MAS regulatory changes in 2016 and planned reforms throughout 2017 has seen many financial institutions launch a recruitment drive for regulatory reporting professionals and risk control experts, according to recruiting experts Hays.

This is one key finding from the latest Hays Quarterly Report for the January to March quarter, which is a guide to the current hotspots of recruitment activity and trends. 2016 saw an unprecedented amount of new regulations and changes drafted that have tightened the compliance and governance requirements for all financial institutions.

According to Lynne Roeder, Managing Director for Hays in Singapore, “Recent and upcoming regulatory changes has seen Singapore become one of the most active financial regulators in Asia. The ever-tightening regulatory changes have created high demand for compliance officers and regulatory reporting professionals whose roles will be critical in ensuring financial institutions conform to the new changes laid down by MAS.”

As the search for qualified candidates intensifies, job seekers will have greater bargaining power due to limited talent pool that will see those on the market receive multiple job offers.

In other trends, the first quarter of the calendar year will also see huge demand for engineers and planners as government funded works on healthcare and transport projects gather further pace ahead of the 2020 completion target date.

A number of digital marketing roles will become available this quarter as the competitive nature of businesses operating online will see many adopt a localised approach to accommodate Singaporean consumer trends. With extra focus on developing personalised and targeted campaigns, candidates are expected to be well versed with CRM and data analytics tools.

According to the Hays Quarterly Report for January to March, demand is highest for the following skilled professionals:

• Regulatory reporting professionals will be in demand as a result of new regulatory procedures and processes.
  • Rail and transportation architects will be in demand as airport, high speed rail and MRT projects continue to progress well ahead of 2020 completion date.
  • Compliance professionals – New reporting regulations means asset managers are in need of compliance officers to ensure tighter regulations are adhered to.
  • Technology audit, risk and compliance professionals – Combating technological threats of course continues to be a priority for many banks and this quarter will see many look at enhancing their vulnerability assessment teams to manage threats associated with their applications and networks.
• Private banking relationship managers, who can bring in certain amount of clients to their new employer and guarantee a sizeable AUM in their first 2-3 years will continue to be highly sought after.
  • Due diligence candidates, who are well versed with KYC and client boarding as a result of continual updates and changes to requirements from MAS.
  • Construction and project managers are needed to support new infrastructure works in healthcare and transport.
  • Design engineers/managers with experience of managing transport and infrastructure projects.
  • Mechanical design engineers with an ACMV building services background and experience in tunnel ventilation projects are high in demand.
  • Project management professionals are needed for business change, regulatory change or compliance management projects.
  • HR business partners are in demand as the role evolves to become more strategic led over operational.
  • Cyber security engineers are in demand as businesses increase their SLAs on security.
  • Data Analysts are needed to enable firms to have a better understanding of consumer behaviour.
  • Flavourists continue to be in high demand by fragrance and flavour houses.
  • M&E FM managers – who have critical services experience, in particular standby generation/UPS power & AC systems to server rooms.
  • Digital marketing managers – Companies are needed to hire more candidates with digital experience to create and lead new business development and marketing strategies.
  • Strategic category managers with expertise in indirect spend.

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