One in four Singapore CFOs pledge pay raises for their staff this year

But 1 in 2 say only top performers will receive a bigger paycheck.

Whilst majority of Chief Financial Officers within the financial services attribute rises to all of their employees or to their top performers, only almost a quarter (24%) of them say salaries will grow for all their financial services staff this year.

According to a study by Robert Half, almost half say only their top-performing staff will receive a pay rise this year, which is indicative of the results-driven industry.

Robert Half Managing Director Matthieu Imbert-Bouchard said with financial services being a highly competitive, performance-driven industry, financial services professionals aiming for a pay rise this year will have to deliver results and add significant value to their organisation.

"Even though salaries are under pressure in many financial services companies, the sector continues to be challenged by a growing skills shortage, and top financial services professionals who are aware of their market value can fully leverage this shortage to negotiate more pay," Imbert-Bouchard said.

With salaries under constraints in many companies, financial services organisations are going beyond monetary incentives and are expanding their incentive offerings with half (50%) offering more workplace flexibility in order to successfully attract skilled financial services professionals. More so, 45% of firms are offering professional development opportunities, and 44% are providing formalised reward and recognition programs, followed by more than one in three (34%) who give employees opportunities to travel to company offices located overseas.

“The war for talent continues, and financial services companies are increasingly having to think outside the box for strategies on how to attract the best quality talent. Companies who are under cost-pressure need to consider offering flexible working arrangements and professional development opportunities in order to avoid losing the war for highly-skilled talent,” Imbert-Bouchard added.