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Japan's foreign-capital, or "gaishi,"market is enjoying a period of rapid growth, and the so-called "War for talent" has never been more severe. The shrinking and aging workforce and the increasing trend of Japanese companies to hire mid-career talent from the gaishihave further increased competition. High turnover and poor hiring result in direct and indirect costs to the firm, and negatively impacts its market reputation in an increasingly-networked candidate community.
What can employers do in this demanding and competitive market to attract and retain the best talent?
- Present the right face at interviews. Some gaishi businesses have HR staff, many of whom are less informed about company strategy and vision than the hiring (line) manager who conducts the first interviews. They often repeat the same questions, focus on salary issues and reasons for job change, and do little to sell companies. Line managers should be involved earlier, especially with talented candidates who are happy where they work, but are still open to an interview.
- Review the way interviews are conducted. Since experienced and active job-seekers are often asked similar questions and become interview-savvy, ask unusual or testing questions to better evaluate their strengths. One client of ours, for example, asked a finance candidate how many taxis he thought there were in Tokyo and how he arrived at that conclusion. Another asked a potential sales manager to talk about his favorite hobby and sell it to the interviewer as something he, too, should take up. These kinds of creative, yet simple questions test candidates' ability to think on their feet and challenges their level of logical thinking and analytical skills.
- Speed up the whole hiring process. Many companies take too long to review resumes and then subject the candidate to
multiple interviews with managers who often do not communicate feedback or compare interview notes with each other.
A recent trend is to hire bilingual, in-house recruiters from search firms, who drive the process.
- Tighten up reference checking and due diligence. Some companies ignore warning signs and hire in a hurry without properly checking a candidate's history. There are fraudulent resumes from Japanese and foreign bilinguals on the market, but with proper screening costly hiring mistakes can be avoided.
- Choose the right executive search firms to represent you. The market is flooded with recruitment companies that do not have the legally required recruiting license and who churn out resumes without the candidates' permission. The better search firms have industry experts, can clearly show relevant recruiting experience in your area, and are knowledgeable and passionate about representing and selling your firm and the opportunity to the market. It is important that line managers spend time with their search partners and engage them, rather than leaving this solely to HR. This will also ensure your search partner gains a solid understanding of the chemistry and personal traits required to succeed within your organization.
- Create ways to retain key staff and articulate these policies during the interview process. These could include providing opportunities to train overseas or to join team-building trips; offering "lifestyle-compensation" measures such as four-day work weeks and flexi-time, or just providing a cooler, more flexible working environment with extra open space, and an emphasis on creativity and communication. These things really matter when competitors are pursuing your employees.
Some larger gaishi businesses still act with complacency and a certain arrogance, feeling that candidates will be attracted by name or brand alone. Subsequently, it is often the smaller to mid-sized companies that react more quickly and offer more customized and effective recruiting solutions.
Simon Childs & Jason Dacaret
Managing Directors, CDS
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