IE
Why you may need to speak Danish to gain an Irish financial services role
6 May 2010
Job opportunities within the Irish financial services sector are obviously thin on the ground currently. To make life a little more difficult, an increasing number of the roles that are available need people with relatively niche language skills.
European language skills, such as French and German, are being sought after for roles within international banks with Irish operations. More obscurely, though, firms are looking for people who can speak fluent Danish and Swedish.
"A number of shared services organisations are looking to hire financial services expertise, with a project management background, and they have an international scope," says Hilarie Geary, CEO of Irish recruiters Executive Connection. "Swedish, Danish and German language skills are required – the more obscure the language, the more attractive the person."
It's not just these shared services roles that require language skills, she suggests. People who have an understanding of risk, regulation and compliance within a European context, and have a second or third language are also very desirable currently.
There's obviously not a proliferation of people available for these roles, so firms are often having to find native speakers to fill them. Salary increases of up to 4% are offered for more senior positions, suggests Geary.
International banks are also on something of a recruitment drive for professionals with European language skills, says Eoin Blake, director of Irish headhunters Lincoln Search & Selection.
"There's a demand for people within corporate lending administration, and to some extent syndicated lending, to maintain loans for international banks in Ireland, who are focused on continental European markets," he says.
