2. Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap 2
Globally, the financial services industry faces a
tremendous obstacle that is hindering growth. In a
rapidly shifting recruiting landscape powered by new
technology and changing candidate behaviors, many
companies are struggling to attract and retain top talent.
Job seekers are searching for new opportunities in a market that
is more transparent than ever, making it increasingly difficult for even the
best-known financial services companies to compete in the search for top talent.
Among the recruiting professionals that work for them, there is a prevailing
consensus that the situation is getting worse, not better.
70% of financial services CEOs
see the limited availability
of skills as a real threat to
growth, according to a recent
PwC study.1
60% say that within five years,
candidates will be looking for
employment with companies
that align with their social and
cultural values.1
Attracting and retaining the most qualified individuals in a
highly competitive market is difficult enough. The challenge of
hiring employees who possess highly specialized skills, represent diverse
perspectives, and aren’t easily lured away by a more enticing compensation
package compounds the problem.
Will financial services
companies be ready?
3. Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap 3
Here we cover the most serious challenges
financial services companies and recruiters
face and offer some practical solutions
Recruiting candidates with a
highly specialized skill set
Overcoming negative perceptions
about employer brand and culture
Compliance with regulations in
the financial services industry
Before expanding on each of these challenges, we introduce two
popular strategies top financial service companies may find helpful
in recruiting: employer branding and inbound recruiting
Public perception of the financial services industry continues to be low and, according to the 2016 Edelman
Trust Barometer, FS is still perceived to have the lowest trust compared to other industries.2
To overcome
some of these negative perceptions, successful companies take lessons from marketers, who have always
faced the challenge of brand reputation and brand awareness. Research shows that nearly 70% of the sales
cycle in most industries now takes place online, often before a prospect engages with a salesperson.3
This
makes digital marketing essential to both sales and recruiting.
Key challenges include:
Developing a diverse workforce Recruiting Millennials
4. Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap 4
What is Employer Branding?
Employer Branding is really about building your brand as an employer of choice
both inside and out, focusing not only on positive attributes of the company,
but demonstrating what it has to offer to retain existing employees and attract
future candidates.
Updating the company career
website with a modern
design and clear, compelling
messaging for candidates as
well as customers
Participating in social
networks to highlight company
culture and shared success
stories from employees
Encouraging positive feedback
from both employees and
customers in blogs, social
networks and review sites
Publishing helpful content,
focused on employee
challenges and success stories
This can be done in a variety of
both active and passive ways:
Establishing a
strong employer
brand is just
the first step to
successful online
recruiting.
Just as marketers must be
proactive about reaching
prospects with information that
is most relevant to their needs,
recruitment professionals must
find new, creative ways to reach
and engage with job seekers.
5. Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap 5
Recruiters and marketers must communicate employer
branding messages across multiple channels where
potential employees interact ...
Such as company websites, blogs, social media, industry portals, news sites and career sites specific to the
financial services industry. In addition, they need to present the most relevant information to candidates, at
the right time through the right channels.
What is inbound recruiting?
The challenge of employer branding requires that recruitment professionals adapt to
the new talent acquisition landscape with different skills and strategies. In the past,
it was sufficient for recruiters to be competent in sourcing and screening. Today, the
most successful recruitment professionals more closely resemble marketers.
6. Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap 6
That means engaging with the communities where ideal candidates
spend time, both online and offline. In the marketing world, this is
known as “inbound marketing.”
HubSpot, a marketing automation software provider, coined the term to describe this strategy of attracting
strangers to a company’s website, converting visitors into leads, closing leads into customers and continuing
to delight customers so they become loyal brand ambassadors.
Strangers Visitors Leads Customers Promoters
Attract Convert Close Delight
Blog
Keywords
Social Publishing
Forms
Calls-to-Action
Landing Pages
CRM
Email
Workflows
Surveys
Smart Content
Social Monitoring
Using marketing to bring potential
customers to you, rather than having your
marketing efforts fight for their attention,
by creating content specifically designed to
appeal to your ideal customers
Using a strategic approach to attract,
nurture and ultimately hire and retain top
talent by providing them with the right
information at the right time and gradually
nurturing them into employment
Inbound Marketing Inbound Recruiting
Inbound Marketing
7. Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap 7
Together, employer branding and inbound recruiting can help
financial services companies overcome many of the challenges they
face in closing the talent gap.
To attract the best talent,
recruiters can borrow some
best practices from the inbound
marketer’s toolkit
Inbound recruiting views candidates as “leads” and adopts an approach that
involves attracting highly qualified candidates into the talent pool, converting
them into applicants, making the application process easy, hiring them and
turning them into talent ambassadors.
Attract Engage Hire Delight
Talent
Prospects Visitors Leads Employee Advocates
Career Site
Blog Posts
Social Media
Employer Brand Content
Partner Sites
Calls-to-Action
Landing Pages
Talent Conversion Forms
Email Campaigns
Talent Lead Tracking
Nuture Workflows
Analytics
Social Inbox
Smart Content
8. 8Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap
Five important
challenges facing
employers and
recruiters
Let’s take a closer look at several specific talent acquisition challenges
and how smart financial services companies are addressing them and how
employer branding and inbound recruiting can help.
9. Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap 9
In their place, to meet more stringent compliance regulations, concerns about information security and the growth
of financial technology, companies are creating a greater demand for positions with these specialized skill sets.
Recent regulations—including laws against money laundering, Basel III risk management regulations5
and the
Federal Reserve’s Comprehensive Capital Analysis and Review (CCAR)6
—have brought compliance and risk
management to the forefront.
Recruiting candidates with
highly specialized skills
Many of the traditional positions for which financial services companies recruit
are dwindling or vanishing altogether. Stock traders, loan officers and many back-
office employees are increasingly being replaced by technology.
“Throughout the second half of 2015 and moving into Q1 2016, model governance has
been the most vital area of coverage for a number of tier-one financial institutions.
Banks are under a tremendous amount of regulatory pressure, and [prior to] CCAR
deadlines [in] March, teams [were] going full throttle with hiring permanent employees,
as well as seasonal consultants.”
—Kareem Bakr, Head of Credit Risk Recruitment, Americas, Selby Jennings7
Challenge 1
are expected to be
eliminated in the
next 10 to 20 years.4
80 million jobs in
the United States
15 million jobs
in the U.K.
10. Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap 10
Solution 1
Some of the hottest jobs in the industry now include7
:
Attract high-potential candidates
before they are looking
Traditional methods of recruiting tend to overlook opportunities to engage with the estimated 75% of candidates8
who
aren’t actively looking for a job and are instead seeking to manage their careers more closely. We call them “career
managers.” These potential candidates are typically engaged in their career, consuming content and keeping up with
the news and evolution in the industry. Their reputation is well-established, and they feel relatively secure in their
positions and careers; however, if the right opportunity presented itself, they could be persuaded to move.
Companies can attract these career managers using tactics similar to the way inbound marketers prospect for leads:
give talent prospects opportunities to take small steps that allow recruiters to gauge interest without requiring too much
commitment. Social media posts that direct prospects to specific areas of a company website (such as the company
career opportunities blog) are ideal places to begin this engagement. Blogs that tackle the most salient issues in a
non-promotional way and seek feedback from experts stimulates conversation and introduces thought leaders to one
another. Blogs can pique curiosity, build brand awareness and direct professionals to learn more if they are interested.
Challenge 1
Associate and VP-level investment
bankers
Credit researchers and analysts
Chief compliance officers and chief
risk officers
Asset and wealth managers
Risk and compliance professionals
Data analysts
Internal auditors
Information technology experts
(including machine learning,
cybersecurity, user experience
designers and data scientists)
11. Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap 11
Goldman Sachs maintains a careers blog
featuring everything from advice and news
about employee achievements to job openings
and information about its recruitment process.
Just as inbound marketers identify a target audience and score
prospects based on demographic information and behaviors,
recruitment professionals should take the time to identify ideal
candidates. By talking with current top performers and using
a candidate persona template as a starting point, inbound
recruiters can outline the competencies, characteristics,
motivations and preferred channels of ideal candidates for
highly specialized positions. They then can develop messages
based on what they know about these candidates and begin
to engage with the potential candidates through their preferred
online channels.
Example 1
The Goldman Sachs career blog
Blog posts are shared through Goldman Sachs’
social media outlets and draw attention to the
company’s careers page.
The business case
for using blogs
in recruitment
Company blogs are often overlooked
or underutilized, but they can be an
extremely effective recruiting tool when
used well. This is especially true when
they are part of an employer’s career site.
Blog posts give employers an outlet to
tell their employer brand stories while
directing fresh traffic to their website.
Each published blog creates a unique
page that is indexed by search engines,
allowing prospects to discover a
company more easily when they search
for topics covered in the blog. They also
assist with the recruitment process, since
the majority of job searches begin online,
and provide valuable content companies
can promote on social media channels.
Research from HubSpot shows
companies that prioritize blogging
generate 55 percent more visits to their
websites and are 13 times more likely to
see positive ROI compared to those that
don’t.8
Just as blogging helps marketers
attract leads, it can help recruitment
professionals attract prospective
candidates to company career pages.
Blogs live on long after they have been
published, providing a steady stream of
search traffic to a company’s website
and serving as digital ambassadors.
12. Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap 12
Example 1
Quick Tips for Recruitment Professionals
Small actions add up
Once ideal candidates begin to take small actions, such as signing up to learn more at a webinar, subscribing
to a blog that offers career tips, visiting your careers page or downloading a whitepaper on a topic that interests
them, inbound recruiters can begin to track their behavior, gauge their interest and start to connect via email,
social media and eventually, through live calls and visits. Inbound marketers do this by leveraging marketing
technology and customer relationship management (CRM) software such as Salesforce and HubSpot.
Similar technologies distinct from applicant tracking systems and designed specifically for fostering ongoing
relationships with prospective talent prior to application have been launched over the last several years.
They include Taleo, Oracle’s cloud-based talent management platform, and Bullhorn, which combines talent
management software with other technologies that automates staffing and recruiting.
Have conversations with top-performing team members to help define ideal candidates across
multiple functions within the organization
Create ideal candidate persona templates based on the different functions within your organization,
for example, sales, marketing, management, etc.
Identify communities where these potential candidates spend time online and offline, and begin to
engage with them there. Search engine marketing expert Rand Fishkin recommends looking at
search engine results, surveying your target audience and identifying websites where your content
can be shared9
Encourage employee referrals (even if those referred are not actively seeking a new position) and
gauge interest using “soft sell” tactics
Create blogs, whitepapers and other online content specific to the needs of your ideal candidate,
and monitor their interactions with it
Provide opportunities for potential candidates to take the next step when ready, such as submitting
a resume or scheduling a call to discuss the opportunity
13. Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap 13
Challenge 2
Recruiting in a highly
regulated industry
Social media and blogging allow financial services companies to interact with both customers and candidates
in an unprecedented way. They also have helped to improve customer service, humanize brands and
enhance customer loyalty. Despite recognizing the potential importance of these strategies, many financial
services companies are understandably cautious about using them.
Regulatory agencies have issued rules and guidance designed to
protect consumers and safeguard them against market manipulation
and fraud. These rules govern everything from product fact sheets,
“About us” collateral, website content to endorsements via social
media platforms, blogging and native advertising.
Agencies in various nations have issued guidance, including, but not limited to:
Unfortunately, social media and online marketing regulations vary by country, making it
difficult and time-consuming for global financial services professionals to make sense of
them. Additionally, many of the rules are open to interpretation.
The Federal Financial
Institutions Examination
Council (FFIEC)
The Securities Industry and
Financial Markets Association
The Securities Exchange
Commission (SEC)
Commodities Futures Trading
Commission (CFTC)
National Labor Relations
Board (NLRB)
Financial Industry Regulatory
Authority (FINRA)
National Futures Association
International Organization of
Securities Commission
Financial Conduct Authority
(London)
The Monetary Authority of
Singapore
The Hong Kong Monetary
Authority
The Banking and Financial
Regulatory Committee (France)
14. Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap 14
Consult with legal and use
technology to safeguard
against problems
Recruitment professionals can mitigate risks by taking appropriate precautions, including coordinating with the
marketing/communications teams responsible for managing social media and consulting with the legal and
compliance departments to develop a workflow for approving posts.
According to Amy McIlwain, an expert on social media in the US financial industry, social media content falls into two
main categories under FINRA and SEC guidelines: static content and interactive content. Most social media posts are
considered interactive, meaning they are similar to speaking in front of a live audience and don’t require pre-approval
(although they must be archived and reviewed later).10
Social media monitoring and publishing tools or marketing automation platforms allow financial services companies to
meet common compliance concerns by vetting posts prior to publication and responding appropriately when comments
or reactions are posted. Many flag posts containing certain words not permitted by regulatory authorities, such as
“guarantee” or “free,” before they go live and issue alerts when potentially harmful responses or questions are detected.
Solution 2
Additional Suggestions for Financial Services Companies
Publish comprehensive social media guidelines for employees within the employee handbook (refer to
guidelines from regulatory agencies such as the American Banking Association and the Financial Conduct
Authority in London)
Provide appropriate training to employees engaging with customers and job candidates on social media
Use a rigorous process for selecting and managing third-party platforms, including social media
management tools, to ensure they comply with financial services industry standards
Determine who is responsible for legal and compliance oversight and monitoring of social media content
and response
15. Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap 15
Three-quarters said company culture and reputation
are “very important” factors when researching new
job opportunities
81% said a company’s good reputation increases their
likelihood to apply, with half saying it increases their
likelihood a great deal
65% of respondents said they would accept a lower
salary to work for a company with a good reputation
One-third of those respondents said they would be willing
to accept 6 to 20% less pay if they were satisfied with a
company’s reputation and culture
Overcoming negative perceptions
about brand reputation and
company culture
When it comes to attracting and retaining talent, culture and perception matter.
Our 2016 eFinancialCareers Ideal Employer Survey11
quantified the characteristics that financial services
professionals desire most in a prospective employer.
Challenge 3
Trust is also crucial to creating a positive perception. Employees tend to have faith in their own companies,
with 80% saying they trust them, according to the 2016 Edelman Trust Barometer.2
Yet among the general
public, the perception is far more skeptical, with only 52% viewing these companies as trustworthy, the lowest
percentage among all industries surveyed.
The Survey Showed
Culture and
Perception Matter
16. Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap 16
To attract and retain new talent, financial services companies
must take steps to change this perception.
Trust in own company General sector trust
Challenge 3
Lowest trust outside the industry
Percent trust in own company within each industry by employees, and trust in that
industry sector among the general population
Avg. Trust
All Employed
Manufacturing
Energy Retail Tele-
communication
Entertainment Fashion Technology Professional
Services
Financial
Services
Transportation Healthcare Food and
Beverage
Automotive Consumer
Packaged
Goods
Education
Lowest General
Sector Trust
73
70
74
75 75
77 77
78 79
80
70 71 73 74 74 74
67
57
66
60
64 62
75
63
52
64
61
63
61 61
65
17. Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap 17
Taking time to discuss these questions and develop a strategy to define employer branding serves to
further a positive reputation of the company and build brand awareness among potential employees.
Challenge 3
Build trust with content
focused on employer branding
Financial services leaders responsible for overseeing hiring should work closely with their marketing teams to
define the company’s brand story and the value it offers potential candidates. They must examine the company
from a job seeker’s point of view and determine key benefits for them. Other key stakeholders, including the C-suite
and employees, should be involved in this conversation to ensure employer brand attributes are grounded in truth.
Mission: What is the larger purpose of our
company? (Why do we exist, and what are we
doing to inspire others?)
Core values: Which values do we believe in
that guide us through every decision we make
and how we treat our customers?
Brand attributes: What do we want people
to think about when they hear our company
name? If our brand was a person, how would
we describe him or her?
Employee value proposition: What can we
offer to prospective employees? What makes
our company an attractive place to work?
Vision: What is our promise to customers? To
our employees? To the world?
Which employer brand stories can we tell?
What are we doing that makes others excited
to work here? How are we helping employees
achieve their goals? How are we helping the
communities we serve achieve theirs?
Who can tell our brand story? Make an
inventory of all the stories employees can tell
and find inventive and creative ways to tell
them. Encouraging employees to tell the stories
themselves, through blogs, videos and social
media posts, will make them more believable
and credible.
Questions to Consider as Companies Build Their Employer Brand
18. Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap 18
Solution 3
Some Practical Ways to Engage Employees
Encourage employees to post on their personal channels if they
choose, after they have reviewed social media guidelines and
attended some basic training.
Involve employees in voluntary community service initiatives. Offer
incentives to encourage involvement, and share photos and videos
from these events on social media.
Offer employees the opportunity to submit guest blog posts on topics
where they have demonstrated expertise or experience. Sharing
these posts on their own social media channels can help employees
build their own personal brand in addition to building your brand.
Allow employees to “take over” a social media account for the
week with specific parameters from your legal team and appropriate
oversight. This allows them to share a personal perspective of
working at your company that candidates may find valuable.
Designate trained employees to monitor and respond to comments
on social media.
Once a company has developed
a strategy, it should find ways to
encourage employees to become
brand ambassadors
19. Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap 19
Example 3
The blog helps to foster a sense of pride among employees while highlighting a positive
company culture and values to potential candidates.
UMB’s company blog
Consumer and business banking company UMB recognizes the importance of putting its
employees in the spotlight, both online and offline.
The company’s leaders and employees frequently contribute to a blog where they share updates about what
they’ve done within their communities. They recently sponsored the UMB Big Bash®
event to raise awareness
of homelessness in Kansas City and raise funds to help combat the problem.
20. Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap 20
Challenge 4
Developing a diverse workforce
In financial services, as in any industry, having diverse perspectives is critical to
innovation and maintaining a competitive edge.
Unfortunately, there is a lingering perception that financial service companies are primarily “male, pale and
stale.” Discrimination may not be consciously perpetuated, but as one female Goldman Sachs employee
stated, men still have a competitive advantage when women take time away for maternity leave.12
This perception is created despite banks taking proactive steps to provide strong benefits for families, as well
as flexible working options and initiatives for transitioning back to work. Although it may not be intentional, the
numbers do illustrate a gender gap in financial services.
“Having babies makes it hard
for women to stay close to
markets and to the deal flow.
This often happens between
the ages of 27 and 35—the
senior vice president to junior
managing director ranks,
which are just when you should
be building rapport with clients
and starting to make a name
for yourself at the bank. When
women take maternity leave,
their male counterparts often
mop up in their absence.”
—Emilia Pearson, Goldman Sachs
employee, in a July 2016 blog
post on eFinancialCareers12
Consider these statistics:
Globally, 4% of CEOs of financial firms are women13
Less than 10% of all US fund managers are female14
Women exclusively run about 2% of the industry’s assets
in the United States, while men exclusively run about 74%14
Though Canada ranks higher than the US for gender diversity,
women’s average weekly wage in financial occupations was
C$1,236.88 compared to C$1,495.52 for men14
In UK financial services companies, 14% of executive
committee members are female, and 23% of board directors15
More than half of companies surveyed in a biennial Board of
Directors survey by the Singapore Institute of Directors had
no female directors16
There are far fewer women in US fund management
than there are female doctors (37%), lawyers (33%) or
accountants and auditors (63%)14
21. Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap 21
While more than 40% of employees in the global financial services sector are non-white, according to Forbes,17
the
numbers are substantially lower even in areas where the general population is more diverse. The most recent data
from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics shows only 28% of those employed in financial services in the US are non-
white. African-Americans represent just 6.4% of that, despite making up more than 13% of the general population.18
In the global financial services industry, the news is somewhat better, although there is still much work to be done.
Seventy-eight percent of UK companies have senior-leadership teams that fail to reflect the demographic composition
of the country’s labor force and population, compared with 91% for Brazil and 97% for the United States.19
Challenge 4
When it comes to leadership positions within financial services, the wage gap
between male and female executives is even greater. Another report found only
20 female chief executives of S&P 500 companies, and only 14% of the top five
leadership positions are held by women at these companies.15
There are also gender differences in the financial positions for which women typically apply. As the chart below shows,
they are more likely to seek sales, marketing, compliance and legal positions compared to private equity and IT.
Where do woman typically apply11
31%
31%
31%
30%
28%
27%
25%
34%
Investment Banking
Graduates & Internships
Private Banking Wealth Managment
Research
Information Technology
Private Equity
Equities
Others
43%
43%
35%
35%
35%
34%
33%
32%
Sales & Marketing
Compliance/Legal
Corporate Banking
Accounting & Finance
Operations
Asset Management
Risk Management
Consultancy
Women represent nearly half of all employees
in the global financial services industry, but hold
only 25% of senior management roles
Only 4% of 150 global financial institutions
have female CEOs
Additionally, According to Catalyst15
22. Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap 22
Implement and promote
inclusive initiatives
In recent eFinancialCareers global research to understand what is important to financial services, we found that
women in financial services place a high emphasis on manageable working hours and workplace flexibility when
seeking an employer, as reflected in the eFinancialCareers 2016 Ideal Employer Survey.11
They rated these
attributes as more important than opportunities for promotion, opportunities to travel and competitive bonuses.
In response to these desires, financial services companies have developed programs to promote a greater work-
life balance. A number have developed workforce re-entry programs to position themselves as the employer
of choice for women. Others have increased paid family leave, vacation time and added perks such as on-site
workout facilities and even summer camps for employees’ children.
Having these policies in place and promoting them through tailored content both on the company’s website and
wider career networks and social media channels can go a long way toward improving public perception and
engagement around these employer brand initiatives.
Employer branding messages are just one aspect of a
comprehensive plan to promote workplace diversity.
Recruiters should also consider taking steps that include:
Solution 4
Promoting job opportunities through diverse networks, both online and offline
Ensuring job descriptions are written in a way that is culturally sensitive
Training team leaders and employees to use inclusive practices, particularly
when working in global or cross-functional teams
Seeking employee referrals from a diverse group of current employees
23. Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap 23
Morgan Stanley workplace
re-entry program
Morgan Stanley offers a Return to Work Program, a 12-week paid internship for participants looking to
update their skills and return to work after an extended absence. Participants may receive an offer of
employment upon completion of the program. The global program has opportunities available in New York,
London, Mumbai, Hong Kong and Budapest. After completing the inaugural program in 2014, 60% of the
graduates were placed in positions at Morgan Stanley.
Example 4
“It is a good feeling to know there’s a force behind you that wants you to succeed.
I wanted to come back. I just didn’t have a natural path to get back to the workforce.”
—Kristen Marx, VP, investment management at Morgan
Stanley, who returned to work after a 10-year absence
24. Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap 24
Recruiting Millennials
Millennials (those between 18 and 34 years old) will make up nearly half the global
workforce in the next five years.
Financial services companies need to take them seriously, not only as employees but as future leaders.
Millennials are looking for new opportunities. However, they have different expectations of their employers
compared to their older counterparts. They are looking for specific qualities in potential employers and
have unique development needs. The eFinancialCareers Ideal Employer11
research shows
Dealing with high turnover among
Millennials can be costly
Challenge 5
What Millennials Value in Employers
1. Challenging/interesting work
2. Opportunities for promotion
3. Competitive salary
4. Positive culture
5. Strength of firm
What They Want at Work
1. Good work-life balance
2. Opportunities to advance
3. Flexible work
4. Sense of meaning from work
5. Professional development and training
(63% say their leadership skills are not
being fully developed1
)
A popular critique of Millennials is that they’re job-hoppers. And
Millennials don’t deny it—44% of the participants in the 2016 Deloitte
Millennial Survey stated they planned to leave their current employer
within the next two years.20
Therefore, it is in an employer’s best interest to find Millennials who, in
addition to being highly qualified, are a good fit for the company culture.
Once they are on board, it is essential to foster high engagement and
invest in their professional development.
25. Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap 25
Foster and promote a
Millennial-friendly workplace
Here are four proactive steps financial services companies can take to attract
Millennials and other employees with similar needs.
Solution 5
1. Foster a collaborative and flexible work environment
Give employees the chance to interact casually and spontaneously—for example, a
collective work area where staff can escape their cubicles.
Offer the option for employees to work remotely when possible, provided they follow
appropriate security protocol and aren’t dealing with sensitive customer information.
2. Provide opportunities for professional development and career progression
Establish a career path for each employee that clearly outlines objectives as well as
indicators of success and failure.
Assign SMART goals—Specific, Measureable, Attainable, Realistic, Time-sensitive.
3. Ask supervisors to give regular, constructive feedback
Scheduling performance reviews once or twice a year won’t work with Millennials.
Supervisors should have informal one-on-ones with their employees each month and
then meet for a more formal review quarterly or annually.
4. Use up-to-date software and technology
Millennials came of age during the tech revolution and are accustomed to newer
software. Consider investing in software that is compatible with new devices, such as
smartphones and tablets.
89%
of Millennials
prefer to choose
when and where
they work21
27%
of Millennials
state “career
goals don’t align
with company”
as the reason for
leaving their job20
60%
of Millennials say
“good cultural
fit” is the primary
reason they’ve
stayed at a job21
26. 26Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap
The tactics highlighted in this whitepaper don’t occur spontaneously or in isolation. All are part of a
comprehensive strategy of employer branding and inbound recruiting. These are not mere fads; they
represent an approach to hiring and retention that is here to stay because of the way technology has
irrevocably altered the recruiting landscape.
Today’s talent acquisition professionals need to be proactive about engaging with candidates where
they are—often before they are looking—or risk losing them to competitors. Fortunately, they do not
need to do this alone—nor should they.
Where to go from
here: developing
effective recruiting
strategies
27. Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap 27
Contrary to a top-down initiative or one that happens in a silo, developing a strong
employer brand is a collaborative approach that requires feedback from multiple
departments and functions, including:
Executive team—Sets strategic goal and
corresponding company values (with input at all levels)
Marketing/PR—Assists with developing brand story
and value proposition to candidates (as well as
customers) and supports content creation
Internal communications—Reinforces company
values and assists with initiatives
Human resources—Aligns hiring processes
accordingly and coordinates with internal and external
recruitment professionals
Sales and customer service—Offers insight the
employee skills and competencies required to ensure
customer satisfaction
Information technology—Implements technology
required to support inbound recruiting and talent
relationship management
Take the Next Step
Companies ready to deploy these strategies can start with this
short, step-by-step resource, Implementing an Inbound Recruiting
Strategy: A Guide for Financial Services Companies.
Each of these departments contributes important elements to the overall strategy
and should meet regularly during its development. Consulting with a third-party
partner with expertise in employer branding and inbound recruiting can streamline
the development and execution of these initiatives, ensuring they lead to successful
talent acquisition.
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28. Closing the Financial Services Talent Gap 28
eFinancialCareers, a member of the global
DHI Group, is the world’s leading career site for
financial services professionals and recruiters,
with 1.5 million visitors every month.
We strive to connect busy recruitment professionals with the data and insights they need to make the best hiring
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successful mid-sized financial services companies develop strong employer branding assets and manage talent
using inbound recruiting tactics.
For more hiring insights and best practices, visit efinancialcareers.com.
1. 19th Annual Global CEO Survey: Key Talent Findings in the Financial
Services Industry. PwC, 2016.
2. “2016 Edelman Trust Barometer.” Accessed October 23, 2016. http://www.
edelman.com/insights/intellectual-property/2016-edelman-trust-barometer/.
3. Heuer, Megan. “Three Myths of the “67 Percent” Statistic” SiriusDecisions.
July 3, 2013. Accessed October 21, 2016. https://www.siriusdecisions.com/
Blog/2013/Jul/Three-Myths-of-the-67-Percent-Statistic.
4. Bank of England Annual Report 2015. June 10, 2015. Accessed October
21, 2016. http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/publications/Documents/
annualreport/2015/boereport.pdf.
5. Basel III: A Global Regulatory Framework for More Resilient Banks and
Banking Systems. Report. Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, 2016.
6. Comprehensive Capital Analysis and Review 2016: Assessment Framework
and Results. Federal Reserve, 2016.
7. Butcher, Dan. “Where Financial Services Firms Will Be Hiring in the U.S in 2016.”
eFinancialCareers. December 22, 2015. Accessed October 21, 2016. http://
news.efinancialcareers.com/us-en/228422/financial-services-firms-2016-hiring/.
8. HubSpot State of Inbound 2014–2015 Report, 2014.
9. Fishkin, Rand. “Discovering Which Sites Your Target Audience Visits --
Whiteboard Friday.” Moz (blog), March 4, 2016. Accessed October 21, 2016.
https://moz.com/blog/discovering-which-sites-your-target-audience-visits-
whiteboard-friday.
10. Aynsley, Michael. “How the Financial Industry Can Embrace Social Media
and Remain Compliant.” Hootsuite, April 25, 2016. Accessed October 21,
2016. https://blog.hootsuite.com/financial-industry-social-media/.
11. eFinancialCareers Ideal Employer Report 2016. Report. September 2016.
Accessed October 21, 2016. http://recruiters.efinancialcareers.com/ideal-
employer-report-2016/.
12. Pearson, Emilia. ““Don’t Tell Me You’re Being Discriminated against by
Goldman Sachs.” eFinancialCareers, July 21, 2016. Accessed October
21, 2016. http://news.efinancialcareers.com/us-en/250586/discrimination-
investment-banks/.
13. Ritholtz, Barry. “Where Are the Women in Finance?” Bloomberg, February
24, 2016. Accessed October 21, 2016. https://www.bloomberg.com/view/
articles/2016-02-24/why-don-t-more-women-hold-top-jobs-in-finance.
14. Morningstar Research Report Fund Managers by Gender. Report. June
2015. Accessed October 21, 2016. http://corporate.morningstar.com/US/
documents/ResearchPapers/Fund-Managers-by-Gender.pdf.
15. “Women in Canadian, US, and Global Financial Services” Catalyst. Accessed
October 23, 2016. http://www.catalyst.org/knowledge/women-canadian-us-
and-global-financial-services.
16. Singapore Board of Directors Survey 2015. Report. October 2015.
http://www.sid.org.sg/index.php/web_surveys_awards/board_survey.
17. Diversity & Inclusion: Unlocking Global Potential Global Diversity Rankings
by Country, Sector and Occupation. New York, NY: Forbes. 2012. Accessed
October 21, 2016. http://images.forbes.com/forbesinsights/StudyPDFs/
global_diversity_rankings_2012.pdf.
18. U.S. Census Bureau, July 2015
19. Hunt, Vivian, Dennis Layton, and Sara Prince. “Why Diversity Matters.”
January 2015. Accessed October 21, 2016. http://www.mckinsey.com/
business-functions/organization/our-insights/why-diversity-matters.
20. The 2016 Deloitte Millennial Survey Winning over the Next Generation of
Leaders. Report. 2016. Accessed October 21, 2016.
21. Millennial Branding. “The Cost of Millennial Retention Study,” August 6,
2013. Accessed October 21, 2016. http://millennialbranding.com/2013/cost-
millennial-retention-study/.
References
29. The world’s leading financial
services careers website
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