In regulated markets, the cost of a weak brief is more than just wasted time, it’s delayed delivery, missed milestones, and candidates you’ll never see.
If you're hiring in financial services, you already know the pressure.
Platforms are upgrading.
Regulations are evolving.
Teams are stretched.
And roles that were once easy to fill now require a level of precision most recruitment models aren’t built for.

It’s not that good candidates aren’t out there. It’s that they’re harder to engage, even harder to land, and the margin for error is shrinking.

The difference between a hire that delivers and one that derails the timeline?
Often, it comes down to how recruitment is approached, as a partnership, not a transaction.

Transactional Hiring Creates Risk You Don’t Need

You’ve likely seen it before:
A role goes out to multiple agencies. Everyone’s briefed quickly. CVs fly in. There’s momentum, but little alignment.
The result?
Overlapping profiles, minimal context, and candidates who haven’t been properly qualified for your environment.

That might be manageable for generalist roles. But in high-stakes areas like fund accounting, SimCorp delivery, or regulatory transformation in Luxembourg, the risks are far greater:
•Mis-hires slow delivery and raise costs
•Internal teams lose trust in the process
•And reputation takes a quiet but measurable hit

In complex, regulated markets, it’s not about speed for speed’s sake. It’s about getting it right the first time.

Strategic Clients Get More Because They Give More
No recruiter can deliver real value without understanding what you're solving for.
The best results tend to follow a very clear pattern:
•A call, not just an email brief
•Transparency around internal pressures and expectations
•Space for open discussion—not just “send us CVs”

When you bring your recruitment partner into the bigger picture, timelines, tech stack, team culture, stakeholder dynamics, you’re no longer just filling a gap. You’re making a decision that protects delivery and drives performance.
That level of alignment turns a sourcing task into a competitive advantage.

Context Beats Volume, Every Time
When hiring for niche skills, such as Avaloq, Temenos, or SimCorp, it's rarely just about hard skills. It’s about business fluency. Stakeholder fit. Speed without compromise.
In locations like London, Luxembourg, Frankfurt and Zurich, where delivery centres, regulatory projects, and asset servicing roles are evolving fast, the margins are tight. The right person can keep a programme on track. The wrong one can set it back six weeks.
A better brief leads to better questions. Better questions uncover the right talent faster. And informed shortlists lead to fewer interviews, not more.

Where Hiring Falls Apart, and How to Keep It on Track

As someone who has supported hiring across financial services for over 20 years, I’ve seen both sides of the story.
I’ve seen firms burn six weeks trying to save money by spreading the role too thinly. I’ve seen great candidates walk away due to slow decision cycles. And I’ve seen what happens when technical teams inherit a “hire” that simply doesn’t fit the delivery model.

But I’ve also seen what works:
•One point of contact
•Clear prioritisation
•Honest feedback
•Trust and transparency

That’s what elevates recruitment from admin to impact.

And Here's What I’d Leave You With
Hiring isn’t just about getting someone in. It’s about getting the right person in - on time, within budget, and with the ability to actually deliver what your business needs.
That’s even more important when you’re operating across regulated markets like Luxembourg, managing global fund operations, scaling teams in Prague, or delivering on core banking transformations.

The lesson I’ve learnt, again and again in this role, is this:
The best hiring decisions don’t start with a shortlist. They start with a smarter conversation.
That conversation isn’t about services or fees. It’s about your real pressures; timelines, compliance, delivery.
It’s about trust.
It’s about clarity.
And it’s about working with someone who understands the structure, complexity, and pace of financial services hiring.

At Skillfinder, we support clients across regulated markets to do exactly that, by bringing focus, precision, and deep sector knowledge to roles that matter. Whether it's a single placement or a regional build-out, the goal is the same: better hires, less stress, fewer do-overs.

So if you're about to brief another recruiter… pause.

Ask yourself:
Are you equipping someone to fill a gap?
Or are you enabling a partner to protect your outcome?

There’s a big difference. And I’m always happy to show you what it looks like in practice.

Start the Conversation with Patrick, Sales Director