My #FrazerJonesJourney – Tony Ho
Be the powerful differentiator
Could you share your career journey and how it led you to Frazer Jones?
I first started my career in-house in the UK before returning to Hong Kong over ten years ago. Then I moved into recruitment specialising in HR and the rest was history. Sean Tong, Partner and Head of Frazer Jones Asia reached out to me to a few years ago and I resisted his temptation for the longest time. Last year after 9 years with my previous firm I felt it was time to explore another platform to continue my career advancement.
Which Frazer Jones values* do you represent and why?
I resonate strongly to all of The SR Group’s values – Authentic, Collaborative, Agile and Expert. I make sure I stand by these values in my everyday work ethics. On top of these values, Frazer Jones Asia also represents professionalism, resilience and team work – which my team and myself live by.
Do you have a secret skill or talent?
I have a knack for connecting with people and learning about the passion in their craft – what concerns or excites them in their career. In additional, in order to build and lead a team, it requires an eye to identify talent and passion to attract them. I am lucky to have two great consultants who joined my team in the past five months. One of them have started to bill well consistently in the past three months and she has a great pipeline for Q1 2023. What a way to kick start the year!
Share the highlights of your experience in Frazer Jones thus far
The immense support that I have received from Sean, the team and the HR community has been overwhelming and I am truly blessed. The recent trip I made to Singapore last year was wonderful and that cemented my fondness of Frazer Jones Asia. The smooth transition into my new role has allowed me to focus on supporting our clients, candidates and my team. As a result, we have broken a few records – bringing in the most senior role in Hong Kong, record profit and winning the greatest number of retainers within the group in my first six months with Frazer Jones.
‘The recent trip I made to Singapore last year was wonderful and that really cemented my fondness of Frazer Jones Asia.’
What do you like about Frazer Jones and The SR Group?
I am surrounded by extremely high performing consultants in the region and they are some of the best consultants I have crossed paths with. I have been feeding off this positive energy as I continue to refine my craft. This wouldn’t have been possible without Sean Tong’s and Alex Wiseman’s confidence in me to drive the growth of the Frazer Jones North Asia business in Hong Kong.
‘I am surrounded by extremely high performing consultants in the region and they are some of the best consultants I have crossed paths with.’
What are the misconceptions of being a recruiter in the HR industry?
There are quite a few such as unprofessionalism, unresponsiveness, being salesy and process driven. Many HR search consultants have left the Hong Kong market so there are only a handful of experienced consultants that clients/hiring managers can turn to for assistance. This has created a negative experience for the HR community and the situation may get worse. I see this as a great opportunity for my team and myself to continue to build and deepen our relationship and partnership with clients and candidates. At Frazer Jones, I would like to think that we have very powerful differentiators which will set us apart from the others.
If you could provide advice to someone who just started or is keen to progress in the HR industry, what would you say?
For HR professionals who are just starting out in their HR career, my advice would be to find a trusted mentor who is well-respected in their field and is willing to commit time for you. For more seasoned HR professionals, feel free to connect with us and we would be more than happy to play a part in their career planning should anyone be open to explore opportunities with us.
‘Find a trusted mentor who is well-respected in their field and is willing to commit time for you.’
If you’re interested in exploring a career in HR search and recruitment, please do get in touch.
We’re looking forward to hearing from you.