Chinese institutions spur recruitment in HK for talent with regulatory experience

Led by newly launched securities houses by Chinese investors and the expansion of Chinese bank branches, candidates with regulatory experience will be a hot commodity in Hong Kong this quarter.

This is one key finding from the latest Hays Quarterly Report, for the October to December quarter, which identifies key trends in the job market.

Following the aggressive expansion by Chinese institutions in Hong Kong, increasing demand for cross-border trade and investment deals means there are huge opportunities for candidates in this area.

Being a dominant offshore RMB centre, Hong Kong is seen as an ideal marketplace for Chinese banks and securities companies to internationalise their businesses. It is a market with different regulatory frameworks than the mainland. In order to ensure a smooth running of their Hong Kong businesses, Chinese firms will continue to actively seek professionals understanding local rules and laws.

As more and more wealthy Chinese people are looking to diversify their assets and allocate part of their money to overseas markets, the asset management segment in Hong Kong is expected to grow by leaps and bounds. Heightened hiring activity of capable finance professionals will be needed to cope with the rising number of asset management businesses and an influx of Chinese capital. Candidates with reporting and project experience are preferred by banks amid increased standards and rules imposed on financial institutions.

Information technology is another sector that will see strong hiring in the quarter as companies put emphasis on security and risk. High-skilled candidates will be sought after by both financial institutions and non-financial companies because of the increasing importance of risk management.

As companies face pressure from regulators to ensure robust risk management and compliance frameworks, experienced professionals will likely be benefited by receiving multiple offers as competition for the right talent escalates.

According to the report, demand will be highest for the following skilled professionals:

• Financial Planning and Analysis professionals – Financial planning and analysis professionals are in greater demand for commerce and financial services industries.

• Mid- to Senior-Level Accountants – A huge number of new positions will be created in the quarter by banking institutions.

• Compliance and Trade Surveillance professionals – The regulators’ heightened oversight on daily operations sees a need for experienced professionals.

• Credit Risk Analysts – A rising awareness of risk control results in higher demand for credit risk analysts.

• Extra Low Voltage Engineers – Ongoing projects at Hong Kong airport drives demand for extra low voltage engineers.

• Data Centre Engineers – The fast and reliable internet infrastructure prompts employers to hire data centre engineers to ensure MNCs’ Asia-Pacific data centres.

• Medical Affair professionals – Life sciences market continues to drive demand for medical affair professionals.

• Licensed Pharmacists – Licensed pharmacists will be highly sought after in the candidate-short market.

• Delivery Managers – A buoyant construction of infrastructure remains consistent with demand for delivery managers.

• Network Specialists – A big number of openings will be seen as companies step up go-digital drive.

• Sourcing Managers – The move to reduce costs by companies creates substantial demand for experienced sourcing managers.

• Category Managers – Many organisations are consolidate operations, hence category managers will be highly sought after.

• Digital Marketers – Digital marketers having B2B experience will be highly sought after.

• PR and Events professionals – Enhancing brand awareness is a popular theme this quarter with increasing hiring from various industries.

• S&OP Specialists – S&OP specialists are becoming highly sought after by employers looking to increase the efficient flow of information between their supply chains and sales functions.

• Specialists in Order Fulfilment – A competitive industry has created a need for employers to ensure they can deliver their products to the customers in the most efficient manner possible.

To read the full Hays Quarterly Report, including candidate and employer trends and forecasts, please visit http://www.hays.com.hk/report

This article was originally published on Hays.

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