Hong Kong: Bernard Hodes Group

HSBC Hong Kong

Careers Web site:
www.hsbc.com.hk/careers

SITUATION

HSBC (The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited) in Hong Kong has made use of the Web to support its recruiting efforts, with a graduate recruitment site providing information on its management development and IT career programs, and a microsite to support the ongoing recruitment of Financial Planning Managers to its Personal Financial Services business.

As the Bank's resourcing needs continued to increase in line with economic recovery and the Bank's "managing for growth" strategy, it became clear that a comprehensive careers information Web site was required. HSBC also planned to implement an e-recruitment tool to drive a jobs and candidate database, which required a Web-based vehicle to function most effectively.

STRATEGY/SOLUTION

Bernard Hodes Group Hong Kong has worked with HSBC in Hong Kong for over a decade, supporting the Bank in its recruitment advertising and communications activities. Two years ago, Bernard Hodes Group conceived and implemented the "Join. The world's local team" employer branding proposition to align with HSBC's corporate brand proposition "The world's local bank".

Employer branding was considered a critical element of the careers Web site, so HSBC approached the Bernard Hodes Group team in Hong Kong to conceive, design, write and build the new site.

There were two key issues affecting the project:
1. Time—the site needed to be designed, written, approved, produced and hosted within a three-month time frame
2. Platform—the site needed to be built to operate on the client's content management platform

The project was broken down into the following key phases:
1. Content gathering: Hodes client service executives met face-to-face with each appropriate line manager and corresponding HR portfolio manager to create a brief on each respective career area. There were 18 briefing meetings in total.
2. Copywriting: Hodes copywriting teams then produced copy proposals for all content and gained approval from HSBC executives.
3. Design: The Hodes design team conceived and submitted front page and content page designs.
4. Production: Upon design and content approval, Hodes web programmers produced HTML and flash code for the entire site.
5. File transfer/Hosting: Upon approval of the site, Hodes web programmers worked closely with HSBC technical teams to transfer all files for hosting on the HSBC content management platform.

THE RESULT

The new careers Web site went live on December 1, 2004, just 96 days after project start-up. This is merely the first phase of the site, which will be further developed in 2005, but it has achieved each of the key objectives set: to provide useful background information and content to potential job applicants, to provide a simple job listing/posting and application tool until the dynamic jobs database is implemented, and to reinforce the employer branding proposition of HSBC in Hong Kong.