No wage issue as workforce stays competitive(continued)
By
Isabelle Chan, ZDNet Asia
Friday, November 23 2007 12:26 PM
In Singapore, more recruiters are looking not only at a candidate's technical skills. "Their ability to understand how ICT can be used to create business value appears to be much more important than the number of programming languages they know," Desai noted. "So it is important to look at the salaries from the value created by Singapore-based ICT professionals, and not compare them with the wages in neighboring countries."
"It is important to look at the salaries from the value created by Singapore-based ICT professionals, and not compare them with the wages in neighboring countries."
-- Arcol Desai Narasimhalu, Singapore Computer Society
One thing Singapore IT professionals can bank on is the quality education they receive, Desai added. "It is clear that ICT companies in neighboring countries have to set up finishing schools to retrain graduates to be employable. Singapore-trained ICT professionals do not face this requirement," he said. "Further, the large ICT companies in some neighboring countries are already offshoring and outsourcing their work to third-world countries, given the wage inflation in their own countries without corresponding increase in productivity."
Employers should look beyond wages and consider a person's skills, productivity and ability to relearn emerging skills when it comes to hiring decisions. "Attitude to work in different situations is an important factor, too," Desai said.
On the issue of escalating salaries, Andrew Sansom, director of DP Search, said: "Salaries are now spiraling upward [and have been] since March 2007, as demand also grows at a huge pace. Is it sustainable? In the short term, very much so.
"There is a point at which the balance will tip, however, and companies may look at relocation of certain categories of staff to lower cost areas or an escalation in outsourcing," Sansom said. "Singapore has the advantage of massive value-add, in that the workforce here--local hires and expatriates--is way above average for the region, in terms of skill and language ability. That, combined with Singapore's position as a safe haven--in all senses--puts it top of most foreign companies' list as a regional base."
"We are still seeing companies coming here and choosing Singapore as the preferred location. The office and residential rental prices are actually more of a worry than salaries right now. While salaries may go up by 10 percent, rents have tripled," he added.
What advice does the industry practitioner have for businesses and recruiters worried about the talent shortage and escalating salaries?
Sansom said: "The laws of supply and demand operate in the Singapore job market like anywhere else. Salaries are increasing as demand increases. Which would we prefer: A stagnant economy with no growth and steady salaries?
"The short-term solution is to import more IT staff not just from India and China, but from Australia, Europe and the United States. Salaries here, and the low tax, make it very attractive now. Gradually, supply and demand will balance out, and Singapore can remain competitive," he said, pointing out that countries like India are now facing staff shortages, too, and salaries there have gone up with demand.
Still, one business owner believes manpower costs in Singapore should be closely monitored.
Industry veteran Thomas Choong, director of Singapore-based software company Elipva--and who also runs an F&B business--said Singapore cannot afford to let spiraling manpower costs go unchecked.
Choong noted: "The current situation is also influenced by numerous factors: the buoyant stock and property markets, government announcements of significant pay increase for civil servants, inflation, and the economic outlook.
"Not forgetting that the positive outlook could be sectorial, but expectations from employees on salaries are unfortunately not," he said. "Overall, there is, and continues to be, an imbalance in the market and if left unchecked, it would not be healthy as the population greys."
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