Risk management specialists wanted in South Africa
The skills gap in the risk management field is growing, South African recruitment experts say.
The financial crisis has been a sharp reminder to banks, insurance companies and other financial institutions of the importance of cleaning up the risky areas on their balance sheets and ensuring financial stability. The innumerable news stories highlighting the dire consequences of insufficient controls and lax supervision have been a real wake-up call.
Everyone is trying to focus on their risk management processes, so the demand for people with credit, market and treasury risk experience in support areas as well as front office has grown exponentially and it now far exceeds what was always a limited supply.
"In the last few months there has been a real push down from top executives to devote more time and resources to this sector," says Mike Atter, South Africa country manager for Robert Walters Professional Recruitment Services. "But these are not skills you can acquire in a few months. People with five years' credit risk experience or more are like gold dust. They usually have to be recruited from abroad and can command very high salaries ."
Recruiters say over half of people already working in the sector have received unsolicited offers of a job with a salary to match because of their rarity value.
Banks' biggest need is for people with product specific risk management skills, says Niteske Marshall, general manager of Network Finance.
The need is spread across the board: "There has been a scramble among South African banks to conduct internal audits to bring them in line with international standards," says Alain Cheenne, managing director of Michael Page SA. "Local banks like Absa, Investec, Standard Bank and First National Bank are all looking for people in risk management, but so are foreign banks like HSBC and Deutsche".
