Best suited for retirees or those in the last leg of their career journeys
Pros
Benefits are the best and most generous in HK; Co-workers are very collaborative and WFH is a widely appreciated option amongst colleagues especially those we are carers for elderly parents and children.
Cons
Google the HSBC share price chart vs other peer universal banks and you’ll get a good idea of how well the place in general is being run. When reviewing an organization, weigh negative reviews more heavily because these often highlight the cracks and you can make a decision on whether despite the flaws (which all orgs will have) if you’d still be willing to join. Lack of accountability and ownership a recurring and persistent theme: There is a lack of accountability and ownership in general across the org where there is a culture of friends recruiting friends and hence leadership ends up mostly incapable, unimaginative and resistance to change. Talent Management is a lip service concept with poor talent tracking and development. Hence, it’s a common occurance to witness the most capable talents who focus on their work and not politics being squeezed out across the organization. Top management is well aware of this toxic aspect of the culture and trying to change it, but have not yet been successful because the ones left standing in Middle Mangement are part of the problem and hence this is a vicious negative cycle. It’s ridiculous to expect the problem to sort itself out. There are good and capable people who are unable to speak up because most parts of the bank does not have mandatory 360 feedback incorporated into the annual performance appraisal process. Hence, few (if any) are going to speak up on issues on or with their line management for fear of retribution, which is a real concern and happens often. When the power balance is so clearly tiled in favour of the line manager, they end up being the judge, jury and executioner when it comes to pay increments, bonus and even development opportunities. Performance calibration is often the argued control for this, but if the line manager is problematic to begin with, the presented perception and represention of the talent will be biased. So calibration is just a “feel good” where management pretends there is some form of check and balance to their power. But in reality is highly subjective and just a bunch of managers chatting about how much bonus they feel each talent deserves at year end. Uncompetitive Basic Salary: HSBC should really stop using the word “competitive” in their hiring ads. Because it’s well known in the industry that they underpay 15-50% below market average (depending on which business you are in). Most HSBC lifers know this and tell new joiners that the significantly lower pay is compensated by the very generous benefits package (which includes staff home loan rates, children educational grants etc). However, these benefits are not applicable for people who rent and have no children. Plus with the steep inflationary environment, staff can’t use these to offset normal daily increasing expenses like food, utilites and transport etc. We can’t eat our benefits. Who should work at HSBC: Essentially, those we are talented, capable, innovative and want a dynamic career will be ill-suited for HSBC as you’ll find yourself in an uncondusive environment which does not recognize nor pay well in return. It’s better suited for retirees or professional in their last leg of their career before retiring.They will find the work culture and environment a better fit given the repetitive job nature, little or slow change and lack of personal development. It will likely feel like a comfortable fit.
