Case studies
University of Greenwich
Roles
- PMO Project Manager
- Deputy Director of Finance
- Head of Finance Business Partnering
- Assistant Finance Business Partner
Client Profile
University of Greenwich in London and Kent was established in 1890 and is driven by a founding ethos of ‘no limits’. Its fundamental vision is to empower everyone to explore new possibilities, unbound by conventional wisdom and artificial boundaries. Through this approach, it aims to inspire new ways of communicating, connecting and expressing personal and collective identities.
Assignment
Robertson Bell had previously completed work with the University of Greenwich, including placing senior roles. By maintaining regular communication with senior members of the finance department, such as the Chief Financial Officer the team discovered that the organisation was changing its finance system and restructuring its finance team in line with the recent launch of their new long-term organisational strategy. It would therefore need recruitment support.
The University was looking to hire for numerous roles, including a permanent PMO (Project Management Office) Project Manager – a newly created function. The hiring manager was looking for a candidate who had previous experience in a PMO role, had knowledge of the basics of project management and its life cycle, and could set up basic functions from scratch. Due to the salary limitations, the hiring manager was eager to bring in an individual who would like an opportunity to develop and was quite flexible in terms of candidate qualifications and sector background.
Three six-month contract finance roles also needed filling: Deputy Director of Finance, Head of Finance Business Partnering and an Assistant Finance Business Partner.
For the Deputy Director of Finance position, the University was looking for someone with experience working at that level, who had managed a team through a restructure or systems change and ideally had a background in the third sector.
The Head of Finance Business Partnering role required a candidate with similar experience, including a background in financial management, experience in managing a team through a restructure and a third sector background.
For the Assistant Finance Business Partner position, the team was looking for an up-and-coming individual, either part-qualified or studying.
Considerations and challenges
The consultants invested significant time in finding a suitable candidate for the PMO Project Manager role. However, due to several factors such as the position being a newly created role, the length of the hiring process resulted in losing a short-listed candidate to the market. There were also three other agencies competing to hire for this role which added to the pressure of the process.
For the finance roles the main challenges centred around the location of the positions. Candidates were expected to be on site at least two or three days a week which wasn’t possible or preferable for all.
Additionally, the strict salary bandings that are associated with the education sector significantly limited the pool of suitable candidates, especially as external appointments weren't able to secure the upper percentile of the bracket. It proved challenging to find candidates on an interim basis for the Assistant Finance Business Partner position, as individuals with less experience would not necessarily seek out the temporary market, which restricted the search to a smaller pool, such as those who had been made redundant. The Deputy Director of Finance role offered a competitive salary and was fairly flexible on sector background, therefore proving less challenging to recruit for, with several suitable candidates sourced.
Solution
A detailed brief was gathered from the hiring manager which provided the team with invaluable information. This resulted in four CVs being sent to the client for the PMO Project Manager Role, leading to two interviews, one of which was successful.
The relationship built with the line manager was also crucial, especially when understanding areas of compromise on the job description. For example, the job description originally stated that it required established experience or a specific qualification. But after digging deeper and obtaining the detailed brief, which no other agencies had, it was understood that qualification was not essential and that, as long as the candidate understood PMO, the University would be happy to support them to take qualifications. This was information that the team would not have discovered without speaking to the manager and this became a very attractive offering to many of the candidates.
Robertson Bell successfully recruited for the Head of Finance Business Partnering position and three CVs were sent for the Assistant Finance Business Partner, leading to two interviews. One of the interviewed candidates, although not successful in that role, was offered and accepted another job within the organisation.
The University had numerous hiring needs, and the Robertson Bell team was able to fulfil three vacancies, a result which delighted the team and University of Greenwich. This success can be largely attributed to the engagement of the team with the hiring managers wherever possible. Building this rapport and trust allowed for a greater degree of flexibility. For example, for the Head of Finance Business Partnering role, despite being advertised as a full-time position, the candidate was hired on a part-time basis of three days a week, increasing to four.
Outcome
The thorough nature of the briefs taken by the consultants combined with their sustained communication led to a successful outcome, despite challenging market conditions.
As a result of this positive relationship, the team has since worked with the University again. The consultant's comprehensive knowledge of the organisation’s current hiring needs has made them best placed to support them going forwards.