Digitisation drives job demand in Singapore: Robert Walters

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Robert Walters, the international recruitment consultancy, has found that recruitment in Q2'15 was led by digitisation in Singapore. The findings were part of its Asia Job Index* for Q2 2015.

Said Toby Fowlston, Managing Director, Robert Walters Southeast Asia: "The annual dip in job advertising this quarter did not come as a surprise. What we have seen is a softening in the investment banking market, which has resulted in some banks downsizing and off-shoring to cheaper locations."

Fowlston added that the atmosphere in industries such as marketing and IT remains positive. "Due to the surge in e-commerce and mobile applications, candidates with the relevant skill sets are seeing multiple job opportunities. Hence, senior decision makers need to be more involved in the recruitment process to ensure they make swift assessments to secure the best professionals. Singapore remains the gateway to businesses in Southeast Asia due to its sound infrastructure and will continue to attract multinationals in the commerce industry.”

The key findings of the report for Singapore include:

· More companies have started to increase their investment in digital technology in a bid to stay connected with their clients. As a result, IT job advertisement volumes saw a 10% year-on-year increase with the corresponding demand for skilled IT professionals.

· The growth in the digital space has also increased job advertising by 3% annually for marketing professionals. Talent with sound online experience in e-commerce, social media and consumer media consumption were specifically sought after.

· The decline in investment banking activity has also affected traditionally strong sectors such as accounting and finance as well as legal and compliance. These industries saw a weaker quarter compared to 2014 as seen by the 7% and 8% dip in annual job advertising.

Interested?

View more findings from the Robert Walters Asia Job Index Q2 2015. 

Read the WorkSmart Asia blog post about Robert Walters' views on contracting

*Asia Job Index tracks job advertising volumes for professional positions across the leading job boards and national newspapers in mainland China, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia and Singapore. 

Singapore talent continues to be in demand: Robert Walters

Robert Walters, the recruitment consultancy, has released its Asia Job Index for Q1 2015, revealing that domestic talent acquisition remains a key priority in Singapore. The Asia Job Index tracks job advertising volumes for professional positions across the leading job boards and national newspapers in China, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia and Singapore.

Toby Fowlston, Managing Director, Robert Walters Southeast Asia said, “Recruitment in Singapore is largely driven by competition in the candidate-short market, hence key challenges generally lie in attracting the best talent for the right positions. To address this, the employment market has evolved to focus heavily on talent development and retention. 

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"Companies prioritise Singaporean professionals when hiring and that emphasis will continue throughout the year. Only when all channels of recruiting domestic talent have been exhausted do hiring managers expand their search to foreign candidates. Despite offshoring within the foreign investment banking industry in the last six months, financial services still remain a major part of the Singapore economy and we look forward to a more buoyant sector in the year ahead.”

The key findings are:

· The legal and compliance space saw the largest jump in job advertising volumes, up 30% from 2014. Positions in anti-money laundering and financial crime are particularly in demand.

· IT job advertising rose by 18% from 2014 as companies strengthened their presence on social media and digital platforms.

· Increasing operating costs drove the offshoring of manufacturing plants to other more cost-efficient countries in Asia, leading to an annual 14% drop in advertisements for product and logistics operations jobs.

· The rising importance of the HR function to include business partnering and talent acquisition fuelled the demand for these positions, with advertising for HR roles increasing by 10% annually.

Download the complete Robert Walters Asia Job Index Q1 2015 here. 

Robert Walters woos Singaporeans overseas to alleviate talent crunch In 2015

The newly launched Robert Walters Balik Kampung campaign is aimed at widening the existing Singapore talent pool and creating a more dynamic workforce.

The professional recruitment firm is currently engaging with 2,000 white collar Singaporeans overseas, and has even helped some of them secure jobs in Singapore even before they return. Overseas Singaporeans have the advantage of international exposure coupled with knowledge of the local business culture, which companies in Singapore are increasingly seeing as an advantage, Toby Fowlston, Managing Director of Robert Walters Singapore, said. 

Tim Klimcke, Associate Director, Sales, Marketing, Procurement and Supply Chain, Robert Walters, added that Robert Walters' focus on overseas Singaporeans has been in place for about 12 months. It is a win-win situation, he said, as Singaporeans overseas are given access to up-to-date information on the job situation in Singapore while employers are given access to candidates whom they haven't had access to before.

"It's about creating a community and giving people access to knowledge and employment opportunities. What they think and what the reality is could be two different things," he said of overseas Singaporeans. 

The competition for Singaporean talent has intensified over the past few years and will continue to increase in the year ahead, according to the annual Global Salary Survey* from Robert Walters.

Fowlston noted that the government and employers in Singapore are increasingly seeking to hire Singaporean talent as supported by the Fair Consideration Framework, which
requires hiring managers to consider Singaporean talent
first for job vacancies before looking elsewhere. In 2014, Fowlston said, job opportunities remained vacant for a longer time as companies gave priority to Singaporean talent. As the Singaporean talent pool is still limited, competition for their skills remained strong, he said.

Where supply is particularly scarce, candidates can see hefty salary increases, he said. Figures from the survey suggest that in-demand candidates who switched jobs in 2014 could command an average 10 - 20% salary increment. A strong compliance candidate could receive an average increment of 20 to 30% on their current base salary, the survey reports.

“The employment landscape of 2015 will likely see the competition for Singaporean professionals accelerate. To fulfil the market’s demands, organisations are looking outside of the tight candidate pool and recognising the importance of attracting overseas Singaporeans back home. This creates opportunities for a more dynamic workforce and offers potential employers varied professional experiences to draw from,” Fowlston said.

Other highlights for 2015:

• Due to tightened regulatory measures from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), employers continue to experience skills shortages in the areas of governance such as compliance, internal audit, legal and risk
• As businesses continue to invest in digital strategies, IT and marketing professionals skilled in online content, project delivery, mobile and application development as well as user experience will be in demand
• HR professionals are expected to be more involved in the wider business activities and experienced practitioners with business partnering skills are likely to be sought-after. Employee attraction, retention and talent development remain a key priority 
• Candidates within accounting and finance skilled in audit, tax and pricing will see opportunities in both permanent and contract positions as demand outstrips supply 
• Contracting recruitment will continue to grow in 2015, particularly where companies are apprehensive around permanent headcount and look towards alternative sources for potential talent 

In 2015, Robert Walters says employers will need to offer competitive packages in order to encourage candidates to change roles, and estimates that an increment of 15% may help to influence the outcome. However, it adds that the market for junior to mid-level professionals remains fluid, with candidates much more willing to consider a career move. 

Professionals with business partnering, pricing, tax, treasury and internal audit experience will be high demand, it said.

*Compiled by Robert Walters' dedicated research division, the Salary Survey is based on an analysis of placements made across the company's network of offices and specialist disciplines during the course of 2014. Now in its sixteenth year, the Survey is used by employers, HR managers and employees for benchmarking salary levels within their industry.

Asian companies take feedback from exit interviews seriously

According to the latest Focus Asia white paper from international recruiter Robert Walters, the majority of organisations felt that honest feedback can be exchanged with formal or informal exit interviews, with seven out of ten organisations in Asia conducting them. 

The Acquiring Insights From The Exit Process To Build A Better Workplace report notes that making improvements to the business based on such insights could attract and retain high calibre professionals in the future.

The research surveyed over 1,200 professionals and hiring managers across mainland China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam. The study examined the formal processes organisations conduct with exiting employees, and offers recommendations on how to glean valuable insights about a company’s culture, operations and management to implement positive changes.

Toby Fowlston, Managing Director of Robert Walters Singapore, said: “While the focus of the recruitment process is often on attracting the best professionals, giving the exit process enough consideration is equally as important. Many employers overlook the opportunities which exit interviews can present. If managed carefully, the exit process can be a way for employees to leave on a positive note or provide employers with the opportunity to make a counter offer. After all, every employee is an ambassador of the organisation even after leaving their jobs.”

Other findings include:

 Seven in 12 employees (58%) did not tell their employers of their unhappiness before starting a job search

 Almost two-thirds (63%) of employers who presented counter offers to resigning professionals were turned down

 Five in 12 professionals (42%) only disclosed their job search after they had signed the new employment contract

 Five out of six (85%) employers can identify employees on the verge of resignation

 Four in ten (44%) of professionals felt that their exit interview process was worthless

Click here to view the complete white paper.