SPERTON: Navigating Global Talent Terrain

In the realm of global recruitment and support solutions, there exists a dynamic landscape where companies seek to harness international resources while maintaining a steadfast focus on local operations. This industry demands agility, efficiency, and a keen understanding of diverse markets and cultures to provide comprehensive services tailored to client needs. Amidst this backdrop, one organization stands out for its commitment to excellence and innovation.

Enter a renowned entity in the global recruitment sphere, a company renowned for its dedication to fostering enduring partnerships and delivering sustainable growth: SPERTON. With a robust presence across eight countries spanning Europe, the United States, and Asia, SPERTON has solidified its position as a leading provider of recruitment, manpower, mobility/expat, and support solutions. Boasting a diverse workforce and extensive collective experience, SPERTON prides itself on its ability to seamlessly blend local expertise with global resources to offer unparalleled services.

At the helm of SPERTON’s operations in Norway stands a visionary leader and CEO renowned for his strategic acumen and commitment to driving organizational success: Erik Mellebye-Giertsen. As one of the guiding forces behind SPERTON’s expansion initiatives and talent development programs, Erik plays a pivotal role in shaping the company’s future trajectory. With a focus on fostering a strong company culture grounded in trust, autonomy, and accountability, Erik epitomizes SPERTON’s values and vision for sustainable growth.

Global Recruitment and Support Solutions

Sperton Global, HQ in Norway, is an organization boasting a global presence across eight countries spanning Europe, the United States, and Asia, with expansion operations spanning seven years. While maintaining a strong focus on local operations within Norway, the company strategically harnesses its international resources to offer a diverse range of support services and comprehensive global recruitment solutions. Sperton prides itself on its diverse workforce and extensive collective experience, fostering a synergistic environment where each member’s expertise complements that of others.

The company offers an extensive array of competencies and services designed to support businesses worldwide throughout the entire employee life cycle. This includes services such as recruitment specification, search and selection, assessments and interviews, as well as contract negotiations with chosen candidates, staffing, onboarding, global mobility facilitation, payroll management, financial services, and compliance support.

Benefiting from over two decades of global experience in project execution, Sperton understands the complexities of modern business challenges and is well-equipped to assist companies throughout the entirety of their projects. The company prides itself on its commitment to exceeding client and candidate expectations, demonstrating agility and efficiency in its operations. Despite its size, Sperton operates with speed and responsiveness, ensuring prompt and effective service delivery.

Fostering Global Partnerships for Sustainable Growth

Sperton is deeply committed to personalized service and ensuring client satisfaction. The team possesses a nuanced understanding of diverse markets and cultures, enabling them to adeptly manage complex accounts and surpass expectations through tailor-made solutions. Sperton firmly believes in establishing enduring partnerships grounded in trust, which serves as the bedrock for fostering sustainable growth and creating value for both clients and stakeholders. Noteworthy clients Sperton has proudly served include Hitachi, Scatec, Gea Group, Ericcson, and Wartsila.

Under a global framework agreement with Hitachi Energy, Sperton confidently delivers business support services facilitated by successful collaboration and talent acquisition efforts across the US, Europe (including Italy, Spain, Germany, Switzerland, Sweden, Poland, the UK, and France), and APAC (encompassing India, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Australia). Effective communication strategies have been established to comprehensively understand Hitachi’s primary business units, including Grid Automation, Grid Integration, High Voltage Products, and Transformers, facilitating the deployment of the company’s sustainable energy solutions across various sectors such as buildings, utilities, industries, and infrastructures. Sperton’s dedicated team diligently identifies, evaluates, and prepares top-tier candidates for interviews, resulting in successful global hires for Hitachi.

Strategic Talent Acquisition and Bias-Free Recruitment

SPERTON employs a variety of strategies to identify top-tier talent for its clients. Proactive sourcing and networking initiatives are central to establishing connections with highly qualified candidates. Additionally, comprehensive assessments, including GMA and personality tests, are conducted to ensure alignment with the client’s values and culture, guaranteeing that hired individuals possess not only the requisite skills but also seamlessly integrate into the client’s organization.

Moreover, SPERTON leverages innovation and technology, utilizing tools and job portals such as Teamtailor, LinkedIn Recruiter, Indeed, and Monster to maintain a robust talent pool.

Furthermore, the company prioritizes bias-free recruitment practices, emphasizing skills as the primary consideration during sourcing. Background checks and electronic reference checks are also utilized to ensure that the most suitable candidate is selected for the job.

Facilitating Seamless Global Expansion

SPERTON supported Scatec ASA’s expansion into Ukraine, Malaysia, Vietnam, India, and Pakistan, offering comprehensive solutions from inception to completion. This encompassed Recruitment services spanning from junior to C-level positions, Manpower Supply with payroll management in Vietnam, Pakistan, India, and Ukraine, Training and Development initiatives aimed at upskilling teams, and Project Management support, including on-site assistance for projects in new territories until clients establish legal entities and organizational structures.

SPERTON boasts its dedicated Global Mobility team and strategic partnerships to ensure seamless operations and compliance across all endeavors.

Additionally, the company maintains its own teams across various countries in Europe, Asia, and the US, leveraging local resources for support whenever necessary. The emphasis on local support serves as a cornerstone of SPERTON’s operational strategy, supplemented by partnerships in regions where the company does not have a local presence.

Enabling best value Programming Solutions

SPERTON provided support to TGS Prediktor in establishing a programming center in Karachi, Pakistan, in response to the challenge of recruiting enough skilled staff for their programming center in Fredrikstad, Norway. SPERTON Pakistan facilitated Prediktor in identifying suitable office space in Karachi, Pakistan, and recruited new programmers and other project support staff, who were subsequently employed and hosted by SPERTON in Pakistan. Additionally, customized onboarding training sessions were conducted for the newly hired employees. This strategic relocation of a significant portion of Prediktor’s programming work from Norway to Pakistan has increased its capacity with high-end competence to best value.

Additionally, SPERTON’s operations in each country prioritize industries where they possess excellent expertise. For instance, the company also provides support across a spectrum of roles, including C-level, white-collar, and some blue-collar positions.

The supported project types encompass a wide array of endeavors:

- Project Management, Planning, Contract, Design, Civil, Mechanical, Electrical (HV/PV), Site Execution, and Supervisory roles for Solar Power projects in Europe and Asia.

- Professionals, drilling supervisors, and US/Canada expat specialists for Oil & Gas projects for United Energy of Pakistan.

- Key logistics positions spanning Sales, Operations, Customer Service, IT, HR, and Strategic roles in Malaysia.

- IT professionals for consulting companies with leading Oracle environments and other platforms, including cloud-based delivery models in Norway.

- Manpower solutions for manufacturing plant production teams and technical service teams.

Facilitating Global Expansion Support

SPERTON has played a pivotal role in Scatec ASA’s expansion into Malaysia, Vietnam, India, Pakistan, and Ukraine. During the early stages of Scatec securing projects in these countries, SPERTON provided extensive support, including:

- Identifying key project staff within each country.

- Hosting key project staff and expatriates within the respective countries.

- Offering legal advice as needed.

- Providing local services such as identifying office space, procuring IT equipment, and making travel arrangements, among others.

- Managing the payroll of both project and office staff.

Strategic Expansion and Tech-Driven Talent Solutions

SPERTON is strategically expanding its presence in several key regions, including Norway, the US, the UK, India, Vietnam, Germany, Indonesia, Pakistan, and Malaysia. Additionally, plans are underway to establish offices in Sweden and Switzerland.

The company is committed to a measured approach to growth, ensuring stability and sustainability. SPERTON leverages cutting-edge technology solutions in its talent services, incorporating AI, machine learning, and automation to enhance efficiency and set industry standards. Utilization of platforms such as LinkedIn, Refapp, Master Management tests, and Teamtailor ATS, among others, enriches talent processes, driving growth and advancement across various sectors.

Sperton’s management and employees always strive to follow the company values in all areas they operate:

·       We care socially and environmentally in the environment we operate. We support the UN 17 sustainability goals.

·       We find solutions for our clients and welcome the challenges we are meeting.

·       The sense of urgency is in our genes.

·       We are small, and we act fast.

·       We always go the extra mile for our clients and candidates.

·       We share and create a win-win for our collogues and for our business partners.

Fostering Employment Opportunities and a Strong Company Culture

Under the Executive leadership, SPERTON’s vision for the future revolves around building a larger and financially secure organization dedicated to facilitating employment opportunities for individuals. The company is deeply committed to assisting individuals with CV gaps in finding employment, either within SPERTON or elsewhere. The ultimate goal is to transform the recruitment process into a mutually beneficial endeavor, ensuring success for both the candidate securing a new job and the company finding the ideal candidate.

Furthermore, SPERTON aims to establish a robust presence in the countries of operation, facilitating strong support and assistance mechanisms to reduce dependency on individuals. Plans are underway to bolster Shared Service teams in Pakistan and Ukraine, recognizing their pivotal role in recruitment processes, marketing, administration, and other areas.

Central to SPERTON’s vision is the cultivation of a strong company culture, drawing upon the best practices from Norwegian culture across the organization. Erik emphasizes the importance of trust, autonomy, and accountability as guiding principles for SPERTON’s continued success and growth.

Client-Centric Solutions for Success

SPERTON places a strong emphasis on effective communication and collaboration with clients throughout the engagement lifecycle. This commitment is demonstrated through the maintenance of open channels of communication and regular updates, ensuring that clients are kept informed every step of the way. Active listening is prioritized to understand client needs and preferences, thus ensuring alignment with project goals. Additionally, SPERTON employs robust project management tools and methodologies to facilitate seamless collaboration, allowing for real-time tracking and transparency.

Transparency and honesty are fundamental values upheld by SPERTON in all client interactions. Recognizing the significance of clients to the company’s success, maintaining these principles is of utmost importance. Furthermore, SPERTON consistently works diligently to thoroughly understand the positions they are tasked with, utilizing job analysis or similar solutions. The company aims to serve as an advisor and supporter for clients, prioritizing expertise in every engagement. Long-term partnerships are prioritized over short-term gains, reflecting SPERTON’s commitment to sustainable success.

In addressing challenges or issues that may arise during client engagements, SPERTON adopts a proactive and solution-oriented approach. Prompt identification and assessment of obstacles are followed by the development of tailored solutions, leveraging the company’s expertise and experience. The dedicated team remains readily available to address client concerns and provide timely support, fostering a culture of responsiveness and accountability. Through these measures, SPERTON strives to ensure that client engagements proceed smoothly and successfully, consistently delivering value and exceeding expectations.

Enhancing Recruitment Practices for Diversity and Development

SPERTON maintains an open stance towards welcoming new customers of any size and from any region, recognizing the importance of diversity among clients to facilitate continuous learning and focus. The company embraces clients of varying scales, acknowledging that small and large clients have distinct demands, all of which are valued equally. Following the transition to digital communication post-COVID, SPERTON ensures seamless and convenient communication channels with all clients.

Additionally, SPERTON prioritizes professional development within its organizational framework. Erik Mellebye-Giertsen, CEO of SPERTON Norway, also holds global responsibilities for the company’s recruitment systems, processes, and internal development. Regular digital live training sessions, ranging from 2 to 5 sessions per month, are conducted by Erik or other internal and external experts aimed at educating the entire global team, both new recruits and experienced personnel. These sessions are deemed crucial for enhancing job performance, job satisfaction, and overall development.

What is the importance of Job analysis?

SPERTON underscores the significance of conducting a thorough job analysis at the outset of any recruitment process. This analysis, carried out collaboratively with the client, delves deep into essential information about the position, surpassing the typical boundaries of a job description. By meticulously focusing on the fundamental skills required for the role, SPERTON swiftly identifies suitable candidates for its clients.

A job ad is not a job ad?

A distinction between job descriptions and job advertisements is emphasized. While a job description should encompass comprehensive details about a position, a job advertisement should be enticing and engaging, effectively selling both the company and the role. Incorporating quotes from current employees and compelling imagery can enhance the appeal of a job advertisement, attracting potential candidates effectively.

Lastly, SPERTON acknowledges the potential impact of overly extensive skill requirements in job postings, particularly on female applicants. Research suggests that women may feel compelled to meet all listed requirements before applying, unlike men, who may apply even if they meet only a portion of the requirements. As such, SPERTON advocates for a balanced approach to listing skill requirements in job postings to encourage diversity in applicants.