Turmoil may be causing ulcers for investors, but top recruiters WhiteRock Group see increased opportunity for job-seekers and hiring firms.
NEW YORK, September 24, 2007 – On Wall Street these days, it’s the worst of times and the best of times. The meltdown in sub-prime mortgages – and the ensuing credit crunch – has led to uncertainty and turmoil throughout financial markets worldwide. But as with any deal, what’s bad news for one party is often very good news for another.
“There’s never been a better time to look for a job on Wall Street, or the Asian financial markets,” says Gustavo Dolfino, founder and chief executive officer of WhiteRock Group.
“And – amazingly – there’s never been a better time to be looking for talent either.”
Realistic Expectations
To understand why the recruitment business is booming even as the industry appears to be retrenching, one must understand that the overheated markets of the past few years have actually made recruiting more difficult. Mr. Dolfino – who was quoted last week in Crain’s New York Business as well as the Wall Street Journal and is frequently interviewed for market perspective by CNBC, Bloomberg News and other financial news services – explains.
“With markets soaring these past few years, the price of top talent went through the roof. Everyone had golden handcuffs. Nobody wanted to work for anything but a top-tier firm.
“Now, you’ve got a situation where suddenly all those people who were ‘unhirable’ might be available. And they don’t necessarily want to work at a top-tier firm – those are the ones who’ve been in the paper everyday, mostly with bad news. Right now, the smart money is picking people up.”
Mr. Dolfino points out that the greatest growth is currently in Asia – especially China, where “If you can get a CFO on the phone, you can get a job.” He adds, “And we have everyone’s phone number.”
Opening Offices, Recruiting Recruiters
To keep up with this still exploding demand, WhiteRock Group has opened three new offices – all in Asia – and brought on more top recruiting talent. The company is now nearly fifty professionals strong and expects to add to that number before year’s end.
New recruiters include:
- Peter Leung – head of all Asia-based recruiting
- Brad Levin – formerly with Heidrick and Struggles
- Peter Dirkes –formerly with Forrest Solutions
- Kate Dolinska – former WhiteRock Group intern
New WhiteRock office locations include Hong Kong, Shanghai and Singapore – the top Asian business markets ex-Japan. These new offices complement WhiteRock Group’s existing New York and London operations.
Structured for Success
To manage its own rapid growth – and continue to provide excellent service to its clients – WhiteRock Group has organized its recruitment efforts around six business lines:
- Research – includes equities and fixed income
- Sales and trading – includes equities, fixed income, foreign exchange (FOREX), commodities, both cash and derivatives
- Investment banking – includes capital markets, mergers and acquisitions (M&A), advisory and corporate finance
- Legal and compliance – primarily for hedge funds
- Global asset and wealth management – includes private banking, asset management and private client services
- Alternative investments – includes private equity and hedge funds
Beyond executive recruiting, WhiteRock Group also provides human resources strategic consulting. One of the company’s most sought-after services is competitive intelligence and mapping competitive industry segments to help clients get access to the most valuable commodity: information. In addition, WhiteRock employs a team of seven PhD’s in organizational behavior who perform management assessments for senior executives at Wall Street firms, a consulting service which is in high demand these days in order to help firms grow and better manage and retain their staff.
Addresses of the WhiteRock Group offices:
In Hong Kong:
The WhiteRock Group, Ltd.
1 International Finance Centre
Number 1 Harbour View Street
18th Floor
Central Hong Kong
Tel: (852) 2166 8097
In Singapore:
The WhiteRock Group, Ltd.
80 Raffles Place
UOB Plaza 1
Floor 35-01
Singapore, 048624
Tel: (65) 6248 4888
In New York:
The WhiteRock Group, LLC.
145 West 57th Street, 9th Floor
New York, NY 10019
Tel: (212) 258 2780
In Shanghai:
The WhiteRock Group, Ltd.
18th Floor, Bund Centre
222 Yan An Road East
Huang Pu District, Shanghai, 200002
People’s Republic of China
Tel: (86) 21 6132 3893
In London:
The WhiteRock Group, Ltd.
29th floor
1 Canada Square
Canary Wharf
London E145DY
Tel: (0) 207 712 1670
WhiteRock places full-time professionals, temporary management teams, crisis management teams and strategic management consultants for companies including asset management firms, hedge funds and investment banks. As an important component of our company’s diversity strategy, we recognize social responsibility as an essential part of achieving diversity in all aspects of the work environment. WhiteRock Group is dedicated to helping companies achieve goals in women’s and minority executive search. A complete list of services is available at: http://www.whiterockgroup.com.
