Singapore aims to become the region’s tech hub but faces a talent shortage as more and more companies flock to the region.
Every day, at least 3 recruiters approach software engineer Xiao Yuguang. Xiao’s demand for skills has risen sharply since he graduated in 2014, majoring in computer engineering. However, Xiao declined the offers and joined ByteDance, the TikTok agency, after a few years with Grab.
Singapore aims to become the region’s tech hub, but faces a talent scarcity as more and more companies flock. Tencent, ByteDance, Zoom Video Communications, Grab, Sea … are among the businesses expanding in Singapore, fueling the “headhunting” war in the island nation, where the unemployment rate is record high by Covid-19. .
According to US Chamber of Commerce in Singapore CEO Lei Hsien-Hsien, some member companies want to recruit data scientists and programmers. Therefore, the demand is huge but the supply is relatively thin, slowing down the rate of expansion.
Human Resources Company NodeFlair says there are about 500 tech jobs posted on recruitment websites.
In June 2020, Singapore Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan shared that the information communication sector needed 60,000 more experts in the next three years. Responding to a Reuters news agency’s question about this number, the Ministry of Communications revealed that in mid-September 2020, there were nearly 10,000 jobs related to technology posted on the government-run job portal and created 6,800. other jobs and internships until June 2021 through inter-industry cooperation.
Border closures caused by Covid-19 and tight foreign labor policy delay foreign recruitment, exacerbating the shortage. Some technology experts ask for a 30% salary increase to “jump jobs”. However, Daljit Sall from Randstad said that the situation won’t last long once the border reopens and human resources for training are plentiful.
The Singaporean government is providing technology skills training for thousands of people, while the number of people taking IT courses at colleges and universities has increased 17% over the past three years.
Singapore is home to many multinational companies and banks. Even so, the country of 5.7 million people is not adapting quickly enough to the required technology skills and experience. Raagulan Pathy, Zoom Asia-Pacific Director, commented that many companies are entering a small island. A simple math can also see that at some point, talent will be exhausted.
Until now, the shortage of manpower has not caused any consequences. Global companies are still very interested in expanding in Singapore. To attract businesses, the Singapore Economic Development Board also offers many solutions, such as a new job visa for senior technology leaders. Visa was introduced in January, receiving many applications but limited to 500 people with strict criteria.
Companies must find ways to adapt. The ShopBack shopping reimbursement platform, for example, allocates workloads for engineers to meet new needs. Fintech Nium Company has a team of 250 engineers in India and 13 management personnel in Singapore.
Du Lam (According to Reuters)
Vietnam has 300,000 human resources exporting software to the world
This is shared by Mr. Truong Gia Binh – one of the most influential figures in Vietnam’s IT industry at the National Forum for Digital Technology Business Development.
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