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ABCs of hiring in Asia

[framed_box]A) My contrarian position that there is no ‘shortage of talent’ continues. There is plenty of talent, and thus plenty of potential. No new hire is a ‘finished work of art’, ‘ready made’, and knows the job to be done at the outset. Yet many internal stakeholders are too busy or seldom in the office to help the person integrate over time, and mistakenly assume her or she knows what to do anyhow. But if the person has little guidance, and does stay, he or she has carte blanche to recreate the role–which may or may not be what is needed.

Companies spend too much time posturing like a single person who wants to get hitched; ‘If I find the right person life will be good’, rather than being the right person [or company], and attracting others through the actions, not the aspiration.
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[framed_box]B) MNCs must now be much more attuned to a new sotto voce attitude in Asian certain countries when it comes to hiring locals or ‘overseas’ talent. Not a surprise. With sclerotic economies in Europe and N America, Asia appears to be the land o’ plenty. More foreigners are showing up unannounced, and governments have an obligation to take care of their own.

Ironically, western MNC’s operating in Asia still have a surprisingly blinkered view about ‘talent’, fretting about talent shortages. At regional round-tables and conferences I’ve attended this past year, there is consistent talk of an inability to find top talent in Asia. The media also joins the choir of angst:

The Economist:

“For all the increased interest in working in Asia, demand for qualified labour exceeds supply.” “UBS’s regional head has given warning that its profit margins there could be depressed for ‘a year or two’ amid fierce competition for talent.”

Newsweek:

Despite the so-called résumé tsunami, employers are finding the pickings increasingly slim for skilled and trained managers. The problem is particularly acute in the rising economies of Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and even Africa.

How can this be? Asia has more capable people than ever before (and a dramatic increase of professional women) in the workplace; well-educated, bi-lingual or tri-lingual, cross-culturally dexterous, inquisitive and ambitious.
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C) Nothing is more important than attracting the right group of people. But many companies still do not fully understand how to attract top talent in Asia, relying on hiring templates from a bygone era. (Oh, I could tell stories; the MNC that manages all the top Asian hiring out of Europe, neutering regional decisions and waiting over a year to find “the best”–another that hires far too fast, and still another that requested to find someone “with no accent”. I’ll put it all in another blog..)

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If the MNCs are reading this, here are 5 thoughts:

  1. Do not assume that Asians will queue up to work for your brand. There are more progressive Asian companies, and even SOEs; Infosys, Alibaba, Lenovo, HTC, Astra Int’l, CP Group, DiGi, Ayala, LG, Honda, DBS Bank, to name a few–and all are savvy at wooing local talent.
  2. Tip O’Neill sagely said that ‘all politics is local’, and the same is true when it comes to attracting, hiring and retaining the best, the ‘think global act local’ adage is appropriate.
  3. English will remain the lingua franca, but fluency in English doth not mean the person has the smarts. You’re in Asia, not Cedar Rapids, Watford or Wollongong, so think about strengths, not whether he or she talks like you.
  4. Diversify. I don’t mean just gender, although I can reel off companies that should be hiring more qualified women–and don’t, but future leadership will increasingly be from Asia for many MNCs. The sooner you widen your horizon, the better.
  5. Be quick and nimble, unlike my client above who chose to wait in order to find the “perfect” person. (They also did all the senior hires from Europe, cutting out the Asian offices.) Move steadily but quickly if the role is important. And let the Asians put their own on board–they’re all adults.