New recruits in the financial services sector struggle with conflict management according to 25 per cent of HR professionals in the sector. In an international study from global recruitment and talent management specialists Futurestep, a Korn/Ferry company, one quarter of financial services respondents cited this skill as in short supply amongst prospective employees.
In contrast, competencies that were reported as being more readily available in new hires in the sector included problem solving, which topped the list as 19 per cent of organisations cited this as easy to find, followed by 17 per cent who find functional and technical competency easily.
The findings were revealed as part of Futurestep’s inaugural Global Talent Impact Study: Understanding the Race for Impact. Surveying over 1,500 HR professionals across five continents, the study took the temperature of six key sectors*, examining the competencies they are looking for in candidates and attitudes towards measuring the impact of talent.
According to Jason Smallwood, Head of Financial Services at Futurestep, recruiters and employers need to focus on acquiring individuals who possess a much higher competency in conflict management, as this is recognised to be one of the harder skillsets to develop in recruits.
“Firms operating in the financial services sector must be more demanding of new hires so that they can contribute to all aspects of the business. It is essential for employees to have the skills to create and maintain a dynamic workplace, especially in an industry that is facing high levels of uncertainty and greater regulatory pressures than most. Recruiters should understand that finding executives who possess the ability to manage conflict in a corporate environment is a fundamental requirement and work harder to source this attribute in candidates.
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“Using the world renowned Lominger competency framework and our suite of proprietary assessment tools, we are able to help clients by identifying candidates exhibiting strong competencies in areas such as conflict management. We can deliver real impact to businesses by helping to identify gaps in business critical competencies and addressing them through recruiting talent with those skills in abundance.”
