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Global Dairy Trade’s seamless market entry into Singapore
Case Study
Global Dairy Trade (GDT), a leader in financial services and commodities, partnered with Robert Walters to relocate its global headquarters from Auckland, New Zealand, to Singapore. The engagement focused on building GDT’s leadership team by hiring critical roles while ensuring compliance with local labour laws and establishing a scalable talent framework for future growth. Through a tailored recruitment and advisory approach, we successfully delivered all targeted hires within the required timeline, enabling rapid market entry and business expansion.
- Service: Recruitment (Permanent & Contract), Advisory, Executive search
- Industry: Financial services - commodities
Our impact in numbers
-
100%
offer acceptance rate across completed hires
-
3
leadership roles filled within 6 months
-
50+
candidates approached per role, ensuring depth in the pipeline
-
2 months
how long it took to complete the first hire
The Challenge
GDT faced significant challenges entering the Singapore market due to their lack of local expertise. With no on-the-ground presence, they struggled to understand local talent pools, salary benchmarks, hiring expectations, and regulatory requirements. Additionally, they lacked an established employer brand or candidate pipeline in Singapore. These gaps posed risks such as delays in market entry, hiring missteps, and missed opportunities to build a high-performing team aligned with their global vision.
Setting up the Partnership
Global Dairy Trade engaged Robert Walters to support their expansion into Singapore by delivering a comprehensive talent solution tailored to their unique needs. To ensure accountability and adherence to timelines, we implemented a 3-part retained search model with structured fees tied to key milestones, including candidate shortlisting and successful placements. This approach allowed us to maintain a consistent pipeline of high-quality candidates while ensuring flexibility in delivery.
Special conditions were established to prioritise local candidates with international experience, ensure full compliance with Singapore labour laws, and uphold diversity across gender and nationality. Additionally, we provided advisory services on salary benchmarking, market competitiveness, and interview processes tailored to the local hiring landscape. By combining our deep understanding of the Singapore market with GDT’s internal culture and business objectives, we successfully delivered a cost-efficient, high-quality recruitment strategy that supported their seamless entry into the region and long-term growth plans.
The Solution
We deployed a research-led recruitment methodology tailored to GDT’s needs:
- Market Mapping: Identified transferable skillsets across commodities, technology, financial services, and platform-driven businesses.
- Candidate Segmentation: Focused on profiles with B2B sales expertise and stakeholder engagement capabilities.
- Proactive Headhunting: Leveraged networks and direct outreach to passive candidates not actively seeking opportunities.
- Premium Advertising Strategy: Created a dedicated microsite hosted on Robert Walters’ platform to enhance GDT’s employer brand visibility in Singapore’s risk-averse market.
- Consultative Screening: Assessed candidates’ ability to operate in consultative sales environments while navigating complex stakeholder groups.
Key Results
Our partnership delivered exceptional outcomes:
- All four targeted hires were completed within the required timeline.
- First hire finalised within 2 months of engagement.
- Maintained consistent momentum across mandates despite seniority complexity.
- Delivered multiple shortlist batches (3–5 CVs each) per role to ensure quality and depth.
- Enabled rapid market entry through discounted Employer of Record (EOR) solutions for cost efficiency.
- Built a scalable talent pipeline for future growth in Singapore.
Client testimonial
“Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.”
Client Representative
TBC
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