SG
In the second of her regular “View from the bottom” series, our columnist tells us about her trip to Hong Kong in search of work. The writer is a young Singaporean banker who worked on Wall Street and is now searching for a job in Asia.
I had been scheduled to interview for a position in Hong Kong as a replacement hire at an investment bank there. However, due to repeated conflicts with client meetings, my interview was rescheduled not once or twice, but three times.
Ultimately I had to fly back to Singapore without having the interview. Perhaps it was just an unfortunate series of events, but I thought the bank would have at least made an effort to meet me, given that I paid for my own flight and had a fixed departure date.
But alas, in this employer-led market, there is no shortage of candidates from which banks can cherry pick at their own convenience. They won’t be losing any sleep about not meeting me.
I did manage to see several headhunters in Hong Kong. While it came as no surprise that they are all being inundated with CVs from the US and Europe, I was shocked to discover that many foreign job-seekers are flying to Asia to meet headhunters, even before they have any interviews lined up.
Although a background in US or European financial services is sometimes valued in the Hong Kong job market, the recruiters also said that, more often than not, a lack of Asian work experience (or lack of fluency in Asian languages) is frowned upon. Having only worked on Wall Street – strike one against me!
Generally, the headhunters echoed the public sentiment that investment banks have both over-hired and over-compensated their staff. In fact, until very recently, the high pay and benefits on offer in Asia helped attract many senior US bankers to the region, resulting in less promotion opportunities in local offices. Some of these high-flyers also transferred in the hope that Asia would be a safer haven for their jobs and would be more insulated from the current crisis.
However, in reality, banking chief executives are based in New York, not Hong Kong, so their current priorities are with Wall Street. And their deputies in Asia are inclined to take a cautious, wait-and-see stance before embarking on any hiring plans here.
By contrast, I was told that some smaller institutions or regional banks – which are not so impacted by toxic securities on their books – are looking to expand their operations. This is especially true with respect to commercial banking or in-house M&A strategy teams.
Unfortunately on the investment banking front, with fewer deals in the market, hiring is concentrated on poaching senior relationship bankers, rather than juniors like me.
In fact, most headhunters reckon that Asia could suffer even more finance-sector layoffs. They might well be right. I have friends who were recently retrenched for the second time – that’s certainly disconcerting.
Just my humble opinion – you have to set yourself a cutoff date after which you recalibrate your search towards positions which are not directly in investment banking, but related.
What you mentioned about in-house M&A strategy teams sounds promising. The key thing is to keep on accumulating relevant experience. Also, in direct i-banking, there is likely to be fiercer competition – and no guarantee of job security even after you secure a job.
You can always step back into I-banking later when the markets rebound. But, for now, with pickings slim, I think its prudent to widen your search field.
Chok Dee!
I wouldn’t call someone struggling to find a job in the current market a horror story – it’s simply the way it is . The writer needs to take her time and something will come her way – would also advise her to look at the Singapore market instead as the markets seem to be turning a bit here . Whilst you may not have local experience , you are an asian with overseas experience which is valuable . The key is to not flood the market with your CV , choose 1 or 2 headhunters who can genuinely consult you and represent you properly and make sure you perform well in interview and be relatively flexible in terms of pay / responsibilities . The job will then follow !
this is so depressing, but oh well what can you do? One of my VP’s buddies got laid off from a hedge fund a while ago, haven’t been able to find a job, so he’s bartending at a shitty Murray hill bar…
I guess people are just laying low for a while. Stay positive and wait for the turnaround, hopefully soon…
well u sound like a bright talent. no doubt things will brighten up soon. if not there are other industries
I was MD in a international PB outfit based in Spore and was recently made redundant. Anyone know if there is a position for RM?
Banking is dead.
Now Main Street employers look at Wall Street workers as TOXIC assets.
They do not want to employ any bankers.
1] Bankers lack of ethics, they are greedy, and reckless.
2] Main Street business reputation will tarnish by associating with Wall Street bankers. Customers of main street firms boycott business which are managed by these scum bankers.
The golden era of banking is finally dead. Banking will not regain the status at least for another generation.
All bankers must do full time charity work to atone for their sins caused to humanity.
I was an internal auditor also recently lost my position. Anyone interested in hiring me?
Hi, market is indeed very tight at the moment and I understand the whole world is affected in one way or the another. I am a foreigner living in Singapore. By profession I am an Associate Chartered Accountant. After we moved here in mid 2007, i worked for eight months in one of the firm here and then mid 2008 i decided to quit due to family reasons, although with a strategy plan that i would finish all my family duties in few months times and then start looking for new job. I started my search last year november and since then i have not been able to find something. The reasons being, I am not a singapore citizen now PR, and i have too little of working experience in Singapore.( My total work experience before coming here was 6 years)!
I have started looking at different options such as widening my search criterias and being open about various oppurtunistics fields…whether it be a change in the career….
times are bad for all and justhope that this worst than 1930′s recession gets over soon and people around the globe get their normal lives back.
Falguni.
Banking is indeed dead. Especially private banking and investment banking. Heard in the market that one sizeable European private bank has imposed globally a no travel ban for the RMs. How on earth can these RMs bring in business without travelling?
About the writer, instead of travelling to HK and not getting the interview, you could have asked if you could have a teleconference via its Singapore office. That was what I did with a US private bank sometime ago.
As mentioned in one of the comments, may be its time to look beyond banking. I was a private banker covering North Asia market, recently made redundant. I have been attending interviews with companies that are non bank financial institutions. You may want to also look beyond your traditional routes. Also, you mentioned you were junior, the more the option is open than for someone who has been in certain industries for the longest ime. Good luck.
Like many bankers you do not have a clue about what is really happening. How many deals are getting done in Asia and what kind of deals are they? If you are serious about being an Asian banker, this is something that you should know. But alas, you have absolutely no idea. The expert on the market does not care to know what the Asian market is. What you said about American bankers flying down to Hong Kong even though they do not have an interview lined up is hilarious. But sweetheart, you do not have to worry about those guys. It is very likely that they are en route to Thailand where they can hide out from prying relatives and live cheaply to boot. Worry about yourself girl. It seems to me that you still have not come to terms with reality.
I know Stanchart is still recruiting, all positions.
Just show the current business and employment market conditions – extremely difficult.
I hope the author didn’t spend money on hotels and came for just the day. I would suggest have a phone interview or video conference call first before flying out. Many companies are not making the final decision until the very last minute (usually be the CEO!) hence interviews could be just a waste of time.
Foreigner coming to meet headhunters without an job interview shows how desperate the situation is in US and Europe. Can Asia escape from the worst?
This candidate is definitely too naive, if he/she really want to work in HK. There are many more horror stories in Asia and in the PRC. You really don’t have to come to HK if you don’t think it is worth your effort.
Well its sad to see the last 2 comments are so negative. Let me put some positives back in here. I give u credit for trying and the effort in getting over there. Most people only believe what they see & hear. Its not the same as going out and being there. This takes effort and guts, well done here. Im not an optimist but just not a person that thinks negative all the time and you cannot keep thinking the negatives like a sheep in the herd. With all downturns comes an upturn. Lets all use some initiative and think strategically and lead the pack rather than being a sheep in the paddock. Why dont we treat these tasking times as a means to raise the bar in everything we do, maybe then we can improve society and standards. For every 1000 people there is only 1 real successful person. Why dont we increase that success rate.
The job market is worse than ever and lot of departement struggle to survive to not close because short of budget. Lot of departement closed in Asia and relocated.Few bankers are really making deals in china, because its so hard to deal with them, China will be a huge market but until now lot of bank are making virtual money and lost money to keep good relation with Chinese.
Because there is no job, headhunters tend to create fake job so they can retain talent with them. you can see many fake job adverts and many banks in HK make fake interview to collect in information from competitors because the competition is very hard in Asia, because everyone want be 1st.
If you read the news this year many expats lost they relocation allowance in HK or even had to leave HK because no hope to refind a job here, the banking sector in HK has fired later than NY/London, and lot of bankers will also flood the market (RBS, Nomura, GS,Lehman,……) in the next few months.
Some teams have been already rebuild quickly in HK.
Concerning the regional banks, they are retail banks and their investments departement are almost inexistants, just to show off. Time to change career or a break
The word “horror” in the headline was my doing – not the author’s. A bit OTT perhaps.
Simon Mortlock
Asia-Pac editor eFC
It sounds like quite difficult to find a job in a bank in HK or Singapore nowadays huh? Is it just for investment banking positions or corporate banking jobs? What about in consumer finance or retail banking?
I heard some headhunters are doubling up as real estate agents; taxi drivers and waiters at banquets!
I’m a Vp in a global PB, formerly with a global IB, yet am searching for a shot at a Main Street firm. I am getting sicked of being perceived as a decease, and a menace to the economy/society. I’m amazed by the fact that you, having booted out from a Wall Street firm, is still on the hunt for a similar position, in such a wrecked banking job market. Wake up and smell the coffee girl. Life is more than just Banking.
Hi
In a way it is good that these times have come. It will bring many to mother earth. As always said “Industry is a great leveller” The current experience shows the importance of being a specialist. Important to note is that Specialist in a fundamental business domain/space. All those who were involved in those fancy market cap activity and overvaluating everything starting with themselves are affected. After all everybody cant be making money by lending money and making deals. The world doesnt survive solely on brokers(with/ without neckties). It will survive on real demand and real supply. Going forward focuss on your core special skills, if dont know them, identify them first, connect with your upbringing, the unique you, dont try to match a “Sunrise” industry” , in other words dont fake what you are not, talk basic, be humble, intense yet relaxed and the you will find a much peaceful place to work.
during your job search in these markets, i think you should measure your success not by the ultimate result but by not compromising on the effort that needs to be put in to get a job- you should be mindful of factors like how hard your particular domain is hit, unprecedented markets, domain flexibility (the people who say you need to be flexible in terms of your domain selection sometimes forget this is an employer’s market not just in one domain but for every domain- so if you are an i-banker wanting to apply for a completely unrelated role- the employer will still not look at you no matter how much you are willing to compromise coz the employer can choose from x (x can vary depending on the field but it is definitely more than 0 for almost all domains in this horrible market) number of made redundant professionals having exp. of that domain) but these factors should not deter you but should only egg you on to be more determined in terms of putting in the hours to get a job
pls do not crib about the way employers are treating employees – i believe they are just returning the favors the employees did to them when markets were good and employees were dictating terms
Please refer to the post by Square pants “‘m a Vp in a global PB, formerly with a global IB, yet am searching for a shot at a Main Street firm. I am getting sicked of being perceived as a decease, and a menace to the economy/society”
You are brutally honest when you suggest banking is a menace to society”. A lot of HNW individuals would still remain as HNW individuals if not for the likes of Private Bankers.
When I started a banking relationship with one of the many priority bankers, I brought home many trinkets and premiums like desk radios that don’t work; and a wgole load of rubbish. They are good at unloading these valueless “made in China” rubbish that plays on our greed for things that are free but useless.
Bankers, Housing Agents; Insurance salesmen; used car salesmen; timeshare resort telesalesperson are all the same leaque..Parasites..
yes, bankers these days are brutally cold and greedy. why because their bosses drown them with targets targets daily, weekly, monthly….thank God its not by the minutes yet. Until so much so we the traditional bankers who place high weightage on the days of old where “dignity and trustworthyness” are the norm. One signature is enough. everyone keep their words almost. Nowadays, young ambitious women and men come on board, don’t know anything about investments start driving their RMs to bring in the bucks…daily weekly monthly or else get the boot!!!!!! some of the banks even mentioned in the comments that they are recruiting…be careful…plenty of devils in those places. wolves in sheep skin. some CEO even recently retired. why? so that his sins will not be exposed.
Well, its well know that I-banks treat there employees like shit, so the treatment of candidates is even worse. Except for the money, why would you like to work in the business? Its filled with money grubbing, back stabbing slime would kill their own mothers for a promotion.
The title is right. It is in fact a horror story.. because I have gone through similar circumstances in the past one year and I know what it feels like. Even with a double degree and investment banking experience, there are all kinds of excuses made by employers such as no PR, not enough local experience, etc., to reject my CV.
Wherever I go in Singapore looking for jobs, I’m told people with US/Europe degrees or work experience are preferred. But it seems like in your case even that is not sufficient, which is really surprising.
Now I’m starting to think that these are just excuses made by companies who don’t want to hire you and have found somebody else or hope to find someone else who fits some whimsical criteria.
Falguni’s case comes as a surprise as well since she’s a CA with 6 years’ experience and a PR too. Ironically, it gives me a little comfort to know that there are others in the same boat as I am in, because some employers do not understand this and treat you with skepticism when you tell them about your long unemployment period.
The business environment in Asia is fraught with ‘quan xi ‘ and business deals mostly depend on who-knows-who and who has done what , past current and will do in the future. More so now– with the 2008 financial debacle originating from Wall Street , I-Bankers are more the focus and ‘dirty word’ would- be employers like to trample on given the chance. The writer should be better armed in developing general , down-to- earth banking skills and return to add credibility to a much frowned upon but necessary industry. Go back to school on market psychology and concentrate on risks and controls. Good luck and be humble always