No financial talent in asia? The economist misses the mark

The Economist has come out with one of their more churlish articles, (it does happen) “Go east, young moneyman”, the latest edition, pp 67-68. It is both elliptical and alarmist, almost enough to make one actually believe there is an epic talent crisis in Asia, adding to the metronomic “no talent in Asia” chant.

The article is almost toxic, combining two volatile sources:
In one corner are unctuous bankers, jostling to move to Asia; in the other corner, bumptious financial service recruiters.

Both groups are predictable and often intertwined, neither known for a self-effacing manner, in a market prone to huge boom or bust cycles. My my..

In essence, the article says times are good in Asia, it will likely last a while, some bankers think they should move here because it’s easy living and there is a paucity of talent. Hiring is strong, bonuses are large, but the good times may not last.

That’s the long and short of it, written in both a hard-boiled and breathless style, and gives the perception that we are faced with a Brobdingnagian talent abyss out here.

One exec search firm, Sheffield Haworth, is quoted as follows:

31% of financial firms external hires in Asia in 2010 transferred from Britain or America, compared with 8% the year before.

That is astounding. Not an internal move from one office to another, but external hires from Europe or N America to Asia.The market was down in 2009 and up in 2010, but still… I don’t do financial services–thankfully and if correct, most are low level jobs, not senior. And where in Asia? All in Singapore? Hong Kong? Shanghai? Them’s big apples..

I don’t know Sheffield Haworth, but they have a nice looking website and no doubt are good at what they do. I did look at their consultant profiles, and almost everyone is a white male running the Asian offices, a few females, only one Chinese and one Indian woman, two Indian men. We can assume whom they likely gravitate towards. Asian talent anywhere, boys?

Let’s go back to The Economist. People move here because they are in high demand, make more money and pay less taxes. And get a cook or nanny. A cook, you say?

The article next quotes an unnamed recruiter:

For the same as one day’s taxi fares in London you can employ a nanny or cook for a month.

Ah yes, of course, surely a value add to up and move the family halfway around the world in order to get a cook and nanny… Is this really The Economist?

Another recruit firm, Astsbury Marsden, is quoted. They polled bankers with families looking to move abroad. London was second, and Singapore came in first (no doubt because of the cheap domestics, and as long as the kids don’t indulge in drugs…). Let’s skip costs of housing, schools, clubs, and in the case of China, high taxes, and all the other associated cross-cultural and emotional challenges of settling a family into an overseas assignment.

I don’t know Astbury Marsden either, but they do list over 100 jobs on their website.. Here are a couple they posted for Hong Kong.

[framed_box]Client Onboarding Facilitator
Hong Kong | HK$40,000 – HK$50,000 per annum + Competitive | Permanent

A leading investment bank with strong presence in Hong Kong is looking to hire a Client onboarding Facilitator to be part of a vibrant and meritocratic team based in central. This is a very commercial and front office facing opportunity with excellent career progression opportunities. The successful candidate will be responsible for managing anf facilitating the overall process rather than doing the day to day processing.
[/framed_box]

[framed_box]FICC Decision Support – MI Reporting Manager
Hong Kong | £600,000 – £800,000 per annum + competitive benefits | Permanent
[/framed_box]

Hard to overlook all the typos, but they need to slow down a bit. Then again, their homepage does have a big sign and picture that says “Born Restless?”

Not wanting to miss out on the life of the single banker, The Economist does mention their cities of choice:

When it comes to quality of life, London and New York still have huge appeal for the young, the single and the binge-drinking.

Right. Clearly our writer friend has not frequented Wanchai, Lan Kwai Fong, nor Clarke Quay or the Riverside..

The article gets almost apoplectic about no talent, and why they chose this next quote to buttress their case is another mystery.

UBS’ regional head has warned that profits “could be depressed for ‘a year or two’ amid fierce competition for talent.”

Let’s see.. UBS Asia’s profit will potentially dive because people may leave, and UBS may not be able to hire (or train up) whom they want? A regional head for a bank really said this? And everyone solemnly nods? I’d kick his or her arse down the hallway if he or she worked for me and was not misquoted.

Banking is the most cyclical market imaginable, always has been, up and down, nothing new on any of this. Such articles always surface before or after a boom, but our writer is taking snippets and making a crazy quilt of an article.

And to ensure all is covered, a requisite quote from yet another unnamed recruiter, saying there may be ‘overbidding’, sagely “predicting that some firms planned hiring expansions for the year won’t be completed.” Ah, now I understand…

The one given is that Asia is a strong and growing market. And with that goes strong and growing talent, as it should be. The MNCs of the future will have a much bigger profile in the region than they do now, with lots of local firepower, but that is another article, and best not written by The Economist–not now, anyhow.