Robert Walters Half Yearly Market Update 2013 – Commerce

CONTRACT
Contract hiring in this space only picked up after the Chinese New
Year holidays towards the end of March. Newly-qualified accountants
were in demand to assist with the additional workload as many
organisations started their annual auditing process. These contractors
were required to have a minimum of two years’ solid work experience
in another multinational environment and possess SAP proficiency.
Companies also sought candidates with strong communication skills
whom they can develop for future career progression, by offering
them more client management roles and larger projects.
A majority of these contract hires were seen in the pharmaceutical,
FMCG and oil & gas industries. The commodities sector also saw
rapid growth which generated trade-related roles and business core
finance functions.
LEGAL
ROLES
Many organisations needed these professionals for interim periods as
the tasks were largely project-based. In addition, obtaining approval
for permanent headcount remained a key challenge, hence longerterm
contract hires were offered as a solution to assist and support
existing resources.
We also saw an increase in compliance-related roles within the
commerce sector, which was an interesting trend as such roles were
typically more in demand within the banking and financial services
industry. The Singapore government also imposed more regulations
on businesses, leading to contracting opportunities in the areas of
compliance and internal audit.
PERMANENT SALARY PER ANNUM $SGD
ENGINEERING
Recruitment activity in the first quarter performed beyond expectations
and saw a significant increase as compared to the same period in
2012. This was a result of higher headcount levels in companies as
well as the general shift in strategy to secure top talent earlier in 2013.
Hiring activity was particularly strong in the industrial and
pharmaceutical sectors as both local and international firms continued
their expansion plans. Many organisations, particularly those in the
pharmaceutical industry expanded their operations in Asia using
Singapore as an entry point. As a result, we saw a rising number
of multinational firms relocating specific functions to Singapore
from overseas. In contrast, the heavy machinery, Health, Safety and
Environment (HSE), operational excellence and capital equipment
sectors were relatively less buoyant as compared to 2012.
ROLES
Project
Research & Development
EHS
Process
Service
Quality Assurance
Production/Manufacturing
PERMANENT SALARY
PER ANNUM $SGD
5 - 10 YRS’ EXP 10+ YRS’ EXP
$95 - 130k
$80 - 140k
$85 - 125k
$80 - 100k
$70 - 100k
$65 - 105k
$60 - 95k
$135 - 205k
$130 - 215k
$125 -225k
$100 - 150k
$100 - 140k
$105 - 150k
$95 - 135k
Employers actively sought quality-related professionals such as those
skilled in qualitative assurance, supplier quality and project quality.
As a result of companies moving certain functions into Singapore,
candidates with programme and project management skills were also
keenly sought-after. Research and development hires, particularly
those in the software engineering space, remained in high demand.
Salaries remained constant and candidates moving jobs expected a
pay increase of about 20%. This was due to the increased difficulty
in hiring overseas talent, leading to longer recruitment processes and
a stronger demand for qualified local talent. Competent engineering
candidates were highly sought-after, which resulted in a candidatedriven
market and raised salary expectations.
Moving into the second half of 2013, we anticipate similar recruitment
and salary trends in the engineering space.
ANALYST/ASSOCIATE MANAGER/AVP VP/DIRECTOR
Head of Legal
$200 - 350k+
TMT
$60 - 130k
$100 - 180k
$160 - 300k+
Pharmaceutical/Chemical
Commodities
Manufacturing/Engineering
$60 - 130k
$60 - 150k
$60 - 110k
$80 - 160k
$120 - 220k
$100 - 180k
$120 - 250k+
$180 - 400k+
$150 - 250k+
HUMAN RESOURCES
FMCG
$60 - 110k
$90 - 150k
$120 - 200k+
Contracts Manager
$60 - 120k
$70 - 170k
$140 - 200k+
Company Secretary
Private Practice
$40 - 70k
$70 - 130k
$60 - 100k
$120 - 250k
$80k+
$180 - 370k+
ROLES
PERMANENT SALARY PER ANNUM $SGD
3 - 6 YRS’ EXP 6 - 12 YRS’ EXP 12+ YRS’ EXP
In the first six months of 2013, the legal and compliance functions
saw steady hiring. Organisations continued hiring in-house lawyers,
contracts managers, paralegals and corporate secretaries to boost
their legal teams and reduce external counsel costs.
There was also a steady demand for contract managers within
the oil & gas, commodity trading, IT and telecommunications
industries to deal with the increasing transaction volume in Asia.
These professionals were hired for both replacement and newlycreated
positions.
Some US and European companies appointed a number of senior
legal counsels for individual contributor roles back in 2012. In the
first half of 2013, paralegals with legal qualifications and junior
legal counsels with about five years’ experience were actively
recruited to assist these heads of legal. In particular, IT and FMCG
companies sought paralegals to support their busy legal teams.
Hiring within compliance rose as multinationals looked to tackle
a variety of new regulations in their respective industries. New
headcount was allocated to compliance teams, particularly in the
FMCG space. Across various sectors, corporate and commercial
lawyers with about three to six years’ experience were highly
sought-after, in particular Singapore bar-qualified professionals.
Corporate secretarial roles were also in demand. However, such
positions often required Mandarin language abilities, which further
limited the candidate talent pool.
An additional four international private practice firms were awarded
QFLP licenses in February, allowing them to practice Singapore
commercial law and bringing the total number of licensed foreign
firms to 10. Starting salaries in foreign firms are typically higher
than Singapore-based firms, and in response to this we saw the
Big Four and some boutique local law firms increase their starting
pay by as much as 12 - 25%. This pay increase, whilst immediately
benefitting newly-qualified Singapore lawyers, will likely impact the
ability of multinationals to attract local law professionals. Salaries
for these roles tend to be less competitive compared to those
offered by private practice firms.
Due to the finite number of legal candidates equipped with the
required experience and educational qualifications, staff retention
will continue to be a key challenge in the remaining half of 2013.
Hence, salary levels are likely to rise across the board. Lawyers are
expected to consider a combination of factors when moving jobs,
such as improved work exposure or the opportunity to enter a new
industry. We expect private practice candidates seeking improved
work-life balance or a wider spectrum of commercial experience
to continue exploring opportunities to move into in-house roles.
HR Generalist/Business Partner
Compensation & Benefits Specialist
Organisational Development Specialist
Learning & Development Specialist
Recruitment Specialist
Payroll Specialist
Hiring levels of HR professionals remained consistent across the
commerce industries, due to companies expanding their operations
into emerging Southeast Asian countries. This drove a strong demand
for HR professionals with competent regional experience to establish
and strengthen HR functions in the Southeast Asian offices.
Senior candidates with regional exposure and start-up experience
such as heads of HR or HR directors were in high demand. These
roles were fairly strategic and required collaboration with top
management to help increase business revenue. These candidates
were also expected to develop and execute HR polices at the
ground level. We saw the most demand for HR professionals in the
professional services, consumer and aerospace industries.
The uncertain European market led to headquarters implementing
global initiatives with an emphasis on emerging Asian markets.
$60 - 110k
$60 - 120k
$60 - 100k
$55 - 90k
$50 - 100k
$40 - 60k
$110 - 180k
$120 - 200k
$100 - 250k
$90 - 165k
$100 - 150k
$60 - 100k
$180 - 400k+
$180 - 350k+
$220 - 350k+
$165 - 250k+
$120 - 250k+
$80 - 150k+
To spearhead these projects in Asia, companies sought senior HR
candidates who possessed at least 12 – 15 years’ experience with
diverse exposure to different industries.
Due to the increased demand for quality talent in the emerging
markets, job movers were offered a 12 – 20% salary increment.
Senior-level professionals looking to switch jobs were offered pay
increases averaging 15%. However, monetary benefits were not top
priority for candidates, as they also considered other factors such as
the total remuneration package, career progression opportunities and
the challenges expected ahead.
For the next half of 2013, we are likely to see similar hiring trends as
more multinationals focus their business efforts on Asia. Additionally,
due to the shortage of Asian HR talent with regional experience,
companies are likely to nurture mid-level employees and groom them
for HR management positions.