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HK Recruiter / Head Hunter Effectiveness?

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  1. #11

    Google search equal opportunities commission HK. Equal opportunity is standard consideration for all hiring at reputable firms, why would any firm want to get hit with a discrimination complaint? Previous comment detailed a method firms shield themselves using HHs, ergo HH may not be effective route for a job seeker. Ultimately, HH is effective when there is true mandate and best fit.


  2. #12

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    You're talking complete bollocks. The equal oppotunities commission has absolutely nothing to do with your ludicrous assertion that companies in Hong Kong have to advertise jobs externally before promoting internally.

    Last edited by Gruntfuttock; 13-07-2013 at 02:23 AM.

  3. #13

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    Quote Originally Posted by BonVoyage:
    Google search equal opportunities commission HK. Equal opportunity is standard consideration for all hiring at reputable firms, why would any firm want to get hit with a discrimination complaint? Previous comment detailed a method firms shield themselves using HHs, ergo HH may not be effective route for a job seeker. Ultimately, HH is effective when there is true mandate and best fit.
    I think you've rather got confused with companies needing to show they've tried and failed to recruit locally to justify to IMMD hiring someone from overseas.

    Companies don't try to hire externally to justify an internal placement. Usually it's the other way round.

  4. #14

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    "HHs work for the hiring firm, not for you"

    Not true. Some are surely like this but I've landed two jobs now, including my role in Hong Kong, by working with recruiters. The one that referred me to my new HK employer sent my profile to them unsolicited, which apparently is a no-no, but they did this on the basis of their certainty that my personality was a great fit for the company's culture. Sure enough, the company met with me and ultimately offered me a job.

    You need to do your work to find good recruiters. I researched at least 100 different recruitment firms in HK and I was picky with who I approached. I would first read up on the recruitment firm, examine the jobs they had advertised and then checked out the individual recruiters on LinkedIn.


  5. #15

    At Pencilskirt, were did you begin your search for recruitment firms in HK and how did you narrow it down? Would you be able to tell me about your transition progress - did you originally move from overseas and to HK with a job at hand?

    Thank you all for your feedback. I agree that I find some hiring firms prefer to hire internally and/or avoid HH's because of the commission based fee that has to be given.

    Are there any other job forums that you may recommend?


  6. #16

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    JolieCrush, it was a mix of reviewing recruiters discussed on HK forums, trawling Google and cross-checking the recruiter's information and employees on LinkedIn. I looked at who their clients were, what sort of roles they advertised, how recently the roles had been advertised (I tended not to bother with recruiters who hadn't updated their roles in 6 months), industries focused on, etc. I was very thorough, I compiled all my info in a spreadsheet and tracked my progress with each recruiter.

    No, I came to Hong Kong with no job. The reason I visited was to show recruiters and potential employers that I was serious. People can only get so much of a sense of who you are from a CV and being in front of them not only gave them a clear picture of who I was as a candidate, it also meant they couldn't ignore my emails or my CV submission (online submissions from overseas are practically worthless).

    emptystring likes this.

  7. #17

    Thank up Pencilskirt. I agree, and I've muddled through the thought of just heading to HK without a job at hand and contacting the HRs at the companies directly or headhunters. Although the thought itself is quite scary. Can I ask how long did it take you to find a job and was it tough having an employer sponsor you as well? Assuming, you are not a HK resident of course. Prior to arriving did you contact the places you applied to online directly?


  8. #18

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    Haha, yeah, it was a bit scary for me as well and a number of people said to me how ballsy a thing it was to do, but it was the right approach.

    Ok, so I did a good month of researching, emailing and calling before I actually visited. I had a phone interview with the company that wound up hiring me while I was still in Australia and I met their HK-based managers once I got there. I had a few offers, within 3 days (I am told by friends already working there that that is very fast, but that I had done the groundwork to make it happen).

    My employer had no compunction about sponsoring me. Their attitude was, she's the right person for the role and the company, just do it. So having a knowledgeable headhunter who can see where you'll fit in is important.

    Also, I don't speak Canto or Mandarin and I was up front about it. It isn't a deal breaker, it just limits the firms you can work for (ie: I couldn't be a senior sales rep to mainland China, for example).

    Have very good answers for questions like, "Why Hong Kong?" Everyone asked me that and I knew my reasons were sound. Get involved with the Chambers of Commerce events, especially the American and British Chambers. Go to networking drinks, attend presentations and meet all the big players. Be willing to introduce yourself, start conversations, show how excited you are to be there


  9. #19

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    HH's are pretty useful for specialized or senior executive positions because they're likely to have an established reputation for delivering candidates meeting a certain profile.

    So you'll need to do your research on which firms to go with, depending on your background.

    Contacting HR may work at smaller companies, but at large companies, HR gets bombarded with resumes and you might not even get an interview.


  10. #20

    @PencilSkirt geezers that is a really ballsy thing to do. I've given up submitting my resume for now and concur that by doing so was worthless. Thank you for your advice and your feedback. It's hard to find folks in the same boat. I'll get in contact with headhunters and hopefully try to reach out to HR's and calling them when i'm there. I've decided to just make the move & sort it through while i'm there.

    I know this isn't quite on the topic but did you move into an apartment once you arrived? Any tips on what to look out for? Normally i'd book through Airbnb but the rates are outrageous and working with apartment agents are a bit tricky. Any tips or advice on that would be great.

    @answerer.. thank you for your feedback as well! I'll search for smaller head hunters. This is all very overwhelming.