Will there be the 'Annual September Hiring Surge'?

The Recruitment market certainly has cooled off substantially over the past 12 months. But given the age profile of those in employment we expect a steady attrition of active staff number due to retirement. Younger age cohorts are smaller and it will not be easy to replace the departed professionals and train up the new recruits. So while the absolute numbers of hirings may well be at a lower level compared to historic numbers there will always be demand for high-quality candidates that can make a difference to the business.

Taxes to rise in UK - what should you do?

Taxes will soon be increased on a range of incomes, revenues, in the United Kingdom. So it is incumbent on individuals as well as businesses to prepare for the announcements that are expected this autumn. Temple Associates has a long history of working in the UK and Continental Europe and can help anyone who is considering expanding activities on the Continent or even moving there.

FTX collapse - First Impressions count

It is amazing how many - often sophisticated and highly intelligent - market professionals disregarded the warning signs. When meeting new people the old saying 'First impressions count' is more often than not correct. In the case of the Wunderkind Bankman-Fried my alarm bells went off the first moment I saw his photo in the media. Naturally one should not judge by outside appearance only, but at least one should take this always into consideration.
FTX collapse

Working from Home - Misleading Survey

A good example of an opinion survey that may have unintended consequences is provided here: "A survey by the recruiter Morgan McKinley found that 71pc of British white-­collar workers would contemplate quitting their roles if not offered the flexibility they desire, in a sign that remote working is here to stay even when the pandemic subsides." (Daily Telegraph, PayWall)

It is only understandable that if someone is asked: Would you CONSIDER quitting your job that they might well tick the Yes Box. But if you ask: Would you also consider quitting if then you would be unemployed or forced to take a job that pays much less? the reply might not be so positive.

So headlines and surveys that are not more carefully constructed create a false narrative and a bias in favor of home working. While certain jobs may well be suited for WFH the jury is out whether or not that model is applicable for many roles. And the silent majority who cannot work from home - police, hospital staff to name but a few - are not going to be pleased about being forced to work in a much less congenial environment, to put it mildly.

 

Credit Suisse troubles due to wrong Leadership Development

Media Pundits and Deal Makers are keen to give free advice to Credit Suisse - sell this, spin off that - especially with reference to its Asset Management unit. But one thing should not be forgotten: there is no clear rationale against combining Retail, Investment and Private Banking and Asset Management as JP Morgan demonstrates. What is required, however, is superior management, and that means having the right people in charge. This means not only hiring potential saviours or mercenaries from outside but creating a HumanResource strategy that develops and fosters talent from the bottom up as demonstrated by GoldmanSachs. Neither the Chairman nor the previous CEO had any proper training as a banker. Head of Risk Management had no previous trading experience or appropriate qualification for the role.

Wuhan Virus turns City into a Ghost Town

One piece of consolation, the cities that want to steal London's crown will not be in a much different position, what price an office tower in Frankfurt or Paris? Always thought the vast expanses of entrance lobbies in the towers were an absurd waste of money, one or two receptionists and a lonely plant, in addition to the inevitable 'security' personnel....and is there really enough business for the cast of thousands employed by the major banks, brokers, lawyers and accountants?
Virus turns City into a Ghost Town

Pay Gap reporting - nothing but an Employment Scheme?

Ever since Pay Reporting for senior Executives became standard practice (and started an upward spiral of executive compensation) virtue signalling via pay gap reporting became more and more pervasive. But does it really help anyone if pay differentials by gender, race, age are scrupulously registered and reported? The inevitable pay gaps will only breed resentment and be endless fodder for self-appointed campaigners and lobbies. After all, there will never be perfect equality and there will always be one group that is paid less than the other side. And why not report by religious affiliation? there might be interesting aspects to discover as well - did not some scholar relate economic success to Protestantism?
That some businesses find it worth their time to call for MORE (!) mandatory regulation (bureaucracy) reminds one of Lenin's bonmot: "The capitalists will sell us the rope with which we will hang them" (6-March-2019)
Companies call for mandatory ethnicity pay gap reporting

Beware of Age Discrimination with targeted Ads

Facebook job ads allow age discrimination lawsuit claims (Marketwatch)

Deutsche Bank: Lacks top managers

This article points to a weakness in the bank's staff development program. It should be one of the key - if not the key - responsibilities of Top Management to make sure that enough talented managers are moving through the ranks.
Temple Associates is able to conduct a 'Talent Audit' and put 40 years of experience at the disposal of your company.

Manager Magazin

MUFG said to pick Amsterdam for Securities Base after Brexit

The Securities Diaspora gathers pace. There is only the little problem of human 'resources' to consider. While Japanese and Expats from other countries (less so) can be shifted quite easily - how about the workforce that has its roots in London? And how easy will it be to find willing recruits in London, Paris or other centres that will consider job offers in a smaller regional centre - however brilliant some aspects or life might be there? And managing dispersed teams all over Europe will be a major challenge for management!
(Bloomberg)

30% of Bank Jobs May Disappear in Next Five Years - Former Citi CEO

Vikram Pandit, who ran Citigroup Inc. during the financial crisis, said developments in technology could see some 30 percent of banking jobs disappearing in the next five years.

(Bloomberg)

NYC proposes to prohibit asking candidates about current salary

Not clear why Messrs. Schwarzman (Blackstone) and Corbat (Citigroup) would have any objection. All prospective employers need to know is what salary a job candidate expects.
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/13/business/dealbook/job-salary-pay-women-men-wall-street.html?_r=0

Compensation: Excessive focus on individual performance dangerous

Compensation based on share price development? This is contrary to all sensible pay schemes and one of the main contributing factors to excessive executive pay. Maybe this works in the confines of a small investment boutique but even there it is not clear what the scheme could do to improve the performance produced for investment clients.
Excessive focus on individual performance is inherently dangerous, says Barry Olliff | City A.M.

Disclosing your Salary to prospective Employer?

This is why you shouldn’t lie to a future employer about your salary

How can I make performance reviews less painful for all concerned?

There was a time when people knew each other and box-ticking exercises were not necessary, O tempora o mores! Managing relationships with colleagues and staff should be a year-round task but all-too-often problems are allowed to fester - and the ritual of an annual review will not be enough to defuse the situation, if anything it just creates more tension.
How can I make performance reviews less painful for all concerned?

Employee Evaluation - when Common Sense and Human Touch go AWOL

Numerical rankings were already an idea from hell. Trying to achieve precision - am I number 6 or number 7 on the Goldman Sachs list? - is impossible. Anyone convinced of the opposite please contact me - but provide clear examples, not MBA speak that some cloned professor has published in some obscure magazine no one ever reads.
Is the new scheme - a web-based tool to give and receive performance feedback at any time - going to be a change for the better?
I have (serious) doubts. In an organisation where the motto at the top management level is 'Greed is Good' and the only personnel management tool seems to be the doctrine to weed out the 'weakest' 5 percent of the workforce in any given year the human touch and common sense approach is long gone from the organisation.
Does one have to wonder that performance and return for shareholders have been mediocre since the old partnership was killed off (by those keen to cash out at the expense of those following in their footsteps)?

Credit Suisse CEO without Banking Experience

Can it make any sense to appoint someone to lead a bank when the person has no specific experience in the industry? Recent moves by regulators tended to make it mandatory that senior staff has relevant qualification and experience, so what banking experience does Credit Suisse CEO Thiam have? Sad to see a once-stellar franchise being managed so abysmally! Being well-connected in the higher echelons of politics in Senegal or Ivory Coast should not be a free pass to top management.

Succession planning at Santander - an example to follow

Yesterday's announcement of the death of Emilio Botin, the man behind the immense growth of Banco Santander over the past decades, highlights the need to prepare for the smooth handover of leadership. While Santander may appear to be a special case - the succession is clarified on the next day - every business should be able to replace key personnel without delay. This applies not only to CEO roles but all managerial positions in the organisation. Internal promotions should be the rule as they boost morale and team spirit and usually are cheaper and quicker to realise.

Barclays: how not to manage a business

Announcing that the number of jobs in the investment banking unit will be cut by 25 per cent over the next three years is as bad a decision as can be. Firstly it sends a clear signal to anyone who can get a job elsewhere to do so as soon as feasible. The remaining staff will be spending most of their time second-guessing where and when the next cuts will be made. Even worse, the instinct for survival will make it essential that each and every one tries to protect his employment by trying to put the knife into his or her colleagues' back. Above all it is not even clear why a down-sized and provincial version of Barclays - not dissimilar to a building society or - shock horror! - the Co-op bank, will be more successful in the long run. Is there something JP Morgan or Bankamerica know that Jenkins and the regulatory/political cabal here in the UK don't know? But never mind, Shipping, Car Manufacturing, Textiles, Steel Making etc were successfully destroyed by the Powers-that-be, so it matters little if British Banking is blow-torched as well. Makes it so much easier for other financial centres - in the EU and further away - to eat the City's lunch.

Celebrity Fund Managers can be an Achilles Heel

Relying on Celebrity Fund Managers can be risky even for the most prominent Fund Management House. Recent changes at Pimco are just the latest in a series of defections by high-profile managers.