The pandemic has changed CFOs’ hiring and employee management practice, said employer of record platform Globalization Partners recently when releasing results of a survey jointly done with CFO Research.
The February 2021 survey of CFOs, CEOs, and other senior finance executives cites a common theme that they are prioritising the need to build resiliency and although optimistic, disclose that their businesses are still stabilising and in recovery, the firm pointed out.
Optimism towards organisational performance in 2021 varies across the regions. Asia-Pacific CFOs are more optimistic about success in 2021 than their counterparts in the UK and North America.
Survey results indicate that 65% of APAC respondents expect to exceed goals and expectations in 2021, compared to 46%for UK and 47% for North America.
Survey highlights
The three major changes to CFOs’ hiring and employee management practice are as follows, according to survey results.
CFO sare taking a global view within their hiring approaches.
- Asked to describe their hiring strategy over the next 12 to 18 months as, 48% of APAC respondents say they will attract new talent where they are based while 43% say they want to attract new talent that is unbounded by the geographic restrictions of their company’s operating model.
- APAC CFOs have a high degree of interest in tapping into a more cost-effective, global talent pool—a concept favoured by half of those surveyed — and capturing market share through global expansion, which is favoured by 61%.
CFOs have altered workforce management strategies.
- 74% of the survey respondents in APAC anticipate operating remote and/ or hybrid workforce models in the next 12 to 18 months.
- 83% of executives also say the COVID-19 pandemic fundamentally altered the way they think about hiring and workforce management and 89% say it altered how they consider remote employees or the work-from-anywhere model.
CFOs are deeming global expansion as a top priority in the next 12 to 18 months.
- “Implementing a strategy for global expansion and presence” was deemed a top priority in the next 12 to 18 months for 52% of APAC executives, compared to 38% of the EMEA executives and 36% of the North American executives.
- 55% of the APAC CFOs that are expecting to achieve their goals in 2021 are already engaging a global professional employer organisation (PEO), while 25% plan to use a global PEO within one year to support their international business strategy and 17% plan to engage a global PEO within three years.
