Skill Shortage impacts Technology Growth in Singapore
Cloud computing, Java and Governance talent in demand
New research conducted by global talent services company Morgan McKinley as part of its 2024 Salary Guide has revealed that 76% of technology hiring managers found recruitment ‘very’ or ‘quite’ competitive in 2023 across Singapore.
The Guide identified key challenges for 2024, with 25% of hiring managers citing shortage of skilled candidates as their primary obstacle. Other challenges included difficulties in competing on pay and benefits (22%) and a lack of approval for new headcount (19%).
Despite the challenging market, things are looking brighter in 2024 with half of technology hiring managers revealing that they would like to increase headcount in the first half of the year and 46% of technology workers are looking for new roles in that same period, with a further 31% considering a move.
When looking to move roles, technology workers value a higher salary (40%) the most, followed by career growth and development opportunities (14%), and ability to work fully remote (13%).
Flexibility continues to be important in the technology industry, with work from home and flexible working hours placing first and third respectively in Tech professionals’ top five valued benefits - alongside bonus (second) and health insurance (fourth). Technology had the greatest proportion of people who placed 'work from home' as one of their most valued benefits out of all 10 specialisations surveyed (71% of technology professionals picked it in their top five).
42% of technology professionals would prefer to be in the office 1-2 days a week, whilst only 8% want to be on-site 5 days a week. Over half (53%) would skip a pay rise if it meant they got the flexibility they desire.
69% of employers expect their salary offers to increase for certain hard-to-fill roles across technology, and a further 20% plan to increase salary offers for all Tech teams.
Gurj Sandhu, Managing Director of Morgan McKinley Singapore, commented:
“Global layoffs by tech giants, rising inflation and general economic uncertainty all heaped pressure on the heavily invested-in Tech sector throughout 2023. But there is now definitely a silver lining; hiring activity picked up in Q3 and paints a positive picture for 2024. Many businesses have projects pipelined and a strong book of work and will need the right talent to successfully see them through 2024 and beyond.”
“It is likely that businesses are going to be more focused on salary corrections for their employees to hedge against inflation in an attempt to keep their existing headcount stable. This said, in-demand roles will always be able to attain higher salaries.”
“Skills shortages have been exacerbated by international talent leaving the region due to high living costs and rising inflation impacting property rentals. Employee engagement and togetherness is key. It’s important you understand your people - their career goals and aspirations - to keep them engaged.”
Key jobs and skills in demand for 2024 in Singapore across areas of Technology:
| Jobs in demand | Skills in demand |
Development & Testing | |
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Infrastructure | |
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Architecture | |
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Analytics | |
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Cyber Security & Technology Governance | |
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The Morgan McKinley 2024 Salary Guide presents up-to-date and accurate salary data for a wide range of Technology roles across Singapore, providing hiring managers with industry benchmarks when they are working out what to pay employees and giving professionals more visibility over what they can earn.
Research from 650 businesses and 3,400 professionals was conducted to find out what companies’ hiring intentions are for 2024, what the key motivators are for changing jobs, and what the expectations are for movement on salaries.
For the Morgan McKinley Singapore 2024 Salary Guide, visit:
https://www.morganmckinley.com/sg/salary-guide
ENDS
About Morgan McKinley
Morgan McKinley is a global talent services expert, offering the full spectrum of solutions to meet employers’ and jobseekers’ needs. With 19 offices in 10 countries and nearly 1000 employees, it provides 3 distinct solutions for customers. Morgan McKinley Recruitment Solutions encompassing deep expertise across 10 professional disciplines offering temporary, contract and permanent recruitment; Morgan McKinley Executive Search for targeted C-Suite talent searches; and Morgan McKinley Talent Solutions including RPO, MSP, Project Recruitment and more.
Morgan McKinley is part of Org, a more human kind of professional services company that harnesses the power of talent to bring better business outcomes for clients across the world through advisory, managed services and talent services.
https://www.morganmckinley.com
