Organisations in Japan, Malaysia and South Korea are on the look out for HR specialists to drive their talent acquisition and retention strategies—this, according to the latest Asia Job Index published by Robert Walters. The quarterly index tracks advertisement volumes for executive appointments across the leading job boards and national newspapers in APAC. It comes as the report finds that APAC in general has seen strong growth in the volume of job advertisements—increasing by 11% on last year’s figures.
Japan in particular has saw a strong growth in demand for talent as job vacancies have reached their highest levels for the first time in 23 years, particularly in the export-driven manufacturing sector. Such demand is offering openings in HR too, as David Swan, Managing Director, Japan and Korea, Robert Walters commented, “Finding talent has become an increasing challenge for companies. As such, we saw a corresponding rise in demand for HR specialists in talent management and acquisition.”
The story was similar in South Korea, which saw positions in accounting and finance rise by 32% on last year. It comes in the wake of new free trade agreements, which have brought new entrants to the market as well as need for more staff to deal with increased regulation. This subsequently has led to a rise in the number of HR positions. Despite a strong showing, recruitment in retail and hospitality fell casualty to this summer’s Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) outbreak.
As Malaysia battles the so-called ‘brain drain’ within their companies, as well as falling crude oil prices and a weakened Ringgit, organisations are keener than ever to tighten their talent acquisition policies. As such, HR professionals are now high in demand—seeing a 43% job vacancy increase on last year. Though it also follows a strong showing within marketing and IT—which both show an increase in positions, 25% and 12% higher respectfully as the country’s businesses grow and develop their e-commerce.
Paul Arkwright
Publisher
