Financial institutions will count on technology more than ever to handle the increasing complexities of business with a minimum of staff, to satisfy customers' need for convenience and to abide by increasingly complex regulatory rules. On the other hand, big data, biometrics and mobile payments are among trends impacting the financial services industry. Marketing's big data boost, mobile payments explosion, locking down customer data, marrying data from disparate systems are now some of the core characteristics of financial services.

Another challenge in this sector is mergers and acquisitions that resulted to shrinking the number of banks and financial institutions, while integration is still an issue. Compliance gets an increasingly role in financial operations; financial institutions need to be more proactive than reactive in determining when they can legally initiate a foreclosure or making other decisions with potential regulatory implications.

Financial institutions are shifting from the traditional product focus to a more client-centric strategy. Although most of them have virtually identical products, their customers are obviously distinct and, hence, offer these firms a pathway for differentiation. Institutions that cultivate a deep knowledge of their customers can tailor offers to individuals in a timely manner based on activity in their accounts and lifestyle changes or choices; the customer is core. What’s more, greater marketing precision can direct banks’ spending more efficiently and help control costs.

In a few words, customer centricity, clear and consistent focus, executional excellence, smart partnering, new and mobile technologies, risk management and ruthless performance management influence operational performance, provide a huge immediate advantage and are essential to long-term success in today’s low-growth, low-margin environment. 

In this changing environment, PfB supports financial institutions to attract, develop and retain the talent that will move them forward; we understand  the importance of making sure your business has a steady pipeline of the right people, as the role of financial executives is changing, expanding, and becoming more complex. Integrity, ethics, transparency, deep knowledge of modern technology and efficiency are increasingly demanding by financial experts.

Our team is specialized into respective business sectors, being:

Asset Management

Retail and Corporate Banking

Investment Services

Risk Management

Private Equity

Transaction Services

Electronic Trading

Insurance

Our practice includes recruiting of and retaining outstanding experts, who add value in consumer companies.

 

In today’s continually evolving digital era, leading IT and telecom corporations need to balance supporting the business’s current operations with bringing in new perspectives and emerging technologies. Striking that balance means working and learning differently and fostering a next-generation workforce that can manage the old and new.

Many technology and telecom corporations are improving their ability to sense and to respond to emerging trends; they modernize legacy systems and delivery models. But even more than this, they really focus on understanding their executives: Who they have, what skills they bring, if they have sufficiently forward-thinking in their use of technology to lead the organization in innovation. Corporations need to consider the future IT expert’s new skill sets and behaviors; they must set policies that guide, govern and support executives’ evolving adoption of modern devices, applications, data and collaboration.

Modern corporations have been impacted by numerous technology trends, including the consumerization of IT, rising mobile adoption, cloud and big data, among others. The rapid pace of technological change brought about by these trends has challenged companies to transform and operating in ways that can help streamline and accelerate development projects.

In this context, technology corporations need to alter their approach to recruit new talent and to retain and develop the existing; they must shift to new concepts and focus on executives who can bring more to the job than just technical degrees and experience. 

In PfB we know how to support technology corporations to attract, retain and develop the talent that will drive the business, anticipate and adapt to changes in business demand and technology trends. We know that competence and skill sets of technology experts will be substantially different in the future and we have adapted the approaches to support companies to get to that point. Moreover, traditional credentials may not apply in this new world. Certifications and years of experience are irrelevant in nascent technologies. Accomplishments and hands-on capabilities, which may or may not be developed through traditional employment or academic avenues, may well trump credentials. A demonstrated propensity for and ability to learn new skills may become as important as one’s existing knowledge base.

Our team is specialized into these distinct business sectors, being:

Digital and Cloud Services

Systems and Devices

Software and Services

Telecom

Semiconductors

Mobile Applications

Contact Centers

Transactions Processing and Payments

Our practice includes recruiting of and retaining outstanding experts, who add value in technology companies. 

Life science companies will continue to find new ways for decreasing costs, streamlining operations and improving value. Companies will maintain focus on therapies, technologies and investments that capitalize on their core business strengths, whether through partnerships or by divesting underperforming units. Commercialization and regulatory hurdles will remain a primary concern, particularly as generic and biologic drugs further penetrate world markets and governments and payers push for lower prices. A top priority for many life science companies is how to mitigate these challenges, while also proving the value of their therapies to payers and patients.

In short, industry consolidations, emerging markets expansion, innovative, orphan and specialty drugs, investment in R&D, big data and analytics, technology, globalization, supply chain agility and pricing pressures are some of the challenges this industry faces.

In this context, life sciences and health care companies compete globally for increasingly scarce technical and professional skills. Rapid expansion into new markets is challenging to build global workforce capabilities. In order to establish a robust talent pipeline, companies must understand skills gaps today and into the future; to identify where key skills are located, where they are going, and how to source or locate talent hubs; to investigate new skill pools; to recognize the length of time needed to develop key skill sets; to foster a culture that encourages continuous learning. 

Life sciences companies face an urgent need to hire and develop leaders at all levels which possess global fluency and flexibility, ability to innovate and inspire and have a deep understanding of the sector’s rapidly changing landscape. The challenge is to develop leadership pipelines that are global and deep, reaching every level of the organization. Tomorrow’s leaders must be able to quickly formulate and implement enterprise-wide responses to marketplace trends, aligning business objectives with the organization’s structure, culture, talent and competences.

PfB sets apart due to our deep industry knowledge and expertise in the following business sectors, being:

Pharmaceutical

Generics

Clinical Research

Diagnostics

Medical Devices

Medical Technology

Consumer Health

Our practice includes recruiting of and retaining outstanding experts, who add value in life science and healthcare companies.

Consumer companies face major challenges, due to slow or negative growth in people’s disposable income and due to changing consumer attitudes toward products and brands. Even where economies are starting to perform better, the squeeze on after-tax wages, especially for the middle class, younger people, and families, is depressing consumer spending. Continued weakness in consumer disposable income regardless of which way macro GNP uncertainties break is expected in the upcoming years. Meanwhile, what we call the great fragmentation is manifested in consumer behavior and market response. In both developed and emerging markets, there is a wider variety among consumers now than at any time in the recent past. Growth is evident both at the top of the market (where more consumers are spending for higher-quality food and other packaged goods) and at the lower end (where an increasing number of consumers are concentrating on value). But the traditional middle of the market is shrinking.

Consumer companies in response must dramatically shift the route they take to reach consumers in terms of distribution and communications. Actions such as building a comprehensive data set of sources on consumer, brand, product, and competitive behavior, developing analytical skills, tools, and routines that use the data in the ways that are critical for the specific business, translating those insights into actions at the product, brand, and retail level, planning the portfolio of brands and products to efficiently cover full market variety and using this as a lens for M&A plans, managing the expanding portfolio of retail channels to provide the right incentives, reflecting differences by channel in how consumers and retailers interact, managing the interactions between the retail channels and managing complexity rather than merely trying to minimize it, are more than required.

In this changing environment, PfB supports consumer companies to attract, develop and retain fit-in talent. As global trends impact businesses, it’s required to have those people who drive top line growth and innovation across markets, channels, products, and customers, while managing tight bottom line fundamentals. We understand the importance of making sure your business has a steady pipeline of the right people to move your company forward and to lead now and in the future.

Our team is specialized into five distinct business sectors, being:

Fast Moving Consumer Goods

Luxury Goods

Retail

Media

Marketing Services and Advertising

Our practice includes recruiting of and retaining outstanding experts, who add value in consumer companies.

Travel, Hospitality and Leisure sector has been through major transformation recently. Global hotel investment continues to steadily increase, showing that the industry continues to gain momentum even in the face of accelerating geopolitical instability, health and other concerns. M&A come to accomplish this landscape; M&A activity overall and in the sector is driven by a desire for incremental growth, the strategic merit of transactions and the availability of debt and equity on favorable terms; the presence of these elements has fueled M&A in recent years. A number of “push” and “pull” factors drove the year-over-year increase in cross-border activity; major investments are of Asia origin.

M&A’s in the sector is a major factor leading to consolidation of third-party management companies, seeking to ensure operational excellence. Third-party management companies provide daily property and operational management services as well as year-round financial and accounting support for company owners, while marketing the brand through a franchise agreement.  Improving fundamentals and increased access to capital have led investors to seek out this operational expertise to maximize investment on both newly acquired and existing assets.

The millennial generation has also increasingly impacted the lodging industry, calling into question products and offerings that have for decades been industry mainstays. Today’s emerging traveler, millennials and millennial-minded travelers, is more cost-conscious and experience-focused than ever before, whether traveling for business or leisure. To meet these changing demand preferences, hoteliers are seeking innovative alternatives to traditional lodging products.

Regarding new hotels, technology is by their side; in this competitive environment for new hotel brands may be better than ever thanks to technology integration within the industry, which has leveled the playing field. New entrants now coexist with long-established global players in an online world of transparent pricing, social media marketing and digital reputations.

But new advances in technology have also impact on the relationship between hospitality companies and clients. User-friendly, powerful smartphones and tablets are changing travelers’ online preferences and habits, redefining how they research, plan and book a trip. Empowered with more knowledge and social media, today’s traveler is pushing hotels and hospitality companies for improved products and services in their travel experience. From an ownership standpoint, advances in data analytics are transforming the hospitality industry with the potential to enhance corporate financial performance and offer detailed insight into customer preferences. As the use of mobile devices, social media and advanced analytics continues to proliferate and as online distribution channels become more accessible, technology has created new opportunities for companies to drive operating efficiencies and engage with travelers.

The way that hospitality companies recognize revenue is affected by the new financial principles, such as US GAAP, IFRS etc. As a result, hospitality companies around the globe will need to re-evaluate their policies and practices for recognizing revenue for arrangements associated with owned, managed and franchised properties.

Last but not least, certain tax issues must be carefully evaluated as an integral part of a company’s overall investment strategy.

We support hospitality companies to attract, develop and retain fit-in talent. As global trends impact businesses, it’s required to have those people who drive top line growth and innovation across markets, channels, products, and customers, while managing tight bottom line fundamentals. We understand the importance of making sure your business has a steady pipeline of the right people to move your company forward and to lead now and in the future.

Our team is specialized into the following business sectors, being:

Hotel operators, owners and franchises

Restaurants and Coffee Chains

Car rental

Cruise lines

Tour operators

On line tour operators

Visitor attractions and leisure parks

Commercial airlines

Contract catering

Our practice includes recruiting of and retaining outstanding experts, who add value in hospitality companies.

The gathering strength of the industrial sector around the world seems to be one of the most positive trends, although the global economy and the recent recession. More productive and cost-efficient manufacturing techniques, increased M&A activity and some more relative factors primarily drove the sector’s newfound resurgence. Further growth is expected as the world demand for parts escalates from robust industries, such as airlines, automotive, energy, and building products.

On the other hand, industrial firms have realized that new digital technologies are not only best suited to consumer-oriented companies, but also fit to them. As a consequence, they are investing in digitization opportunities within their sales operations, as well, equipping their field sales teams with mobile devices and visual tools rather than printed brochures. These technologies are helping sales forces quickly configure products as customers require, while providing those customers with greater insight on prices and lead times. Thanks to new tools, manufacturers are collaborating more closely with key suppliers on the co-development of parts and systems and gaining better insight into the supply chains that feed manufacturing and distribution. Advanced analytics are aiding in the understanding of market trends and improving demand planning while simultaneously communicating product changes throughout the supply chain. By incorporating into products digital advances such as sensors and other machine-to-machine (M2M) technologies, some industrial companies offer such capabilities as real-time performance monitoring, quality management, and rapid response to product failures.

Companies moving quickly on this front have been able to distinguish themselves from competitors, even as they take these technologies to the factory floor, where, combining IT developments with robotics and other advanced techniques, they can now better monitor and control all kinds of manufacturing activities. Many are also investing in digital back-office systems for managing products in the marketplace. Business intelligence systems, for example, can help companies better understand just how profitable their different product lines are, content and knowledge management technologies can improve the management of intellectual property, and data analysis and synthesis capabilities can help companies cope with the mountains of data generated by the sensors embedded in their factories and the products they build.

As the profile of the industrial sector is changing, companies are already struggling to find and keep the skilled people they need, both on the shop floor and in the office. Thus, investing in growth, talented people will become more critical at every stage of an industrial firm’s operations. The advent of digitization will require new expertise in a variety of fields — not just product development, manufacturing, and IT, but also marketing, customer interaction, corporate development, and more.

PfB supports industrial companies to to finding and attract these executives that will contribute to the greater promotion of the industry’s possibilities, benefits, innovation opportunities, and prospects.

PfB sets apart due to our deep industry knowledge and expertise in the following business sectors, being:

Aerospace

Automotive

Chemicals

Construction and Building Materials

Packaging

Mining and Metals

Industrial Equipment

Energy

We have a deep understanding of changing demands, globalization, new technologies, mobility and we are ready to support industrial companies with the right executives.

Logistics and transportation industry is in an enviable position. Fuel prices have tumbled and are not likely to return anytime soon. Volumes are strong and forecast to improve further as the impact of the recent severe recession recedes. Moreover, the enormity of the downturn forced the industry to cut costs sharply and identify efficiency opportunities in their operations just to stay above water. The success of those efforts has streamlined many of these companies significantly, putting them in a position to continue taking advantage of growth even as they add jobs and expand.

When times are good, transportation and logistics companies would be wise examine the real but not immediately obvious disruptions that may be on the horizon; to anticipate today rather than react later. One structural change that seems to have impact on this industry in the near future is 3D printing., as it is seen by manufacturers as a way to streamline operations, improve quality, and lower costs. In that case, 3D printing will have substantial implications for both domestic and international freight businesses, particularly in reducing the importance of some transportation lanes while possibly opening up new ones and thus it could be a serious threat for this industry, as it will lead in in turn to eliminate or greatly reduce component and materials shipments, a mainstay of many transportation-sector business models today. This probable shift will come atop some weakness in lucrative global transportation lanes resulting from re-shoring efforts, in which products and parts makers, hoping to avoid rising labor costs, piracy, and quality issues in low-cost nations, have begun to move manufacturing back to their home markets.

In this context, industry must act more proactively, evaluating different options, which may include staying the course, re-balance, adjust network or introduce new services.

Historically, transportation companies’ record of anticipating the impact of technological change has been spotty-they typically wait until a technology arrives in full force and then figure out a response. But for those to move forward peeking around the corner to figure out whether there might be any steps worth taking now is advisable instead of  “wait and see”.

Some more challenges that the logistics and transportation industry faces, apart from 3D printing and falling fuel and energy costs, include mergers and acquisitions of logistic providers, the continued Omni-challenge challenge, new and cloud technology, additive manufacturing, advanced analytics, supply chain agility, infrastructure challenges, demand for global partners, increase in technology investments, e commerce and least but not last, talent and leadership gap.

Industrial companies - bigger or smaller - are challenged to find the next generation of leaders; and this is a major cause of concern for the industry.

As colleges and universities continue to graduate more talented young people, there is still a gap between what is being taught and what the industry demands. In this economic context, more industry leaders are taking the opportunity to shift to new roles or retire. This creates a major gap in leadership that most companies are not ready to fill. This leadership gap will require companies to look strategically at how they attract, manage, and retain the best talent; this is not an easy task and most of industry companies will need support in developing a strategy for their leadership over the next year.

In PfB, we have a deep expertise and knowledge in these particular sectors , including:

Third party logistics

Freight Forwarding

Warehousing & Distribution

Trucking

Rail

Shipping

Sea Port

Air Cargo

Specialized Distribution

We have a deep understanding of changing demands, globalization, new technologies, mobility and we are ready to support logistics & transportation corporations with the right solutions.

Globalization, skills shortage, data analytics, technology, cost pressure, taxation, legislation, regulations, robotics, mobility, M&A’s, socio-economic trends are some of the core challenges that may affect corporations. . Some businesses also require significant restructuring and cost reduction programs to enable future sustainability.

In order to compete with this wide management challenges, companies that offer specialized services, such as accounting, legal, tax advice, business consulting or real estate services, need the more than ever the fit-in talent.

In PfB, we have a deep expertise and knowledge in these particular sectors, including:

Real Estate

Law Firms

Accounting Firms

Business Services

We have a deep understanding of changing demands, globalization, new technologies, mobility and we are ready to support professional service companies with the right solutions.