As Singapore sees the emergence of more startups, rapidly increasing automation and digitisation, plus the presence of technology giants, local talent is not sufficient to meet the growing tech scene needs.
Despite the many global uncertainties affecting the expansion of Singapore’s externally-oriented economy, it is not expected for the economy to slip into a recession or stagflation. As one of the top digital and technology hubs in the Asia-Pacific region, Singapore continues its efforts to develop talent; attracting and nurturing their local base of scientists, engineers, and technologists, while remaining open to international talent.
However, as companies continue to struggle with an increasingly severe shortage of talent across all industries, the country has looked to more unconventional methods, such as attracting highly educated women and older employees back into the market. Reports have even emerged that employees can expect larger-than-usual salary adjustments.
As the local unemployment rate sees a continuous downward trend to pre-pandemic levels, as well as a decline in the number of retrenchments, there is a strong growing demand for STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) professionals in IT and engineering roles. This is in line with the growth of the information and communication technology (ICT) sector, which far outpaced the other sectors.
Currently, most of the companies have adjusted to the “new normal” of remote work. Many are already implementing staggered work schedules, fully work-from-home (WFH) policies, or even a hybrid system where employees have a mix of WFH and office timetables. As such, management teams are more flexible on where to source the best talent.
Here are just a few of the highlights from this year’s Report:
- The ratio of job vacancies to unemployed people recorded its highest since 1998, due to a decline in unemployed people and an increase in vacancies.
- With digital technology’s pivotal role in Singapore’s economy, IT and multimedia development roles remain highly sought-after jobs.
- Companies are now willing to pay their employees more (average increase of up to 3.8%) as the economic outlook improves, as well as to offset the talent crunch.
