SINGAPORE: The highest paying jobs in Singapore in 2016 are in the IT, accounting, sales and marketing, banking and finance, and the healthcare and life sciences sector, according to recruitment firm Kelly Services on Wednesday (May 4).

Salaries in the IT sector top the list, with technology heads and program managers expected to command between S$13,000 and S$24,000, and S$11,000 and S$14,480 a month, respectively, its 2016 Singapore salary guide showed.

This is because the industry is a “key anchor sector for the country’s future economy”, and the Government is actively driving growth with efforts such as the 2015 Intelligent Nation Master plan, the National Broadband Network, and the S$120 million set aside by the Ministry for Communications and Information (MCI) for training IT professionals, it said.

In spite of gloomy economic sentiments, Singapore’s unemployment rate is expected to remain at a “healthy” 1.9 per cent in 2016.

“Despite the challenges in the global economy, bright spots remain in the financial technology, big data, as well as digital marketing sectors where demand for talent will continue to rise throughout 2016,” said Mr Foo See Yang, Vice President of Kelly Services Singapore.

SALARIES IN OTHER HIGH GROWTH INDUSTRIES

The accounting sector grew by S$1.8 billion in 2015, owing to the Singapore Committee to Develop the Accountancy Sector’s (CDAS) push to develop the industry into a hub for the Asia Pacific region by 2020. Salaries range from S$10,000 to S$20,000 for Chief Financial Officers and S$5,000 to S$7,000 for account managers, the study said.

In the sales and marketing sector, demand for digital marketers have risen as mobile marketing becomes an a more dominant medium for brands tor reach their consumers. They can command a salary of S$6,000 to S$10,000, it added.

Meanwhile, in the banking and finance industry, financial technology developers can expect a salary range between S$7,500 to S$12,000 while vice presidents looking after compliance and risk can expect to be paid from S$10,000 to S$17,000, Kelly Services said.

Even though growth in the industry is expected to be low, there are positive signs as the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) commits S$225 million to grow the country’s financial technology capabilities, it said.

In the health and life sciences industry, research and development directors can command a salary range of S$8,000 to S$15,000. This is because the sector is “Asia’s fastest growing bio-cluster” and demand for professionals with specialist skill sets are expected to remain high, the recruitment firm said.

“Professionals, managers, executives and technicians (PMETs) who have been hit hardest by the slowdown should look at upskilling and expanding their capabilities into new areas of growth to stay relevant,” suggested Mr Foo.