Capco seeks talent for dedicated data practice to be established in APAC

Management and technology consultancy Capco is establishing a formal data analytics practice in the Asia Pacific – and is on the hunt for fresh regional talent.

Global financial services sector focused management and technology consultancy Capco has been keeping busy throughout the coronavirus crisis, having recently formed a partnership with private US tech university the Stevens Institute of Technology and in March acquired German digital consultancy Creative Construction. Now the firm has announced that it will establish a dedicated data analytics practice in APAC.

“It has always been part of our overall strategy to ensure that every geographical location becomes stronger and more experienced in the areas of data sciences, data analysis and data capability,” said Capco APAC managing partner Neil Ramchandran. “Recently, after offering Data services informally for a couple of years, we have noticed a clear and articulated need for these services from clients in the APAC region.”

This growing demand for data services among financial services sector clients has led to Capco’s decision to establish a formal practice in Asia, with the firm now on the hunt for talent to aid with its expansion. As it stands, Capco has around 50 consultants currently on its books with a background and experience in data analysis, and plans to potentially double that number in the coming year through the recruit of 25 to 50 graduates.

The new roles will be based in Capco’s Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand offices, the latter which was launched in 2018, with the graduates to join a training programme in data analysis, data science, data analytics and data remediation. The firm is also keen to recruit experienced data professionals from any industry who may be interested in working with retail and commercial banking and insurance sector clients.

“We are already working with a number of our clients to help them develop new data models to enable them to analyse and understand their clients better. The information learned from these data models will enable our clients to improve their client and product offering,” said Ramchandran, who added that once the teams become more experienced they will also work with clients in the data-heavy capital markets space.

Capco’s APAC boss further noted that rather than simply recruiting to fill predetermined roles, the firm instead wants build out its data capabilities in line with the strengths and ambitions of its new team – an approach which fits within the firm’s ‘be yourself at work’ philosophy. “Our employees can be themselves, feel free to be more creative and can leverage their unique strengths to explore opportunities,” said Ramchandran.

Still, while it’s not necessary for candidates to have previous data science experience or to have worked in the financial services industry, Capco is specifically targeting those with a post-graduate degree in maths who have a strong grounding in financial data and an analytical turn of mind – with additional programming skills an advantage. For experienced hires, a keen interest in data is the primary requisite, regardless of industry background.

“We look to the future, not the past,” said Ramchandran, pointing to the strength of the firm’s in-house training programmes. “We will help individuals develop the technical and soft skills needed to become a proficient data professional. In addition, we will help them develop managerial skills so that they eventually lead large data projects. We want people who are enthusiastic, flexible, hard-working and most of all hungry for opportunities.”