Delivering exceptional banking contingent workforce strategy with MSP
A Managed Service Provider solution that helped a global banking client improve contingent hiring control, increase direct sourcing and reduce agency reliance in a highly regulated market.
Case study
Our client is a globally recognised banking and financial services company. Having first set foot in Hong Kong back in the 1800s, the country is now the client’s Asia operations hub, serving corporations, institutions and private clients with a 2,000-strong local workforce.
- Service: Managed Service Provider (MSP)
- Industry: Banking and financial services
- Size: 180k+ employees; 2k+ in Hong Kong
- Locations: 60+ countries
Our impact in numbers
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153
contingent workers managed in 2025
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96%
temporary hires acquired through direct sourcing
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HK$1.1M
cost savings vs agency rate
-
1
integrated MSP solution to address all contingent hiring needs
Fully integrated contingent hiring from day one
Our partnership with the client began in 2017 when the client’s internal talent acquisition team was focused primarily on strategy and permanent hiring. As a result, the business needed a partner that could manage the full contingent hiring lifecycle, including workforce administration, supplier oversight, onboarding, extensions, offboarding and compliance. In a regulated banking environment, those requirements were especially important.
The challenge was not simply filling temporary roles. The client needed a contingent workforce model that could reduce administrative burden, improve process consistency, support internship hiring and give the business better visibility over hiring activity and supplier usage. It also wanted a more cost-effective alternative to fragmented agency recruitment, while maintaining strong governance and risk control.
Delivering end-to-end MSP support
We designed a bespoke end-to-end MSP solution to support the client’s contingent workforce strategy in Hong Kong. The model was built to integrate with the client’s existing talent structure, allowing the internal TA team to remain focused on permanent hiring while Robert Walters managed the contingent hiring process from brief to offboarding.
The scope of delivery includes:
- job brief management
- sourcing and shortlisting
- interview scheduling
- offer management and final approvals
- onboarding and first-day readiness
- end-of-term extensions and offboarding
- compliance and risk management aligned to Hong Kong regulations
The array of services is made possible by 2 dedicated onsite recruiters within the client’s office, working closely with hiring managers on the ground to ensure that contingent workers are skilled and ready to hit the ground running. Our service also allows the client to leverage our Global Sourcing Hub, tapping into our expansive pipeline of contractors to quickly put external talent where they’re needed at a fraction of standard agency rates.
As part of our service delivery, the client also possesses full visibility over external workforce operations through our SAP Fieldglass VMS integrations, allowing for well-informed strategic decisions.
A trusted MSP partnership built for scale
Over the course of the partnership, the MSP programme has become an established part of the client’s talent strategy in Hong Kong. The solution now supports temporary hiring across investment banking, corporate banking, wealth management and corporate support functions including IT, HR and marketing.
With their contingent talent pipeline secured, our client’s TA teams have been able to direct their bandwidth towards strategic and permanent hiring pursuits, while effectively embedding temporary resources where it’s needed, quickly and with minimal risk. Beyond convenience, the cost efficiencies of this arrangement have been keenly felt, saving our client HK$1.1m in 2025 when compared to external agency rates.
Looking forward, the partnership is set to continue growing with blueprinted MSP service expansions to their Singapore and Japan operations, along with various outcome-based transformation projects that leverage our Consultancy capabilities.
Testimonial
How our partnership has made a difference
"The Robert Walters team consistently prioritises client needs, effectively addressing challenges with solutions. Their dedication consistently enhances our managing stakeholder satisfaction and builds trust in our hiring strategy."
Head of Lateral Recruitment APAC
Global banking and financial services company
Hong Kong
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