In this episode of our ‘Everything Else is HR’ podcasts, Kevin Britten, our Managing Director, and Tim Montero, our Business Development Manager, discuss the best way to improve the performance of your teams!

Duration: 12 minutes

In this episode of our ‘Everything Else is HR’ podcasts, Kevin Britten, our Managing Director, and Tim Montero, our Business Development Manager, discuss what KPIs are and how they are set.

Duration: 14 minutes

What are you missing out on?

Job ads are a useful channel for much recruitment, particularly for blue-collar or beginner positions, but they are only one of many channels that are available. An ad on a jobs board can generate large volumes of applicants, which all need screening. A post on LinkedIn will reach potential candidates in your team’s network, although there are now around 500,000 LinkedIn users in Cambodia posts are not seen by all of them, only by people in the poster’s network.

Relying on job ads as your recruitment strategy can have negative results from overloading your talent acquisition team with meaningless screening to recruiting only from a very narrow pool of candidates.

By engaging an executive search agency you open your recruitment to a much wider pool of potential candidates and take advantage of all the channels at our fingertips. Here are six important things that a professional, third-party recruiter brings:

Passive candidates

Executive search firms have connections to passive candidates, people who are not active job-seekers; these are usually the strongest candidates. Apart from that, even when they are actively looking for new opportunities many Cambodian seniors will not apply to a job ad so even if they see your post they will not be interested.

Third-party evaluation

We assess candidates objectively, focusing on skills, experience and cultural fit. We do not build a search around internal relationships or other subjective factors so the shortlists we present are selected purely on the client’s requirements.

Expertise

An in-house team may have great insight into your company, but do they have specialized knowledge and experience in recruiting top-level executives? A third-party recruiter has broad knowledge of your sector and experience assessing candidates across functions and this is often more valuable than an in-depth knowledge of your organisation.

Confidentiality

Maintaining confidentiality during an in-house search is very difficult. Our clients regularly open confidential searches with us and our team is used to only revealing partial information, particularly at the early stages of a search.

Time-saving

Our clients save time – in fact, we move at the speed the client requires. When a client is urgent, we can prepare a shortlist faster than an ad can be designed, posted and circulated. When a client wants to reconsider during a search we can keep candidates updated and hold their interest. Our team works as service-professionals, ready to adapt to client needs.

Market insight

We regularly provide compensation benchmarks as a free, value-added service to our clients. We don’t sell data so we are able to give clients frank assessments of how their compensation offering measures against current market rates.

In the end, using a professional, third-party recruiter has massive advantages for your organisation at a very low cost. You outsource risk whilst tapping into a range of channels and a huge network.

We all know that the most engaged employees are the most productive employees. We also know that only first-rate employers can select from the pool of first-rate staff. So how do you make your company into a first-rate employer with the most engaged staff?

The biggest impact on engagement is company culture and although culture can’t be changed overnight by one manager, leadership plays a key role in shaping and enhancing it over time. By focusing on communication, recognition and activities, you can help foster the kind of positive environment that retains talent and boosts performance.

1 – Communicate Effectively

Keep everyone informed by setting clear expectations and sharing updates regularly. Promote transparency about decisions, strategies and challenges. Listen thoroughly to gather feedback that informs future direction. An open flow of information builds trust within teams.

2 – Recognize Contributions

Make people feel valued by acknowledging their work, big or small. Thank employees sincerely and regularly for their efforts. Consider creative ways to show appreciation meaningfully, whether through spot bonuses, gift cards or extra time off. Public and personalized recognition strengthens engagement.

3 – Facilitate Social Events

Organize occasional activities where people can connect outside the workspace. This could be something simple like a weekly team lunch, coffee chats or virtual after-work socials. Team building helps individuals get to know each other on a personal level, cementing workplace bonds over time.

Starting with improved communication, recognition and relationship-focused efforts sets the stage for a highly collaborative and positive company culture where people want to stay and do their best work. Little steps make a big difference for managers. A good culture is the foundation of a successful business.

As a manager, I know that how well my team does their jobs and how content they feel about working here are highly connected. When employees are performing at a high level, it usually means they’re more satisfied in their roles—and satisfaction tends to further drive performance. It’s important for business leaders to understand this relationship between the bottom-line output and the employee experience.

Top performance is a significant advantage for my company overall. I want motivated workers who are contributing value, hitting KPIs, and glowing in their responsibilities. When my people feel accomplished in their roles, it energizes them to keep crushing it. By recognizing and rewarding top performers, I reinforce their value and build pride in the work, which then loops back to maintaining high standards. Satisfied employees who love what they do also stick around longer.

But satisfaction impacts output too—happy team-members perform at a higher capacity. I want engaged individuals who will go above and beyond expectations. Disengaged or checked-out staffers can become disruptive or jump ship. Ensuring morale stays high and that my people feel appreciated for their work is vital so we sustain excellence.

There are concrete actions I can take to positively impact both fronts. Empowerment keeps top talent fulfilled and invested. Structured feedback helps improve performance while building ties. Supportive leadership helps maximize each individual’s potential. An inclusive culture where people feel respected improves performance through heightened commitment.

By emphasizing continual development, recognition, clarity, inclusion and advocacy, I can foster the ideal dynamic of high achievement combined with high job satisfaction across the team. This mutually reinforcing relationship strengthens business results in the long haul. It’s a win-win for my employees and the bottom line that I aim to cultivate.

Cambodia is not immune from global trends. In fact, as a fast-developing economy, we are often at the cutting edge of trends as the impact of technology is felt quickly in a country with 7% growth and a young population all open to innovation.

We can see a few main trends for the future of work:

• Hybrid working. The pandemic accelerated the shift to remote work, and many people experienced and enjoyed remote work. Many ‘knowledge workers’ are now looking for hybrid arrangements that allow them to work from home some days and from the office on other days. This trend will probably be with us for a while as it offers benefits for both employees and employers.
• Automation. Technology now allows for automation to do more and more tasks that were once done by humans. This will lead to job losses in some sectors, but it will also create new jobs in other sectors, such as those related to the development and maintenance of automation technology.
• The rise of the gig economy. The gig economy is characterized by short-term, contract-based work. Today we see this trend has impacted IT in Cambodia – many good IT professionals have discovered that by taking on projects, rather than taking a job, they have more flexibility and control over their work. However, it also comes with some risks, such as a lack of job security and benefits. We also see that many gig economy jobs are actually only ‘side-hustles’.
• The need for lifelong learning. Change in the workplace is a constant, and this means that workers need to constantly learn new skills to stay ahead of the curve. Employers need to invest in training and development programs to help their employees regularly upskill and reskill.

These are just some of the trends that are shaping the future of work in Cambodia. We all need to be aware of these trends so we can adapt and prepare for the changes that are coming.

1. Expertise and Experience

We spend every day, all day finding the right candidates for our clients. We understand the job market, industry trends, and candidate behaviour, so we can provide expert guidance on the best recruitment strategies, candidate requirements, and hiring practices.

2. Time Saving

Recruitment is a time-consuming process that can take up a lot of resources. By giving us the task, you can save time and focus on your core operations, while we handle all aspects of the hiring process, from sourcing to screening and shortlisting candidates.

3. Access to a Wider Pool of Talent

We have a vast network of candidates that may not be accessible through traditional in-house recruitment methods. We tap into our networks, conduct searches on different job boards, and use social media channels to identify the most suitable candidates for a particular position. This is particularly important when you remember that the best candidates often do not respond to job ads.

4. Reduced Hiring Costs

Recruiting in-house comes with a range of costs, including job board postings, recruitment portals, and the time and resources spent on sourcing, screening and interviewing candidates. We help reduce these costs by offering competitive pricing, often charging only a small percentage of the candidate’s salary upon successful hire.

5. Confidentiality and Anonymity

A third-party agency maintains confidentiality and anonymity in hiring. This is particularly helpful when hiring for sensitive roles, when competitors may be critical of who you’re hiring or when the current employee in that role has not yet been terminated.

And of course, as already discussed here, internal bias is removed from the hiring process making because we conduct the initial interviews. This promotes impartiality which is great for your company culture.

Overall, using a recruitment agency offers you the advantages of expert guidance, time-saving, access to a wider pool of talent, reduced hiring costs, confidentiality, anonymity and lack of bias in hiring. Surely this is the best way to source the top candidates for open positions.

Cambodia has very low unemployment and a variety of skills-shortages, meaning that we live in a hot labour market. Attracting and retaining talent in a competitive market is tough. Skills are in high demand, and qualified candidates can choose between multiple job offers.

To stay competitive, businesses need to be proactive and focus on strategies to attract and retain top talent. Here are some tips on how businesses can thrive in a hot labour market:

1. Create a strong employer brand.

Your business’s employer brand is how it is perceived by current and potential employees. A strong employer brand can help attract the best talent to your organization. Define what sets your business apart from others. What values does it embody? What is the work culture of the company? Use this information to craft an employee value proposition that reflects your business’s unique qualities. Make your employer branding efforts visible on job postings, career pages, and social media channels.

2. Offer competitive compensation and benefits.

In a hot labour market, job seekers have the upper hand when it comes to negotiating. It is essential that businesses offer compensation packages that include a good salary, benefits like health care and incentives like bonuses. Review your pay and benefits packages regularly to ensure they are in line with the market.

3. Emphasize career growth and development.

Cambodians value their career path more than ever before. Businesses should acknowledge this by creating career development plans for employees. Provide clear career paths and opportunities for skill-building and training. Employees are more likely to stay at a company where they can see a clear path for career advancement

4. Foster a positive work culture.

Do your employees feel valued and respected? Do your company policies foster work-life balance? Do you offer flexible work arrangements, and promote mental health and wellness. How is communication working in your company? Perhaps it’s time to conduct an employee survey to take their feedback so that you can address concerns or issues.

5. Leverage technology to streamline processes.

Technology can be your friend. Use it to streamline recruitment and hiring processes, like applicant tracking systems, to identify top candidates quickly. Invest in employee engagement platforms for communication, feedback, and recognition. Use analytics tools to measure employee satisfaction and engagement rates to see what needs improvement.

6. Source talent creatively, including remote workers.

Be creative when it comes to sourcing top talent. Apart from using a great agency like us, look beyond traditional recruitment channels. Consider hiring remote and hybrid workers to expand your talent pool.

If you need support in implementing these strategies, please contact us. We help businesses attract and retain top talent in the competitive Cambodia job market.

In the second of our ‘In conversation…’ podcasts, Kevin Britten, our Managing Director, and Simon Baker, our Head of Operations, discuss career choices and career changes. They talk about how enjoyment and satisfaction should be major factors when making work and life choices, and how ‘loving what you do’ really does have a big impact on success.

Our Managing Director Kevin Britten, and Mango Tango CEO Chris McCarthy discuss the HR challenges of recruiting and retaining staff in the creative sector of Media/Marketing. In this podcast they also consider the mix of acquiring experienced talent versus growing your own talent plus the issues arising from work which is divided between agency side and client side.