T

he data drive has sent mobile phone operators scrambling for fresh talent in technology to create innovative products and unleash services into new markets. Yet, hooking these Mark Zuckerberg–like talents does not come easy. Hasnul Suhaimi, CEO of PT XL Axiata, recently spoke to The Jakarta Post’s Mariel Grazella about the challenge operators face in this ever-changing business.

Question: The telco industry has long been characterized by a revolving door of talent as people transfer from one operator to another. Is there any risk to this, considering the fierce competition between operators?

Answer: The telco industry has undergone double-paced growth in the last 10 years, with the number of operators jumping from three to 10. As a result, we faced a shortage in people and dealt with this by headhunting talent from competing operators, or recruited talent from other industries. This is not necessarily negative as it helps telcos to know each other, mitigating the need for heavy assaults on each other by sowing the thought that we need to grow the industry together.

Up to seven years ago, we had a big need for people in marketing to handle pricing and distribution, in addition to network experts to oversee the networks. Our heavy demand for these two talent categories has eased and settled recently, but now, with the development of the digital realm, we are now on the hunt for people who are equally well versed in content, such as m-advertising and m-commerce.

When did this shift in the demand for talent well-versed in digital start?

We sensed the need in 2009 in the wake of the Facebook and BlackBerry boom. Previously, we had to only consider building strong networks to support voice and text. We then thought that these networks could sufficiently support data traffic. But we found out that this was not the case because just a minor bug along the line could cause end-
to-end disruption. Thus, the know-how we had all this time suddenly became obsolete, and so we started to need people who had a grip on newer issues.

Also, we have been shifting our focus from voice- and text-network management to content and application provision, and we are already eyeing machine-to-machine communication for the future

All this market demand for internet access and digital content, on top of the rapid changes in technology, has prompted us to look for four types of people. First, we need network people, which we already have. Second, we need experts on information technology (IT), including Internet protocol (IP) and billing systems. We are also in need of those who can perform IT-based analytics to aid us in pinpointing customer characteristics and needs. Third, we need people who possess knowledge of the specific industries, such as healthcare and banking, we would like to serve. Fourth, we need content creators.

Which of these talents are the toughest to find?

The tough part is in finding people with industry knowledge. We want to do m-money, but we need people who understand transaction processes between shops and banks. We need banking people for this, but the bank industry is similarly in need of talent since they too are experiencing rapid expansion.

We want to delve into m-health but we need people who are aware of the needs of the medical world so they can converse with doctors and hospitals on our behalf. It is true that we could create programs, but the question is whether the programs we have made fit the needs of the industry.

What is XL Axiata’s strategy in staffing itself with the right talent who will move the company in the desired direction?

The number of creative people out there is immense, but we have to be both diligent and prudent in searching for the right talent in the market. At XL Axiata, we have decided to recruit talent from relevant industries because headhunting those people from our competitors is difficult, given that they too are experiencing the same talent shortage. So far, we have hired talent who once worked in the fraud management division of a bank for our m-money business and for our cloud computing services we took in someone who had been developing digital applications.

And this means changes in the recruitment system as well, doesn’t it?

Following the dissatisfaction we felt with our recruitment system two to three years ago, we began to enlist the help of headhunters and our own employees’ connections to search for talent. We inform our employee on the kind of people we are looking for and provide them with referral fees as a bonus. So far, that method has worked because we have found talent we never knew was out there.

In addition, those who conduct the interviews of potential candidates are the users themselves, from the vice president to the general manager, because they have to feel comfortable in working alongside their staff. And when we are filling a top-level position, we tell the team to rate their future heads. We also tap into the database and networks of our parent company. The human resource department now plays a more administrative role by making sure these processes are in order.

XL Axiata has networks with its overseas parent company. How far do you tap in to this international network to find the people you need?

The search for talent has become a global competition because telecommunications have become a worldwide industry. We look for people not only in Indonesia, but in neighboring countries. We have hired, for example, a Malaysian who is capable in customer lifecycle management (CLM) and was also close to being employed by another company in the Middle-East.