It’s been a very interesting 2011 and for us recruiters, a much slower first half than expected. Back when bonuses were paid we spoke with many unhappy candidates and expected there to be a lot of immediate movement, but surprisingly, many people stayed in their roles. However, over the last two months or so we have seen an increase in candidates actively seeking a new job and a rise in the number of middle-office vacancies we are working on. Highlights of the year so far include:

1) More cash with the corporates?

As the focus of remuneration moves away from the bonus element, are more banking candidates considering moving to a new industry? Perhaps. For example, we worked with a couple of job seekers in June who chose to leave banking after receiving a pay increase offer of 25 per cent from a corporate sector company. This seems to be becoming more common.

2) Great salary expectations

With the banking industry now focusing on total compensation and taking the emphasis off large bonuses, candidates are expecting higher basic salaries. We have seen a large increase in base pay for AVPs, and VP wages have risen slightly.

3) The importance of internal mobility

It’s definitely been a year where a huge amount of internal moves have taken place, mainly between product control, financial control, management reporting and project management. About 50 to 60 per cent of the roles we have worked on this year have been filled by an internal candidate. Firms which offer internal mobility opportunities are realising that they are a great selling point. We have also seen a large number of roles filled in Singapore by candidates moving from Europe, the US and other parts of Asia.

4) Costly roles

It’s all about cost, cost, cost again this year. Cost/expense accountants are in demand across most organisations and at all levels, for both infrastructure and the business. Finance project managers are needed to work on finance transformation projects, while regulatory/Basel candidates are also in demand.

5) Slow to hire

Headcount approval and offer preparation are taking much longer than they were a year ago due to cost restraints. More levels of sign off are required, which is making candidates more nervous during the interview process. Recruiters have to manage candidates closely to reassure them that this is normal at the moment.

6) Strange bonuses

Bonus payouts and salary increments for 2010 service have been rather strange. There seems to be no pattern emerging from any firm, other than showing that high performers were rewarded well and that average or poor achievers were not. Many AVP and VP candidates who didn’t receive a pay increase did get a substantial bonus of between S$30k and S$100k. We saw salary rises from 0 per cent to 52 per cent in the same organisation.

Sonia Fuller, director, KS Consulting