Hear from Head of China Chris Wong on how he fully embraced the global mobility opportunities Phaidon International offers by opening a new office in Shanghai.
Expanding into a new country is an exciting challenge for both businesses and the individuals who support the opening. At Phaidon International, we have seen several successful office launches expertly executed by our top consultants.
In 2022 alone we opened four new offices, fostering a strong sense of growth internally across Phaidon International. We value our colleagues and provide extensive learning and development opportunities, including leadership training. As a result, the majority of managers at Phaidon International have progressed to their current positions after starting their careers with us.
The best of both worlds for ambitious talent
Global mobility plays a critical role in this environment and has inspired a program of the same name. The program supports professionals who want to move to another destination, either by joining an existing office or by starting a new one. The latter is an exciting career opportunity that Chris Wong embraced eight years ago.
Originally from Canada, Chris has traveled extensively and has a deep understanding of the global financial marketplace. When Phaidon International opened an office in Hong Kong, Chris was one of the first consultants to establish our presence there. He soon began managing his own teams across many sub-verticals, helping to grow the Hong Kong office.
"The organic development of my career has also been amazing," says Chris. When he heard about plans to open an office in Shanghai, he immediately put his name forward. In late November 2021, he moved to Shanghai with a few hand-picked consultants.
Together with his team, he navigated a challenging first year amidst pandemic restrictions. Along the way, they never lacked support from Phaidon International. As a global company, we ensure that all of our consultants have the best possible platform to solve our clients' talent needs.
"We are a startup within a global corporation," says Chris, "so we have the best of both worlds: the freedom of a startup with the backing of a large corporation.โ
Enabling exceptional careers for ambitious consultants
This dual nature of our international hubs permeates every fiber of our business. At Phaidon International, we continue to build a highly motivated, global team of consultants who expand their network and become talent experts in their niche. This creates a global team spirit that is hard to find elsewhere.
Chris agrees: "I've definitely felt supported in the move and it's amazing and very rare to have such a global team."
This in turn has allowed Chris to deepen his knowledge of the APAC market and hone his skills. While working in Hong Kong, he noticed how the Hong Kong and Chinese markets are becoming more interconnected. "I think this bond will grow even stronger in the near future."
Now that he is on the ground in Shanghai, Chris is able to experience that connection from the other side, which has opened up his expertise in a way that would not have been possible if he had stayed where he was.
"International relocation is an amazing experience," says Chris, "and while Shanghai and Hong Kong are close, there are cultural nuances that I couldn't have picked up if I had been in Hong Kong servicing Shanghai. It's great to see the empowerment of consultants, and that's rare."
At Phaidon International, always aspiring for more is one of our core values. We're always looking for ambitious self-starters who can think outside the box and enjoy working in an international environment.
Is the role of a consultant for you? If youโre ready to join a team that supports your career ambitions, apply now.
