Stanton Chase Newswire May 2014

14
Stanton Chase Bulgaria Newsletter! Your leadership partner, recognized for exceptional results around the globe MAY 2014 Welcome to the third edition of On the following pages you can read: Page 2-3: Consumer Products and Services practice group Page 4-5: Financial Services practice group Page 6-7: Technology practice group Page 8-9: Life Sciences & Healthcare practice group Page 10-11: Industrial practice group Page 12: Mission Possible event review Page 13: Global information from AESC Page 14: Stanton Chase Bulgaria news Dear readers, after some difficult years of economic crisis and stagnation, for the first time since 2008, both in the world economy and in Bulgaria, there are some positive signs of growth. The 2014 forecasts of many respected institutions are expecting Bulgarian GDP to grow grow between 1,5 and 2 %. Our observations show the need for talents in all economic sectors has started to increase. At the same time, although there is still high level of unemployment in Bulgaria (above 11 %), many companies are trying to identify the professionals with the right expertise and competencies for all levels in their organization – the ones who have the functional knowledge, the behavioral attitude and the drive to help use the market potential, to achieve business goals, to serve clients better and, last but not least, to be profitable. The importance of technologies in terms of business processes and models and in terms of new competencies for all functions and levels is growing all the time. All these factors urge companies to be demanding when they attract and develop top and middle management personnel, and to adjust their training and development programs so as to make sure that employees have the necessary set of skills. Herewith in this newsletter we’ve tried to summarize global and local trends in executive search. We also asked professionals from different sectors to share the challenges their companies face in terms of business environment and in terms of talent mapping and retention. We hope and believe you will find the information useful. Enjoy your reading! Sincerely Yours, Darina Peneva www.stantonchase.com

Transcript of Stanton Chase Newswire May 2014

Stanton Chase Bulgaria Newsletter!

Your leadership partner, recognized for exceptional results around the globe MAY 2014

Welcome to the third edition of

On the

following pages you can read:

Page 2-3: Consumer Products and Services

practice group

Page 4-5: Financial Services practice group

Page 6-7: Technology practice group

Page 8-9: Life Sciences & Healthcare practice group

Page 10-11: Industrial practice group

Page 12: Mission Possible event review

Page 13: Global information from AESC

Page 14: Stanton Chase Bulgaria news

Dear readers, after some difficult years of economic crisis and stagnation, for the first time since 2008, both in the world economy and in Bulgaria, there are some positive signs of growth. The 2014 forecasts of many respected institutions are expecting Bulgarian GDP to grow grow between 1,5 and 2 %. Our observations show the need for talents in all economic sectors has started to increase. At the same time, although there is still high level of unemployment in Bulgaria (above 11 %), many companies are trying to identify the professionals with the right expertise and competencies for all levels in their organization – the ones who have the functional knowledge, the behavioral attitude and the drive to help use the market potential, to achieve business goals, to serve clients better and, last but not least, to be profitable. The importance of technologies in terms of business processes and models and in terms of new competencies for all functions and levels is growing all the time. All these factors urge companies to be demanding when they attract and develop top and middle management personnel, and to adjust their training and development programs so as to make sure that employees have the necessary set of skills.

Herewith in this newsletter we’ve tried to summarize global and local trends in executive search. We also asked professionalsfrom different sectors to share the challenges their companies face in terms of business environment and in terms of talentmapping and retention.

We hope and believe you will find the information useful. Enjoy your reading!

Sincerely Yours, Darina Peneva

www.stantonchase.com

Your leadership partner, recognized for exceptional results around the globe MAY 2014

Talented War in Consumer Product and Services companies

Yuliana Popova, Research Associate

Irina Andonova, Senior Consultant

www.stantonchase.com2

Recently, consumer product and services businesses in Bulgaria are passing through some dynamic

changes, among which: continued transformations in large multinationals; acquisition of the production

operations of a major dairy manufacturer; acquisitions of the local operations of food and DIY multinational

retailers by Bulgarian businessmen; solid transformation and leadership change in the largest media group

in Bulgaria.

At the same time, professionals in the sector are willing to consider joining another employer, though not

by all means – career development opportunities remain a major driver. Employers, on the other hand, are

in constant pursuit of “high caliber” professionals – either for their immediate needs, or, sometimes, within

the largest multinationals – for filling the talent pipelines in their organizations. A general tendency we

observe is that multinational/international FMCG companies in Bulgaria, together with established local

ones, continue to look for ready-now professionals with vivid interest and strong

motivation in joining their particular organization. In some cases the

expectations towards newly acquired talents are that they

will not require extensive on-boarding efforts and will add

value“faster than the wind”.

Roles on demand

commercial managers on top and middle

management level

young engineers with experience

in leading teams and project management skills

proven experts in export operations

human resources professionals

with holistic approach and

ability to act as business partners

experts with digital

marketing background

and the opportunities to grow in the organization.In this regard, expectations of the representatives of the so called “Y generation” are very much related to the opportunities for a really fast career progress. They look for interesting dynamic roles with both functional focus and good remuneration package. The majority of candidates who are under 30 would like to grow from an expert role to a middle/senior management position within 2-3 years. At the same time these well-educated young talents are much more mobile within the country and are willing to relocate to Stara Zagora so as to be where the brewing process actually happens and the entire supply chain can be literally observed.

According to your observations which are the major competencies that lack on the market?

It seems that the majority of professionals on the labor market are much more focused on developing their functional competencies rather than their leadership skills. In general we observe a lack of business awareness and initiative. We invest efforts in developing the leadership and people manage-ment capabilities of newcomers at middle manage-ment level, no matter whether they are internally promoted or they come from other companies. At Zagorka we design and deliver specially developed leadership programs, recognized as best practices within the Heineken world. Programs oriented to Sales Representatives and Operators prepare high potentials for the next level – Unit and Shift Manag-ers. Programs for middle management positions ensure a consistent approach in developing and leading people and teams at Zagorka. Actually, as a result currently there are no turnover or retention issues to deal with in the organization.

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Tendencies in the industry, shared by …

Stanton Chase discusses tendencies on the labor market withVictoria Chorbadzhiyska, HR Business Partner – Supply Chain and Finance at Heineken Zagorka and Emil Georgiev, HR Business Partner Commerce.

What are the “must have” requirements towards professionals who join Zagorka SA?

Functional expertise is a key requirement but our business also demands drive, enthusiasm and innovation, no matter whether we search for an expert role or a managerial position. We definitely look for open-minded people who share common values such as courage, passion for quality, respect for individuals, society and the planet. We welcome professionals willing to understand how their everyday work isrelated to the entire business and to deliver accordingly. We strive for increasing efficiency and fostering sales in all business functions. Therefore we need people who could quickly understand the business specifics and would actively contribute to achieving our company’s results. People who can work independently and can cooperate and align with the other business functions.

What are the main motives of executives for joining Zagorka SA?

The motives are complex. In general it is the company’s image and its sustainable business results

that attract candidates. In addition, a safe job is much more valued in the country

in comparison to the capital where

candidatesare attracted by

the unique corporate

culture

Victoria Chorbadzhiyska, HR Business Partner

Emil Georgiev, HR Business Partner Commerce.

www.stantonchase.com3

The state of the financial services sector reflects, in general, the economic situation in the country since it is closely related to all other industries. In 2013 Bulgaria had a relatively stable and profitable banking system with increasing volume of deposits. At the same time, investors were conservative and direct foreign investments continue to decrease. In March 2014 the volume of deposits reported was 38, 5 billion BGN (50 % from the GDP and the highest for the last several years) while the volume of credits, both for corporate clients and consumers, was decreasing. Interestingly enough, the market share of non-banking credit institutions (providing the so called “fast” loans) continues to grow: they already have an exposition of app. 2 billion BGN. Considering all the above, we observe the need for the following essential expertise in finance institu-tions: risk management, collection management (both soft and hard collection), NPL management expertise, as well as information management, client segmentation and business intelligence, based on advanced IT platforms.

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Finance sector: Challenges and changes

Darina Peneva andElena Rusanova

As for the insurance sector, still almost 70 % of the business is generated by motor insurance products. More than half of the companies in the sector (60 %) reported better financial results in 2013 compared to 2012. This seems to be related to strong know-how and expertise in sales, busi-ness development and agency management on the one hand, and efficient claims management, on the other. Overall analyses and forecasts for the financial services sector do not promise any signs of significant changes for 2014. Still some mergers/ acquisitions might be expected within the banking industry. Last but not least, both banks and non-banking credit institutions are already facing severe legislation changes, especially in terms of consumer loan regulations, which will affect their business.

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Tendencies in the industry, shared by …

What are the challenges today for the banks in Bulgaria?

The biggest challenge is to bring back the trust in the commercial banks after the biggest financial crises in the word’s history. The financial crises started in USA with derivatives (called later “toxic books”).The “toxic books” were issued in the Investment Banks, but being a very dynamic source for financing the Commercial banks, they injured a lot the inter-banking market. It practically was closed in the years 2008-2010. For this reason the Commercial Banks (worldwide) had to finance themselves only by attract-ing deposits and by fees and commissions. This fact brought us to a higher cost of capital for the Com-mercial Banks (including the Banks in Bulgaria), which resulted into higher interest rates (and as whole, higher cost) for the customers. The backward process is very slow and painful. That’s why it is a very big professional challenge for all of us in the Commercial Banks in Bulgaria.

For what positions you are looking for most often? Are there competences you don’t find in the potential candidates?

We are looking most often for “Tellers” and any kind of “Relationship Managers”. The issue with the “Tellers” is their practical preparation to work with cash, to sale and to really service customers. The issue with “Relationship Managers” is their practical ability not only to make financial analyses, but to be able also to target customers effectively, to analyze and find adequately their real business needs and to offer them right product and solutions in the right moment for them, in order to become their best trust-ed financial consultants.

Are there new roles in the industry which you don’t find people for with enough experience and competence? If “Yes”, how do you solve this issue?

Here I would like to add the role of the “Middle Manager”. The contemporary understanding of “management” in the majority of

Bulgarian companies has still serious gaps to be overpassed. This is especially valid for the management of “Human Capital”.

Our efforts in EUROBANK Bulgaria AD are directed to intensive training in the sphere of management.

The e-learning training courses of Harvard Business School are very effective tool for solving

this issue. We trained with it already over 140 young managers and we feel the effect

of all that already!

Emil Georgiev, HR Director at EUROBANK Bulgaria AD

www.stantonchase.com5

Your leadership partner, recognized for exceptional results around the globe MAY 2014

What are the challenges today for the banks in Bulgaria?

The biggest challenge is to bring back the trust in the commercial banks after the biggest financial crises in the word’s history. The financial crises started in USA with derivatives (called later “toxic books”).The “toxic books” were issued in the Investment Banks, but being a very dynamic source for financing the Commercial banks, they injured a lot the inter-banking market. It practically was closed in the years 2008-2010. For this reason the Commercial Banks (worldwide) had to finance themselves only by attract-ing deposits and by fees and commissions. This fact brought us to a higher cost of capital for the Com-mercial Banks (including the Banks in Bulgaria), which resulted into higher interest rates (and as whole, higher cost) for the customers. The backward process is very slow and painful. That’s why it is a very big professional challenge for all of us in the Commercial Banks in Bulgaria.

For what positions you are looking for most often? Are there competences you don’t find in the potential candidates?

We are looking most often for “Tellers” and any kind of “Relationship Managers”. The issue with the “Tellers” is their practical preparation to work with cash, to sale and to really service customers. The issue with “Relationship Managers” is their practical ability not only to make financial analyses, but to be able also to target customers effectively, to analyze and find adequately their real business needs and to offer them right product and solutions in the right moment for them, in order to become their best trust-ed financial consultants.

Are there new roles in the industry which you don’t find people for with enough experience and competence? If “Yes”, how do you solve this issue?

Here I would like to add the role of the “Middle Manager”. The contemporary understanding of “management” in the majority of

Bulgarian companies has still serious gaps to be overpassed. This is especially valid for the management of “Human Capital”.

Our efforts in EUROBANK Bulgaria AD are directed to intensive training in the sphere of management.

The e-learning training courses of Harvard Business School are very effective tool for solving

this issue. We trained with it already over 140 young managers and we feel the effect

of all that already!

www.stantonchase.com6

Elena Rusanova,Research Associate

2013 was a dynamic year for the ICT sector where the expansion of existing and new companies were happening at a rapid pace. Several new software and BPO companies came on our market, which logically led to the opening hundreds new jobs in Bulgaria. A significant trend is also the continuous development of already present technology companies which were focused on intensive expansion oftheir structures, which also led to the opening of new jobs. This trend is rather evidence that the positivereputation of Bulgaria in the field of technology and BPO industry is justified as the attending companies continue their growth here. As in previous years in the IT sector the biggest and most serious demand was for programmers. This demand continues to grow and is becoming even more competitive due to the fact the existing players are starting to import specialist from other European countries for the open positions in Bulgaria. There was also a demand for IT roles related to system administration, database administration, technical support and project managers.

Last year passed under the sign of strong business growth in the software and BPO sectors, unfortunately, it was only a trend in those subsectors of the ICT industry that are related to export or work with foreign markets. In other subsectors that work for the national market in Bulgaria, including the telecom sector was observed mainly decreasing sales, organization restructuring and layoffs.

Bulgaria – attractive and perspective partner in the ICT and BPO sector

Certain strong

growth was seen

in the BPO sector, where there is stiffer

competition for candidates who speak

languages of the European language groups -

especially French, German,

Scandinavian languages, est.

The competitive levels of salaries

compared with the European as well as

the proficiency in these

languages continue to influence

positively to the growth

of the sector.

What challenges are telecom companies facing today?

I would say the economic environment in the country in general and strong competition in our industry in particular. At the same time our business is dynamic and we consider challenges normal and even useful. They help us become better in what we do so thatwe offer better products and services for our clients. As for any other leading company, for us the invest-ment in the development of technology and society is essential because we believe that it is our duty. However, in times of economic challenges, this is not an easy task.

What roles do you most often search professionals for?

Most often these are sales professionals for the needs of our two retail channels (Mtel and Bob shops). Our objective is to be close to our customers and to make it easy for them to contact us, which requires well-trained personnel all around the country. Of course, the development of technologies requires high level of expertise in the area of technology. In addition to the internal trainings we provide to our colleagues to improve on their knowledge, specific expertise we search from the labour market. Recently we had a campaign for recruiting marketing talents too.

Are there any new roles in the industry you find difficult to attract people for? If yes, how do you solve these cases?

As a whole, the IT sector is a difficult one, considering the continuous demand for such professionals and their shortage on the market. That is why we have implemented a special program for recruiting, retaining and developing young talents. We partner with leading universities and various educational organizations to help young people with their career orientation and develop their competences.

Recently, we witness a tendency for searching for specialists with good technical background but also clear awareness of its business application. Such professionals are very valuable – in our company they play a key role of a “bridge” between technology and the business. However, they are hard to find, this is why a major goal of our partnership with Bulgarian universities is to support their development.

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Miglena Ouzounova – Tzekova,HR Director at Mobiltel

www.stantonchase.com7

Tendencies in the industry, shared by …

The pharmaceutical sector in Bulgaria is among the very few ones that still enjoy market growth – 6,3 % in 2013 with modest increase expected in 2014. Key challenges for the sector are the constantly changing legislation, the lack of approved National Health Care strategy, the issue with parallel export and the relatively low percentage of reimbursement compared to some Western European countries. In terms of middle and senior management professional expertise, there is still evident lack of competencies for some roles. In addition, the sector is still fairly conservative in its attitude towards experts and managers from other industries. Ourobservations show that Market Access Manager, Medical Scientific Liaison and Public Affairs Manager remain among the relatively new but important roles within Life Science and Healthcare organisations. On a global level a main challenge for pharmaceutical companies is the weak pipeline of new molecules which, together with compliance and legal limitations, affects the companies’ long-term strategy for development. Last but not least, some potential mergers and acquisitions are widely discussed and can be expected in the period 2014-2015.

www.stantonchase.com8

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Life Sciences and Healthcare – The sector with market potential

Biliana Djambaska, Consultant Life Science & Healthcare

We talked with Ruzha Draganova, who is Head of HR Country Group Romania and Bulgaria, about the Life Sciences and Healthcare sector.

What are the challenges that the pharmaceutical companies in Bulgaria face today?

The pharmaceutical industry in Bulgaria has evolved following the global trends and reaching maturity of the market in many of its segments. In my opinion one of the biggest challenges for the pharmaceutical companies today is to face this development and adapt business strategies andmanagement style accordingly. There are still companies on the Bulgarian pharmaceutical market that are tempted to apply the good, old and proven working methods and practices. This, however, will not bring the same good results in the future. Needless to say, the compliance factor has increasing impact on the way pharmaceutical companies are doing business nowadays. When launching and promoting products, we need to take into consideration more factors than we did in the past and compliance is the leading one.

Tendencies in the industry, shared by...

What are the positions that you most frequently need to recruit candidates for? Are there any competencies that potential candidates usually lack?

All pharmaceutical companies in Bulgaria developed at a rapid pace and passed through a certain “renewal” process in recent years. Here I mean both structure and internal processes and procedures. Bayer, of course, does not make an exception, and this is to show that we are changing and adapting according to the new business trends. Lately we recruited candidates for marketing and medical sales positions, as well as medical advising and pharmacovigilance. We are looking for professionals who would comply with our company values and match our corporate culture. In this aspect, the most difficult candidates to find in the current pharmaceutical labor market are those who are able and daring to challenge the status quo, contribute with innovative ideas and approach to business challenges, and at the same time keep high level of integrity in their behavior. In our dynamic and constantly changing business environment we look for competencies related to the way candidates deal with diversity. This especially goes for the managerial positions where candidates should be able to align different perspec-tives and stimulate the team to follow the diversity of thoughts.

Are there any new roles and positions in the pharmaceutical industry that you find difficult to source candidates for in terms of competencies and experience? If yes, how do you solve these cases?

The dynamic development in the pharmaceutical sector imposes new meaning and performance expectations event to “old” roles and positions. In parallel with the proven standard recruitment methods, we advertise positions internally to our employees and use largely their networks and recommendations. We have certain cases, when a challenging new position is foreseen and planned in advance in the organization. Then we apply our talent pipeline and promote high potentials from other departments in the company. When we face difficult recruitment (in most cases in relation to executive search) where we cannot source internally, we prefer to partner with specialized companies that have the necessary expertise and knowledge of the market to solve the case with us. Stanton Chase is one of our partners and we can proudly say that we had excellent cooperation in the past years.

www.stantonchase.com9

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Ruzha Draganova - Head of HR Country Group Romania/ Bulgaria

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Bulgarian companies facing challenges in industrial sectorThere are slight trends of economic recovery also visible in industrial companies in Bulgaria. Historically and logically, companies involved in mining and metal production have high export levels, thus supporting the local economy. However, small and medium enterprises in the industrial sector still suffer from the global crisis and still try to find their place both on regional markets and the global one. In terms of middle and senior management professional expertise, all manufacturing plants suffer from the lack of skilled and qualified professionalsfor engineering activities, project management, quality control and maintenance. The business environment is quite demanding and those managers are expected to have a combination of soft and hard skills such as: communication and leaderships skills, technical experience, financial comprehension and very good understandingof specific software applications. In addition, English is a must; sometimes a second language such as German or French is also required. At the same time Bulgarians with engineering background and knowledge of foreign languages are actively looking for opportunities abroad. Thus Bulgarian companies face the challenge to attract, develop and keep their engagement. Being part of the EU family, local manufacturers have opportunities to penetrate other markets and they also compete for the interest of foreign experts from the region.

Bissera Stoyanova, Research Associate

Tendencies in the industry, shared by…

www.stantonchase.com10

Dobromir Minkov, Partner / Senior Consultant

We asked Milena Bogdanova, HR Director East Europe region at „Ideal Standard – Vidima” about the tendencies in the industry. „Ideal Standard – Vidima” is part of Ideal Standard International, а multinational company with headquarters in Brussels, with 3100 employees and impressive history of 70 years in Bulgaria.

www.stantonchase.com11

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What are the challenges to you and your team?

I would say that the main key challenge towards the HR team does not change – it’s to ensure we have employees with the right motivation and skills to deliver results and develop leaders able to grasp opportunities and drive the development of the company. What changes is the dynamics and the focus hence the HR programs in support of business objectives. In production companies as ours there is high focus on productivity and overall efficiency – hence our HR programs range from basic ones like balancing the working hours towards production load to skills and leadership trainings and various engagement programs. What I would like to specifically point out is that it is very important that all HR initiatives are integrated, i.e. each program or system is part of / in support with the rest targeting the same overall outcome.

What are the positions that you most frequently need to recruit candidates for? Are there any competencies that potential candidates usually lack useful a production company?

In the last couple of years we have maintained production capacity at the same level, however we have run substantial organizational changes. As a big manufacturer, we primarily need people for roles in production. To ensure we have the employees with the required skills set we have a thorough system – partnership programs with local technical schools for jobs related with fittings manufacturing and training center in the ceramic plant in which each new employee receives professional training on his new job. We are proud to say that we grow all our production leaders internally, (ex. last year following and organizational change in ceramic we have promoted 17 people to become production line managers). Of course we also need new people for the functions and the ratio is growing. Here our summer internship program comes into play in order to source and select best talent. I would say that so far we manage to staff the people we need. I believe that the reputation of the company as a partner and employer also plays a role to attract good professionals.

What kind of training and development programs related to manufacturing you have put in place?

Each year in September we develop annual training programs as part of the annual operation planning. The progam is very detailed - covers all units and individuals, uses the assessments from the annual performance reviews and covers the full range of technical, organizational and soft skills trainings. Two major programs that we are very proud of - one is “Quality School” in ceramics which ensures all shop floor employee pass a refresher training related to their job - changes in technology, in processing, lessons learned (and senior production managers are the trainers!) The other one from last year we called “Flexible Employees” – this program provides a systematic way to learn and practices one more profession and thus provides internal flexibility to manage dynamics in production. For the success of such progams it’s essential we have the business context, thus full support of management, create efficient organization process (the HR domain) and communicate or ‘sell’ to participants to get their buy in.

Milena BogdanovaHR Director, East Europe region at Ideal Standard

Tendencies in the industry, shared by…

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Bulgarian Industry: Mission PossibleThe Bulgarian Business Leaders Forum hosted the Bulgarian Industry: Mission Possible conference on 11 April 2014 in Plovdiv with the help of Dobromir Minkov. He was big part of the organization and contacting the local industrial companies. Over 150 guests attended the Bulgarian Industry: Mission Possible conference among which were top managers of Bulgarian and international companies from Plovdiv and elsewhere, government and municipal authorities, economic experts, diplomats.

It seems it is not just a matter of desire or promises from the government to have actual re-industrialization; it is a matter of business climate in Bulgaria and the regional/ global trends. The manufacturing of products with added value is something that brings the economy up, increases the GDP and supports foreign investments, which are very important for the growth of every economy. That is why each government is trying to attract foreign investors. Furthermore, each plant has some local suppliers, subcontractors and use of local services, which makes the so called business eco-system.

Last, but not least, all big plants in Bulgaria have programs for training and development of their personnel, because they have found that local education is not flexible and applicable for their needs. Some of them have joint programs with local universities as well. There are talented young Bulgarians,but the government and local businesses should find a way to attract them to stay in Bulgaria by giving them a chance and vision for the development and growth of the country. Most of the participants seemed to expect sustainability of the government policy, as well as better administrative support by changing some local labour regulations.

Source picture: BBLF page

All the above is well known to local and central authorities, but further actions are still strongly desirable.

Bulgarian business environment has a few advantages that are good prerequisites for further foreign investments in the industrial sector, but they are not enough in a very competitive global situation, where each economy is a kind of a corporation that tries to attract the most promising and big investors world-wide.

The

strengths of Bulgaria:

EU membership, flat 10 %

corporate income tax,

good geographical position –

at a crossroads between East and West,

Europe and Asia/ Middle East Africa,

the lowest wages in EU

(it’s both an advantage

and a disadvantage ).

The weak points:

political instability and lack

of sustainability in the government’s

decisions; lack of strategic views and

agreement about local priorities;

high corruption rate/ low level

of transparency; negative birth rate,

low productivity and efficiency

related to Central and

Western Europe.

According to the

National Statistical Institute,

there are around 300’000 active

companies in Bulgaria - industrial ones

take up about 8%. Industrial companies

with more than 250 employees are

less than 700; their GDP is about 7-8 billions,

which is 38% of the total GDP of the country; they

employ half a million employees, which is

about 25% of the whole working population

(total number of working population

is about 5 million in total,

between the age

of 16 and 64).

Source: Global Outlook Report by the Association of Executive Search Consultants

The 2014 Executive Search Industry Global Outlook Report by the Association of Executive Search Consultants (AESC, shows

that retained search consultants feel more optimistic than they have since 2011. The report was conducted in December 2013

and received 169 responses from AESC members worldwide, including 43% from the Americas, 34% from EMEA and 23% from

Asia Pacific.

According to the 2014 Report , almost two-thirds (64%) of respondents feel positive about the industry for the first six months of

2014, compared to 29% this time last year and 35% in July 2013. One third of respondents (33%) have a neutral outlook for the

first half of 2014, meaning that only 3% do not feel positive about the next six months – the lowest percentage of negative

responses since the AESC started surveying members’ outlook in 2008.

This confidence is likely to affect

retained search firms’ hiring plans,

as more respondents said they

plan to hire more consultants (39%)

and researchers (24%) than

to maintain the same

number of consultants (20%)

and researchers (12%).

Worldwide the top three regions that are expected to experience

thegreatest talent shortage are China, Brazil and Africa, while the USA crept up from seventh to fourth. The functions that are

expected to see the greatest shortage of talent are General Management/ CEO/COO, Business Development and Board of

Directors.

China, Brazil and Africa are expected to see the greatest shortage of talent during the first half of 2014, which is consistent with

the findings of the last two outlook reports.

Similarly, the general management / CEO/ COO, business

development, and board of directors’ roles have all been

considered as the functions with the greatest shortages of

talent for the last two outlook reports.

37%

22%

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Which of the following markets do you think will see thegreatest shortage of talent in the first half of 2014?

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Which of the following functions do you think will see thegreatest shortage of talent in the first half of 2014?

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Senior Executive Talent Shortage expectations from AESC

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Your leadership partner, recognized for exceptional results around the globe MAY 2014

Stanton Chase Sofia celebrates

We are happy to share with you that we had our 8th birthday on 20th February this year.

For our eighth anniversary we are glad to say that we have earned the respect of leading Bulgarian and multinational companies and we already have longstanding partnerships with some of them. Quite a few candidates, identified by Stanton Chase team have received a promotion in the country and abroad.

Our team of consultants and researchers is a successful combination of professionals who have considerable experience and knowledge of the industries they specialize in and experience in the recruiting business, and last but not least – have strong network of contacts with key professionals. We would like to thank you for being our partners and friends through the years.

We are proud of our young and ambitious team who is “growing up” and becoming more experienced with each project.

In recognition of our team work …Through the years Stanton Chase Bulgaria has hundreds successfully finished projects. We are proud to present last year’s champions.

The award for billing champion given for highest revenue for 2013 went to Industrial Team Dobromir Minkov and Bissera Stoyanova.

For second year in a roll the technology team celebrated highest rate of client satisfaction - Team Darina Peneva and Elena Rusanova.

Placement Rate Champion for 2013 is Biliana Djambaska.

Recognition of our hard work was the fact Stanton Chase Bulgaria was ranked among top performing offices in terms of increase in revenues along with our colleagues in Finland, Johannesburg, Athens, Milan, London and Auckland.

Bissera and Dobromir receiving award certificate by Darina Peneva and Harris Pezoulas.

8anniversary

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