2022 looks set to be a highly competitive employment landscape in Hong Kong, according to the 2022 Market Outlook & Salary Snapshot just released by Randstad, that takes a detailed look at the city’s economic climate and recruitment trends.
"The developments and business trends all point towards increasing demand for talent in Hong Kong, resulting in intense talent competition among organisations across all major industries.”
The new year looks to be a very exciting one for Hong Kong. Many businesses have already recovered from the pandemic and things look set for further stability business and growth throughout 2022. The annual report, released today, provides HR with local business and talent market insights to guide their long-term hiring strategies, and higliught four must-follow talent trends.
1. IT talent in-demand across all sectors
IT talent, such as developers, cybersecurity, data scientists and analysts, as well as project management, is in high demand across all industries. To stay competitive, many firms are looking for IT candidates with similar experience to support digital transformation activities—including enabling remote working. However, the demand for talent continues to outstrip the supply of candidates, causing many organisations to struggle to find qualified employees locally.
2. Bilingual/trilingual skills more critical
As the world learns to live with the pandemic, there will be a chance that we’ll see a more fluid talent movement between Hong Kong and mainland China to address talent shortages and drive developments in the Greater Bay Area. Language abilities will be in high demand across most Hong Kong businesses.As a result, candidates who are business-proficient in Mandarin will have an edge in the employment market as the demand for cross-border integration grows.
3. Shared services uptake rising
While this was initially set up as a cost-cutting measure, the regional shared services industry will grow to foster better business agility and attract more diverse talent to the organisation. When companies outsource administrative work to shared services, it aims to create more high-value, high-paying positions for Hongkongers with the skills and experience those enterprises need to execute their business plans.
4. Flexible work strategies required
Many Hong Kong employees want their employers to adapt to the times and provide flexible work alternatives such as remote working and flexible hours. However, we have seen varied responses to this, with some businesses reverting to the typical 9-to-6 work paradigm and offering no working location flexibility.
Benjamin Elms, Regional Director, Randstad Hong Kong, noted, “In 2022, employers must come to terms that Hong Kong is a candidate-short market. The developments and business trends all point towards increasing demand for talent in Hong Kong, resulting in intense talent competition among organisations across all major industries.”
The 2022 Market Outlook and Salary Snapshot looks at talent analysis and new post-pandemic salary benchmarks across the following high-growth industries:
- Banking & Financial Services
- Insurance
- Technology
- Accounting & Finance
- HR & Business Support
- Sales & Marketing
- Life Sciences
- Property
- Sourcing & Supply Chain
- Legal
- Contracting
As a start, companies need to acknowledge that implementing hybrid work will require structural workforce changes that their employees are already expecting. Upskilling employees in their ability to manage their teams and work progress remotely is one example. More hiring managers will also have higher expectations for job candidates who are technologically proficient and independent enough to work from home.
Paul Arkwright
Publisher
