Demand for IT/ BPO pros remains weak in SEA: Monster

By Digital News Asia December 23, 2015

Malaysia continues to be the worst performing market
Software, Hardware and Telecom hiring also slowed down

Demand for IT/ BPO pros remains weak in SEA: Monster

THE online hiring activity of IT (information technology) and BPO (business process outsourcing) professionals has declined year-over-year across Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines, according to the Monster Employment Index (MEI) for November.

The Philippines witnessed its second consecutive month of annual decline at -22% in the IT, Telecom/ ISP (Internet service provider) and BPO/ITES (IT-enabled services) sector, reporting the greatest month-on-month decline between October and November 2015 across the three markets.

Malaysia exhibited a -30% annual decline between November 2014 and 2015, down from last month’s -19% year-over-year, Monster Worldwide Inc said in a statement.

The sector also emerged as one of the lowest growth industries in Malaysia.

Online hiring in Singapore’s IT sector registered the same year-over-year decline as October 2015, at -4%. While demand for professionals in the sector has been experiencing declines since June 2015, the sector witnessed a 4% increase in its six-month growth rate.

Hiring activities in the Software, Hardware and Telecom sector also slowed down in November, where all three markets experienced greater annual decline in demand for these professionals.

The occupational group is also among the lowest growth occupational groups in all markets, Monster said.

Malaysia continues to be the worst performing market, exhibiting a -60% year-over-year decline, down from October’s -53% dip.

Singapore reported a -14% year-over-year decline in November, a marginal dip from October’s -12% -- however, the pace of decline in Singapore has eased, Monster said.

The Philippines registered a -38% decline between November 2014 and November 2015, down from October’s -27% year-over-year decline. The market also registered the steepest month-on-month decline among the three markets.

“Singapore’s regulations and policies have helped cement its position as a friendly business environment for regional and global players,” said Sanjay Modi, managing director, Monster.com (India, Middle East, South-East Asia, Hong Kong).

“This has encouraged major global IT brands to set up their Asian hubs in the country in 2016, meaning the IT sector is likely to remain stable in the country and could pick up next year.

“Growth in the Philippines’ economy has been sluggish, slowing down overall hiring in the country.

“Despite this, the nation is expected to outpace most of her peers in the region, especially with new policies expecting to be put in place to drive growth within the nation – this will likely boost hiring activity overall in this sector,” he added.

The MEI is a monthly gauge of online job posting activity, based on a real-time review of millions of employer job opportunities culled from a large representative selection of career websites and online job listings, Monster said.

The Index does not reflect the trend of any one advertiser or source, but is an aggregate measure of the change in job listings across the industry.

Singapore highlights

The Monster Employment Index Singapore declined -8% year-on-year.

No industry sectors or job roles registered positive year-over-year growth.

The Healthcare industry registered the least decline in online hiring at -2% year-on-year, while Healthcare jobs saw the highest demand – although at 0%.

Malaysia highlights

Online hiring in Malaysia declined by -31% year-on-year.

The Production/Manufacturing, Automotive and Ancillary sector saw the least decline at -10%, while Oil and Gas registered the biggest drop at -40%.

Demand in Marketing & Communications jobs was highest at 0%.

Philippines highlights

The Monster Employment Index Philippines registered a -46% year-on-year decline.

The BFSI industry had the least year-over-year decline at -3%, while the Production/Manufacturing, Automotive and Ancillary sector fared worst at -68%.