Hay Group Asia

Also Known As: Hay

Consulting - HR and Organizational Behavior

VAULT RANKINGS 2013

#24 Prestige

#1 Human Resources Consulting

GENERAL INFO

Headquarters: Singapore , Singapore
85 offices
View all company stats

THE BUZZ…

"Reputed in HR field"
"Limited, declining"
"Very professional"
"Not pure consulting"

NEWS AND UPDATES

Vault's Scoop

Uppers

"Flexibility of work hours"
"Cozy and family like environment"
"Opportunity to engage at entry level"
"Global community—always someone willing to help from any part of the world"

Downers

"Office politics"
"Lack of information sharing, poor communication"
"Needs more structure around organization"
"Limited perks"

ABOUT THIS COMPANY:

Working on the workplace

What makes employees more productive? How can executives motivate their teams? What's the best strategy for developing talent in the long run? U.S.-based Hay Group, headquartered in Philadelphia, specializes in organizational and performance consulting; this includes helping clients establish performance measurement processes, develop incentives and rewards systems, organize employee structures, and improve leadership. Engagements are typically two-part processes, starting with a diagnostic phase to understand a client's needs and market, including international competition, growth potential and technology issues. The second phase is design and implementation of the resulting solutions and strategies. Most importantly, the firm says it strives to build its solutions around each client's unique history and culture, which means there's never a one-size-fits-all approach.

Although Hay Group counts some big commercial players among its 7,000 clients—Wal-Mart, Unilever, Standard & Poor's and ABC India, to name a few—it also works with government organizations, small and mid-sized companies, and startups. The firm’s industry coverage includes chemicals, communications, education, financial services, fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), healthcare, life sciences, manufacturing, oil and gas, public sector and non-profits, retail services and technology.

Edward Hay's vision

In 1943, Edward Hay, then head of personnel for the First Pennsylvania Bank of Philadelphia, created a small consulting firm to focus on human resources and compensation issues. As the deputy administrator of the U.S. Office of Price Administration during World War II, Hay spent time studying the War Labor Board's pay controls. Designed to keep production costs in check, these pay controls could only be lifted if a company could show, via job evaluation, that an employee's position deserved a higher pay range. In 1945, Hay landed a contract with General Foods, which asked him to study 450 of its management positions. These two experiences inspired the methodology that became known as the Hay Guide Chart-Profile Method of Job Evaluation, and Hay was hailed a pioneer of modern HR and organizational management practices.

Edward Hay passed away in 1958, but the firm that bears his name lives on. Today, Hay Group consists of 85 offices in 47 countries worldwide, with Asia Pacific locations in Australia and New Zealand, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand.

Compiling, surveying and evaluating

Consulting is, and always has been, at the heart of Hay Group, but over the years the company has added secondary products and functions, all of which share the consulting division's international reach. One of these is the Hay Group Job Evaluation Manager, a proprietary web application used to evaluate jobs across different users, geographic locations and business units.

Hay Group offers a variety of leadership and talent assessment and development products. Meanwhile, Hay Group PayNet is a comprehensive online database of rewards and benefits information for over 13,000 leading companies worldwide. Finally, Hay Group Insight serves as the employee and customer surveys division, conducting surveys and opinion research for clients around the world and polling over one million respondents every year.

Become a Gold Member or Log in to read the entire Scoop

From the Community

Are you currently working for Hay Group Asia or have been an employee in the past?

Submit a review

Hay SALARIES

Hay Group Asia salary & compensation reviews include all signing and year-end bonuses, vacation time and other perks and reimbursements that make up total compensation.

View all Hay Group Asia salary reports

Hay SURVEY SAYS

Allowing you to grow

According to sources, "hierarchy is not particularly important" at Hay Group, and there is "a great deal of respect for the individual and for individual career preferences." Consultants can also expect to be allowed a great deal of "autonomy" in a firm that is "entrepreneurial," but also "liberal and democratic." Though the consultancy naturally has "an eye on results," the people who work there "are genuinely pleasant and caring," creating a "helpful environment" that is both "collaborative and collegial." Insiders report that "teamwork and mutual trust" are valued highly and most consultants are said to be "very intellectually curious." Sources also say the firm "seems to attract more women than men." As one consultant puts it, "We have a good gender balance at all levels of the organization."

The onus is on you

On average, consultants at Hay Group put in a 50-hour week, according to respondents. Of course, some admit to working more, and some even report getting away with less than 40 on occasion. As a result, sources readily admit that they can successfully manage work and private life. "Work is well spread out. There are occasional peak periods, but on the whole there is a good balance of work and play," says one staffer. Sources also describe great independence, as "all responsibilities are entrusted to the employee." Many consultants also have the choice of working "from home on days when there are no meetings in the office," and we're told that "mothers have this option too." While some insiders do admit that, at times, "you will feel the stretch" when on deadline, "it is not often."

Travelling can sometimes alter the work/life balance negatively, but insiders say this is "only required for training and delivery of projects" at Hay Group. And although "travel is not excessive by the standards of consulting in general, it would be regarded as pretty extreme by employees of the average multinational," says one consultant. "You are almost certain to have a gold or platinum membership of your favorite airline’s loyalty scheme." A Tokyo-based consultant reveals that travel is only necessary when clients are not based in the city, "but that is less than 20 percent of cases."

Become a Gold Member or Log in to read the entire Survey Says

DISCUSSIONS

View all discussions

Getting Hired

Tips from the inside

Checking for good behavior

Insiders at Hay Group say that "prospective recruits undergo a battery of tests and are interviewed at least twice before any decision is made." Not only is the process described as "very rigorous," it is also "unique" in that it uses an interview protocol known as "behavioral event interviewing," which Hay Group insiders claim reveal the true competencies and motives of the candidate. During the two rounds of interviews, "there are a number of tests for emotional competency, learning and leadership styles." On some occasions, "candidates will be tested with a business case study as well," says a source.

Hay Group recruits from top universities locally for its graduate programs. In China, this includes Peking University, Tsinghua University and Nankai University. In Singapore, the firm looks for graduates from the National University of Singapore, Singapore Management University and Nanyang Business School. Prospective MBA hires are reported to have come from top schools such as INSEAD and—a bit closer to home—from Thailand's Sasin.

Become a Gold Member or Log in to read the entire Getting Hired

Other Hay Group Asia Profiles

Hay Group Europe-Europe-Consulting - HR and Organizational Behavior

Save to My Vault