Blog (EN) - Page 8 of 32

18Mar

The 5 African countries where to invest in 2020

The year 2019 has ended on a hopeful note for Africa which is once again on the list of the areas with cost-efficient investment. This is at least what we can remember from the traditional annual report of the most attractive countries to invest in « Where to invest in Africa » initiated by the South African financial group Rand Merchant Bank. They have just published their 9th edition in which the focus is on the most attractive African countries where to invest in, in 2020. Usually in every edition, we find the same countries with the most appealing economies on the top ten. We will go over the list of cost-efficient countries in 2020.

Egypt

For the third consecutive year, Egypt can brag about being the most appealing economy in the 9th edition of that report. The country has the advantage of having an important demographic market and is still one of the most favorite places for investors. So according to the author of the report, “it’s the third year at the top of our ranking. For the past three years, Egypt has made significant strides in changing their business environment, improving external investment into the market and growing their own industries ». « They also took the difficult decision a few years ago to devalue their currency to be more reflective of what’s happening in the market. Even though these were tough decisions, in the long run it will help with structural changes in the economy. We are also expecting an approximate 5.3% growth rate for the next five years. This is well above the 4% average expected for the rest of Africa.”, they specified.

Morocco

Morocco comes second after Egypt on the list of most cost-efficient countries for investment in 2020. The Sharif kingdom is currently developing and should record an average growth of 4% in the next coming years. “iIts reintegration into the African Union and accession to the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have enhanced its investment appeal”, says the report.

South Africa

South Africa falls down and trades places with Morocco. In the report the country settles for the third place with a “cyclical downturn”, “poor growth” and “a deteriorated business environment”. However, the country remains an economy with a liquid financial market compared to the other countries in the continent.

“It is definitely still the most liquid market in Africa. We’ve spoken to many international clients and South Africa is still the springboard for investment into Africa. But we have to see structural reforms being implemented, specifically at our state-owned enterprises. These changes can easily put us back into the number one spot over the next few years.” said Celeste Fauconnier.

Kenya

Kenya joins the exclusive list of high cost-efficient countries in 2020. We expect a 5 percent middle term growth rate this year. The country has “favourable weather conditions”in a more pacified political environment”. The economy benefits from diversity as well as a sustained expansion in consumer demand. It also benefits from urbanisation, East African Community (EAC) integration, structural reforms and investment in infrastructure, including an oil pipeline, railways, ports etc.”

Rwanda

Finally, Rwanda holds the 5th place on that selected report. The country was pushed by a very favorable business environment as mentioned in the last Doing Business. The report also praises the development of domestic industries and a high increase in FDI (foreign direct investment).

12Mar

Our experts give you the secret to the perfect motivation letter

It is true that nowadays, it is easy to find a great number of cover letter templates online, so many of them that we wonder if they are really that important. Trivialized, standardized, recruiters barely read them unless there is one that stands out from the rest. Even though, it is clear that when you start the process of writing a cover letter, as a candidate what matters for you the most is to be special. That is so true that your cover letter is actually your first direct contact with the recruiter. So it is necessary for it to be neat. But how? Our HR gives up the updates.

Be brief…

Did you know? Recruiters spend little or no time reading a cover letter. Most recruiters spend, on average, around 2 or 3 minutes reading your job application. That is the reason why in order to grab his attention, you should be brief so you can make his job easier. Your cover letter should be short. Ideally, a good cover letter should fit in one page max. The cover letter should also be convincing and personalized for each job application. It is true that it can be tiring to always change it up for every job offer but it is way more efficient. The recruiter will notice that you took some of your time to read the job announcement meticulously and to write a cover letter that fits with the job description. This would make him want to find out more about you because you took interest in the company.

Give your job application to the right person

The other aspect that people tend to forget is sending your job application to the right person. It is so important however. In the perfect world you would find out about the name of the recruiter and and send him a personal email with your CV and cover letter. This would maximize your chances of getting an interview.

Get a catchphrase to grab the attention of the recruiter

The catchphrase is a necessary step in the writing process of a good letter because it helps you grab the attention of the recruiter. You must therefore write a catchphrase that grabs his attention. Our RH experts recommend you to avoid classics like “I am interested in your offer, I would like to submit my application”. You should focus more on having a short and direct catchphrase.

Show interest for the company

Do not make the mistake of only talking about yourself in the cover letter. In the first paragraph, you must show your interest in the company by giving a description of its activity and values. Our HR experts suggest you to give actual facts that seduced you (the company’s latest news update, its latest successful deals).

Quote key words from the job posting

In the second paragraph of the cover letter, focus on explaining to the recruiter why this offer matches with your skills and career expectations. Use some words from the job posting and list your skills, your knowledge and your know how that have a direct link with them. Be clear and specific. Give examples, accomplishments numbers. Mostly use action verbs.

What about the conclusion?

In your conclusion, you should make the recruiter want to contact you for an interview. Show your motivation for the particular job with enthusiasm and suggest a conversation. The recruiter should feel that you genuinely want to join the company.

09Mar

4 tips to Creat a business in Africa

Unless you want to risk going through bankruptcy before you could even establish a business in Africa, you need to make sure you take some preliminary elements in consideration. Taking decisions on an impulse or making management mistakes can be extremely detrimental to anybody who is trying to be an entrepreneur in Africa. Those two things are actually the main issues that people who have been trying to establish a long running activity on the black continent have been dealing with. For that reason, we have 4 tips to help you have a successful business in Africa…

Find an incubator to help you

Whether you graduated from an Ivy league business school or not, as an entrepreneur, you need to get acquainted with the reality of the market and have someone help you through all the paperwork and necessary steps especially when you are a foreigner who is trying to invest in Africa. Unfortunately, the majority of the project holders in Africa, in French speaking areas specifically, start their business without trying to get some tips from experienced professionals like incubators. That is the reason why we recommend you to get you an incubator if you want to become more efficient, gain legitimacy and credibility, in your line of business.

Test your idea on the market

An idea of a project can seem relevant in theory and have a hard time being well received in practice. Thus, many entrepreneurs have ideas that are strictly laid on paper without the concept of it having really seen the light concretely. So in order for you to have a chance to have a successful business in Africa, we recommend you to test your concept on consumers. That would allow you to get your idea approved on the present market and to have the opportunity to gather feedback, criticisms, and suggestions from clients in order to consistently improve the characteristics of the product until it completely meets the needs of the consumers.

Think big

In Africa, lots of entrepreneurs tend to have projects that are not quite big. Most of the time, they just stop at selling out all their products and provide their services locally . Yet, investments opportunities are huge in this continent where middle classes are emerging. Project holders in Africa can therefore benefit from a consistent increase of their business. For that reason, they must think bigger and try to increase their market share in the sub-regions, whether in the CEMAC region -Central African Economic and Monetary Community – or in the -ECOWAS region -Economic Community of West African States.

Surround yourself with qualified partners

In many cases, the skills of the project holders are not a match with the core business of the company. Majority of companies choose to have people performing several functions as managers and technicians in an effort to reduce the costs. This represents one of the main reasons for business failures in Africa. This lack of skills towards the design of a product or a serious issue with the way a service has been provided, are in the very heart of the growth of a business. You need to make sure you are only surrounded with people with solid expertise and a good knowledge of your products if you want to maximize your chances of seeing your project succeed.

06Mar

How to make your LinkedIn more attractive?

Everybody agrees on the fact that social networks are important for people who are looking for a job. They allow you to be visible, to let yourself be seen and to show out your personal and professional skills in order to attract recruiters. However, in order to get the best out of those tools, you must know how to get the maximum of potential out of them. We will explore different ways of making your LinkedIn more attractive.

What do job seekers need LinkedIn for?

If there is any social network that job seekers visit the most, it is definitely LinkedIn. This network is a “professional” social network that is very useful in job seeking. It allows job seekers to lay out in plain view their career path, or their training and activities. LinkedIn is perfect for getting more information about the people you will be talking to and display your own skills. It helps to efficiently reach out to future contacts for job seeking purposes or markets. A lot of job seekers manage to create a real universe online capable of putting their profiles on top of researches on google in fields where they major. Thanks to that network job seekers can also download their own C.V next to their profiles. It is therefore, possible to really give a lot of information to the recruiter who, on the other hand would feel suspicious to see a page with little information, myCVfactory creator Pauline Lahary tells us.

How to maximize your profile?

In order to fully take advantage of what LinkedIn has to offer, it is crucial to first of all, work on the header of your profile. First, it is mandatory to put a picture, second, it has to be a professional one. LinkedIn is a digital webpage where everybody expect to see some media. Then, your page needs to come with the perfect title. To do that, you must either display your current job or choose a sentence that will perfectly summarize your skills.

It is also recommended to put key words that are the most looked for on google. According to Pauline Lahary creator of myCVfactory, it is a very lucrative technique. Last, From her opinion, it is helpful to pay attention to the summary of our professional path, to highlight our skills, our expertises and to give an insight of what we would like to do in life. It is about giving a real “pitch” that would make managers and recruiters want to contact you, she explains.

LinkedIn pulse: an efficient solution

According to Pauline Lahary, creator of myCVfactory, it is recommended to put as much pictures and videos as possible, not to forget presentations and other links. LinkedIn gives the possibly to share some multimedia content in order to show your experiences off. On LinkedIn, we can also have access to a service named « LinkedIn Pulse ». It aims at allowing internet users to post articles about their area of expertise. Basically, it is therefore possible to join a community of experts or create a group or display our knowledge and our abilities. You must be a real « influencer »in you area of expertise. It is also a good way to make yourself seen. In short, it is all about how you present yourself on social media to maximize your chances of getting hired.

02Mar

How to handle tricky questions during job interviews?

We are often confronted with tricky questions during job interviews and answering them is not an easy task. Are we allowed to lie in that specific situation? For example can we say that we left our former employee on good terms when it is actually the opposite? However it is, no answer that could possibly mess up your chances of getting the job should be given. But how do we handle it? Find our tips in the following paragraphs.

Can we lie to avoid a tricky question during the job interview?

First and foremost, we should keep in mind that no matter how difficult the question is, liying is not wanted nor recommended during the interview. The only lie that recruiters can tolerate at the most is lying through omission. And that is understandable since an interview is after all a sale. In that sense we have the right and the obligation to display a product at its best. It is therefore useless and stupid to talk about all our imperfections, to reveal our professional plans when it doesn’t benefit the company. This is at least according to expert Patrice Ras, author of « Grand livre de l’entretien d’embauche» published by Studyrama.

How to talk about our former job when it didn’t end well?

The rule is to absolutely avoid saying bad things about our ex boss. Keep in mind to never bash your former enployer, says Patrice Ras. Adding also that « if however, the recruiter wants to know the exact reason why the candidate left, he can talk about it without getting into the details and without whining: throwing too much shade on your ex employer can often look bad on your side ». You must nevertheless remember that employer are not gullible , they are very much aware of the realities of the working world and especially about the behavior of some managers who tend to be nasty, too demanding, unfair and harassing. So you can talk about a professional relationship that didn’t end up well with tact and grace because the recruiter feeling any sense of hate in your speech could make you look bad.

How to explain a long period of unemployment to the recruiter?

This question also is delicate, in a sense. Some people go as far as changing the dates in their C.V to hide it out and avoid the question. This option is not recommended because there is a high risk for the company to find it out and see you as someone being fraudulent. When confronted to that situation, it is better if you clearly explain why you were not selected during previous job interviews. Point out all the different procedures you have been through and how motivated you are. That would make the person you will be talking to have a good feeling about you. So according to Patrice Ras HR expert, the job interview is actually the best moment to bring light to those periods of inactivity and turn the question to you advantage by showing that you are still active and positive despite the setbacks. Human qualities that recruiters appreciate.

Avoid definite and closed answers…

When asked to know about their career plan, many candidates get it all wrong because they think that we expect from them to give a closed and definite answer like « I will become a C.E.O ». Quite to the contrary, what matters for the recruiter is to know about your plans in terms of your career. Therefore, you must be able to present your arguments by stating every major facts and trying to put a date limit for every goal. The candidate must be able to give an account of every major step of his career. The answer should come out naturally. Therefore, try to show how, where, what and when you plan on reaching your career goals. You must justify them by all means because they don’t expect you to just give empty promises.

Be consistent…

When you are presenting your career plan to the recruiter, it is important to always be consistent and realistic. The answer that you give should be the result of a medium term well detailed career plan. It should be something that has been thought through. For that reason, it is recommended not to say things like « it is hard for me to plan for the future, it is so uncertain that I might give you a wrong answer ». That answer that you probably find extremely wise is actually seen as a headlong rush for the recruiter who will definitely not appreciate it.

Do not confuse ambitious and pretentious…

It is clear that a recruiter will always appreciate having an ambitious candidate, but be careful not to do too much and have him confuse ambitious with pretentious. The ambition needs to be realistic. You must keep your feet on the ground to show to the recruiter that you are capable of taking yourself to other lands. In other words, he will appreciate for you to have your wishes and your passion but also take in consideration the situation of the professional market when you present your career plan. Either way, you should keep in mind that the question about your career plan is the perfect opportunity for your recruiter to test you in terms of planing ahead of time. Avoid going overboard and having over the top goals. In brief, you need to be ambitious but without doing too much. Once again be realistic because it is the perfect opportunity for you to be so.

26Feb

Tips for a Successful Job Interview

Avoid talking about yourself…

Some candidates have this bad tendency of making the whole conversation about them when they are face to face with a recruiter, therefore forgetting that a job interview is about two people meeting, sharing and not a one way conversation. Even though it is true that the recruiter is the one calling the shots and asking all the questions it shouldn’t be a reason for them to be inactive. The recruiter shouldn’t be the only one to decide where the conversation is going. As a candidate you actually have a voice too.

Show that you are curious, the recruiter will definitely appreciate that…

A certain sense of curiosity will always be appreciated by the recruiter who will see you as someone intelligent with a clear interest in the company. The fact that you would try to find out more about the company is proof of your motivation and that will be a plus for you. So you must ask the recruiter some questions about the company. If as a candidate you decide to go to a job interview, it shows that you are interested in the company. Therefore, you need to show them. You must show them that you need to know more about the company to help you make your decision. And in order to do that, you need to find out more about the company, its philosophy, its work method, its plans. You must also have a clear idea of the job they are offering you: what kind of job is it? Who would you be working with? Under whose authority? Is the company offering any prospect of developping within the company?

Do not let the recruiter believe that you are ready to do any job available…

The fact that you would ask the recruiter some questions during the interview will set you apart from the rest in a way because he will not see you as someone desperate who is ready to do any job. If you decide to be inactive and to not ask any question then the recruiter will think that you have no interest in the position and that you will do just about any job whatever it is. Do not be surprised if they don’t select you because recruiters are interested in candidates who are motivated and know what they want.

The company sells itself too…

No matter how eager you are to find a job, keep in mind that this process of selling and being sold goes both way. On one side you want to sell yourself but on the other side the company sells itself too. Companies give to recruiters the mission to find the best profiles and convince them to come work for them. Thus, they will try to have an objective idea of the potential of the candidate beyond his C.V. Don’t be fooled by their speech. They will lure you with promises of big responsibilities, a fair wage, amazing prospective for career development in the company… ask them to be more specific without getting into the details. However it is, remember that you have the right to ask some questions during the job interview and we advise you do so.

24Feb

The 6 winning attitudes at work

Life at a workplace is not always easy because it is naturally a complicated place where we work with people who are not always easy to deal with. Between a clash of ideas on one side and a clash of personalities on the other side, it is impossible for coworkers to not have a hard time working with each other. So in order to be successful in the world of work and have a chance of developing, there are certain attitudes that need to be adopted.

1. A good sense of problem solving

As a worker, it is crucial to have a good sense of problem solving. That refers to possessing the skill of dealing with unpleasant situations that could possibly happen at the workplace, with the good attitude. It is a precious quality to have not only at work but also in your personal life. Workers who have it have a higher chance of climbing to the top and having strategic positions.

Creativity and initiative

An employer will always appreciate having a worker who knows how to take initiatives and have a sense of creativity. As a matter of fact, plenty of companies find this attitude valuable. So as an employee you must not be afraid to voice the ideas that come to your mind. However, try your best to be relevant so seduce your manager who will see you as an efficient coworker and not just someone who acts like a robot.

Being a good team player…

There is no company nor business where teamwork is not wanted. It is probably one of most valuable characteristics in the work world, whatever the company is. It’s actually something that employers usually check for during the process of a job interview, to see if potential candidates possess it. Being able to work with other people and build a team for a professional project to go well is a good asset for any business to have.

Be opened to criticism

Majority of the time, it is very difficult to be open to criticism, we usually don’t like it. A lot of people feel impacted in their proud when people question their work. However, if the criticisms are constructive criticism then we can take advantage of it.

Flexibility or adaptability

When you are a worker, you shouldn’t expect your company to adapt to you. We actually should be the one to adapt to them. We will not always be in the position to ask for changes in working hours, office, basically working conditions. We should adapt to the company’s way of operating. This is a quality that you must definitely have if you want to develop in a company.

Ability to plan

Finally, the last quality that we recommend you have, as a worker is the ability to organize or to plan. This last quality is among the ones that can help you reduce the everyday stress. Setting up your goals, filling in your calendar and sticking to the program, will all help you tremendously to be more productive. It might not be much of a complete list but those attitudes that we just told you about can certainly help you be successful and develop in a company.

17Feb

Tips to boost your confidence during an interview

If you don’t believe in yourself, it will be difficult to convince others to believe in you.

During a job interview, the first thing that the recruiter will notice about the candidate is his lack of confidence. So, in order for you to not miss out on that opportunity of getting the job of your dreams, our specialists have made a list of some tips to help you boost your confidence during an interview.

1- Breath

Taking a deep breath is an excellent way of dealing with stress. So before you start the interview it is recommended to calmly take 6 breaths. “ it is not just a psychological thing, breathing also has a real impact on your nervous system » explain specialist Josiane de Saint Paul.

2- Tell yourself that the job is for you

One way for you to work on your confidence before the in interview is to be 100% sure that this job is for you. « before you even start preparing for that interview, it is crucial to believe that we were made for that job », reminds Josiane de Saint Paul, therapist, co-founder and former director of French Institute Neuro-Linguistic Programming (FINLP). Without that belief, the person you will be speaking to will feel a lack of motivation. He will conclude that your lack of confidence is proof of how unfit you are for the position you are applying for. We suggest that you know exactly what you expect from the interview before you go on and take it.

3-Take it easy

Making the situation bigger than it really is will not bring you anything. Remind yourself that this is not the end of the world and it is just an interview. Even if it is true that when you want a job you will do anything to get it, keep in mind that it is not a matter of life and death. During an interview, it is important to not put too much pressure upon yourself. “There might be something better around the corner for that person”, says Josiane de Saint Paul, before adding that : « Eric Berne, the father of Transactional analysis said that ‘a winner doesn’t talk about what he’ll do if he wins but knows what he’ll do if he loses.”

4- Don’t see the person you will have in front of you as the enemy

The person seating in front of you is not an enemy sent out there to get you. Just think of him as someone who is just trying to get the best out of you. To help you relax, do not see the person you are talking to as someone who is looking for conflicts but rather focus on seeing him on his “good” side“, recommends Josiane de Saint Paul.

5- Take some time to process

if you did not get the job you wanted, it is crucial to take some time to process. First, look back on what you did, but don’t be too harsh on yourself by saying things like “ I did this, I did that“ but also put yourself in the shoes of the other party. “Just like any other relationship, there are two sides to the same story”, added Saint Paul. What we consider as a failure should be actually seen as a feedback from life. ‘ What did I learn and what should I do differently next time?’. That should be the question to ask yourself.”

11Feb

Stress at work in Africa

For a long time, the issue of stress at the workplace has been considered as something that only Western countries were affected by. Yet, no matter where you are, no employee is spared by that issue which diminishes the company’s productivity as well as the motivation of workers. So basically, stress as work is also present in emerging countries.

If, in the past a lot of the Southern countries did not take this issue seriously it is not the case anymore. As of now, many of those countries officially take the issue seriously. Developing countries do not ignore that issue of stress at work anymore, like psychosocial problems and their impact on the economy. Thus, even though there are no official statistics, the issue is nonetheless real in Africa. Therefore, African countries are starting now to be concerned by it despite the fact that we can’t really measure it. It is even more true knowing that official numbers only exist for rich countries.

In Europe around 30% of workers admit being confronted with stress. That is at least what the 2009 Eurostat Union statistic study report revealed. In the US, the cost of stress at work (absences, less productivity, sick days etc) was estimated at 300 billions dollars in 2010 (202 billions euros). With no existing data on the issue, in emerging and developing countries, the International Labor Organization (ILO) decided to focus on the problem. This Organization that mainly focus on work related issues has decided to organize the World day of Safety and health at work. The ILO launched a whole study about that topic. The results of that study should allow to have a clear understanding of the situation related to stress at work. With the same goal. In mind, China turned to the ILO to establish psychosocial risk management tools.

Also, a network has been created in South America with countries like Colombia, Mexico, Argentina around the issues of mental harassment. According to Valentina Forastieri, coordinator of the ILO health at work unit “the reorganization that happened because of the crisis have led to job loss, she said. But for those who have kept their jobs, the stress has gotten higher because of the increase in working hours and the multitasking skills that we expect from them.” In her 2010 report on “emerging risks”, the ILO has already pointed out the risks caused by the new working conditions, mentioning also the situation of migrant workers and undeclared economy. It is a good thing that Southern countries have finally started to be aware of the gravity of that phenomenon because workers well-being is crucial. Many African countries have come to realize that profits are directly linked to workers well-being.

10Feb

How to deal with a recruiter who is trying to bully you?

Sometimes during an interview you can happen to deal with a recruiter who is deliberately trying to push you to the limits. This unexpected situation can be very difficult. How can we overcome it? We will present you some examples of uncomfortable situations… and some possible solutions.

The recruiter finds it fun to interrupt you every time you are speaking

It is rude and unpleasant to have the person you are speaking to interrupt you every time you are trying to answer a question but he enjoys doing so. Don’t get mad, don’t crack under the pressure and stay calm. Show him that you know what is going on and you can keep track of what you are saying and answer to his questions at the same time. That would convince him that you are capable of doing two things at the same time.

The recruiter is being aggressive towards you…

The recruiter keeps on being despicable to you despite you being nice and polite. This situation can get you so upset that you might start seeing the person you have in front of you as an enemy who is deliberately asking you disturbing questions. It is not true however. You must know that the recruiter does not have any personal issue with you and that he is giving you the same treatment like anyone else who would be sitting in his office. It is just an interviewing method. You must take up the challenge of the recruiter and understand that it is just a job interview, nothing else, nothing more. No matter what shot comes at you, you must see it as a game. If the recruiter asks you an aggressive question and you answer it with a smile that would definitely show that you are turning the situation in your advantage.

What about the indiscretions of the recruiter?

Even though an interview is not an excuse to step into your personal life, one must admit that when it comes to it, there is a thin line between invasive questions and private ones. It makes even more sense knowing that apart from your skills, the interview must also show your personality and your character. So expect to have some personal questions thrown at you, here and there. Questions like, « Are you married, do you have kids? » or again « do you plan on having any? » are obviously, invasive questions… You must however face the facts… Those invasive questions do have an impact on your work. The fact that you are married and have kids can have an impact on your flexibility and your availability at work but also reveal a sense of responsibility and some sort of stability. So you must accept the fact that you will be asked some personal questions. If however the person you will be talking to tend to ask questions that are getting too personal then be evasive.

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Egypt

Morocco

South Africa

Kenya

Rwanda