Biotech Recruitment: Hong Kong branch puts firm closer to the action

It took a great leap of faith for Janet Preuss to open a branch of her specialist biotechnology recruitment company in Hong Kong.

Janet Preuss of Biotech Recruitment, which expanded to Hong Kong ‘because Asia is the place to be’. Picture: Colin Murty

It took a great leap of faith, her own capital and plenty of planning for Janet Preuss to open a branch of her specialist biotechnology and medical research recruitment company in Hong Kong.

The Perth business owner, who has a background in pharmacology, fits the demographic of Australian women who expand overseas.

She is over 50, holds a bachelor degree or higher — with a PhD and an MBA — and is one of the 81 per cent who began exporting within five years of opening.

“A couple of years ago the economy was slowing and I thought, ‘Do I close up shop?’, and I looked at the interstate market,” Preuss says.

“I thought, ‘I don’t want to go to the eastern states’ and the US and UK were in a downturn. I thought Asia is the place to be.”

Preuss expanded to Hong Kong because it had a strong biotech sector, was close to China and the main business language was English.

She says the overseas arm of her business has had its ups and downs, particularly as international companies are subjected to mergers, acquisitions and hiring freezes, and in finding the right staff to work in her specialised field.

But Asian staff change jobs frequently and hold less loyalty than employees in Australia, which can be a bonus in recruitment.

The biggest barrier to growth she has faced is cultural, particularly given she operates in a patriarchal environment.

“Men are more comfortable doing business with other men,” she says. “I had a recruiter up there, he was an engaging young guy.

“When we went into meetings, even though I was the boss, they’d talk to him. It’s a cultural thing. Asians are more male-oriented than other Western countries.”

She says the strong Asian work ethic means potential candidates give so much time to their current position that they will answer calls or attend job interviews only after hours, challenging her traditional methodology.

“In Australia you take the day off and go to an interview,” she says.

“They won’t take phone calls during work hours. Most of our work is done after 6pm.”

Preuss has found it difficult to access capital, but says that relates to her human capital work and because she is not producing a specific item or agricultural product to export.

Not having had children, Preuss has found there are fewer time constraints or barriers to spending time on her business, which may deter other women from expansion.