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Victoria Mindova

People for Business is one of the three companies that is competing for the Stelios Haji-Ioannou Award for Entrepreneurship in the small- and medium-sized businesses. It is a fast growing company, sourcing and developing human resources, which has been quickly recognized on the Greek market as an effective mediator in the recruitment of skilled staff. The prize is € 50,000 and in the last four years, it has been awarded to a dynamic and promising company to expand its operations.

GRReporter has contacted the Executive Manager of the company, Rebekka Petsika, who has shared her views on the changes in the labour market in Greece during the crisis and analyzed the strengths and weaknesses of the Greek workforce.

What differentiates you from other companies in the HR-industry for People for Business to be nominated for the Stelios Haji-Ioannou Award for Entrepreneurship?

The company specializes in providing customized and exclusive services in finding medium and high level professionals. We work with our customers on a peer level. At present, we are the only company on the local market to give an access code to our customers to monitor the process of our work online. Thus, we seek to increase mutual trust. We attach great importance to the "after sale services" or how the position we have served is developing. This process can take up to 18 months after the appointment. We carry out consecutive written examinations to assess the level of work. They are performed both by employers and by the employee to get an objective idea of ​​the working environment. These are the main differences that distinguish us from other companies for recruitment of human resources in the Greek market.

How long have you been operating in the field of human resource recruitment and how do you think the employment profile of the Greeks has changed in the last decade?

The company was founded in March 2007, and I personally have 20 years experience in the market. I can say that the profile of the Greek workforce has changed over the past decades and continues to change constantly. In the past two years, however, It has been noticed that people have become more flexible in their requirements and negotiations for the position and the payment. This is the effect of the economic crisis in Greece. Another change that has been observed mainly in the last year is the willingness of specialists to seek business opportunities abroad.

In 2010, we studied the ability and willingness of the workforce to change their residence in order to find a better job. 60% of the respondents answered that they would prefer to be unemployed for a year rather than to move from their area. This trend has now changed dramatically. Now, people are seeking fulfilment outside Greece to have a job and work in their specialty more easily.

So, you have found that old habits are already eliminated.

Yes, we have. The two main features of the old behaviour have faded. Now, people are more flexible in their requirements and negotiate the working conditions. more easily.

What specialties find the easiest realization on the labour market in Greece today?

Almost all specialties related to the development of new technologies and Web services. This is a logical development, because companies want to develop similar services in order to reduce operating costs. Other occupations in demand are those in the economic sector, because in difficult times, companies need strong managers to optimize the operation and the demand and competition is intense. There is demand in business-to-business sales too. It is about corporate sales, not retail and shopping.

In which sectors could we say that the Greeks are traditionally strong as specialists?

We have good specialists in all sectors, but I cannot say that we have particular specialization of human resources in a particular sector as a country. Overall, the Greek labour force adjusts much easier now. When the people are able to choose what they want to do, they do it well. People not always do what they like to do.

What I can tell you is in which Greek sectors there is a lack of really high level specialists. It would be much better if it could be said that Greece has a very high specialization in the field of tourism. However, this is not the case.

Do you think that if a country has high profile and highly trained specialists in a particular sector, rather than many mid-level professionals in many sectors, this could give priority to the overall labour market in Europe?

Yes, I do. In the case of Greece, we need specialists in the field of tourism, outstanding professionals in the sector. Their lack is proved by the fact that many international companies in the tourism business cannot find high-level Greek specialists for their agencies in the country and have to "import" them from abroad. Another gap that needs to be compensated for is the serious lack of quality human resources in the industry, which should support it. Do not forget that the base of an economy is manufacturing, not the services sector. There is much required in modern technology too. There are not enough people with high expertise and innovative capabilities.

As a company, have you been forced to "import" to Greece specialists from abroad to meet the needs of your customers?

Of course, when it is necessary, we look for specialists in foreign markets such as Serbia, the Czech Republic, Poland, Croatia and India. It is primarily for manufacturing and tourism and at high level. For industry, we can easily find good managers from the former Eastern bloc, because it traditionally has a good production.

The problem of unemployment in Greece is very serious and it is expected to grow further in the next few years. In all this uncertainty, we still see the phenomenon of 'voluntary unemployment', i.e. people of working age who choose to remain outside the labour market. How would you explain this phenomenon?

First, we have to distinguish between the things. People of working age can be divided into the three groups in this case. The first group includes the young people who enter the labour market for the first time and have neither practice, nor experience. The second is the group of specialists aged between 32-40 who are at an average level and the third is made up of high level (executives) employees aged 42+. In the last group, a greater flexibility in requirements is observed, because the crisis has seriously hit this age group. Many jobs were lost in the last two years, many companies have closed or merged and in many cases, the newly formed companies are managed by foreign managers. Therefore, in this age group there is a significantly higher level of unemployment. The experts here are ready to go down one or two steps in the corporate hierarchy, just to stay in the labour market. In addition, they are much more flexible as regards monthly payment requirements.

There is no serious unemployment in the second age group of 32-40, which focuses on specialists in corporate environments rather than on unskilled workers. Why? Because there is demand for people of quality and who are willing to work. Managers want instant results and demand and competition are high. In this case, companies do not hesitate to make redundancies, but compensate for them by hiring new employees who are not always cheaper. For now, efficiency is still more important than costs. However, we should note that the labour force in this age group as a whole is not expensive. Here, we can find examples of "voluntary unemployment" because the logic is, if I wait a little longer, I will find a better offer. Those times have gone forever and this is no longer valid.

The same is true for young people, who have to take their first steps in the labour market. Companies very rarely hire people with no experience. Companies operating in a crisis want immediate results. The Greek family’ attitude of mind has not changed yet. It is ready to support children who are actually mature. The "children" are aged between 28-30 years and their parents give them pocket money until they find that excellent job corresponding to their specialty, rather than encourage them to start any activity, just to gain experience.

When I say experience, I do not mean only how to sell shoes, for instance, but what it means to fit into the work environment, how to develop in it, what it means to have responsibility, to be at a specific place at a specific time and other habits that are developed through entering the labour market.

Any kind of work prepares the workers for the career they want to follow later. The way of thinking, "I have studied at a university, I will not work in a call centre" (for example) is not correct and has no place in today's competitive environment. Three or six months in a call center provide valuable experience that should not be missed out on.

In Greece, there is another problem and it is the labour force freed from the public sector. Local economy’s reforms and reorganization involves the reduction of public administration and employees in state firms. Is the private sector able to meet this attack on hand and on the other – how much could these people be useful in the real economy?

It is important to clarify that if someone works in the public sector this does not mean that this person is not a good specialist. Just the opposite, the Greek administration has many employees who have important knowledge and skills that are in demand. However, at this time, private companies are looking for employees who will bring immediate results. If a candidate has experience only in the public sector, he or she probably will not be the first choice of the employer. Unfortunately, the attitude of society today to the state administration will not help these people to easily find a job, even if they are good professionals who can contribute to the development of the company. Those who fail to find a job in the private sector will need to turn to developing their own business or advice activity based on the knowledge and experience gained in the public sector.

Which people do you think will survive this transition?

Those who understand the need to change and manage to quickly adapt to the new conditions in the labour market. Probably it will sound like a cliché, but I have to say that every crisis offers many opportunities. Opportunities to discover what we want to do, to take the risk to pursue it and change the things we do not like. The faster we get into the spirit of the era, the faster we can find our realization.