Pennsylvania company expands operations
Kenexa Corp., a leading end-to-end provider of software, proprietary content, services and process outsourcing that enables organizations to recruit and retain a productive work force, has expanded its operations to Hong Kong.
The Wayne, Penn.-headquartered company uses Hong Kong as a base to support its clients in Asia Pacific and for expansion in the region.
“As Kenexa continues to intensify its presence throughout the Asia Pacific region, we’re selecting key locations that will enable us to best support our clients,” said Rudy Karsan, Kenexa chief executive officer. “We chose Hong Kong for its well-established infrastructure, talented work force and stable economic forecast. It is also the preferred destination for many of our customers, which include industry-leading multinational corporations.”
The company also has offices in Singapore; Taipei; Hyderabad, India; and Melbourne, Australia.
Associate Director-General of Investment Promotion at Invest Hong Kong Simon Galpin welcomed Kenexa’s expansion. “There are few cities in the world that offer a sophisticated technology infrastructure together with a world-leading logistics, financial and communications center and a dynamic and skilled work force,” he said. “As the region’s leading base for regional operations, Hong Kong is a natural fit for Kenexa with our pool of current and potential customers for Kenexa’s services. I look forward to Hong Kong playing a pivotal role in Kenexa’s further development in the Asia Pacific region.”
Kenexa began operations in 1987 as a provider of recruitment services to a wide variety of industries. By 1997, the company had expanded to supply employee research, employee performance management technology and consulting services. Then, responding to growing demand from its customers, Kenexa embarked on a strategy to provide comprehensive human capital management services integrated with on-demand software.
Today, Kenexa's software, services and proprietary content-based solutions include applicant tracking, employment process outsourcing, onboarding, skills and behavioral assessments, structured interviews, performance management, multi-rater feedback surveys, employee engagement surveys and HR analytics. The company employs more than 1,300 people worldwide.
Invest Hong Kong is the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government department charged with encouraging and facilitating investment into the city by providing the support needed to establish or expand a business presence there.
Mexico to implement travel card program
Mexico has begun processing APEC Business Travel Cards (ABTC) under the APEC Business Travel Card Scheme.
A Hong Kong Immigration Department spokesman said the program aims to enhance the mobility of business travelers among APEC economies and thereby promote business within the region.
Eighteen economies participate: Australia, Brunei, Chile, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.
In Hong Kong, applications for ABTC are open to people holding Hong Kong Permanent Identity Cards and valid national passports. Applicants must be businesspeople, have no criminal record and they must not have been refused entry to any of the participating economies. Applicants also need to travel frequently on short-term business visits to APEC economies.
The ABTC is the size of a credit card and is usually valid for three years. The card is good for multiple visits of two to three months to participating economies without the need for a visa. Cardholders enjoy streamlined immigration clearance through a special lane at control points of participating economies.
The spokesman said the United States and Canada have started providing special service lanes to ABTC holders at their major international airports. ABTC holders should follow signage with the APEC logo to access the special service lane for passenger clearance. They are still subject to the normal immigration clearance process, however, such as presenting valid passports and where applicable, valid visas for the United States and/or Canada.
HKIA posts record traffic figures
Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) set new throughput records in 2007, with passenger numbers climbing 7.5% to reach 47.8 million, and cargo volumes rising 4.5% to 3.7 million metric tons. Air traffic movements increased 5.4% to 295,600.
Airport Authority Hong Kong Chief Executive Officer Stanley Hui noted that 2007 was a good year for passenger traffic, as robust economic growth in both mainland China and Hong Kong continued to underpin the increase in HKIA throughput.
“Hong Kong was an attractive destination for travelers from jurisdictions with appreciating currencies, and the Individual Visit Scheme facilitated tourist flows from the Mainland,” said Mr. Hui. “Outbound travel by Hong Kong residents also experienced good growth because of the strong local economy, which led to a higher propensity to spend and travel.”
Cargo throughput at HKIA benefited from sustained growth in trade between China and its major trading partners. While seasonal factors contributed to a slow start to 2007, traffic began to pick up in the second quarter. Mr. Hui noted that cargo volumes have been increasing since the second quarter of 2007, stimulated in part by intraregional transhipments to and from the Mainland and by exports to Southeast Asia. In addition, the euro’s strength helped create healthy demand for cargo services to and from Europe.
Mr. Hui is confident that HKIA will benefit in 2008 from the Mainland and Hong Kong’s positive economic fundamentals, the growth momentum of both economies and passenger flows associated with the Beijing Olympic Games. Despite an expected slowdown in the United States, he remains cautiously optimistic about cargo throughput in 2008.
2008 started busy for HKIA, with passenger traffic in January reaching 4 million, up 13.5% year-on-year. Mr. Hui said it was a good start, with sharp increases in the number of visitors from Europe, the Mainland, Southeast Asia and Korea. In addition, holiday traffic started to move early before the Lunar New Year holidays, with significant growth in the number of transfer passengers traveling between the Mainland and Taiwan and between the Mainland and destinations in Southeast Asia.
Strong pre-holiday demand from Europe and Southeast Asia saw cargo throughput reach 295,000 metric tons, an 8.9% year-on-year increase. Air-traffic movements increased 5.3% to 24,800 in the same comparison period.
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