profusion

Zanetti Recruitment and Consulting Now Part of Profusion Group

Tue, 05 Nov 2024 05:13:43 GMT

Profusion Group announces expansion into new markets, strengthening client offering.

Profusion Group have announced the acquisition of Zanetti Recruitment & Consulting, in addition to expanding their service offering in both Brisbane and Melbourne across the Profusion Group companies.

Established in 2007, Zanetti Recruitment & Consulting specialises in financial services recruitment. Their consultants all have industry experience in financial services, providing clients and candidates with dedicated expertise, sourcing the right talent and providing trusted career advice. From 1 November, the team will officially become part of Profusion, operating out of Brisbane.

“I’m excited to welcome the Zanetti team to Profusion and the opportunities that this expansion provides. We’ve always had great relationships with our Queensland based customers, however with the team from Zanetti now joining Profusion, this acquisition provides us with a stronger presence in this growing market and a dedicated team to not only better serve our customers, but also continue to connect with great talent .” Matt Bennett, Chief Executive Officer Profusion Group.

“ I’m excited to have Zanetti join the Profusion team, an aligned company that shares our values and is dedicated to the unique expertise in the financial services industry. This integration of industry leaders brings together decades of experience in financial services recruitment across Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. It will provide significant value to our client and talent base .” Ric Zanetti, Principal of Zanetti Recruitment & Consulting.

With a stronger team dedicated to market specialisations in financial services, the announcement today continues to strengthen Profusion’s position as the leading specialist recruitment firm in the financial services industry. Both acquisition and market expansion continue Profusions’ growth plans, heading into celebrating 20 years of financial services recruitment, in January 2025.

Creating a Great Talent Brief

Sun, 02 Jul 2023 23:19:26 GMT

Creating a Great Talent Brief

We’ve developed this guide to help managers who are new to hiring. The guide is intended to provide practical advice to ensure you achieve a great hiring outcome as well as some tips on how to build an effective relationship with your preferred recruitment partner that will deliver results for the long term.

Like any great partnership, a good foundation of understanding and communication forms the basis of how the firm and the client work together. One of the first touchpoints in the partnership starts with collaborating on a great talent brief. We’ve put together these insights from our consultants who have over twenty years of recruiting in the financial services industry and shared their top tips on what makes a great talent brief.

THE RECRUITMENT BRIEF

Internal Sign off

While it is essential to have internal sign off for your hiring process before taking any action, it is sensible to engage in a conversation with a recruiter about what you’re thinking about and looking for before you finalise sign off. An early conversation with your recruitment partner on market conditions, your budget for salary, the level of difficulty to fill, timing to fill, or just testing your expectations against what is in market is a sensible plan. All of this information will inform your brief. Just ensure you have internal sign-off in place before you move to a formal briefing.

Remuneration

It’s important to clearly articulate the remuneration band that you have to work with. This needs to include the base salary (noting, does it include superannuation), what are the bonus models, are there long term incentives or any other benefits attached to the role.

Key Performance Indicators

What do you need this person to deliver for you in the role in order for them to be viewed as successful? Define the key performance indicators and come ready to discuss them in detail at the briefing.

Position Description

Ensure you have a position description in place which clearly articulates the skills, experience, and essential requirements for the role. If you don’t have Talent or HR team to support you in this way, ask your recruitment partner to assist you in developing a position description.

Briefing

Make time to meet with your recruitment partner and discuss the role in detail. Understanding who you are, what is important to you, what kind of leader and manager you are is essential information for your recruitment partner. The briefing is the time you can talk through the culture of the business and team, the values that you need in an employee to ensure they fit with your business. It is also an opportunity to talk through any unique challenges or opportunities this person might face in the role or in business when they commence.

Timelines

At the briefing, work with your recruitment partner to establish a list of key milestones and the timelines that need to be met. A clearly articulated timeline goes a long way to ensuring a seamless recruitment process, with clear expectations set out for both sides. Whilst it is not always practical that either party can meet each milestone its important to understand if any exist so that expectations can be managed throughout the process on both sides.

Role Status

When you brief your recruitment partner be clear about what the status of the role is. Some great questions to think about:

· Are they working on the role exclusively?

· Is your internal Talent or HR team also working on the role?

· Are you already working with another firm on the role?

· Are you planning to brief more than one recruitment company?

· Have you been working on the role for a while using your own sources and already have a few people in your process?

· Do you just want to meet a few more candidates before making a decision?

· Do you have an internal candidate in mind for the role and you want to benchmark them against some external talent?

Be completely transparent with your recruitment partner about the status of the role as it will set clear expectations from the outset.

THE PROCESS

Internal Stakeholders

It’s critical to sharing who the key stakeholders are in the hiring process and what role will they play and who will be involved in making the final decision. It also helps to outline what touchpoints each stakeholder will have. These might be colleagues involved in the interview process, a Talent or HR business partner, or your manager. It is always good to map out the interview process up front; how many interviews will there be, who will be involved and what is the timing of their involvement.

The selection process (and other critical information)

Be sure to articulate how you intend to screen candidates throughout the recruitment process. This can include cultural surveys, psychometric testing or criminal history checks. If there are organisations that you cannot employ someone from due to their working for a major client, a joint venture partner or there is just a conflict of interest, it is important to state it up front before the interview process begins.

The interview process

Your brief needs to outline the number and types of interviews including which stakeholders will be involved. It’s also important to understand availability of stakeholders within the timelines of the recruitment process (and lock them in early so that your process isn’t delayed by having to wait for their time).

HOW TO POSITION THE ORGANISATION

Employee Value Proposition

If your organisation has an employee value proposition, make sure you share this as part of your brief. At a minimum it should include dot points on each of the benefits of joining an organisation. This could include leave for birthdays, volunteering leave or other benefits such as annual leave beyond 4 weeks or superannuation contributions beyond the statutory requirements.

Company values

Outline what the company values are in the brief and how you believe the ideal candidate should be able to demonstrate living the company values. Stakeholder management is one thing, but managing a number of different levels of stakeholders both internal and external in a particular environment is an entirely different set of screening questions for a recruitment consultant.

Other benefits

List all the benefits and any other important information as part of the brief. This can include items like leave, health and wellbeing allowances, professional memberships - anything at all that drives value to the potential candidate. A great recruitment consultant can help extract these aspects and assist in this part of the brief, particularly as they have insight into what other companies are offering in this area.

THE CANDIDATE

What the ideal candidate looks like

Think about the profile of the ideal candidate for your role. Do you have a specific person in mind? What is it about them that you really like? If you do have someone in mind share their name at the briefing so that your recruitment partner can use their background and skill set as a benchmark.

Sometimes you might be looking for a unicorn, and they can be out there, we just need to know what one looks like. Putting together the detail around what an ideal candidate looks like and why these attributes are important to an organisation and a role, are critical to helping source talent in market. Aspects such as education, training, certifications, target organisations to recruit from and skill sets are all important guides to finding the right candidate.

Hiring the right candidate to fit the cultural dynamics

Outline any organisational or team cultural dynamics that are important to be aware of when sourcing a candidate. Be honest and open about any problems or challenges your business or team might be facing. The benefit of this is that your recruitment partner can assess through the interview process whether the candidate will be able to manage these dynamics.

Articulating what success looks like in 12 month’s time for the right candidate

As a hiring manager, it’s important to fast forward to 12 months of having a candidate in the role and articulating what success looks like for the right candidate. Consider the 3-4 objectives of the role and make note of how the successful candidate would navigate, achieve and engage others on the journey. It’s important to think about what the successful candidate has tangibly delivered at this point in time and asking oneself this question really goes beyond the position description. If you can anchor yourself in the future with a success measure as a benchmark, then you can really work back on what the role needs to be.

HOW TO BUILD A PARTNERSHIP WITH A RECRUITMENT ORGANISATION AND UNLOCK THEIR VALUE

Finally, a partnership with a recruitment firm goes well beyond one single placement. It’s about having a relationship with someone who knows how to sell your organisation and drive your market position to potential candidates. It’s also about the long-term knowledge that a recruitment partner builds up around your future strategy and company’s success.

Organisations that engage recruitment firms ongoing, often have the ability to afford themselves a competitive advantage in market due to the sheer volume and nature of the insights that recruitment firms can provide. As a powerful source of market intelligence these teams can source insights on companies, different organisational cultures and of course the salary insights in market. Having a dedicated team as an extension of an organisation which has the capacity to solely focus on talent solutions and market insights is what truly delivers results, particularly in tight talent markets.

Profusion Group is a specialist recruitment firm solely dedicated to the financial services industry. With our teams working on a “whole of company” approach we can deliver talent solutions across all areas of your business. Our teams are specialists in their areas of expertise, so our ability to truly understand client needs is one of the many ways we drive value across our client relationships.

What Makes a Great Place to Work

Mon, 01 May 2023 02:02:31 GMT

A Great Place to Work

For over twenty years Profusion Group have been working with some of the best places to work in the financial services industry. With incredible insight into what makes a great organisation from their years of experience and deep understanding of companies within the sector, it comes as no surprise that they themselves would come to be recognised as a Great Place to Work.

The AFR BOSS Best Places to Work list recognises and ranks the best places to work in Australia and New Zealand, by industry, and is the premier list of its kind. The list is judged and compiled by Inventium – Australia’s leading behavioural science consultancy, using a unique research-based methodology. In 2023, the list comprised of ten industry lists, compiled from over 700 nominations. On the 20 ^th of April 2023, Profusion Group were ranked 8th within their category of Professional Services as the Best Place to Work and were the only recruitment organisation specialising in financial services that placed.

The recognition from this award, is testament to the work by Managing Director Simone Mears, the leadership team of, Ashton Bilbie, Amie Phillips and David Ashton, and her team at Profusion Group. They’ve spent the last 18 months developing a strategy and framework for what unbeknownst to them at the time - would become a large part of why they were recognised as the Best Place to Work in their category.

According to Simone, defining the purpose was mission critical, “Over the last 18 months the entire company, led by our senior leadership team and I have been developing a very clear vision and strategy for the business, which started with purpose. We have a clearly defined Purpose – Connecting People to Enhance the Experience of Work, which has formed the compass for building a culture and a team that live and breathe this every day.” This has been crucial to giving every person in the company a clear direction of what it is they do, why they do it, and how they do it. An expressed set of missions, values systems and an employee value proposition (EVP) also formed part of this work for Simone and her team. “This work has also given us the ability to attract and retain talent, ensuring individuals and our own teams know who we are, what we stand for, and where we are going.”

“The leadership team and I are proud of the culture we have created from this work. I personally believe that a Great Place to Work starts a culture where everyone feels safe and supported in order to be challenged and ultimately, grow. You can’t create this environment without the values that support this culture. We take great care in recruiting our own talent who demonstrate our values of Trust, Courage, Humility and Energy. It’s from this culture that our people feel that Profusion is a place they can fulfil their potential.”

These values also play a role in the clients and candidates that Profusion work with. “We are in an incredibly privileged position whereby some of the biggest companies and key competitive players in the financial services industry trust us with their talent recruitment. When the backbone of your organisation is your people - as we believe it is, it only makes sense that we work with and equally trust companies that share this value. Otherwise, it hurts the trust our candidates place in us.” According to Simone, these values play a huge role in what makes a great recruitment company and no doubt gives them a competitive advantage in the market.

It’s been an incredibly rewarding journey for Simone and the entire team, irrespective of the industry recognition. The organisation has made a huge investment in elevating what it means to work at Profusion, such as a new office move, a number of investments in new technology, a greater focus on marketing and branding and an EVP that empowers individuals to thrive in their professional and personal life. The EVP itself is an impressive piece of intellectual property that truly sets apart Profusion from their competitors and gives rise to what it means to succeed as an individual and as part of the team at the company.

“We’ve invested a lot of time, resources and energy into bringing our company on the journey these last 18 months. This award is testament to everyone’s hard work, commitment and dedication to why we do what we do and who we do it for. The whole process has been inclusive at every level of our organisation and this recognition is something that we can all be proud of. Prior to being recognised in these awards, we wanted everyone to be proud of coming to work every day and I’m humbled that we did this. It will be great to take a moment with everyone and share in what we’ve accomplished together with this award. It gives me the confidence that not just today, but for the future of Profusion, we’ve set a solid foundation where our teams know the impact they can have every day and the potential they can achieve within themselves.” Simone Mears, Managing Director, Profusion Group.

If you want to learn more about what it’s like to work at Profusion, you can connect with us for a confidential discussion by contacting Simone directly. No obligation, we’re always on hand to provide career advice no matter your journey.

Build a Great Resume

Wed, 19 Apr 2023 09:39:58 GMT

Our Top Resume Tips

There is no one way to write a resume. Resumes are subjective, and every human resources professional and recruiter will give you different advice on the best template or format to use.

Therefore, rather than provide a template, we’ve sat down with some of our longest standing team members and developed a guide that outlines some of the most useful tips they’ve collected over the years for you to consider when writing a resume.

Tip #1 - Length of your resume

Unless you are writing a one page profile, a resume needs to have detail and substance, and therefore should comprise typically three to four pages. If you have less than seven years professional experience two pages is adequate. For more than seven years up to four pages is a good length.

Tip #2 - A resume is not a position description

Don’t list every task from every role. Think in terms of what you are accountable for in your role. Rather than providing a long list of things you do, list the four to six critical things you are accountable for with in each role.

Tip #3 - Validate with data

Achievements are important, so ensure you have lots of them. They are a great way to showcase what you do and how you have performed in each role. When listing your achievements, utilise data to validate your statements. It’s also important to think about how you write the statement in a way that really drives impact. Think about what you achieved in words, back it up by quantifiable metrics and if appropriate how you achieved this, for example, “exceeded sales target by 22% for the 2023 financial year through a targeted field approach", rather than "exceeded sales target".

Tip #4 - A career summary

If you have ten plus years of professional experience, include a career summary on the front page of your resume. The purpose of a career summary is to highlight your recent experience and provide a story line that covers the past seven to ten years. It is essential to list all of your other roles at the end of your resume under a heading "career history" and include employer, dates of employment and title.

Tip #5 - Capability statements and key competencies

If you want to include a capability statement and/or a list of key competencies on your resume, ensure they are relevant and critical to the role for which you are applying. Don’t use generic subheadings and content which could apply to anyone, or read like they have been written by an AI tool. Your resume needs to bring you and your unique work history to life.

Tip #6 - Education and professional qualifications

Your educational and professional qualifications are important. Ensure they are on the first page of your resume where they are one of the first things the reader will see.

Tip #7 - Dates are important

Dates are important as they tell the story of your career evolution and progression. Always include dates on your resume, particularly on your educational qualifications.

Tip #8 - Linkedin profile

Ensure your LinkedIn profile and your resume are aligned. Everyone looks at LinkedIn and any discrepancies between the two will trigger questions from the reader.

Tip #9 - Generic job titles

Some organisations utilise titles such "vice president", "executive manager" or "director" rather than descriptive titles such as "business analyst", "business development manager", or "product manager". Not only is it okay, but it’s advisable to add in a recognisable title so that it is easy for the reader to quickly understand the role you do, for example "executive manager (business analyst)".

Tip #10 - Employer overview

Don't assume that everyone who reads your resume will know who your employer is, what it does and the products and services it delivers in market. Take the time to include a two to three sentences that provide an organisational overview for each employer.

Tip #11 - Multiple roles (with the same employer)

If you have had multiple roles with one employer list each of them separately. Don't blend them together, even if one role is an expansion of a previous role. It is important to clearly articulate every change in role and responsibility.

Tip #12 - Proof reading

You should always edit and proofread your resume to ensure it does not have grammatical errors and that the language is simple but still professional. If you have a trusted resource, it’s also advisable to ask them to review your resume and provide any feedback.

Resign (the right way)

Mon, 03 Apr 2023 01:36:54 GMT

How to resign the right way

No matter the industry or organisation, it often feels like there is rarely a good time to resign.There will always be a pending deadline, a customer deal to finalise, a product to launch, or a new system to implement regardless of any attempts to best manage the timing. You cannot avoid the stress which comes in delivering the news. Despite these challenges there is a way you can put yourself in a position to resign professionally, with grace, and show generosity.

How you resign, and subsequently how you behave until you leave the business, will make all the difference in how you are regarded as you leave and how you are remembered after you are gone.

A positive departure is all about relationship and reputation management. You never know when a colleague, a manager will appear in your future. it may be in your new employer, a future employer, a key client or a service provider. Irrespective of how you feel about leaving the business keep the messaging clear, clean and positive. Read on to learn some of the key tips from our team who have over twenty years of recruitment in the financial services industry.

Resignation letter

A letter of resignation acts as a legal document stating the date you want your notice period to begin. Draft a resignation letter, including your end date, which should be (based on your notice period). The letter, doesn’t have to be long, as a few paragraphs will suffice but be sure to extend your thanks for the experience you have gained and the support you have received. Have the letter ready to go so that once you have resigned in person, you can send it to your manager via email. If you have changed any terms of your departure during the resignation conversation, amend the letter before sending it.

The resignation conversation

Where possible, resign face to face. Set up a meeting with your manager, and be ready to tell them that you are resigning as soon as the conversation begins. Don't delay and avoid not getting to the point. Tell your manager that you are resigning, tell them what the role is and why it is a good move for you professionally. Avoid airing any grievances or frustrations which might have led to your decision. Instead focus on the positives, and take the opportunity to acknowledge what you’ve gained from the role and to thank them.

Confidentiality

Until you have been given the green light to share the news, keep it to yourself. During your resignation conversation discuss the internal communication plan and it’s timing so that all parties are clear on when to share the news of your departure. Your manager will want to advise human resources and will often need to advise their manager or other key stakeholders before any communications are made to the broader business. They may also want time to determine an interim plan or solution to include in the announcement. Allow your manager the appropriate time to determine the timing announcement of the communications.

Handover plan

Before you resign, consider your workload and how your departure will affect your team or business. You can map out an interim plan to discuss with your manager which the business could potentially implement on your departure. This could include a suggestion of how to allocate your workload between your colleagues, identifying someone internally who can step into your role on an interim basis or it might be a recommendation to bring in an external resource backed up with the rationale as to why also draw upon any succession plans you may have had in place. Be sure to highlight that you are looking to bring solutions to the conversation for your manager. Whether these are implemented or not isn't the primary objective, what you are doing is demonstrating your level of care and commitment.

Notice Period

Be prepared to work out your full notice period. Often, as the notice period progresses, it can be difficult to continue to participate in certain meetings and projects due to confidentiality or conflict of interest. As it becomes apparent that you are no longer able to do your role or contribute in a meaningful way, you may wish to consider a conversation whereby you attempt to negotiate an earlier exit depending on your circumstances.

Your notice period is not a break between roles. You are being paid, so you do have to remain in your role for the full period. If you are unable to negotiate an earlier exit, ensure you find a way to be busy, engaged, and positive. It’s important to show your care and commitment by continuing to contribute up to the last minute.

Counter Offer

There are many reasons not to accept a counter offer. In fact, most people who accept a counter offer find themselves resigning again within a year. Therefore, as flattering as it is to receive a counter offer, it is more practical to shut the conversation down before it begins. Be clear that you have accepted a new role, and you are leaving. Don't leave the door open for your manager to initiate a counter offer. If they ask what it will take to get you to stay, thanks them, acknowledge the compliment and politely advise that you do not want a counter offer. Be clear that you have made your decision and that this is the right move for you professionally.

The worst thing you can do is engage in a conversation to stay when you have no intention of accepting a counter offer, or determine the counter offer is not attractive. You do not want to find yourself in a position where your manager feels that you are rejecting them twice, initially with the resignation and then the counter offer. If your manager goes out on a limb internally to back you, and get you additional benefits, and you subsequently turn the counter offer down, you run the risk of letting them down or embarrassing them with their stakeholders.

If you do want a counter offer, then do not resign. Have a completely different conversation with your manager. Let them know that you have received another offer, and that you are considering it, but you want to talk it through with them first and get their advice and input. Remember you are there to have a conversation, not make an ultimatum for more money or a promotion.

Social media

Create a post on LinkedIn that announces your departure. Thank and acknowledge the people and the business that you have contributed to. It is a very public way of letting people outside your business know you are moving on to a new employer, and leaving the current one on great terms.

Optimising Your Performance in an Online Interview

Thu, 16 Feb 2023 11:12:19 GMT

Lights, Camera, Action!

Are there differences between in person interviews and online interviews? Yes, there are! Whilst the questions will be the same, an interview online is very different. Because of this you’ll need to prepare with a few slight nuances. Profusion has over twenty years of experience recruiting in the financial services industry across specialist areas. Our team have developed this guide that will help you prepare and get you in the mindset to show your digital best.

Don’t leave the tech check to the interview time

Check your webcam and microphone beforehand to ensure they’re working and that you have a good internet connection. Be prepared in advance for a problem; if your Wi-Fi drops out, can you use your hotspot on your phone instead? If the link isn't working, do you know who to call to get it fixed?

Be early – but not too early

When you're online, a few minutes can seem like a very long time. No-one notices a one- or two-minute delay in a face-to-face meeting, but they do online. Make sure you log on a couple of minutes before hand. Arriving early also gives you time to position yourself in frame and check your presentation.

Remove visual distractions

Ensure you have good lighting and your background is neutral. If you are in a place where there may be other people around, ensure you are not in a frame where they can walk past or see. Not only will other people distract you but you’ll distract the interviewer.

Remove audio distractions

Make sure you’re in a quiet place and limit background noise and interruptions. Whether you choose to use a headset or not is entirely your preference, however consider scenarios where they may help if there is background noise.

Don't overtalk

Because it’s often hard to read non-verbal cues in an online interview, it is easy to overtalk when we are online seeking to make our point or feel heard. The absence of immediate signals via body language or energy levels from the interviewer can cause us to over answer. Trust in your answers, and if you are uncertain – check in and ask if you have provided enough information. The interviewer will be glad to let you know.

Wrapping up the online interview

Because you can’t physically shake your interviewers hands or the panel as you would in a face-to-face interview, it’s important to replicate a close-out in the digital environment. Try using a closing statement such as "Speaking with you today has really heightened my interest in the role. If I get the opportunity to speak with you again or secure this role, it will be great to finally meet you in person. Thanks so much for your time”.

Eye contact

Maintain eye contact as much as possible, particularly when answering questions. Look into the camera and not at the monitor. When you are in frame, body language can be hard to read so using other non-verbal cues such as eye contact can really help focus both you and the interviewer. If you have prepared notes, make sure you don’t read your answers out. You want to ensure that you speak freely into the camera.

Enunciation

When we’re nervous, our voice tends to get higher, and we might talk faster. Try to slow things down and enunciate your words clearly. It always helps to have a glass of water ready in case you get a dry mouth or need a second to think.

Profusion has spent over twenty years developing the interview skills of candidates in the financial services industry. If you want to learn more about how you can set yourself apart from other candidates, be sure to check out our common questions guide and our interview tips guide. We spend every day connecting people to enhance the experience of work. If you’d like to know how we can help you prepare for your next role or simply want to connect with a consultant and learn more about our specialties, contact us today. We also work with individuals on entering new areas of finance. Simply head to our contact page and review our specialisations where you’ll find a consultant.

Navigating a Behavioural Interview

Thu, 16 Feb 2023 11:12:17 GMT

Predicting Future Performance

Behavioral-based interviewing is a selection technique which employers use to evaluate a candidate's past behavior in different situations in order to predict their future performance. This interview technique can also be referred to as situational or STAR interviewing (Situation, Task, Action, Result).

Behavioura l questions often start with a phrases such as "can you tell me about a time when...", or "describe a situation where...", or "can you give an example of...". This format is designed to prompt you to talk about a specific situation in your answer. Just to be tricky, not all employers will indicate in advance whether your interview is behavioural and some will even use a hybrid interview technique which combines a conversational style of question and answer with a mix of behavioural questions (requiring you to switch back and forth between the two styles). Therefore, your best approach is to always expect behavioural questions and come prepared.

Answering a behavioural question is like telling a story; your answer should always have a beginning (set the scene), a middle (what happened and what you did) and an ending (conclusion). If you follow the STAR formula you will keep on track and deliver a strong response:

Situation – provide the where, when, and context of your example.

Task – the issue, task or problem to be solved.

Action - how you solved the problem, fulfilled the task or handled the situation. What did you do and how did you do it?

Result – the outcome achieved as result of your action/s. Ensure you quantify the result.

Try to spend approximately 80% of your answer time talking about your actions, as this offers the most convincing evidence of your skills. It is also essential that you clarify your role when talking about team activities. The interviewer wants to know how you contributed to the team (what was your unique contribution), so talk in terms of “I” not “we” when describing your actions.

Questions to expect will be aligned to the key performance objectives/deliverables/required experience that are generally articulated in the position description. In order to prepare, go through the position description in detail and identify three to five areas that you believe are likely to be of most importance (in succeeding in the role).

Once you have done this, select behavioural questions which align to these key areas and then practice your answers. Do your research in advance; go back through your work history and pinpoint examples and supporting data you can refer to in the interview. Don't wing it and expect that you will have examples of your performance spring immediately to mind during the interview.

Prepare for questions which examine negative situations such as conflict, errors or problems. Most jobs will present the occasional challenge and the interviewer will be interested in your ability to handle these situations.

Your answers also need to highlight at least one of the following themes:

Self-awareness
Growth
Self-reliance
A willingness to help another individual

No-one is perfect; however, everyone wants to manage and or work with a person who is able to accept feedback and honestly assess their own performance, and then demonstrate how they have grown as a result of this. Endeavour to keep your answers as honest and realistic as possible. Interviewing is a delicate balance between pride and humility.

We've listed some examples of common behavioural interview questions. Try to make the time to role-play these with a friend before your interview or record yourself so that you can listen to yourself and hear how you are coming across.

Problem solving

Can you provide an example of when you used logic to solve a problem?
Can you describe an example of a time when you took the initiative in your role or during a team activity.

Can you describe a time when you used your problem-solving skills to benefit your team or company.
What’s the best idea you’ve come up with on a team-based project?
How do you approach problem solving? What’s your process?
Can you provide an example of a significant improvement you made in your current/most recent position?

Working in a team

Are you better at working with a team or working on your own?
What role do you assume when you work within a team?
Describe a time when you disagreed with a team member. How did you resolve the problem?
Tell me about a time when you failed in a team project, and how did you overcome it?
How would people in your team describe you?

Failures and mistakes

Tell me about a time in the last 12 months when you received critical feedback on your performance?
Tell me about a time in the last 12 months when you reviewed your own performance and would change the way you approached a task or issue (even if others saw your results as effective/ successful)?
Tell me about a big mistake you’ve made on the job and how you handled it?
Tell me of a time when you didn’t meet your goals?
Tell me about a decision that you've made and regretted, and how you overcame it?

Leadership

Can you give me an example of a time when you had to assume leadership for a team?
Have you ever had to set goals for a team?
Can you describe a time when you were able to motivate unmotivated team members?
Have you ever had to counsel a difficult team member? Tell me about that?
Describe a situation where you had to collaborate with someone who had a different working style?

People management

When delegating a recent assignment, describe how you showed your confidence in the person's ability to do the job?
Can you describe a time you had to provide training or coaching to different staff members on the same tasks?
Can you provide a specific example of when you had to clearly communicate your expectations to a direct report?
Tell me about the steps you took to establish rapport with a new staff member?
What methods have you used to prioritise work assignments?

Resilience

Tell me about a time when you disagreed with your manager on the best approach to take to deliver an outcome?
Tell me about a time when you have worked well under pressure?
How do you manage your stress levels?
How do you handle unexpected changes or challenges?
How do you handle ambiguity around what is expected of your or your team?
Describe a time when you faced a block at work and how you solved it?

Award Winners for Diversity

Fri, 10 Feb 2023 05:06:47 GMT

Award winners for diversity

Profusion has won its fair share of awards over nearly two decades in business. One award that is particularly special to us is our win for Recruiter of the Year at the inaugural Women in Finance Awards in 2017.

Profusion has won its fair share of awards over nearly two decades in business. In our early years we were twice listed in the Australian Financial Review’s Fast Starters Top 100 and we’ve been named Australia’s Healthiest Workplace by AIA Vitality twice. One award that is particularly special to us is our win for Recruiter of the Year at the inaugural Women in Finance Awards in 2017.

Profusion Co-founder and Managing Director Simone Mears explains why.

“When I first started recruiting in the Financial Services sector in the 1990s, the industry was entirely male dominated, both amongst recruiters and the talent they were considering. Female recruiters didn’t get the opportunity to work on placing candidates in the game-changing leadership roles.”

Then what happened?

Our knowledge of the market, our deep networks and our track record of providing pathways for outstanding women to secure leadership roles continues to make us the go-to for placing women in senior financial services roles.

""The world was very slowly changing and views on the value of diversity in the corporate sector was starting to gain recognition, but the GFC was a turning point. Post the GFC, there was a real recognition that there was a gender gap in organisations, and on boards and that it needed focused attention. As a result, there was, and continues to be a push to reach gender equality across the Financial Services landscape. Over the past 10 years I’ve seen a huge paradigm shift in the industry, leading to a genuine commitment to gender diversity. The results speak for themselves, companies with a better balance of male and female talent are typically also more profitable.

The number of female CEOs and board members in ASX 200 listed companies shows that there’s still a lot of work to do, but equally, the number of female CEOs in a key market sector like Superannuation shows how far we’ve come."

What role has Profusion played?

"We’ve been doing a lot of work with our clients for more than a decade to appoint women into senior roles. As a female leader in Financial Services recruitment, I am still regularly approached by organisations who want help to identify high performing female talent.

We relish this position and how it allows us to continue to influence the gender balance of our industry."

How did you feel about winning the award?

"The award was important for us because it acknowledged the work that we’ve done and that we continue to do.

I also felt profoundly recognised and seen for the contribution I’ve made when we won. I’ve worked incredibly hard for a long time and I’m really proud of the work that I do. And it’s not just about placing women, but about placing great people who happen to be women, about being proactive and removing historical barriers to women achieving their potential.

I’m really proud of how much work the industry has done and how far it’s come. And I’m proud to be part of that and to have been in a position to make a real contribution. To have that contribution recognised was awesome."

The Four Most Common Interview Questions

wow@shazamme.com (Default Author) — Tue, 24 Jan 2023 07:21:48 GMT

"Tell me about yourself"

Standing out in the job market is essential if you want to secure a great new role. By standing out, it allows you to set yourself apart from other candidates, showing your potential employer that you have the skills, experience, and drive to excel in the role. Employers conduct many interviews for a single job, and one of the best ways a candidate can separate themselves from their job seeking competitors is by answering the most common interview questions with a confidence that others may lack.

Sometimes the simplest of questions are the hardest to answer. We have seen too many good candidates lose a role in the first few minutes of an interview because they were not able to satisfactorily answer common questions such as "why are you interested in this role" or "why are you interested in joining our business".

Below are four of the most common interview questions to come up in an interview. Answer these well and you will stand out in the competitive job market.

Make sure you prepare these questions ahead of time with detailed responses relevant to your role. It’s a good idea to also review our guide to interview preparation which helps candidates prepare for an interview pre, during and post the process.

"Why are you interested in this role?"
Your answer needs to be related to a specific aspect of the role; it could be the opportunity to develop a new skill set, work with a new product or customer type. But it needs to align to and be relevant to the role.

Example: "I have a degree in Computer Science and over five years of experience as a software developer. I have developed and delivered several successful projects and I am passionate about using technology to solve problems. In my spare time I love building computers, I enjoy the problem-solving challenge these kinds of personal projects present."

"Why do you want to join our company?"

The interviewer wants to know if you have done your research and are genuinely interested in the company, in its mission, values, culture, and goals. It is not only important that you want the role, but employers want to know why you want to work for their company. Does the culture resonate with you? Are your values aligned in order to bring out the best of both parties? Do the objectives of the company motivate and inspire you? Your response needs to be personal and authentic.

Example: "I admire the company's commitment to sustainability. Over time I have realised how important it is to me that I work in a business which is actively addressing broader environmental issues through ESG. I want to know that the work I do every day (in my job) contributes to solving the ecological issues we are facing as a community."

"What are your greatest strengths?"

The interviewer wants to know what you excel at and how this can contribute to the company. They are also interested in assessing your confidence, self-awareness, humility and your ability to sell yourself (when required). It's always a good idea to have two to three examples.

Example: "I am incredibly driven, and outcome focused. I won't give up until I get a result. Examples of this include …… (refer to key projects) where you've been able to leverage this characteristic in order to deliver on a project, a sales outcome, a complex piece of research or tech build)."

"What are your greatest weaknesses?

When you are asked this question, the interviewer wants to assess your self-awareness, your capacity for self-reflection and what kind of plan you have in place for self-improvement. They are not trying to trick you up or find a reason not to hire you.

This question is not an opportunity to present a weakness as a hidden strength, for example "I am a workaholic" where your implicit message is hire me and I will work really hard and will work long hours . It is essential you are authentic and honest in your response.

While it might sound counter intuitive your strengths are also your weaknesses. Look at your strengths and weaknesses together and really dig in and see how they operate at both your best and your worst. For example, your high attention to detail is a strength, but on the flip side it might also mean you are a perfectionist and procrastinate or be late completing tasks. Your generosity is a strength but on the flip side it might mean you give too much time to others in your team and don't complete your own work or are forced to work long hours to catch up.

Example: "I mentioned in the last question that my greatest strength is my drive. It is also my Achilles heel. I have to be careful that I don't put unreasonable levels of expectation on people. In the past I was often unreasonable in my expectations and pushed people too hard, which was ultimately counterproductive. I have had to learn how to get the best performance out of my team while keeping my own expectations in check. I do this by..."

Profusion has over twenty years in specialist recruitment in financial services. Our team love coaching and connecting people to enhance the experience of work. Whether you are preparing for an interview or just looking to establish contact with a consultant, contact us today. We regularly work with individuals coaching them on interviews and sharing market benchmarks and insights. Often we just to connect in the instance you may need recruitment support down the road. You’ll find a relevant contact from one of our specialist teams under your area of expertise by going to the contact page.

Interview Preparation

Tue, 13 Sep 2022 08:21:48 GMT

Interview Preparation

Here at Profusion, we’ve helped individuals prepare for interviews in the financial services sector for over twenty years. Whilst we recruit across the various specialist functions within financial services, we’ve developed this guide based on over twenty years of insights which will help anyone regardless of the role they are interviewing for. Read on to prepare for your next job interview.

Part One: Understand the company and the role

Research the company

Investigate the company and the role you are considering in detail. Sources of this information include the company website, their annual reports, market notices (for listed businesses) and speaking to staff from the organisation prior to the interview. Learn what you can about the company’s major products and the services they provide. Know the company values and purpose and be able to reference them if you need to. Try to get any information you can on how the department fits within the organisation and its function.

Preparing for questions that may be directed to you

Spend some time developing a list of questions you think you’ll be asked about in your interview. Review details of your past performance so the information is fresh in your mind and use this to develop your answers to your list of questions. Then practice, practice, practice. Some great suggestions include rehearsing in front of a mirror, responding to them out loud to a trusted person for feedback and finally recording yourself and playing it back. Make sure you are very familiar with your skills and strengths as well as your interests and goals and review them before the interview as part of your preparation.

Preparing a list of questions for the company

It’s important to remember that this is an opportunity for you to interview the company. Develop a list of questions related to the company, the role, the culture, leadership styles and anything else you feel important for you. Write these down and take them with you to show you are prepared.

Part Two: Preparing for on the day logistics

Prepare for the logistics one week out

About a week out from the interview start planning the day. Think about what you will wear, how you will get there and confirm who you will meet. Make sure you have two transport modes in case of unforeseen circumstances. Expect to arrive 15 minutes early just in case you do encounter any delays.

Arrival

On the day of the interview, make sure you arrive early and let your contact person know you are there. Whilst you are waiting start putting yourself into a strong mindset, which is our next step.

Mindset

Take advantage of the minutes before you go into the interview to develop the right mindset. Think positively, run over any preparation questions again and go in with the attitude that you are going to get the job.

Demeanour

Always be polite to every staff member you meet, even if they are just opening the door for you at reception. Don’t underestimate that anyone you come across won’t share any negative feedback on their impression of you with the interviewer.

Part Three: Conducting the interview

Panel interviews

If there are a number of interviewers, it is important to maintain eye contact and move your focus evenly during the interview – you may not know who the decision-maker will ultimately be and it is often not the person asking the questions.

Authenticity

Taking on your positive mindset, just be yourself and answer your questions honestly. Don’t try to give the answer you think they want to hear. You don’t have to be perfect, and you certainly don’t have to be able to demonstrate you are capable to deliver against every aspect of the role.

Respond concisely

When answering questions, be concise in your responses and be mindful to answer the question that was asked, avoiding going off on tangents with unrelated information. If you are unsure of the question, it’s okay to ask for clarification. It’s also perfectly okay to check after responding if you answered to what they were looking for. If there is additional information that you believe is relevant check in first and ask if they would like you to expand.

Asking your questions

When appropriate during the interview (usually at the end) refer to your list of prepared questions that you brought with you. Even if all your questions were addressed during the interview, by referring to your question list, it shows that you did your preparation. It is also okay to ask questions throughout the interview, as long as they come up in the natural flow of the conversation. Be mindful however, of interrupting, taking over or taking the conversation in a completely different and unrelated direction.

Part Four: Follow up

Debrief

Call your Profusion consultant right after the interview to run through your initial thoughts whilst they are still fresh in your mind. Take them through what you enjoyed about the interview and where you felt comfortable and capable. Its also completely fine to let them know where you felt you could improve. After all, your consultant is your coach – there to help you improve your game. Coaching and feedback is all part of the process and at Profusion it’s what our team love to do.

Follow up

Obtain the contact information of the people in the interview panel and contact them to let them know you appreciated their time. If you don’t have the direct information of the people, just send a note to your contact person to pass onto the relevant parties.

So after more than twenty years of coaching people for interviews these are our tops tips from our team of consultants. If you would like to learn more about how we coach individuals during the interview process, head to our contact page and connect with the relevant consultant in your area of expertise.

Understanding Your Market Value

Mon, 10 Mar 2003 07:21:48 GMT

Your market value

In a dynamic and constantly evolving jobs landscape, it can be a complicated process to understand how to find out the salary benchmark of your position and/or your own market value. In fact, it’s one of the most asked about topics when recruiters meet with individuals. In order to simplify the process and offer some guidance, our staff writer sat down with one of our key leaders who has developed a framework to help individuals find their answer. Whilst market value can be complex and often subjective, the framework lays out the formula so that it doesn't have to be. David Ashton is a consultant with 20 years recruitment experience.

David’s three-part framework includes:

Review your performance.
Undertake market research.
Compare your situational context.

Review your performance
According to David, “The first thing you need to do is separate your own sense of personal value from what you are paid. Your salary isn’t a statement of your value in the world, it is the money you are paid for a set of skills, your experience and your competency in undertaking agreed work.” David believes that once you are able to remove the emotion of how much money you think you should be earning (or want or need to earn), you will be in a much better state of mind to review your performance. Once you’ve mastered the state of mind, then the first part of the exercise is to really assess your position and yourself.

Start by analysing your own level of experience against the people doing the same role as you in your own organization – and that of your competitors.

For example:

How many years’ experience do you have in your role?
What is the average years' experience of your colleagues and peers?
What are your tertiary qualifications and industry certifications?
When was the last time you undertook any new studies to enhance or improve your ability to do your job?
Have you won any awards at work, been nominated or had your performance recognised in any formal way?
Have you consistently achieved or exceeded your key performance indicators year on year?
Select people you know and trust in your business (not your friends) and ask them for an honest evaluation of your performance. If you explain that you are seeking to identify any gaps in your skill set, so you can action as part of your development plan you will generally find people are willing to give you feedback.

Market research
A key part of understanding your market value is to dive into market research. According to David a lot of individuals can excel at doing their own analysis on their performance, however when comparing themselves against the market context many individuals fail to invest the time. He says, “Really take the time to understand what the market is doing more broadly with regard to your particular role. This includes understanding your company, but also that of your competitors and even across industries. By doing this you’ll start to understand what the supply and demand is for people in your position and where you fit into the bigger picture”.

A few suggested approaches for doing market research for your position include:

Speaking with a member from your own internal talent team to understand your role more broadly:
How many vacancies are there in your own business?
Are the vacant roles difficult to fill?
What is the quality of the applications coming through?
Analysing the number of ads online (Seek, LinkedIn etc.). If there are a lot of roles being advertised, it generally means that there is a shortage of talent in this area and the roles are proving hard to fill. Extended vacancy rates are a sure sign that demand outstrips supply.
Speaking with a recruiter who will have a deep understanding of your industry and role. Good recruiters can help you:
Get an insight into your market.
Share what they are seeing across a range of employers.
Offer trends and insights on changes they’ve seen recently in your position.
Develop an understanding of broader market forces and do some research to educate yourself on the following:
How is the economy doing right now?
How is your company doing right now?
Have the same or similar roles to yours been made redundant in other firms recently?
Benchmark your salary. The easiest way to do this is to talk to your internal talent team and understand:
What are the internal remuneration bands within your organisation?
What are the external remuneration bands outside your organization?
Where does your salary sit within these remuneration bands?

Situational context

Despite reviewing your performance and getting market insights, this last part is really a key part to understanding your market value. Situational context is as individual as an individual! It’s important to consider that there may still be factors that can affect your market value which aren’t so black and white or obvious from the outset. Come common considerations to review could be:

How many roles or employers have you had?
Have you stayed long enough in a role to master it and deliver value year on year?
Have you stayed in a role, or with one employer, too long and as a result you have become too narrow in your focus and your awareness of what is happening in the market or how things are done in other organisations?

Once you’ve undertaken the three points above, it’s then about breaking it all down and assessing the factors that can impact your value within each. Below is a summary of the key forces which David states will impact your market value.

Performance summary

Understanding your performance from your trusted sources and colleagues’ perspective is key to identifying if you are meeting or exceeding the objectives of your role. “If you have gaps to close, work with your leader to create a development plan and regularly discuss this in your meetings together,” David advises.

Where you are excelling in your performance, make sure you highlight this to your leader and talent teams - regularly. It’s important to not be shy and of course, not boastful but where you have facts and data to support exceeding your deliverables, your business will want to know. According to David, “Highlighting what you are excelling at not only supports future remuneration discussions, but it also opens the conversation for what you enjoy, what you are good at and identifies areas where you can continue to add value. It’s been noted time and time again, where individuals can play to their strengths is where they tend to excel”.

Market research summary

“A volatile market or poor market conditions doesn’t mean your role isn’t in demand. In fact, it might mean your skills and experience are even more valuable to your organization”. According to David, this research is really important for context as to whether external forces really are impacting key positions within an industry.

“Pay Gaps do exist. A common reason recruiters often see this, is when an individual has been with one company for an extended period of time and that individuals has been regularly promoted within the same organisation. In many cases when this happens salary increases can be small or non-existent. We find candidates have been happy to accept a minimal increase in remuneration in exchange for being given an opportunity to take on a new challenge, learn skills or gain experience. Of course, there is absolutely nothing wrong with this but over time, as individuals have gained experience and mastered their role, this approach can put them behind market levels.” David suggests if you are finding this point relevant to your situation talk to your internal talent team about how you can overcome this challenge and take bigger increases within your organisation for your next role.

Once you’ve understood your salary benchmarks you’ve given yourself a reference point both within and outside your organisation. David advises against seeking too many sources: “Asking your colleagues what they earn is one strategy but beware of the answer. If you discover someone in the same role as you is earning a lot less or a lot more, it might lead to discomfort for you and them. The most effective and confidential way to benchmark your salary in the external market is to speak to a recruitment consultant. If you don’t have a good relationship with someone who works in your area of specialisation and market sector find one - and start building a relationship with them. Someone who knows you, understands what you do, the market you work in, and your skills and experience will become invaluable to you. They can provide a very accurate assessment for you, particularly if they have known you a long time and have a deep understanding of your career evolution and development.”

Situational context summary

The ability to change organisations or move up or within one can greatly affect an individuals market value. On one hand loyalty is seen as a strong value, however diversity of thinking which can come from multiple workplaces is also seen as a strong value. Here David breaks down somethings to consider for your situation.

“There is a balance between moving too often or even internally with one employer and staying in the same role and employer for an extended period. While tenure is valued as it demonstrates loyalty and stability, overstaying with an employer or in one role can also lead to plateauing in a role or falling behind your peers who may have been more mobile.” He goes on to say that “staying in one place too long can also be seen as becoming less able to demonstrate adaptability and exposure to new thinking and ways of doing things.” Whilst this doesn’t necessarily mean that staying in a role for a long time is a negative or demonstrates any of these things, he does stress it’s important to highlight the fact that “where you can demonstrate adaptability and new thinking – it’s always encouraged to do so – particularly if you’ve been in a role for an extended period”.

Finally, the market sector you work in also affects your remuneration. Sectors that are either growing or declining can impact a similar role’s remuneration. As such it’s important for individuals to become exposed to new products or customer channels and keep up to date with significant changes in technology that are disrupting the industry. David makes the point that it’s important to keep up to date with technology no matter the role. “It’s key to understand how technology will affect segments of industry in the future. Individuals should have an understanding of whether their role will be replaced, or significantly eroded in five years by technology.”

Over the last 20 years David has seen this framework highlight all sorts of scenarios for people he’s worked with. “It never ceases to amaze me that when people take a step back and go through this process, they learn a lot. Not just about themselves, or their organisation, but often what they really truly enjoy. I encourage individuals to do this exercise each year – well before performance review time and not necessarily to discuss remuneration. It’s also an exercise in giving oneself options, choices and an awareness in the world. And finally – it’s always an exercise that is as individual as the individual. Enjoy the journey of learning through the stages as much as the outcome you are trying to achieve. Then you’ll never be disappointed”. There you have it, thanks David.

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