Singapore top location for career-oriented overseas professionals

South East Asia’s economic growth drawing in top talents from all over the world.

The 2010 Hydrogen Global Professionals on the Move Report compiled by international executive search specialist the Hydrogen Group and the ESCP Europe business school has found that international candidates are increasingly looking to relocate to the region for their next big career move.

The ground-breaking study is of 3,155 mid- to senior-level professionals earning an average salary of $125,000 USD and virtually all holding a professional qualification or above – half with postgraduate degrees such as an MBA.

The research was conducted for Hydrogen Group by a consultancy project team from ESCP Europe business school, and offers insight into the mindset and motivations of highly qualified professionals at a time of uncertainty and flux in the global recruitment market. It uncovers a clear willingness of professionals to work abroad and explores both the reasons they look to do so – both personal and professional - and their favoured countries for relocation.

The Hydrogen Group’s South East Asia Director, Abigail Waudby said the banking crisis that hit the US and Europe had failed to significantly impact the region.

“Although the GFC did impact Singapore throughout 2009, recovery in 2010 has been rapid, and the region has recovered market confidence and growth this year,” she said. “Because of this there has been a noticeable shift in the increasing receptiveness of senior ranks of financial, legal and technology and transformation personnel to move to the region. International experience is increasingly becoming a requirement for this region.

“2010 is proving to be a buoyant year for Singapore. GDP is forecasted at eight percent within the financial services sector. Due to Singapore’s growth, more and more firms are looking to place staff here, to capitalise on the growth in the region.”

The Report supports Ms. Waudby’s on-the-ground experience, revealing that 94 percent are either already working internationally, or want to do so. Sixty percent of respondents said the recession has had ‘no impact’ on their willingness to move overseas.

Existing research in this area relates largely to tracking more junior or lower skilled workers, but this report breaks ground by focusing on the migratory patterns of professional level employees, with sector-specific analysis for the professional disciplines of finance, technology, engineering, legal and HR. Among the top findings:

• Mid- to senior-level professionals are highly mobile high flyers, with some 94 percent of respondents either already working abroad or interested in doing so. They see international experience as a key means of fast-tracking their careers and boosting their personal development. Greater earning potential is not in itself a top priority for this demographic.
• The economic downturn is not a major factor in middle- and senior-level professionals' mobility, with 60 percent of respondents stating it had no impact at all on their willingness to move overseas.
• In contrast to research into migration of lower skilled workers, for this demographic moving abroad is not about escaping recession. Their preference is for temporary periods abroad, not permanent relocation, with 64 percent of respondents willing to work in another country for up to five years.
• Demand for top talent is particularly strong in South East Asia and the Middle East.
• While more men say they would definitely move abroad, more women are actually in jobs overseas. When asked 'How likely are you to move abroad?' 34 percent of women reported they were already working abroad, compared to 26 percent of men. However, 40 percent of men said they definitely wanted to go, as opposed to only 30 percent of women.
• Recruitment consultancies were the most popular means of securing jobs abroad, with 28 percent of professionals already overseas having used one, followed by the use of head hunters by 16 percent. In contrast, the majority of respondents not yet abroad but who were interested in doing so (64 percent) were more likely to have simply done internet research about moving overseas, with only 15 percent actually having spoken to a recruitment consultancy.

The research also throws into sharp focus that for this elite demographic, international experience is a proactive career and life choice motivated by the desire to fast-track their career, have a better quality of life and further their personal development.

Critically, demand is there for this demographic, particularly in Asia, and that demand is driving the increased mobility of professionals, explains Waudby: "The world is fast becoming one global market, which means businesses increasingly need to compete for talent on a global scale. We've seen a dramatic increase in our clients looking to hire candidates who already have international experience and who can therefore give the company competitive advantage as they break into new countries and markets."

The research has clear implications for the global recruitment market post-recession, according to Claudia Jonczyk, Associate Professor of Organisation Studies at ESCP Europe. She says: "When things do pick up, the global war for talent will intensify even more, and the companies and countries offering the best conditions – not only financially, but overall with regard to quality of life - will attract the best talent who, as the research indicates, are highly mobile and flexible."