What Hiring Challenges Did This Melbourne Investment Manager Face?
A Melbourne head-officed investment manager engaged Kaizen Recruitment to support a number of hiring needs in their Investment Operations and Fund Accounting teams.
There were a number of challenges. Firstly, the positions needed to be filled across multiple levels of seniority, ranging from Junior Analyst to Senior Manager level. The business mandated staff be in the office 5 days a week which reduced the available candidate pool and all roles needed filling within a month due to the launch of new funds which would significantly increase work volumes. We were also prevented from targeting candidates from direct competitors which further reduced the talent pool.
How We Approached Multiple Investment Operations and Fund Accounting Roles
Given the volume and diversity of vacancies, we approached the assignment as a number of separate recruitment campaigns rather than a single project.
Julian Soames, one of Kaizen’s recruitment leaders, with more than 15 years experience recruiting into Investment Operations, Middle Office and Fund Accounting roles in Melbourne, led the recruitment campaigns.
Before commencing the search he invested time meeting with hiring managers to develop a detailed understanding of:
Technical requirements
Team structure and reporting lines
Cultural and behavioural fit
Essential versus desirable experience
Potential progression opportunities
To maximise candidate outreach we combined traditional recruitment methods with proactive market mapping, including:
Advertising across SEEK, LinkedIn and Kaizen’s website
Direct outreach to active and passive candidates through LinkedIn Recruiter
Searches across our existing candidate network and database
Referral campaigns targeting senior leaders and industry contacts
Market mapping across Australia
We also broadened the search beyond traditional candidate pools by identifying professionals with transferable skills from related environments. This included searching for candidates from superannuation, wealth management and custody backgrounds.
Potential candidates were spoken to honestly about the 5 days per week in office requirement and the fast-paced nature of the roles. They were only moved forward in the process if they were comfortable with both.
Results: 4 Roles Filled in 4 Weeks with 100% Retention
Within four weeks:
20 candidates shortlisted
11 interviews arranged
4 roles filled
This was an excellent conversion rate and was achieved by fully understanding the brief, business culture and technical requirements of the roles and by using industry knowledge and experience to engage with and assess candidates.
9 months later and all of the candidates are still working in the business with some achieving promotion into more senior roles. This 100% retention rate has allowed the business to focus on further strategic initiatives, such as new fund launches, rather than managing attrition and the onboarding of new staff.
What Made This Investment Operations Recruitment Campaign Successful?
Strong and Detailed Role Qualification with Hiring Managers
Detailed briefing sessions with hiring managers developed an in-depth understanding of the day-to-day responsibilities of each position and the current structure and culture of each team.
Broad Market Coverage: Reaching Active and Passive Candidates Across Australia
By using multiple recruitment methods the entire active and passive candidate pool was covered.
Each role was advertised on Seek and LinkedIn. Separate LinkedIn posts were also created to target the passive market.
Across all roles, over 300 potential candidates on the Kaizen database were reached out via a combination of phone calls and emails. This outreach gauged their level of interest and asked for referrals. An additional 250 potential candidates were sent private messages on LinkedIn and Seek Premium with the same goal.
This included interacting with candidates who may not have traditionally been considered, but who possessed the transferrable skills and behavioural attributes required to succeed. These candidates either worked in other areas of financial services, including custody, superannuation and wealth management who has the relevant technical experience or who worked in investment management but in different verticals.
Partnering with Hiring Managers for Faster Hiring Decisions
Regularly sharing search data, market insights, candidate feedback and potential recruitment barriers created transparency and enabled the process to adapt throughout each search.
Trust was created by building strong relationships with hiring managers and by demonstrating a clear understanding of each role. This encouraged timely feedback following CV submissions, first and second-round interviews, and offer discussions.
Prompt feedback helped maintain candidate engagement and accelerated decision-making, while reducing the risk of losing preferred candidates to competing organisations.
What Clients and Candidates Say About Kaizen Recruitment
“I’ve had the absolute pleasure of working with Julian throughout my job‑hunting journey, and I can confidently say he is one of the most exceptional recruiters I’ve ever partnered with and kept in touch with all these years. He takes the time to understand what I need from a career standpoint, my strengths, aspirations and the environments where I will thrive in.
Throughout the whole process, he's kept me informed at every stage and prepared me thoroughly for interviews.
I’m deeply grateful for everything he has done, and I would recommend him without hesitation to anyone looking for a recruiter who truly cares and delivers results.”
- Candidate
“Another great experience with Kaizen. Julian worked quickly while ensuring he understood what we were after in candidates. He sifted through an overwhelming number of responses to deliver a thoughtful and top-notch range of people and kept both us and the candidates informed along the way.”
- Hiring Manager
Struggling to Hire Investment Operations or Fund Accounting Talent?
If you're finding it difficult to attract the right talent, struggling with a hard-to-fill role, or simply want a second opinion on the market, feel free to give Julian a call. He's always happy to share insights and discuss potential solutions.
