The Hong Kong team make the most of the opportunities to travel
I think Easter came at just the right time for most of the Hong Kong expat population – a post rugby-seven’s detox and holiday….. I went to the Philippines for 10 days which was absolute heaven. Manila is only an hour and a half flight away, so very accessible. From there we caught a little plane to El Nido, Palawan and then a boat to the most beautiful place I’ve ever seen – Lagen Island Resort, El Nido. If anyone is looking for a once in a lifetime holiday – go!! White sand, clear water and blue skies….. heaven. El Nido is a protected marine and wildlife area so the snorkeling and diving is some of the best in the world.
Stewart Petty, one of the HK Consultants went to Burma – here is a little piece on his holiday he sent around the office – “After spending a day in the prosperous and modern metropolis of Bangkok, arriving in Rangoon, the capital of Myanmar is like stepping into a city forgotten by the 21st century. Old women with creased faces hunch over typewriters on the streets where they offer dictation services in the absence of computer technology. ATMs are replaced by nomadic money-changers which means carrying a wad of pristine-condition US dollars into the country is a necessity. Myanmar is a sanction-induced country of contrasts. Seventy-five percent of the population struggles in abject poverty without electricity and running water whilst an abundance of ancient temples and pagodas dominate the skyline and glisten with gold, diamonds and rubies. On April 1st, after decades of resistance against the military Junta, Nobel peace prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League of Democracy won 44 out of 45 seats in the parliamentary by-elections. Elated crowds thronged outside the crumbling colonial buildings of dirty, downtown Rangoon to mark a milestone of democratic victory. Less than five years ago the army would have silenced them with lethal suppression.” Perhaps Stewart should be writing for Lonely Planet!
This month we have welcomed a newcomer to the Hong Kong office, Matt Fellows joins us from London and is going to be covering the management consulting space. This is Matt’s first time living in HK so I think he is taking a bit of time adjusting to the different sights, sounds and smells…. not to mention apartment sizes!
Developing new clients continues to be a key focus for the HK office. We are all working hard at diversifying into new client relations whilst hiring in the large investment banks remains subdued. From a long term perspective this should pay significant dividends as we will have a greater array of companies and roles to offer our candidates.