Recruitment company Monroe Consulting Group Indonesia’s specialised Professional Services Division was well represented at the Indonesia WOW Brand 2015 organised by respected marketing research firm MarkPlus in Jakarta recently.
Professional Services recruitment consultants Hassan Mohsin and Paulina Lisa Anggraeni attended the conference at the Ritz Carlton, Pacific Place to gain further insights into the latest trends pertaining to the banking, insurance, finance and financial services industries, as well as discuss trends in recruitment with leading executives.
MarkPlus founder Hermawan Kartajaya launched what is the largest marketing event in Southeast Asia, which attracted 5,000 delegates, including business executives from throughout Southeast Asia, academics and the media.
MarkPlus’s WOW Brand awards recognise marketing excellence in a number of industries, including building materials and construction, infrastructure and utilities, resources and mining, property, fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), retail, hospitals, pharmaceuticals, E-commerce, telecommunications and the media.
Notable awards in the banking industry were a lifetime achievement award granted to Professor Mochtar Riyadi, the founder and chairman of the Lippo Group conglomerate, and the Marketer of the Year Award to Jahjya Setiaatmadja, the president director of Bank Central Asia (BCA).
Paulina and Hassan said entrants were measured on the Brand Advocacy Ratio (BAR), a measure of success in converting brand awareness into advocacy and sales.
“One thing we noticed was that it was evident that many automotive insurance and automotive finance companies had a high brand awareness but lacked appeal,” Paulina said. “This was similar in motorcycle leasing … meaning consumers shied away from recommending brands. And in the health insurance category, many brands had high awareness and appeal, but they weren’t converting these into advocacy or sales.”
Hassan said another interesting point was that despite Indonesia being the world’s largest population of Muslims, Sharia banking accounted for less than 5 percent of the total banking assets, with two banks dominating the industry. “The government envisions strengthening the Islamic banking industry with more consolidated institutions with stronger capital adequacy,” he said.
Paulina and Hassan were also lucky enough to attend discussions by Jiwasraya life insurance, and Bank Sumut, with the bank sharing its experiences about entering Sumatra and other regions in Indonesia. Other interesting topics included car financing, pawning and new types of financial technology (fintech) companies offering personal loans online.
There were also a number of points made during a panel discussion on various industries in Indonesia that spelled good news for the Indonesian economy and recruitment industry in general, including:
Automotive Sector: The Association of Indonesia Automotive Industries (Gaikindo) predicts that vehicle sales will increase 5 percent in 2016
Property Sector: Since “Kebijakan Paket Ekonomi” has been released by the government, the property industry is predicting 10 to 12 percent growth in the next few years
Retail Sector: Despite a downturn in 2015, the retail industry is expecting to bounce back with 10 to 12 percent growth in 2016
Food and Beverage Sector: The industry is predicting 8 percent growth in 2016 thanks to the Asean Economic Community (AEC)
Information Technology Sector: The IT industry will continue to grow in 2016, with some estimates predicting 8 percent growth on the back of increased E-commerce
Banking Sector: Given prevailing economic conditions, the banking sector is confident that it can hit growth of 12 to 14 percent in 2016
From a recruitment point of view, Paulina and Hassan said the most interesting aspect of the 10th Annual MarkPlus Conference was the constant exposure to industry insights. “We were able to form a deeper understanding of the latest trends and developments in a range of financial industries, and outlooks for 2016 and beyond,” Hassan said.
Paulina said that as a recruitment consultant with Indonesia’s leading recruitment company it was encouraging that a range of companies, from start-ups to established national and multinational corporations operating in Indonesia, were interested in Monroe Consulting Group.
“Monroe prides itself on not only have the best recruiters in the business, but also ensuring that training is an ongoing part or our development, as well as ensuring that we have a high level of industry-specific knowledge,” she said. “This is how we best service job candidates and our respected corporate clients in what is a very hard market to source the very best executive talent needed to grow a business.”