Pandemic unveils new ways of working

Growth in some sectors will create new opportunities for Hong Kong professionals

Labour markets are set to slowly move back to pre-pandemic levels of hiring in 2021

Uncertainty has plagued many sectors amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, and the human resources (HR) sector was not spared as well.

Consolidations across departments and functions are already underway in many companies, along with foreign financial institutions exiting local markets to refocus on their home countries, said Randstad managing director for search and selection in Greater China Natellie Sun. These events have resulted in redundancies, added Sun, and the unemployment rate of experienced workers may increase in Q1 2021.

On the other hand, hiring speed, loss for the need of replacements, and a slow creation of vacancies will also potentially create a long unemployment spell for those experienced workers seeking work. On the brighter side of things, some regulatory bodies,particularly in the financial services sector, are subsidising financial institutions to create programmes for fresh graduates to reduce the unemployment rate in the first half of 2021, added Sun.

“Companies are more prepared to deal with how COVID-19 would impact their business operations after being hit by three consecutive waves in Hong Kong,” commented Hays Hong Kong regional director Jack Leung, noting that the success of community measures implemented in managing the pandemic situation has instilled confidence in majority of the workforce to return to offices. Business and consumer confidence has also grown in all areas since Q4, which, according to Leung, was a “positive indication” of what to expect in 2021.

Agile businesses that have been able to adapt to the digital shift were observed to emerge stronger. “Their early investments in technology, such as Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solutions, data analytics and cloud, have positioned them well for growth and recovery amidst the pandemic, opening up new opportunities to spearhead Hong Kong’s digital transformation,” he added.

Interestingly, the Hong Kong stock exchange raised $91.47b (US$11.8b) from 52 IPOs, up 23% YoY, despite the 19% decline of deals in H1. “The growth focus in the technology sector will create new business opportunities, not just for the financial services industry, but also e-commerce (retail), life sciences, manufacturing and supply chain in Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area,” Leung added.

Concurrently, there has also been a pressure to reopen borders as to reignite the aviation, hospitality, and aviation industries. Promising developments in vaccines as well as effective COVID-19 treatments would help build business confidence in these hard-hit sectors, and hopefully let them resume operations next year, said Leung.

In 2020, there has been a strong emphasis on jobs in the technology and healthcare sectors, as well as heightened activity in the private equity and venture capital circles. These trends are expected to continue in 2021, and a post-COVID recovery

The pandemic highlighted the need for business leaders to address worklife balance more seriously

should also see positive activity return in many of Hong Kong’s other vital service and consumer sectors, said Mark Tibbatts, Michael Page’s managing director for the Hong Kong and Taiwan markets.

Select sectors see sustained growth—whilst industries like retail and real estate continue to be impacted by market factors, others like e-commerce, education, fintech, and virtual banking are seeing sustained growth, said Leung. “There has also been significant growth within the insurance sector, considering the current crisis is primarily health related; demand for support functions like claims, legal and compliance has increased, alongside business transformation roles as insurance companies continue to digitise their operations and processes,” he added.

In addition, as more and more companies invest in technology to make the digital jump, talent demand would lean towards more highly skilled technicians and digitally adept professionals, said Sun, noting that those well-versed particularly in transformation project management, change management, software development, cloud computing, and UX/UI, would be highly sought after.

Retaining and attracting talents

The COVID-19 pandemic has given rise to a new way of work and has raised employees’ expectations of their employers to offer flexible work options in the future, even after COVID-19, according to Sun. In a way, the global health crisis has highlighted the need for business leaders to address work-life balance more seriously.

As a 100% remote working model could never replicate the energy of a dynamic office environment, a hybrid model where employees can choose or are assigned days of the week to return to the office could possibly work. “It can also help drive efficiency, as employees can have meetings on the days that they are in the office, and focus on delivering the actual work when they are at home,” added Sun.

Aside from flexible working options, there were more conditions employers should address in order to retain or attract new talent in the following year.

The ongoing crisis may have led professionals to evaluate potential employers in different ways and perspectives than before. “This includes evaluating which organisations truly believe in the ethical treatment of their employees and sustainable environmental practices, and which don’t,” said Leung, noting that this could be further influenced by the growing desire in the general population to make a positive difference to the world around them.

“Naturally, the situation could be very different from one person to the next. But we can expect the post-pandemic recovery to be characterised by a rise in professionals wanting to work for purpose-led organisations that live their values in an inclusive way, internally and externally, enabling them to find more meaning in their roles,” he added.

In addition, there would be demand for balance and flexibility. “Many people are hoping that this period will be a ‘reset’ moment that will be followed by more flexibility and balance in their professional lives,” commented Leung, noting that more talents would likely pursue flexible or permanent roles with supportive employers who actively encourage their workers to maintain a healthy work-life balance and place a strong emphasis on wellbeing.

Meanwhile, “the influx of redundancies and furloughing in the wake of the pandemic has led many professionals to recognise the importance of adaptability and lifelong learning,” added Leung. This growth mindset would lead these professionals to seek out employers that offer them the tools and autonomy for continuous learning and development.

Staff recognition would also be beneficial, said Leung.

In 2020, most organisations have taken the opportunity to be much more human and caring in their approach to their people, according to Tibbatts. “We’ve seen greater investment in employee assistance programmes, mental health and wellbeing support, along with greatly enhanced digital and technology platforms to power business connectivity and continuity to unprecedented levels,” he added.

The ‘new normal’ of employment

Tibbatts noted that it would be “extremely difficult” to foresee what employment trends there would be in 2021, as long as there were no concrete developments in controlling the virus.

“I certainly don’t see any seismic changes in the employment landscape from [the] current until there is a widely distributed vaccine, but I’m optimistic that once there is a vaccine and a return to relative normality we should see employment trends recover quite strongly,” he added.

A solid medical solution would enable us all to “return to more joyful times,” remarked Tibbatts. The pandemic has absolutely accelerated the pace of change within many organisations and the whole conversation about the future of work has taken centre stage as a result. Digital transformation, diversity and inclusion, as well as workplace flexibility, have been the dominant talking points and would continue to be.

More specifically, “whilst many organisations in Hong Kong have seen accelerated digital transformation in the light of the pandemic, that the vast majority of working professionals believe their organisation’s digitalisation journey is very important to them, means that ongoing digitalisation will be a vital part of any organisation looking to stay relevant in the times to come,” said Leung.

Natellie Sun

Jack Leung

Mark Tibbatts

More talents would like to pursue roles with supportive