WHAT OUR CLIENTS SAY
My partnership with Progression covered the following key areas which made our collaboration fruitful.- Detailed candidates' profiles gathering, so that informed decisions can be made
- Candidates from relevant & related industries
- Structured & methodological approach to screening, scheduling of interviews & shortlisting
Charles Yong - General Manager, South East Asia
METAMAP
Jo and her team have a good breadth of knowledge in the region as well as a good visibility into the tech market. The quality of the candidates submitted were excellent profiles across various skillsets from leadership level, field sales, pro serv as well as corporate function roles.
The difference from other agencies is that I love the fact that I can communicate with the consultant who is supporting me daily right here in Singapore, regardless of where in SEA the search might be required.
They take feedback well - getting calibrated with Amazon's hiring isn't done in a day but they had demonstrated tenacity to get what my business needs are.
Leif Penn — TA Lead, Asia Pacific
AMAZON WEB SERVICES
When Zimbra decided to establish our regional headquarters in Singapore, we were overwhelmed by the immense effort required.
We tried various social media channels but were inundated with applications that required further screening. As a tech start up with relatively low media exposure here, Zimbra had to compete with established brands for the same pool of talents, making the task of attracting the right candidate even harder.
This led us to Progression. Instead of just asking for a brief to kickstart the search, Josephine insisted on having a face-to-face meeting to find out more about us and what we are really looking for in an ideal hire. She actually spent quite a bit of time talking to every single member in our team.
Throughout the process, we have been impressed by the professionalism and quality of candidates presented.
It is this personal approach that differentiates Progression from many other agencies in the market. By listening, showing interest in our issues and asking insightful questions, they have provided us an experience in what is truly like to work with a trusted advisor.
Marcus Teo — Regional Director, APJ
ZIMBRA/TELLIGENT/SYNACOR
Progression Search has been one of Qlik’s preferred recruitment partners whilst I was their Recruitment Lead, APAC. During this period I have worked with Josephine and her team on numerous assignments where finding the right fit for demanding roles was proving a challenge, and I can attest that she and her team of consultants have always provided Qlik with excellent quality of service.
Throughout they have done a brilliant job in supporting me consistently whilst the company experienced extensive headcount growth, especially during the first few years of establishing the business in APAC, and they have done so by pitching Qlik and the roles at the correct level which proved an enormous challenge given the low brand awareness we had then as a new entrant to Asia.
What I particularly appreciate about the team at Progression is that whether the role is based in China, Hong Kong, Malaysia or Singapore, you are speaking to the same group of consultants who all possess different language skills and are able to support you for hires across Asia.
In the 5 years I have known Josephine, I have found her to be an exceptionally professional individual who has sound grasp of her client’s business needs, is conscientious, thorough and very well organised. Josephine has an outstanding network of contacts across Asia Pacific and ensures she and her team fully research the roles and the respective markets so that candidates are appropriately filtered in advance.
I would recommend Progression Search to anyone needing to recruit high calibre staff quickly and with minimum fuss.
Wiebke Albert — TA Lead, APJC & EMEA
QLIK SOFTWARE
Progression was absolutely an amazing business partner when we looked to starting up operations in Singapore. I am fully confident that the team spoke to every single viable
candidate in the market and was very good at qualifying candidates and did not waste my time interviewing. The folks we ended up hiring were initially skeptical but Josephine was able to convince them of the potential opportunity with us.
Todd Osborne — VP Sales, Asia Pacific
Virtual Instruments
Josephine is an extremely hardworking and dedicated professional who takes the time to understand our business and culture before approaching the market for talent. She is thorough, responsive and quick to adapt to the ever changing IT landscape. Progression has placed quite a number of roles for Citrix over the years and I have no hesitation in recommending Progression as a valuable business partner to anyone seeking to hire in this industry.
Mark Micallef — Area Vice President, ASEAN
CITRIX Singapore Pte Ltd
Josephine - MD of Progression Search has been a phenomenal business partner. Her entire organization has been an extension to success across.
Progression has got a deep level of understanding of the market, solutions and technology demands. Mainly on 3 fronts - market potential, market demand and solution offerings by vendor.
The quality of candidates presented reflects their astute clarity in regards to qualification of candidate requirements, tech knowledge, cultural background, company demands on growth & fit, purpose of role - importance in engagement with other units and most significant- delivering with integrity.
Candidates were well prepared, understood the opportunity in totality both from a company expectations and the interviewers. Most importantly well screened to limit confusion of role.
The entire outfit - Progression Search, top down delivers with utmost professionalism. Fantastic personality across the highly engaging team. They are truly HR Business partners in every word of it. Protecting the reputation of the vendor, ensuring candidates understood the opportunity at hand but most importantly assisted in the expansion of the business. Their ability to search and deliver not the norm but extra-ordinary candidates that can elevate the business almost immediately. Truly awesome work ethic with lightning like agility.
Once again, the ability to go across boundaries and deliver outstanding candidates was never an issue. With a wide network searching for candidates and successful bringing the best across Asia Pacific/Japan.
No demand was too much for the Progression Team!
A Sustainable, Repeatable and truly Executable business with Progression.
Terry Smagh — VP, Asia
QLIK SOFTWARE
Suyie, I wanted to thank you for all your efforts in helping TSS. It’s been a real pleasure working with you.
We’ve worked with recruiters and headhunters in the past and have rarely come across someone whom we can connect so well with. You have made a difference because you do not just give us names to fill the roles but you really listened to what we needed as a company and as a business in order to profile the right candidates for the job.
I will definitely recommend your services to my friends and business contacts.
Serene Siow — Country Manager
Transition Systems
Progression's consultants are professional, knowledgeable and have the ability to understand technical requirements very quickly. The turnaround time for surfacing resources is very fast and they are often able to find the right match profiles for our requirements.
Leona Loh — Sales Manager
Computer Science Corporation
WHAT OUR CANDIDATES SAY
During the whole process, Progression Search demonstrates a very professional way on opening, background sharing, facilitating the interviews and arranging the logistics, I really appreciate the efforts and consistent professionalism.
EVP — Greater China
ALCATEL-LUCENT SHANGHAI BELL
I was extremely impressed with Josephine's professionalism, efficiency, empathy, guidance, independence, and ability to ensure consistent and constant communication amongst
all parties without being overbearing. I felt at ease throughout and my interactions with Josephine placed this particular situation amongst the best experiences I've had during a
recruitment process.
I felt informed, and in contact with the process and people involved at all times. Josephine ensured I had the information I needed and maintained a good balance between
her commitments to her client and in being a trusted advisor to me in working through my thought processes and questions. In particular, as we worked towards an agreement
and completion of the process, she ensured my best interests were considered and met.
Finally, I was most appreciative of the understanding and space she facilitated in allowing me to negotiate my separation from my current employer as elegantly as possible, given the
circumstances, before I formally accepted my new role.
IAN YIP - CTO, Cybersecurity — APAC
INTEL SECURITY
Josephine has consistently put in effort to follow up with me and the recruiting company. Further, her insights of the hiring company – whether it is people connections, organisation
structure or company direction, are very helpful for a candidate to confidently prepare for the interviews.
What amazes me is the company’s high regard for her opinion which proves the effort she has invested. On top of that, she is pleasant and professional to work with and I really appreciate her help in getting my dream job, to which it would have been difficult without her.
Yang Shao Horng — Lead Systems Presales Manager
CITRIX SYSTEMS SINGAPORE
Imae display good understanding of HR as a profession as well as IT industry. She could dive into details on what is really needed by the business for the HR's role at the point of
hire, which helps in giving me an idea of what I'm getting into. Imae was objective to paint prospect of the role while leaving the choice to myself. From preparation perspective, she also
did alot of background work on behalf to uncover the work culture, challenges etc. She also led the salary negotiation process which I trusted her to it and it was a great help. I think
overall, Progression team,has been impressive because of the personal touch they build with clients and candidates alike - took time to understand needs/profiles and keeping them in
mind as they work. It's a challenge when there are many similar roles and similar candidates being spoken about/to, but if that personal touch can be maintained, it'll make both customers and client happy to work with them.
ALICIA HING — HRBP ASIA
SAGE SOFTWARE ASIA
The experience with Progression has been excellent through Suyie’s professionalism. She has patiently helped me understand the job opportunity and feasibility, which led to my
decision to accept the offer. Her prompt response to my inquiries gave me confidence and assurance. Ever since, I have always recommended her to my friends and colleagues who are looking for career opportunities.
Shane Tan — Cloud Presales Manager
IaaS MNC
I would like to say that they are truly professional and a very focused placement consultancy firm. I had a very good experience with them especially Wiley and I am very pleased and impressed with their professionalism.
Shrikant Ghate — Solution Architect
Schneider Electric/APC
I had the good fortune to work with Imae on a position which, according to Imae’s client (the in-house recruiter), was the hardest position he had to fill in 2015.
Back in October 2015, Imae reached out to me after taking interest in my LinkedIn profile. In the past, I seldom responded to the recruiter’s emails but there was something different
about her email. Even though she did not mention the company name, it was written in a way that created intrigue and appealed to my desire to fulfil my full potential. So when I did
respond, I was greeted by a highly empathetic and intelligent individual who know how to market the opportunity as well as understand what was important for me. Subsequently, I met
with her in person as well as her client – both the in-house recruiter as well as the hiring manager. Throughout, she managed my expectations well while creating a sense of urgency to
drive the process forward.
Where I believe she distinguishes herself from the others is her ability to proactively share public and yet insightful information (ie., links to company news, interviews, etc.) to help me
prepare. Also, not only was she was very responsive whenever I needed something but she proactively reached out to me before and after every interviews with tips and pep talks.
To make a long story short, I ended up not being selected as the final candidate. Despite the outcome, however, I thoroughly enjoyed the experience and gained much from the process. Therefore, I highly recommend Imae as the recruiter who provides an exceptional recruiting experience. Two thumbs all the way.
Senior HRBP, APJ
LARGE APPLICATION SOFTWARE MNC
I've had the privilege of working with Josephine on a recent opportunity of XenDesktop/Xenapp consultant placement. She took the time to understand both the client’s requirement and my needs in order to ensure it is a suitable match. She was quick to respond, be it on email or phone calls. I highly recommend Progression for those in need of job placements or career opportunities.
Teo Chee Koon — Senior Consultant, Virtual Desktop
Leading Cloud Computing Technology Vendor
Thoroughly professional. One of the best boutique headhunter firms.
Regional Director — Business Consulting
HUAWEI (Global Service Provider)