-pandemic, the place was filled with people. Now, you see vacant spaces,” Arlyn said, adding that people may still be wary of the virus causing COVID-19. But Fausto “Esting” Alfonso, who at 79 is the eldest knight, said he was happy that the tradition has resumed. A devotee of Apung Iru — his term of endearment for the saint — for 67 years now, Alfonso said the suspension of the tradition since … [Read more...] about Fluvial parade resumes in Pampanga with fewer devotees

THE Covid-19 pandemic “marathon” is not over, even if we wish it to be. Many seem to have a relaxed outlook already, with a drop in mask usage and increased unprotected social gatherings. We have lost all momentum to fix indoor ventilation significantly and vaccination of young children has sadly faltered. Communication by health authorities has been limited to current emerging data and science on our Covid-19 risks. While we work to restart the economy, restore our children’s education loss and support those who have lost jobs or are having food security issues, we must remain mindful of the situation. I would like to briefly summarise current understanding from research and data on Covid-19 and highlight the three pandemics that are occurring. Note: I have not referenced many studies in this letter to facilitate reading. But the comments made are all based on current available data from reliable sources. First pandemic: Covid-19 The Covid-19 pandemic continues to evolve. … [Read more...] about Three pandemics – The worrying long-term effects of Covid-19

The machine learning boom is here, and it's only going to get bigger. When the pandemic decimated workforces and limited in-person interaction, artificial intelligence tools helped companies increase productivity. Industries such as hospitality , healthcare , and energy have all benefited from recent A.I. innovations, but there's more disruption on the horizon. I nstances of businesses using automated experiences are increasing, and automation is expected to grow in both the metaverse and in how companies pursue environmental, social, & governance (ESG) initiatives, according to Pranay Agrawal, co-founder and CEO of A.I. services and analytics provider Fractal. Here are three predictions from Agrawal on some of the next big steps for A.I. Customers will expect more from automation services. When the pandemic hit and businesses scrambled to adapt to a digital world, automation became much more commonplace in everyday life. People became used to seamlessly … [Read more...] about 3 Predictions for How A.I. Will Change Business Practices in the Near Future