Headhunters told TODAY that some executive candidates may already have several options or offers on hand by the time they get interviewed.
“Our biggest advice to clients is (be prepared), there’s an awful lot of offers rejected,” said Mr Jonathan Goldstein, managing partner of Page Executive, the executive search division of global recruitment services firm PageGroup.
Companies are also aggressively trying to hold on to their valued employees, posing a hurdle to firms that are hiring.
“The HR department and the companies are also coming up with a lot more counter-offers now,” said Mr Finian Toh, managing director of global human resource executive search firm, ChapmanCG.
Agreeing, Mr Ankit Kochar, senior director at recruitment firm Ethos BeathChapman, said that companies have realised it may be cheaper to counter-offer an existing employee with a pay hike, than go through the process of hiring a new one.
FACTORS THAT GLOBAL TALENTS CONSIDER
Generally speaking, there are several universal factors that talents look at when deciding on a host country for the next phase of their careers.
Political stability of the country, ease of doing business and good infrastructure are among the considerations highlighted by those who spoke to TODAY. Incidentally, these are also among Singapore’s strong suits, they said.
Besides those directly related to their own work, elite talents also tend to take into consideration things that impact the lives of their family members, given that they are generally of an older age profile.
These include a good educational and healthcare system, and something as basic as physical security.
“If my wife is out with my son for a walk and I have to worry that she’s not going to come home safe, if I ever would have that feeling in Singapore — it doesn’t matter how great the school system is here and it doesn’t matter how great the healthcare system is — I’m going to leave,” said Dr Julian Hosp, chief executive officer and co-founder of Cake DeFi who is married with three sons.
Mr Goldstein from Page Executive said that while remuneration packages are still the top motivating factor, as they directly determine the kind of life an expat can provide for their dependents, these executives are increasingly taking into consideration what he calls “soft motivators”.
These would include cultural, value and “chemistry” fit with the host country and the teammates there, said Mr Goldstein, who is American.
Associate Professor Walter Theseira referred to the Government’s recently announced plans to repeal Section 377A, which criminalises sex between men, and how the move may boost Singapore’s standing in terms of inclusivity.
The lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) community “might be a minority of the top talent… but beyond that minority, there are also companies and allies who would also not be comfortable moving to a place which they feel is dicriminating against their friends in a certain way,” said the economist from the Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS), who is also a former Nominated Member of Parliament.
Mr Goldstein noted that executives are also increasingly seeking a sense of purpose in the roles they are considering.
“During Covid… they asked themselves, ‘I’m working really, really hard for this company, for this job, whether it be the hours of travel or what have you, is there a greater purpose to what I’m doing?’” he said.
Meanwhile, memories of pandemic-triggered widespread lockdowns continue to cast a shadow on people’s decision to travel overseas, be it for work or otherwise.
Ms Latimer of Mercer said that a few years ago, its employees used to jump on opportunities for rotation to other global offices. In contrast. the firm’s management now has to be proactive in getting employees to take on these opportunities.
“The idea of changing your life and moving to another foreign country, when the memory of the pandemic and locked borders is very fresh, I think it’s slowing that down,” she said.
Mr Goldstein observed that in place of expats traversing across continents for work, there is a rise in “nextpats” — or talents who seek opportunities in neighbouring countries.
“A ‘nextpat’ is someone from Malaysia who goes to Thailand, or from Thailand goes to Indonesia, or from Indonesia goes to the Philippines, so on and so forth, to run businesses, while they’re also closer to home,” he said.
“They can help with the cultural nuances, and we are seeing quite a demand for that and more interest in that.”
All things considered, Singapore has consistently ranked highly on the annual Global Talent Competitiveness Index by business school Insead. The index ranks 134 countries based on how they grow, attract and retain talents.
Since the inception of the index in 2013, the city-state has been ranked overall second in rankings, except in 2020 when it came in third. In terms of ability to attract talents, which is one of the areas that the index looks at, Singapore has generally come out tops.
Australian David Black, who is the founder and chief executive of Singapore-based research firm Blackbox, said that the Republic’s appeal over the years has “both grown and diversified”, drawing talents from more and more regions.
Having been based here for 22 years and obtaining his permanent residency over a decade ago, Mr Black added: “Singapore continues to be a magnet and its reputation, if anything, has only increased.”
WOULD ANTI-FOREIGNER SENTIMENTS DURING PANDEMIC AFFECT S’PORE’S APPEAL POST-COVID?
At the height of the pandemic, expats in Singapore had to contend with heightened job uncertainties and a spike in xenophobic sentiments.
While the Government had consistently stressed to Singaporeans back then about the importance of keeping the country open to international talents, there were concerns about foreign competition over jobs. Acknowledging such concerns, policymakers rolled out schemes to support companies in hiring locals.
The situation got a point where firms and foreign businesses chambers voiced concerns that Singapore was close to being perceived as being anti-foreigner and protectionist.
About two years on and post-pandemic, does the impression still exist?
Mr Goldstein said that he has personally never encountered anti-foreigner sentiments directly here, while Mr Black noted that the pandemic-driven “fear and stress” had brought out the best and worst instincts in people but there was no “real dip” in the level of interest in Singapore among global firms and talents.
“Problems were far worse elsewhere,” said Mr Black, adding that Singapore has emerged from the pandemic in a better position as a “key Asian business centre” compared with Hong Kong.
He added: “Overall, the benefits of Singapore to outsiders far outweigh anything they might hear about local concerns here.”
By and large, headhunters agreed that the continued interest by foreign professionals to come here show that the wave of anti-foreigner sentiments during the pandemic did not create much of a dent on Singapore’s global image.
However, for some expatriates in Singapore, it was not something that they could easily get over.
Cake DeFi’s Dr Hosp, for one, could not help but feel somewhat seen as an “other”, when his employment pass renewal was initially rejected.
The Austrian citizen said this was despite his feeling that he had done his best to contribute to Singapore. “Despite all that, I feel like I’m constantly asked ‘Why are you here? Why are you taking someone else’s work away?’” he said, referring to the anti-foreigner sentiments going around then.
While he did not make active plans to move elsewhere — he said he viewed his relationship with Singapore as akin to a “partnership” which he would not terminate merely over some frustrations — Dr Hosp did feel at the time that he and his family should start thinking of other options.
Nevertheless, he managed to get his employment pass renewed in the second quarter of last year. He stressed that he does not intend to move elsewhere as it makes most sense to remain in Singapore on both a personal and professional level.
Similarly, Ms Latimer cited how some long-term pass holders who had temporarily left Singapore before the pandemic struck were not allowed to return for a long time when borders closed, despite them having work commitments and rented homes here.
“That left a bit of a bitter taste in some people’s mouths… And I think people who were planning on leaving Singapore in the next five years, probably brought forward that timeline,” she added.
