Ian Selvarajah is an SAP consultant who was recruited and signed by a top tier consulting firm nearly a year before he graduated from Concordia University (Montreal, Canada). He holds a degree in Management Information Systems and helps his clients design and implement IT solutions.
Ian has worked for several large multinational firms in a variety of roles, developing key corporate skills along the way. He also acquired experience in the humanitarian sector when he spent 6 months helping with reconstruction efforts in Sri Lanka immediately following the 2004 Tsunami. In 2006, he spent 6 months at KTH University in Stockholm, where he had the opportunity to travel around Europe.
These days, he spends a lot of time in airports and airplanes pondering the future and the meaning of life...
In the little spare time he has, Ian enjoys playing the guitar as well as spending time with his family and friends. He has been blogging since 2004; writing about his travels as well as random thoughts on a number of topics. Lately, he’s been focused on generational change issues facing young professionals as he simultaneously navigates his way through the new corporate world.
Ian Selvarajah's blog is Generation Y Consultant.
“You know what the problem is with people like you?”, asked the gray haired gentleman, looking at me through his thick glasses from across the small, square table. With a slight smirk, obviously faking curiosity, I leaned forward and inquired: “People like…me?”
Advice is based and framed on personal world views, experiences and biases. Everything is about perspective, so it’s important to try and see where the advice is coming from before taking it as gospel truth. Yes, this includes advice coming from parents, mentors, religious leaders, bosses, friends, blogs, etc. […]
It appears they’re also the ones with the authority to define new words. This, my friends, is Wikiality. If enough people say it’s true, it becomes reality. A few weeks ago, a friend of mine mentioned how the proliferation of blogs is diluting information and facts are no longer important […]
With school coming to an end, recent graduates are searching for jobs and if they’ve done any research, they know that the best way to find a job is by networking. At some point or another we’ve all been to a career fair or a networking/recruiting event […]
I wrote this, I noticed that Ryan had published a related post about making excuses.While on my mandate in Pittsburgh, I was working with a project manager who has been in the consulting industry for quite some […]
Last week, Penelope Trunk suggested that plastic surgery might be the next must-have career tool. I’m afraid that people will be running to their friendly neighbourhood plastic surgeon after Penelope’s advice, so as a public service, allow me to help […]
I’ve helped (and still help) several of my friends review their cover letters and resumes. The one thing I always remind them of is this: any resume advice should be taken with a grain of salt. Some people like bullets, others like paragraphs that tell a story; some like the single page, others feel you […]
With the amount of progress our generation has made with discrimination in the workplace, I’m quite disappointed (and somewhat disgusted, to be honest) when I read articles from seemingly progressive individuals about “casual” discrimination. I’m not blind. I know discrimination still exists and it’s a sensitive topic, but let’s dig deeper into this “casual discrimination” […]
Consultants love buzzwords. I hate them. Thankfully, in IT consulting, rather than management consulting, I don’t have to deal with this too frequently. However, when I sit in the airport, I cringe whenever I hear a suit say things like:
“We need to target seamless functionality while harnessing customized, holistic models in order to innovate revolutionary […]
Most people I know, myself included, dread creating cover letters! The cover letter can be tricky because it has to be tailored specifically to the company and the role you’re applying for. This difficulty is compounded by the fact that most cover lett […]
