SALARY SURVEY 2013 - Robert Walters Singapore

NORTHOFENGLANDNORTHOFENGLANDTRANSACTIONALFINANCEANDSECRETARIAL&SUPPORTNORTHOFENGLANDTRANSACTIONALFINANCEANDSECRETARIAL&SUPPORTTRANSACTIONALFINANCEANDSECRETARIAL&SUPPORTRobertWaltersGlobalSalarySurvey201353TransactionalFinanceOurtransactionalfinancedivisionspecialisesintherecruitmentofclericaltomanageriallevelfinanceprofessionals.Weoperateinbothpermanentandtemporarymarkets,providingaconsistentserviceacrossawiderangeofsectorsandorganisations.Werecruitforavarietyofroles,includingAAT/junioraccounts,accountspayable,accountsreceivable,creditcontrol,payroll,supervisoryandmanagementprofessionals.MarketOverviewGeneraltransactionalfinancejoblevelsremainedconsistentin2012anddemandincreasedinsomekeyareas.Inparticular,wesawanincreaseinthenumberofpart-qualifiedvacancies(CIMA,ACA)availableafteremployerspromotedprofessionalsinternallyinthesepositions.Wealsowitnessedahighvolumeofpurchaseledgerroles-thiswasapositivesignforthewidermarket,asanincreaseinthesetypesofpositionstypicallyindicatesthatbusinesseswereinvestinginproductsandservices.Sharedservicesimplementationswerealsoakeydriverofrecruitment.Specifically,restructuresandexpansionsofbackofficefunctionsledtovolumehiringwithinbusinesseswiththesemodelsinplace.Thesetransformationscreateddemandacrossavarietyofrolesrangingfromjunioraccountandaccountspayable/receivabletomoresupervisorandmanagementleveltransactionalroles.Givenbroadermarketconditions,businesseswerekeentomanagetheirdebtorsandcashflow.Thiscreateddemandforexperiencedcreditcontrollers.Inparticular,wesawanumberofsupervisor-levelvacanciesbecomeavailableasbusinessessoughtprofessionalstomanagemorejuniorstaffandtakeresponsibilityforpaymentcollection.Astheywereprimarilymotivatedbybothanincreaseinsalaryandimprovedcareerprogressionwhenseekingnewopportunities,professionalsfoundpositionsofferinglong-termcareeropportunitiesparticularlyappealing.Afterfallingbelowmarketratetowardstheendof2011,employersweremorewillingtobeflexibleregardingsalariesandbenefitspackages.Thisledoverallpaytorisebacktoexpectedlevels.Therewasalsoanincreaseinpermanentpositionsratherthenfixedtermcontractsasbusinessescommittedtoheadcount.Despitetheincreaseinjobvolumes,therewasstillnervousnessfromsomecandidatestomoveandleaveasecurepositioninthecurrentclimate.Outlookfor2013Asaresultofthistrend,weanticipateariseintransactionalfinancejoblevelsandincreasedcandidateconfidence.Weexpectthesharedservicecentrestocontinuetodriverecruitmentasmorebusinessesmovebackofficefinancefunctionstotheregion.Secretarial&SupportTheRobertWalterssecretarialandsupportdivisionrecruitsfortemporary,contractandpermanentvacanciesacrosstheNorth.Ourteamfocusesonawiderangeofpositionsrangingfrompersonalassistantstodataentryclerks.Werecruitforavarietyoforganisations,fromlargemultinationalbusinessestosmallstart-ups.MarketOverviewThesecretarialandsupportjobsmarketwasconsistentduring2012,withopportunitiescontinuingtobecomeavailableforqualitycandidates.Inparticular,wesawdemandforteamsecretariesandpersonalassistantswithstrongMicrosoftOfficeskills.Withthemarketremainingchallenging,mostrecruitmentwasonareplacementbasisratherthangrowthfocused.Withmostbusinessesreluctanttocommittopermanentheadcount,themajorityofbusinessespreferredtohireonatemporarybasis.However,manyprofessionalshiredonthistypeofarrangementweresubsequentlyofferedapermanentposition.Althoughemployersoccasionallyattemptedtooffersalariesbelowthemarketrate,bothpermanentandcontractpayratesremainedconsistentoverthepastyear.Despiteprofessionalsbeingnervousaboutmovingjobsduetomarketconditions,positionsthatofferedcareerprogressionand/orstrongremunerationpackagesweretypicallyattractingstrongcandidates.Outlookfor2013Weexpectjobflowtobeatasimilarlevelto2012andbusinesseswillcontinuetohiresupportstaffthroughouttheyear.Wearelikelytoseemorebusinessescommittopermanenthiresasthemarketconditionsimprove,however,mostrecruitmentwillcontinuetobereplacementratherthangrowth-focused.