Singapore companies fare poorly in staff development: global survey

SINGAPORE: Singapore companies fare poorly in staff development, compared with firms in the Asia—Pacific region, according to a global survey by recruitment and human resource services provider, Randstad.

Close to half, or 43 per cent, of companies in Singapore do not sufficiently invest in staff training and education.

The Singapore figure in Randstad’s latest Workmonitor Q3 2012 survey is among the highest of survey respondents in the Asia—Pacific region.

Randstad said on Tuesday that under—investment in training and education is less of a problem in other countries like New Zealand (37%), India (25%) and Australia (38%) where fewer respondents believed employers insufficiently invested in their people.

About 400 employees were polled in Singapore in the survey, which covered about 15,000 employees from 32 countries.

Of these, 67 per cent in Singapore believe their companies have trouble finding the right people for certain jobs, and 58 per cent will face a shortage of highly qualified staff in the next three years.

Randstad’s Managing Director for Asia Pacific, Deb Loveridge, said the findings suggest that business leaders in Singapore need to make a greater commitment to staff development.

"To build loyalty and encourage employee motivation, companies need to provide training and education opportunities, as well as set a clear career path to enable employees to grow in their roles," said Ms Loveridge.

"Career development opportunities are proven to help retain and motivate staff. This is particularly important, given Singapore’s low unemployment rate and competitive talent market."

The survey also found that a quarter, or 26 per cent of employees in Singapore have changed jobs in the last six months.

Better employment conditions, such as training and career development opportunities, a more competitive salary, and a greater work—life balance were cited as the main reasons for moving.

"Many low—cost options exist for companies looking to improve their career development offering. For example, the introduction of mentorship programmes to team up junior staff with more experienced executives, or encourage teams to host internal knowledge sharing sessions to provide staff the opportunity to upskill from each other," said Ms Loveridge.

— CNA/xq