Here are the most in-demand jobs in 2019

The accounting sector could generate 2,000 jobs in 2020.

Singapore’s accounting, engineering and technical, customer service, and healthcare sectors will see the strongest job-growth in 2019, according to the Kelly Services latest Singapore salary guide.

The increase in employment opportunities will be driven by stronger demand for services, coupled with a decline in manpower and specific skill sets. According to Kelly Services, landing these in-demand roles will require job seekers to possess a combination of hard and soft skills.

“As organisations across various industries accelerate their digital transformation journeys, communication, analytics, digital, and change management skills will help employees take on more strategic roles,” the firm explained, adding that those with blockchain skills and artificial intelligence (AI) expertise will also be highly sought-after, especially in the banking and finance sector.

Foo See Yang, Kelly Services’ managing director and Singapore country head, noted that talent will find better wage and employment opportunities, regardless of level or industry, despite an expected decline in overall economic growth due to heightened global uncertainties and risks.

“Amidst challenging labour market conditions and the talent crunch, our 2019 Q1 APAC Workforce Insights found several groups of workers that companies may tap into – mature workers, returning mothers, and people with disabilities or special needs. These workers can be valuable assets to the workforce, especially for sectors that face challenges in finding local workers.”

Also read: Older workers could ease Singapore's labour crunch: report

The salary guide highlighted that in the accounting industry, the sector remains primed for growth, with 2,000 new jobs set to be created by 2020. With traditional administrative and finance functions increasingly automated, the accountant of the future will need to adapt to higher value work and take on more strategic roles.

The hottest jobs for 2019 will include accounts assistants, accountant/senior accountant, finance executive/senior finance executive, financial analyst/senior financial analyst, finance manager, senior manager/manager, finance planning and analysis.

According to the Ministry of Manpower’s (MOM) Labour Market Report, financial services was one of the key drivers of employment growth in Q1 2019. In financial services, the government has set a target of creating 3,000 jobs from 2018 to 2020, with an additional 1,000 jobs per year expected to come from the thriving fintech sector.

In the customer service field, jobs that require a human touch, such as customer service, should continue to see strong demand.

The hottest jobs for 2019 within the customer service sector will include concierge/helpdesk officer, customer care consultant, customer service assistant/officer, customer service executive.

Also read: Singapore's appetite for foreign hires is diminishing in 2019

Meanwhile, as the manufacturing sector remained the biggest contributor to Singapore’s economy, primarily supported by the electronics, transport engineering, and biomedical manufacturing sectors, skilled, quality engineers are required to maintain sustained and steady growth for the sector.

“Yet many engineering vacancies today go unfulfilled, due to a shortfall in local workforce supply and engineers leaving the profession,” Kelly Services highlighted. To boost workforce training and development for the Built Environment (BE) sector, the government has committed $72m until 2020.

Also read: Singapore revs up funding for unionised firms with training committees

Kelly Services further highlighted that Singapore will need to almost double its pool of existing long-term care workers by 2020 to support its ageing population. To meet this urgent need, the sector must overcome several challenges such as misaligned salary expectations and lack of manpower.

“Furthermore, when medical records are fully digitised in the next few years, upskilling and reskilling will be imperative for healthcare workers and patient service associates. The hottest jobs for 2019 in the healthcare sector will include laboratory technician, medical sales representative, patient service associate, radiographer, sales manager (pharmaceutical/medical devices), and staff nurse.