Singapore employees recognise the importance of a global workforce but are not adequately trained for it, according to a survey by recruitment agency Kelly Services.

Nine in ten workers agree that being more globally oriented in the way they work is important for their career prospects. Over 3,000 workers in Singapore responded to the survey.

However, figures show that the younger generation is not well-equipped with the skills to deal with a diverse work environment. Only 69% of the Gen Y respondents (18-29 years old) felt that they have the skills to work with people of different nationalities and cultures, as compared to 88% of the Gen X (30-47 years old) and 86% of the baby boomers (48-65 years old).

“Generally, older employees have greater exposure and working experience in their fields. Hence, they are more equipped to interact with their foreign counterparts from different countries and cultures, whereas Gen Y employees are still in the early stages of their career and need to build a more solid foundation in the workplace,” explains Asia Pacific Senior Vice-president of Kelly Services, Mr Dhirenda Shantilal.

Also, 52% of the respondents said that they are not receiving the training they need to deal with other cultures. This makes Singapore fall behind other Asian countries like India (34%), Malaysia (41%) and Hong Kong (50%) in terms of preparing workers for a global workforce.

For taking part in the inaugural JobsCentral Survey, George has won our lucky draw grand prize of a brand new iPhone 3GS! Congratulations George!

We would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who took part in the survey, which led to the release of the JobsCentral Work Happiness Indicator.

The results from this survey have been covered in numerous newspapers and websites so far, including Channel NewsAsia, TODAY, The Business Times, My Paper, STOMP and Lianhe Wanbao.

If you have yet to download the FREE report containing interesting results from the JobsCentral Work Happiness Indicator, CLICK HERE to do so.

Last but not least, do look out for more survey results from JobsCentral and JobsFactory!

JobsCentral is running our very first survey, and we would like to invite you to be a part of it! Through this online survey, we aim to find out how happy employees are in Singapore, and what preferences you have with regards to further education.

Simply complete the survey, and you will stand a chance to win the iPhone 3GS!

Click here to take the 2009 JobsCentral Survey now!

The survey is open for a period of 3 weeks starting from 20th July 2009.

by Nabilah Husna A. Rahman

A friend of mine recently got herself a spanking new smart-phone and ever since, she and the inanimate (though she might argue otherwise) object have been attached at the hip - almost literally too, if you observe the frantic under-the-table texting to while away the occasional recesses of social conversations.

Her pretext is that her job in a public relations agency requires far more commuting than what is normally extended to a 9 to 5 job, spilling over on Saturdays and chewing away at her after hours. The phone and her laptop come in handy – and it seems that most Singaporeans her age agree.

A recent survey conducted by Kelly Global Workforce Index established that 90% of the 3,000 local respondents find smart phones and laptops to be extremely beneficial for work-life balance and work productivity. Not surprisingly, the respondents that fall under the Gen-Y category place more importance on work-life balance. After all, youths wouldn’t be much without the frenzied social life.

The survey also included statistics on Singaporeans’ satisfaction with their current work-life balance, with Baby Boomers taking the lead at 60% and Gen Y falling behind at 51%.

Smart-phones and laptops would, of course, boost work productivity in its entirety. But attaining a work-life balance through home telecommuting would seem almost oxymoronic. 43% of respondents observe that they are working longer hours due to such technology, most of which being males and respondents of Gen X.

However, it would be fairly obvious that mobile technology naturally attracts workers due to it resulting in increased productivity. 90% of respondents expressed their appeal for telecommuting or working from home.

Mr Dhirendra Shantilal, Senior Vice-President (Asia Pacific) of Kelly Services, said, “The line between work and personal life is blurring as employees are integrating information technology into their lives at many levels. Employers who use technology to enhance working arrangements are also likely to reap productivity benefits and to be seen as employers of choice.”

So it would be rather sensible to draw the line between work-life balance and work productivity – working after hours, albeit on a portable gadget, would still be considered working, after all.

Exactly half of Singapore workers are willing to sacrifice their pay for more meaning in the work they do.

This is according to the Kelly Global Workforce Index, a survey conducted by Kelly Services in December 2008.

Said Mr. Dhirendra Shantilal, Kelly Services’ Senior Vice President for Asia Pacific, "This survey once again affirms that pay is not the only key factor to attract and retain talent, even in tough economic conditions."

Interestingly, while 60% of Baby Boomers (those aged 48-65) are prepared to forgo salary and position for more meaningful work, only 47% of Gen Y (those aged 18-29) workers are willing to do so.

In addition, the survey found that 84% of Singapore workers are proud of the work they perform, while 78% feel that it raises their self-confidence.

Massive job cuts are taking place all over the world, but 99% of CEOs in the Asia Pacific region still believe that attracting and retaining key talent is critical to sustaining long-term growth for any business.

This is according to a survey conducted in the final quarter of 2008 by business consultant firm PricewaterhouseCoopers. A total of 1,124 CEOs across 50 countries were surveyed, and a fifith of these respondents were from the Asia Pacific region.

“Good quality people are valuable assets in any economic environment,” says Mr. Gautam Banerjee, the Executive Chairman of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (Singapore). READ MORE

The results of the 2008 JobsFactory Employers of Choice Survey (University Edition) are out!

Singapore Airlines (SIA) has emerged as the top private employer of choice for entry-level graduates, while the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) is this year's most popular employer from the public sector!

Held online from 25th July to 18th August, this year's survey attracted a record number of 4,801 respondents from NTU, NUS and SMU. Which means it's the largest and most comprehensive university graduate-focused survey of its kind in Singapore!

Keen to find out which other employers made it to the rankings? Interested to know the salary expectations of entry-level graduates? For all that and more, CLICK HERE to download a FREE Extract Report!

Despite the challenging global economic outlook, multinational companies (MNCs) based in Singapore still expect an increase in moves within Asia by foreign talents.

Out of 105 companies surveyed by PricewaterhouseCoopers International Assignment Services, 64% expect an increase in short-term assignments within the region over the next two years.

70% of surveyed companies consider Singapore as the top assignment location in Asia, beating out countries like China and Hong Kong.

As for the key reasons for recruiting foreign talents, respondents cited a lack of suitable skills (read talent crunch) and the need for transfer of skills and knowledge.

However, companies face several key challenges, such as maintaining sustainable costs, talent management, practicing flexibility and managing risks. "In the wake of this financial crisis, many banks are hiring or replacing more cautiously. Recruitment today is now focused on critical positions to meet business needs," said Mr James Clemence, Partner at PwC IAS.

Conducted between March and July 2008, the survey focused on mobile employees of MNCs across different industries, who make up the top end of the workforce.

According to a survey of 1,002 graduates from SIM University (UniSIM), more than half of the university's graduates experienced a pay raise after graduation. The average pay increase for these graduates was 15%, while close to 1 in 5 got an increment of more than 30%.

The survey also revealed that 20% of respondents moved to a different job within 2 years upon graduation. Of these, 50% moved to a different industry altogether.

Conducted by The Nielson Company, this survey assesses the impact of Continuing Education and Training (CET) on working adults. The majority of respondents are in the 30-40 age group, and are employed in the public sector and multinational corporations (MNCs).

The President of UniSIM, Professor Cheong Hee Kiat, said, "We are heartened that UniSIM programmes have helped our graduates in their careers, fulfilled their aspirations, and hopefully improved their quality of lives."

If you've ever considered retiring in another country, you're not alone.

According to a survey of 300 Singaporeans aged 21 to 55, two-thirds indicated that they have thought about retiring in another country with a slower pace of life and lower cost of living.

Only 50% felt comfortable with the physical and social support available here, while 90% want to spend their old age at home, and not in a nursing home.

It's interesting how "a slower pace of life" and "lower cost of living" are reasons that Singaporeans commonly cite for not wanting to spend their twilight years here. Is Singapore really such a bad place to retire in?

Tell us what you think here