High Demand for Banking Professionals

Recruitment looks poised to be a real issue for businesses across all sectors in 2007. Talent shortages have reached critical levels and companies are already feeling the impact on their organisations. "Many CFOs, CEOs and CIOs in today's world have no choice but to grapple with an ever-increasing talent shortage," says Levina Poon, Manager of the Banking & Finance division, Robert Walters Hong Kong. "Talent management and retention programs are no longer viewed as 'nice-to-haves', rather a mandatory element of corporate strategy if organisations are to remain competitive."

The banking & finance industry is not spared from this looming threat and faces an unprecedented talent crunch. In Hong Kong, qualified accountants, in particular, are in extremely short supply with organisations competing fiercely to secure the strongest candidates. The shortage however is not just confined to finance staff - it is a trend being seen right across the professional space covering the HR, IT and sales and marketing disciplines.

Changing mindsets

In today's labour market where demand far exceeds supply, financial services organisations that have traditionally adopted a conservative approach to hiring staff, are having to change their mindset and move much more quickly to secure talent ahead of the competition.

Poon comments that, "With competition for talent so fierce, an elongated short-listing and interview process can lead to organisations missing out on securing talent to other faster moving businesses. It is imperative that the recruitment process is made as efficient and effective as possible."

The talent crunch is also leading many financial services organisations to increasingly look outside their traditional staff hunting grounds - whilst specific financial services expertise is still preferred, there is an increasing trend of financial services organisations, broadening their talent net and considering talented individuals with demonstrable transferable skills from other market sectors.

"Every CV tells a story, and in every interview candidates are able emphasise certain experiences and responsibilities to prove they have the necessary skills needed to transfer into a new role." Poon continues. "For example, in Marketing, professionals with a solid consumer background are easily absorbed into multiple sectors such as business-to-business marketing and financial services."

HSBC exemplifies how a financial services organisation can successfully recruit top talent by going beyond its sector. Recently, it named former Nike marketer Rosanna Hon head of brand development and management. Other financial services organisations are embracing this trend with sales and marketing managers from luxury brands being headhunted into the financial services space to undertake product marketing A transferable skill set is now a real alternative to relevant work experience in the selection process.

Finance professionals from non-financial services backgrounds are also in increasing demand in the banking community. Finance professionals from the FMCG, retail, IT and media industries are securing new career opportunities, especially in junior to middle management roles. Poon cites an example of a recent talent search for an Asia-Pacific Head of Internal Audit she executed for a top investment bank. Naturally, the bank's initial preference was for a candidate with internal audit experience with a key competitor, however, the client was also keen on interviewing experienced auditors with a CFA qualification, irrespective of whether the candidate possessed financial services experience. Poon comments that "the CFA qualification is highly sought after, with CFA candidates with exposure to financial products in particularly strong demand".

Poon notes that banks are also looking at creative ways to offer career advancement opportunities to existing staff, providing training to staff to enable them to move within the organisation to take on new challenges in other divisions rather than risking losing them to competitors. Employees wishing to move internally within banks are encouraged to take a proactive approach that includes seeking new assignments and projects outside their normal job responsibilities to broaden their skills, attending industry-related networking events and staying alert of what's happening within the organisation.

The worldwide talent shortage means that traditional recruitment and retention perspectives are changing right across the market and financial services organisations need to change in parallel to remain competitive in attracting and retaining staff.

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