Singapore's appetite for foreign hires is diminishing in 2019

Jobseekers are urged to upskill as HR departments become pressured to employ local staff.

As hiring managers and HR departments face pressures to employ local staff, the appetite of Singapore businesses for foreign hires has been gradually diminishing, compared to previous years, according to global recruitment expert Hays.

They also added that multinational corporations (MNCs) or regional small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) who do employ foreign staff are more likely to arrange for internal transfers from their global offices than to hire externally unless the role calls for extremely niche skill-sets.

With the accountancy and finance sector in Singapore facing a skills gap despite the large supply of professionals available, jobseekers are urged to upskilling themselves to gain an edge over their peers, Hays noted.

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Upskilling through taking their ACCA/CPA/CFA certifications or, to a smaller extent pursuing, their master’s in Accountancy & Finance, could be largely beneficial to candidates looking to be on the top of the hiring list, according to Grant Torrens, regional director at Hays Singapore. Many of them are also broadening their horizons by attending relevant networking sessions to connect with peers and prospective employers alike.

“Whilst accounting is still a fundamental requirement in most companies, financial planning and analysis (FP&A) professionals have also been increasingly taking on an important role at management meetings as they have been expected to directly impact business performance by guiding the management team into making key decisions based on financial analyses,” he added.

Hays experts also added that employers, on the other hand, have not been resting on their laurels when it comes to securing the top talents available to drive business growth.

Many organisations have reportedly been ramping up their efforts in investing in their employer value propositions (EVPs) to attract the best talent in the market through professional social media networking and online content marketing. “Such tactics are likely to grow each year as they prove to be effective in communicating the non-monetary benefits of working for a company,” says Grant.

Other trends surrounding the accountancy & finance industry in Singapore include candidates with a hybrid of experiences, such as both financial accounting and analysis,being highly coveted as companies move towards lean yet high-performing finance teams.

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For mid-senior levels, talents who can act as commercial financial managers, taking finance teams to the next level in terms of business, are being sought out, and to this end firms are widening their nets in the search, looking at individuals of broad backgrounds and skill-sets.

There has also been a growing conception of unique finance roles that require candidates carrying experience with data analytics-related skills such as Python and SQL. The knowledge of these technologies allows for the analysis of massive data sets and to automate processes necessary for analysis.

“As hiring managers and HR departments face pressures to employ local staff, the appetite of Singapore businesses for foreign hires has been gradually diminishing, compared to previous years,” Hays said. They also added that multinational corporations (MNCs) or regional small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) who do employ foreign staff are more likely to arrange for internal transfers from their global offices than to hire externally unless the role calls for extremely niche skill-sets.