At e-Frontiers, without really realising it, we have been allowing remote working (working from home) for a number of our staff for a long time.
Some have been almost 100% remote working since day 1!
However, in recent weeks out of necessity, we have gone to a fully remote operating model. I guess ideally this is not the way a company would want to introduce a new, radical change to the way we work but these days decisions are being made for us and you have to sink or swim.
There seems to be a certain pressure for everyone to proclaim that working from home is the best thing ever; that everyone is more productive and that it will be the new normal even after the current crisis has passed.
I feel both employers and employees should hold fire on making any big decisions on the best way forward in the long term. This situation has been forced on everyone and we have had to adapt. Being adaptable is a winner for sure, but that doesn’t mean that working from home is the best long-term solution for everyone. We need to treat it a bit like a crazy experiment.
When the dust has settled, and people have had a chance to pause and reflect, rational decisions around working from home should be made. Maybe it’s a no-brainer for some employers and employees, while others feel that it doesn’t suit them. Take the time and try to make the right decision, not the easy decision for everyone’s sake.
So far, the change has gone pretty well at e-Frontiers. I am proud of how the team have responded and adapted in this difficult, stressful time. Thank you guys for keeping positive and keep pushing on. Being recruiters, we are used to dealing with a lot of uncertainty, and negativity on a daily basis so it feels like things have just been ratchetted up a notch or 2.
I will leave you with a Post our colleague Roxana Sandu published a few months back. Roxana knows a thing or 2 about setbacks and having to adapt. She has worked remotely for e-Frontiers in Bucharest for a number of years so her thoughts and wisdom come from experience:
Estamos asistiendo a una situación sin precedentes. Debido a la falta de demanda, de la noche a la mañana hemos visto como determinados sectores están colapsando y con ello la imposibilidad de retener el talento en esas empresas. Muchas organizaciones tienen miedo de afrontar nuevas contrataciones y, mientras esperan la llegada de tiempos mejores, sus competidores se adelantan y se atreven a invertir en ese talento ahora sin proyecto.
Un ejemplo de ello nos lo ofrece HP a finales de los años 40. Tras la segunda guerra mundial, su negocio decayó al mismo tiempo que numerosos ingenieros que trabajaban en la industria militar se quedaron en la calle. No se lo pensaron dos veces y aprovecharon la situación para la incorporar ese talento a sus filas, lo que les ayudó a crecer en los años venideros y convertirse en una de las mayores empresas del mundo. Esto fue posible debido principalmente a dos factores: porque podían y porque se atrevieron. Actualmente, por desgracia no todas las empresas pueden. Pero las que si tienen esa posibilidad de invertir en talento, depende exclusivamente de ellas decidir si salir de la crisis por delante de sus competidores o no.
Por otro lado, por parte de los candidatos que cuentan con trabajo estable existe cierta incertidumbre a la hora de buscar una nueva oportunidad. Si hace unos meses eran más proclives a aceptar una oferta interesante, ahora muchos prefieren mantenerse en su puesto aunque no cumpla con sus expectativas. Es especialmente importante en estos casos mostrar un proyecto consolidado, con un desarrollo profesional claro y eliminando todos los obstáculos innecesarios del proceso de selección.
Y vosotros que pensáis, ¿es un un buen momento para invertir en el futuro con nuevo talento y para redefinir los procesos de selección?
Spanish team
June 2020
In the current market, sometimes feedback can be overlooked. Lack of candidate feedback is detrimental to the entire recruitment process for all parties. See below a couple of reasons why feedback is so important for all parties involved in the process:
1) Candidate
When you provide detailed and informed feedback to a candidate, you help them learn what they are doing well, while also identifying areas in which they can improve. Honest, constructive, feedback gives solid advice on areas that candidates can work on. Therefore, improving their interview skills for next time. For the company, if they wish to hire the candidate in the future the candidate will be very keen to talk again if they received positive constructive feedback the first time around.
2) Employer
Giving feedback to a candidate is very constructive not only for a candidate to take away but also very important for the Employer Brand. Candidates who receive feedback are more likely to walk away with a positive reflection of the company even though they may not have been successful. Candidates communicate their experiences via word of mouth or via various social media platforms available and a negative view of a company can cause reputational damage in the Market. This can take a long time to repair!
Given how competitive the market is currently a brand reputation is something that a company cannot take for granted. In one sense by providing candidate feedback a client can turn a negative situation to a positive one.
3) Recruiter
Providing thorough, detailed candidate feedback as a hiring manager is critically important when working with a recruiter. Through candidate feedback, the Recruiter can understand where their candidate may have fallen short and work with the candidate to improve on certain areas whether it be through their interview technique or upskilling in certain areas.
Something that is often overlooked, is the recruiter getting feedback from the company on what it was that influenced them towards the successful candidate. It also goes without saying that the more the recruiter knows, the better their future candidates will be.
July 2019
Besides being known as one of the major tech hubs in Europe, Ireland continues to be an attractive destination for many global financial institutions. The Banking and Finance recruitment market in Ireland has become increasingly active with an increased pipeline of International Banks and Asset managers continuing to look to Ireland as a preferred location.
We spent 5 minutes with Conor Byrne, Director of Banking and Finance Recruitment at e-Frontiers to understand the overall picture of this market.
The Recruitment market within Financial Services is extremely competitive in Ireland currently. What are the drivers?
We are seeing growing confidence in the Irish economy and many business transformation and relocation opportunities connected to Brexit. Given the huge growth in the fintech sector in recent times, this has presented more competition for top talent between Banks, Asset managers and the rising number of Management companies (ManCo’s) looking to establish here.
What Trends are you currently seeing across the market?
Continued demand for Risk, Compliance and regulatory professionals across all areas in the sector which has been mainly driven by central bank requirements for companies to have greater depth within their governance framework and an ever-changing regulatory landscape. We continue to see new entrants to the Irish Market with a strong pipeline in capital markets and asset management sectors.
High skilled banking and finance expatriates continue to return home as we are now seeing a greater variety of Front, Middle and back office roles in the Irish Market.
We are seeing a greater than ever focus on work-life balance for candidates when contemplating a move.
What steps are your clients taking to attract key candidates?
Clients are continually looking at ways to stand out through promoting good work-life balance, career progression opportunities and offering return to work programmes.
We also see Clients seeking to improve the candidate experience within the recruitment process. In the current market Speed is key – same number of steps with a shorter recruitment time.
What attracted you to e-Frontiers?
What differentiates e-Frontiers from other recruitment firms is that each division is led by someone with genuine domain experience in the areas they are recruiting for. Coming from the Industry side of things and having been a hiring manager, we are looking to add real value to both Clients and Candidates throughout the entire recruitment process. Thankfully in a short time, this has been well received by the recruitment market within Banking and Finance.
May 2019
