The SFC has vacancies for more than 50 positions, partially due to regular turnover and to meet the needs of the growing intricacy of the markets. It has regular hirings throughout the year and the organisation had 442 people on its payroll in March.

Mr Kennedy said that an increase in the organisation's budget allowed it to hire more staff. In its 2008/09 budget, presented in February, the commission set aside HK$569.9 million alone for personnel costs in the coming year, an increase of 21.6 per cent. This increase will allow the creation of at least 29 additional full-time jobs and eight post upgrades to cater for an increase in issues related to the mainland, and the complexity of enforcement activities.

'Our employees tend to get poached, so we now have across the board vacancies in most departments, from mid-management and below,' Mr Kennedy said.

Some of these vacancies include qualified accountants, lawyers, financial analysts, investment advisers, communications staff, risk management staff, information technology audit staff and support staff.

'We look at people's skill sets when considering our new hires. There is the need for skilled professionals with industry knowledge and experience to facilitate the growth of the market and the commission itself,' he said. This industry knowledge can include exposure to Hong Kong's or the mainland's financial markets and investment products, experience in working with the big four accountancy firms, or other regulatory bodies.

The SFC is also seeking to hire outside Hong Kong to attract potential candidates with international market experience. Mr Kennedy said: 'Global markets are more competitive with each other, and so the Hong Kong market needs to become more competitive as well. We need to deliver services that match market expectations.'

When considering personal attributes of individuals, Mr Kennedy said that the organisation looked for highly technical people with the right knowledge and industry background.

'They must also value the public service element to our role,' he said.

'They should be questioning, challenging and innovative. And obviously they must be team players.'

The organisation needs people who possess good communication skills, with Putonghua being an added advantage. He added that a strong sense of responsibility and good interpersonal skills were also highly valued.

Innovation and teamwork are two of the commission's core values. Other values include integrity which, as a public body, is crucial to ensure clients' trust. Another value is diversity, and the SFC has a diverse group of employees from many cultures, which helps it to create opportunities and build on its strengths. Its other core value is customer focus, meaning the commission has a high level of customer service and continuously tries to improve its market responsiveness - a challenge in the rapidly growing securities and futures markets.

The experience for employees is one of a more well-rounded working environment, where work-life balance is actively encouraged by management. 'We think we have a good work environment and try to get the work-life balance right,' Mr Kennedy said.

The SFC organises health talks by professionals during its 'Health Month', which includes activities such as yoga and tai chi. It also arranges social activities on a regular basis, such as table tennis, bowling and basketball games. The commission has also started to take more interest in corporate social responsibility and getting its staff to give back to the community.

The SFC considers its staff to be its greatest asset, and has a goal of being the employer of choice. To that end it provides not only attractive remuneration and benefits, but also continuous training, often held at a separate training facility. It tries to promote from within, with more than 80 people being promoted last year. It also recognises outstanding staff achievements by having an annual staff awards night, which gives large cash awards to individuals and teams. It further acknowledges long-time employees with service awards. Last month, 20 staff gained recognition for devoting more than 10 years of service to the commission.

Part of the reason for staff commitment to the SFC was its focus on developing management skills, which meant people skills, Mr Kennedy explained. 'We focus on the career development of our employees, which makes people feel like they are working in the right place. This is a feel-good issue. This has helped us to be consistently rated as Asia's best securities regulator.'