IT professionals are developing an entrepreneurial mindset as they look to stay nimble and current in Malaysia’s IT industry, according to recruiting experts Hays.
This is one key finding from the latest Hays Quarterly Report, for the January to March quarter, which is a guide to the current hotspots of recruitment activity and trends.
As IT roles become more diversified, candidates looking for new roles are taking it upon themselves to learn new skills that will make them more attractive to employers in search of IT professionals with varied skill sets.
With digital transformation a hot topic for many organisations, Tom Osborne, Regional Director of Hays in Malaysia, says, “Organisations are looking for candidates who can demonstrate their expertise and intellect on programs and systems that can be utilised to provide analytics and business intelligence data. This includes all areas of the digital transformation ecosystem from the development of mobile apps to creating the ideal customer journey”.
In other trends, the opening quarter of the year will see fierce competition for high-calibre professionals in a number of functions such as in human resources where organisations are ready to improve their internal frameworks to retain and develop existing staff.
“The target for many organisations will be the hiring of learning and development professionals due to the vital role they play in ensuring the retention of key personnel through their expertise in building organisational capability and a culture of engagement,” Tom adds.
Positive hiring trends will also be felt in manufacturing and operations due to the number of plant start-ups and expansion projects. Expected to be on the radar of many companies are candidates who have project management experience in the operation of new plant.
According to the Hays Quarterly Report for January to March, demand is highest for the following skilled professionals:
Hays Accountancy & Finance:
Treasury managers – Companies are looking to attract candidates who can help them understand their cash flow for budgeting and forecasting needs in preparation of future project roll outs.
Financial controllers – Continued investment by the Malaysian government in companies based in the Johor Iskandar area has created new opportunities for financial controllers.
Hays Banking & Financial Services:
Corporate finance professionals – Employers are on the lookout for candidates who have all round experience across IPO, M&A, advisory and RTO.
Financial reporting professionals – Employers are looking for candidates with an audit background as it’s felt they will have a better grasp of numbers.
Hays Contact Centres:
Contact centre operation managers – Organisations need more operation managers to oversee the daily operation of contact centres.
Project managers – Usually offered on a contract basis, project manager roles are coming onto the market more frequently and are created to drive new customer experience initiatives.
Hays Finance Technology:
Strategy implementation & change management professionals – As the financial industry is going through a transformational phase, strategy planning is crucial in implementing new business plans.
IT security & governance professionals – Qualified candidates are needed to combat the ever-increasing threat of cyber-crime.
Hays Human Resources:
Talent management professionals – Organisations are keen to ramp up their talent retention strategies to ensure their valuable assets prosper and grow within the business.
HR business partners – Organisations value the importance of the tactical and stakeholder engagement skills HR business partners possess in helping the business meet their people first agenda.
Hays Information Technology:
Mobile app developers – As part of wider digital transformation strategies, the development of mobile apps is seen as vital in connecting with a digital audience.
Agile & Scrum Specialists – As IT projects become more diversified, it has increased a need for candidates who can manage and delegate roles to teams.
Hays Manufacturing & Operations:
Project managers – The expansion of operations and the build of new start-up plants has created demand for project managers.
Safety, health and environment professionals – New regulations to adhere to along with meeting international standards sees a number of new roles become available.
Hays Office Professionals:
Executive assistants – Steady demand continues as always for candidates who can fill this increasingly dynamic role.
Translators – As more MNCs continue to set up offices in Malaysia, employers are on the lookout for candidates who are able to speak multiple languages including Chinese, Japanese or Korean.
Hays Procurement:
Procurement managers – Implementing cost-cutting strategies in the year ahead sees demand for procurement managers.
Procurement directors – Within electric and electronics industries, there is a need for experienced candidates that can implement significant changes to current business models.
Hays Sales & Marketing:
Customer experience managers – Demand is high for talent who can create and execute meaningful and targeted digital marketing campaigns.
Hays Supply Chain:
Demand planners – With a number of companies adding to the existing product lines, candidates with planning ability are needed to create new business development opportunities.
To read the full Hays Quarterly Report, including candidate and employer trends and future issues, please visit www.hays.com.my/report
Hays is located in Kuala Lumpur at Suite 4 & 5, Level 23, Menara 3, Petronas, Kuala Lumpur City Centre.
Hays, the world’s leading recruiting experts in qualified, professional and skilled people.
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About Hays
Hays plc (the "Group") is a leading global professional recruiting group. The Group is the expert at recruiting qualified, professional and skilled people worldwide, being the market leader in the UK and Asia Pacific and one of the market leaders in Continental Europe and Latin America. The Group operates across the private and public sectors, dealing in permanent positions, contract roles and temporary assignments. As at 30 June 2016 the Group employed 9,214 staff operating from 252 offices in 33 countries across 20 specialisms. For the year ended 30 June 2016:
– the Group reported net fees of £810.3 million and operating profit (pre-exceptional items) of £181 million;
– the Group placed around 67,000 candidates into permanent jobs and around 220,000 people into temporary assignments;
– 22% of Group net fees were generated in Asia Pacific, 45% in Continental Europe & RoW (CERoW) and 33% in the United Kingdom & Ireland;
– the temporary placement business represented 58% of net fees and the permanent placement business represented 42% of net fees;
– Hays operates in the following countries: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Chile, China, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, UAE, the UK and the USA.