The demand for tech experts and talents saw a dramatic surge over the past several months in Singapore as the city-state has been hard at work in its Smart Nation Drive that was initiated five years earlier.
According to Channel News Asia, Singapore's technology has been growing over the years and it has opened doors for tech graduates and talents to land good-paying jobs. However, demand continues to spike as the city-state aims to digitalize in the near future.
In the 2018 Infocomm Media Manpower Survey, it was predicted that the demand for infocomm talents will expand by 28,500 next year. The forecasted numbers will be added to the figures from 2017 that stood at 202,600.
The surge in demand was in line with the government's efforts in encouraging businesses to adopt innovations in their systems under the 23 Industry Transformation Maps rolled out earlier in 2016.
As part of the joint efforts to gradually transition to a digitalized economy, local universities have been expanding courses focused on newer technologies. Students have been more than welcoming the offers.
Compared to 1,244 enrollees in information technology courses across six autonomous universities in 2015, the number ballooned to 2,039 last year, paving the way for more interest in the tech sector.
Despite the growth in infocomm enrollees, industry experts and companies in Singapore's tech sector revealed that the numbers are not enough to supply the demand for professionals under the following segments: artificial intelligence (AI), cybersecurity, and software development.
President of the Singapore Fintech Association, Chia Hock Lai, noted that while most companies want to hire domestic workers, "the supply is not there."
Associate director of recruitment agency Michael Page Singapore's technology unit, Shinjika Shukla, echoed Chia's sentiments. Shukla argued that bigger companies such as Google will have it easier in terms of supplying the company's manpower needs.
Other industry players believe the shortage in information technology talents will ease up as new and interested graduates enter the picture. The innovations that come with tech jobs is one of the key factors that talents consider when they apply for job openings, analysts said.
Meanwhile, IT governance, regulatory compliance experts, and cybersecurity professionals may take advantage of the Singaporean government's call for increased focus on auditing in various sectors.
According to the Singapore Business Review, the city-state's drive for stricter auditing in companies has encouraged firms in the region to up their ante in the said segments.
It is expected that as more businesses adapt high-end technology to protect their systems and improve reporting to respective regulators and agencies, jobs for infocomm and information technology talents will increase.
