Moving into 2021, we expect the job market in Singapore for HR professionals to gradually improve, provided the COVID-19 pandemic remains under control.
The banking and financial services sector had reported the highest talent demand for transactional positions in HR operations and payroll services in 2020. Within the consumer space, companies in retail goods are building their regional HR capabilities to support local corporate and retail operations across Southeast Asia from Singapore.
In 2021, we expect higher talent demand from local small-and-medium enterprises (SMEs) looking to build and strengthen their in-house human resources capabilities as the business prepares itself for expansion.
2021 labour and salary trends for HR professionals
The performance of professional services largely depends on their clients’ financial ability to engage them. In 2020, we saw fewer companies engage third-party services due to tighter budgets. Instead, it is more likely for companies to build and use their in-house capabilities to sustain the momentum.
We have noticed a demand for roles like compensation and benefits analyst, HR business partner, HR operations executive, HRIS project manager and payroll manager.
Within the accounting and finance industry, more HR candidates are drawn to job opportunities from Asian firms as compared to global companies. Still limited by community and social distancing measures, the media and entertainment industry is one of the slowest to regain their hiring appetite.
download the digital copy of the singapore 2021 market outlook
key highlights in the human resources sector outlook in 2021
- evolution of job responsibilities and required skills for human resources in banking & financial services, consumer & life sciences, industrial and professional services.
- salary snapshot for 10 in-demand jobs in the human resources sector.
read more on 2021 talent trends in Singapore in other industries:
If finding exceptional talent for your business is a key challenge or if you want to take your workforce ready for the future of work, please get in touch with us. You can also check our key areas of expertise in human resources recruitment.