Over the last three years, finance and technology professionals in Singapore have seen double digit wage growth.
But now employers seem to be pulling back and slowing down the rising salary, according to the 2015 Robert Half Salary Guide.
Salary increments for technology, accounting, banking and financial services sectors in Singapore, are expected to be below 10%.
As companies become more cost conscious, they are seeking non-financial incentives to attract talent and retain high-quality employees.
The managing director of Robert Half Singapore, Stella Tang, said that since salary is only one aspect of the employment package, companies are seeking other/creative ways to provide value to their employees.
Tech and finance professional are likely to receive more flexible work arrangements, mentoring, international opportunities for career growth, or performance bonuses, instead of salary raises.
Despite the slowing of salary growth, the number of companies hiring new employees is at a three year high, according to the study:
- Half of the surveyed companies will hire employees in the first two quarters, whereas two years ago only about a third said they would increase head count.
- Two years ago only 26% of companies were seeking to hire technology professionals compared to 50% of surveyed companies this year. This surge might be a result of the cyberattacks in recent years that has caused companies to increase their investment in IT infrastructure.
- Also more companies are looking for permanent accounting and compliance professionals instead of outsourcing these solutions.
- Additionally, companies are expected to fill mid-level and senior positions in the banking and financial sector. More organisations are seeking professionals with experience managing credit exposure of insurance companies and banks.
Singapore is one of the most active hiring market for accounting and finance professionals in the region just behind China (59%) and equivalent to Hong Kong (53%). In Japan only 39% of organizations are looking to add permanent employees.
So the hiring market is still very competitive and companies have increasingly stringent hiring processes, in an effort to keep acquiring better talent.