Thursday, February 4, 2010

My Application Letter

The Local On-the-Job Training (LOT) Programme is one of the programmes under Preparing for the Upturn (PREP-UP), an initiative by the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB) during the downturn to help build up science, engineering and technical capabilities in areas critical for Singapore’s manufacturing and international services sectors. The EDB, in conjunction with Dell Global B.V. (Singapore Branch), is offering 24 training places for aspiring engineers/professionals in the Technology industry. As a US-based company with a global infrastructure and team, Dell is a premier provider of products and services required for customers worldwide to build their Information Technology and Internet infrastructures. Under this programme, trainees will undergo 24 months of local attachment and training at Dell Global B.V. (Singapore Branch). The training is scheduled to commence in October 2009. Trainees will be paid a training grant for the duration of the training and will be required to serve employment in Dell Global B.V. (Singapore Branch), its subsidiaries or in other Singapore-based companies for 1 year upon completion of the training. We are looking for energetic and dynamic individuals who want a challenging career in the Technology industry to fill the following positions:

10.Global Operations Engineer (09000AKR)

· Degree in Engineering in any discipline, preferably Electrical & Electronics or Mechanical

Engineering

Pre-requisites for all positions:

Good communication, interpersonal and leadership skills

Independent, resourceful and keen to learn

Possess ‘hands-on’ approach towards work

Singaporeans or Permanent Residents of Singapore

Only fresh graduates should apply

Job description:

As a member of the Global Operations Fulfillment Team, the individual will be responsible for leading high profile project initiatives. Critical success factors include: Worldwide cross-functional team leadership skills, proven project management experience, business case development, strategic operations plans and strategies, effective presentation and communication skills. The individual must be a self starter with strong interpersonal skills, ability to deal with ambiguity, and exhibit initiative & ability to drive for results. As Program Manager for Worldwide supply chain initiatives the individual will: Assume ownership of all aspects of project. Define comprehensive scope of project (objectives, deliverables, timeline, business requirements, etc) Develop and manage detailed project milestones & schedule Manage program risks and issues and drive issues to closure Anticipate and adjust for roadblocks Capable of developing and assessing Business Case for program Possess and exhibit strong presentation skills Track and effectively communicates project status Strong understanding of Supply Chain, IT systems, factory processes and operations Understands entire Dell fulfillment process: from supplier to the fulfillment center to the customer, including the incoming transportation of materials on the front end; understands delivery and transportation models, and fulfillment of products or parts Understands the differences in fulfillment methods / models across regions, including key areas requiring additional or exceptional processes that add cost, cycle time, or impact. Ability to assimilate and translate product plans, roadmaps into Operational requirements, capabilities, and project plans


Blk Z, #01-01
20 happy palace,
Singapore 666666

6th February 2010

Human Resource Manager,
11 xx street,
xx company #B2-14,
Singapore 123456

Dear Mr Tan

Global Operations Engineer Trainee

I am interested in applying for the position Global Operations Engineer Trainee that was listed in the EDB website, under the LOT program posted on 17th December 2009.

I believe I hold what it takes to become a valuable asset to your company. Having the chance to hold leadership roles as the captain of a faculty sports team and a NCO in a uniform group has allowed me to develop effective management and organizational skills over the last few years. Accompanied by strong interpersonal skills cultivated through my years of service in the F&B industry, I trust that my skills are what are required of to make an effective global operations engineer.

During my university days, I have demonstrated my capability as a strong presenter and speaker having earned praises from examiners and colleagues during project presentations. Scoring distinctions in most group oriented project modules has also proven my ability to excel in a team environment. Achieving consistent grades throughout my course of study further shows my ability to thrive under deadline driven environment resulting from commitments to other modules as well as school activities.

In review of your company's objectives, I believe that my experiences are in line with your current needs. If your company is looking for a dependable, results-oriented professional with a consistent performance track, I would be interested in speaking with you to discuss the value that my strengths can bring to your company. I can be reached in confidence at one of the above telephone numbers and look forward to hearing from you.

Yours Faithfully,

Chua Jia En Alex

7 comments:

  1. This ia quick work, Alex. Thanks!

    Please upload the job adv as well so we can all take a look at the job requirements / description. That will allow us to provide you with more meaningful comments.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hey Alex,
    I think that you have done a great done with the body of the application, where you have nicely put done your skills and experiences and related it to the requirements mentioned in the job adv. However, in your opening paragraph, shouldn't you be mentioning which faculty your from and which university you are studying in? It seems a bit abrupt when you directly start talking about your skills. Also, maybe you can try mentioning your expected date of graduation, even if you might have it in your resume.
    Hope this helps :)

    Madhu

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hi Alex,

    I think your application is clear and concise, and fits the job description quite well. One thing that I could suggest to make it better is rephrasing the sentences to make the skills and achievements stand out a bit more. Putting the skill in front, and the backup statement behind is one way. So instead of writing,

    'Having the chance to hold leadership roles as the captain of a faculty sports team and a NCO in a uniform group has allowed me to develop effective management and organizational skills over the last few years.'

    you could write it like this,

    'I have a successful track record in leadership and team building. I am/was captain of my faculty sports team, and a uniform group NCO. These roles have also given me the opportunity to hone my organisational and management abilities to achieve success in what I do.'

    Just my suggestion. Hope I didn't change the meaning of your paragraph too much =)

    Cheers
    Ben

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hi Alex,

    The criteria for the job sounds pretty demanding in the advertisement but I see that you've tried to bring out as much skills and experiences as you can about yourself which I think is good.

    These are just some suggestions I have that you may adopt if you think suitable and necessary:

    You might want to make the title of the application letter more comprehensive and complete by writing "Application for Global Operations...at *** company" so that reader could get a better overview of which position you're applying for. I went through the EDB website as well and they seem to have several training programmes for many companies, so perhaps writing the title in a more complete mannner could help the reader to sieve out which LOT programme you're applying for specifically.

    Just clarifying, I noticed that the advertisement was posted almost 2 months back, when is the deadline actually? Cause I'm applying for one of the LOT programmes as well and my deadline is within one month of the date the advert was posted.

    In the final paragraph, you asked the company to reach you at one of the above numbers. Ms Lim mentioned to me that it'll be more professional to include the email address and mobile number in the paragraph instead which I thought was a good suggestion.

    I was wondering also if you've managed or planned any events for your cca, or elsewhere before? The advertisment mentioned quite a bit about "initiative and ability to drive for results", "self starter", etc. If you have event planning experience before then it would be good to include it. Else I think you could elaborate more about what you did as the captain of the sports team or NCO.

    Hope my suggestions helped! All the best in your applications :)

    ~Jia Lin

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hey Jiaen,

    Similar to Madhu, I think you should tell them you are a fresh graduate from NUS, majoring in electricial engineering so that they know you would be a more suitable candidate for them before they carry on to read about your qualifications. You would also need to include this statement: “Attached is a copy of my resume for your review.”

    Illustrating your strong leadership skills with relevant examples certainly put you at an advantage and will generate interest in the employer to call you up for an interview. I think it is also a good idea to demonstrate your strong presentation skills with support from relevant individuals which you have done so.

    Perhaps you can also elaborate more on your service in the F&B industry to give them a better idea on how your interpersonal skills have been acquired (one/two sentence will do). Also, maybe you can rephrase your second last sentence to denote more sincerity in your application. It sounds a bit over confident by saying “If your company is looking for a dependable, results-oriented professional with a consistent performance track, I would be interested in speaking with you to discuss the value that my strengths can bring to your company”. It seems to me that if they aren’t, you won’t be interested in talking to them. Maybe you can write I believe that my strengths will be an asset to your company and I’m positive that I’m the suitable candidate for a dependable, results-oriented professional with a consistent performance track

    Overall, it is a good application letter! =)

    ReplyDelete
  6. Hi Alex,

    Wow, the advertisement is really long! Yes I think your application in short, concise and to the point. =)

    Perhaps you might want to talk more about the F&B industry that you worked it so that it will not appear too vague. Also in paragraph 3, you might want to show what presentation you did and for what module, to justify the praises that you have received. Of course having known you, we know you are a good presenter!

    Other than that, this is a good piece. =)

    Cheers,

    Bryan

    ReplyDelete
  7. Hi Alex,

    I can see that you have given much thoughts to putting this application letter together - good effort! This is also a concise letter you'd written, fitting one A4 page very nicely.

    Your classmates have provided you with good, relevant comments so you may like to consider working on their comments.

    Additional points you may like to take note of:

    1. Inside address --> include the name of the HR Manager.

    2. You might like to work on the coherence of the letter. Think about how best to link ideas in an orderly and logical fashion.

    3. Be more aware of your tone. For instance "In review of your company's objectives...", "I would be interested in speaking with you to discuss the value that my strengths..." – can the phrasing be improved?

    All in all, you have portrayed yourself to be a confident individual, and that's one person I would certainly be interested in speaking to.

    Ms. Lim

    ReplyDelete