With the recent COVID-19 outbreak creating social and economic upheaval across the globe, it would come as no surprise that business-as-usual hiring may be disrupted. Andrew Zee, team lead for private banking and wealth management at Selby Jennings, was recently interviewed by Bloomberg to discuss how the interview process is being affected.
"Both in Singapore and Hong Kong, international and regional banks are pushing ahead with hiring. They are hiring for private bankers for their wealth-management units. However, the process is getting bogged down by restrictions put in place to deal with the outbreak," said Andrew Zee.
Initial rounds of interviews
In order to minimise in-person meetings, banks are opting for teleconference calls in the initial interview rounds.
"The first few rounds will be for the candidates and the hiring manager/HR to align their expectations of the role. They will want to see if they both complement each other, hence this can be done via video conference or a phone discussion," comments Zee.
Final rounds of interviews
However, for final rounds of interviews, face-to-face meetings still take place for most mid-to-senior levels. With the necessary implementations by both the firm and the buildings, logbooks and temperature checks are in place to allow for these crucial evaluations to go ahead without risking the well-being of current employees.
"Upon having a final shortlist candidates for the strategic hire, hiring managers would want to meet in person," said Zee. "Meeting in person, without a doubt, would allow for an in-depth evaluation of the candidate's attitude, preferences and soft skills."
Hiring plans are still going on
The hiring process has slowed down mainly due to business continuity planning (BCP) and remote working, as many key stakeholders have to be present for interviews and discussions. However, companies are still rolling out hiring plans. For now, managers are just taking more time to discuss which hires are a priority and whether they need to reallocate capital to other departments if needed.
If you need assistance with hiring during the current situation, get in touch with Selby Jennings. We are happy to have a discussion and share our experience.
This topic is originally published by Bloomberg. To read the full article, please visit Bloomberg.