Wanted: Employers in search of skilled candidates

Our latest Hays Quarterly Report, for the July – September quarter, shows that hiring activity is strong again in Singapore, with employers acutely aware of the deep shortage of skilled candidates in the market.

Given the stiff competition for a very finite pool of suitably qualified and experienced candidates, employers are making changes to the way they recruit. Most are now aware that the market is moving more quickly and as a result are looking at how they can recruit more efficiently. Employers are combating the fast paced market by moving quickly through interview stages; those that don’t are often losing their preferred candidate to a competitor with a swifter process.

Employers are also adapting to the market by focusing on candidate attraction and developing new and innovative ways to differentiate themselves from their competitors. For example, they are looking at their public relations and marketing strategies to ensure that their brand is strong. Such initiatives are central to securing the best talent.

But employer flexibility only extends so far. Quality candidates with sought-after skills may find themselves with two or more offers, but this doesn’t mean that employers are prepared to enter into auctions for their services. Employers still remain mindful of cost management and maintaining internal salary benchmarks.

In addition, most employers are looking for local candidates. While in some cases employers are willing to look outside of South East Asia, it is apparent that the full expat package is becoming a thing of the past.

We also note that short and long term contracts are being used more for positions that fall outside of the critical hire bracket, but have an immediate need to be filled. In fact, employers are continuing to use 12 month contracts to control additional headcounts. They are also using temporary assignments to fill a gap while the right permanent staff member is sourced and secured.

Internal mobility also remains a hot topic with many businesses having mature models and processes in this regard to allow them to retain top talent globally.

The power is definitely moving back to candidates and we therefore expect to see a big emphasis on employer retention plans moving forward.

The Hays Quarterly Report lists the skills in most demand in Singapore for the July-September quarter as follows:

· Hays Accountancy & Finance: Finance Regulatory Officers and Regulatory Reporting Analysts, CPA qualified Senior Accountants, tax specialists, Financial Reporting Managers and Investor Relations Managers.

    * Hays Banking: Corporate finance/M&A candidates, particularly at the Associate and VP levels, and senior banking professionals with strong regulatory and risk management experience.

· Hays Construction: Workplace Health & Safety Officers, Safety Managers, Senior Engineers and Project Managers with experience on Mass Rapid Transit contracts.

· Hays Finance Technology: Business facing .Net developers with Windows Presentation Foundation experience, J2EE developers, FX business knowledge, Junior Project Managers and Application Support Team Leaders.

· Hays Human Resources: HR Business Partners, Regional and Country HR Managers, Compensation and Benefits Managers and Senior Payroll Executives.

· Hays Information Technology: Candidates with experience in cloud computing, networking professionals, mid to senior level Technical Architects and Project Managers in the development space.

· Hays Insurance: Bancassurance Development Managers, Corporate Actuaries, Claims Assistant Managers, Underwriters and Compliance Officers.

· Hays Office Professionals: Office Managers, multi-lingual candidates, Executive Assistants with banking experience and Executive Assistants with one-on-one support experience from an MNC.

· Hays Oil & Gas: Subsea Engineering professionals, Process Engineers, Installations/Project Engineers and Subsea Design Draughtsmen/women.

· Hays Pharma: Quality Assurance, Validation and Regulatory professionals in the life science space, Medical Directors and Commercial Marketing professionals.

· Hays Sales & Marketing: Customer Service Executives, Sales Managers, Global Purchasing Program Leaders, Marketing Managers and Communications specialists.

· Hays Supply Chain: Supply Chain Improvement Managers, Supply Chain Managers, Supply Planning & Inventory Analysts, Head of Procurement, Warehouse & Logistics Managers and Freight & Logistics Buyers.

Chris Mead, General Manager, Hays in Singapore