The highest paid jobs in Singapore in 2020

As you move through your career, seeking out new opportunities, considering a change from one industry to another, one major question might be running through your mind: what are some of the highest paid positions in Singapore?

With our annual market research, we aim to answer that exact question, and we have compiled extensive data on salaries across Singapore in a variety of industries and jobs. We have summarized these results in our Annual Salary Guide. Here are some of the highest paying jobs and industries in Singapore in 2020.

C-Suite Level Jobs

Perhaps it’s no surprise that some of the jobs with the greatest responsibility also have the highest pay. For those in the C-suite: Chief Financial Officers, Chief Finance Officers, Chief Technology Officers, Chief Product Officers and others, salaries vary, but can be as high as S$800,000 per year, depending on the company and the industry. These jobs usually require highly skilled, experienced professionals in their career. Moving down from the c-suite, in other leadership positions such as heads of departments, professionals can expect to make anything from S$200,000 to $420,000 (Head of Sales).

Breaking the analysis down beyond the c-suite, here are a few of the fastest growing, highest paid industries, sectors, functions and the jobs within them.

Financial Services and Fintech

As a whole, the financial services and fintech industry has reported some of the highest salaries. Within the industry, if you’re looking for a new job, our research shows that professionals can expect a salary increase of 10-15% when they switch. Excellent C-Suite executives are high in demand and jobs such as Know Your Customer Analysts are currently among the top jobs in demand.

Jobs within compliance can get you anywhere from S$78,000 (Compliance Officer), all the way up to S$400,000 (Managing Director Compliance). For legal positions within this industry, professionals can expect to make anywhere from S$85,000 (Paralegal) up to $S360,000 (General Counsel).

Technology, Media and Telecommunications

As digital transformation becomes a priority for all organisations jobs in technology are understandably some of the highest paid in Singapore. When switching jobs, professionals have seen up to 15% increase in their salary. A Chief Executive Officer can make up to S$800,000 a year, while outside of the C-Suite heads of departments make the most, for example, within Finance Transformation, a job such as Head of Mergers and Acquisitions can make up to S$260,000 and Head of Tax, S$250,000. A job such as Director Digital Transformation can bring in up to S$204,000 per year and jobs such as Project Managers, Project Architects and Business Analysts earn the highest among this group.

Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG)

Within the FMCG industry, professionals can expect a salary increase of 10-15% when they move into a new position. Within FMCG, a Chief Financial Officer can expect to make up to $400,000. Within Engineering and Manufacturing the jobs that are highest paid include Application Specialist ($200,000), Plant Manager ($260,000) and Regional Operations Managers ($300,000).

Highest paid jobs

These are the highest paid jobs in Singapore in 2020. As shown in the results, it pays to continue to work your way up, moving into industries that interest you and aim high when making career transitions.


This is a guest post by Michael Page.

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Win $80K Advertising Grants For Your (SME) Business In This Elevator Pitch Competition

If you only have 1 minute, how would you convince someone next to you in an elevator to invest in your business? Share your pitch with us and you could win $80,000 in advertising grants organised by 99%SME*.

The Elevator Pitch

  1. Step 1: Similar to business, time is money. In 50 words, tell us why your business deserves to win the $80,000 advertising credits from 99%SME. In other words, make your pitch short and sweet.
  2. Step 2: Find something red that’s associated with your business and take a picture with it. It could be you holding something red that you are selling on our platform, or simply you decked in your lucky red shirt/dress hoping that you will be one of the lucky 3 submissions!
  3. Step 3: You are almost done. Simply post the picture with your pitch and post it on your Facebook account with the hashtag #99sme80kgrant. Lastly, don’t forget to set your post to public so that our judges can verify!

It’s really so simple. Here’s an example of how a picture can look like:

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$80,000 Advertising Grants

The top 3 submissions will walk away with $80,000 of advertising grants from 99%SME, giving your business a leg up during this period. It includes the rare opportunity to work with professionals from Mediacorp to design the best marketing campaign for your business needs. For instance, it could be a tactical plan to boost product sales during this trying COVID-19 situation. Or it could be a targeted marketing pitch to increase your brand awareness so that it stands out amongst its competitors. With such an opportune marketing grant, you should really act first because the window is narrowing.

Contest Ends 20 March 2020, 2359H

Winners will be based on the following judging criteria, with an equal 50% weightage place on each factor:

  • Best submissions nominated by our panel of judges
  • Highest number of ‘likes’ on the Facebook post

Hurry and make sure you join the contest before 20 March 2020, 2359H! The 3 winners will have to be registered as 99%SME sellers to claim the advertising credits. For more information, please visit 99sme.sg/contest

*99%SME is co-founded by Singtel and DBS, with Mediacorp being its official media partner

 

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How to Become an E-Commerce Entrepreneur

Today, there are more ways than ever before for would-be entrepreneurs like yourself to find success in the e-commerce industry. There are a host of different avenues for you to go down in your bid to sell products, make some money, and build your reputation. You just have to be brave enough to give up your day job and follow your true calling in life!

What with all the choices that you have available to you in this instance, it will be difficult for you to pinpoint your focus and really hone in on a target market. Fortunately, the comprehensive help and guidance that you are in desperate need if can be found below.Here’s what you need to do to become a successful e-commerce entrepreneur:

Hone in on your niche

Honing in on your niche is the first challenge that you will face on your journey to become an e-commerce entrepreneur. You need to choose a niche that is going to prove profitable and sustainable. More importantly, you need to choose one that is going to continue to impassion you for years to come. If the product that you sell doesn’t excite you, your heart won’t be in it and, slowly but surely, your desire to succeed as an e-commerce entrepreneur will fade.

If you’re stuck for ideas in this instance, then you should consider starting your own online T-shirt business. As stated by Oberlo, this is a popular choice for beginning an e-commerce simply because T-shirts are cheap to source and easy to customize.

Study your market

To ensure that your business idea hasn’t already been conceived, taken, or trademarked, it’s imperative that you study your market before you start your own e-commerce business. This will allow you to enter your market without having to worry about being sued for intellectual property theft as your career progresses and your reputation grows.

Studying the current climate of your market will also provide you with an understanding of what is or isn’t working for your competitors. With this knowledge at hand, you will find it easier to avoid the pitfalls of your industry going forward.

To perform market research in the most targeted and effective way possible, you should:

  • Determine exactly what it is you need to know about your industry
  • Study your industry’s future outlook
  • Pinpoint your target customers and flesh out their buyer persona
  • Prepare a number of research questions

Build your store

Of course, you can’t be an e-commerce entrepreneur if you don’t build your own online store. To ensure that your website is professional, engaging, and intuitive enough to generate you some leads right off the bat, it’s imperative that you align yourself with a quality web host. To find this perfect host, you must:

  • Know how much support you’re going to need
  • Have a clear understanding of the traffic that you expect to draw
  • Be well versed when it comes to different server types

If you put all of the above advice into practice, you’ll find yourself reaching the peak of your professional potential in no time.

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5 Local Brands You Never Knew Were Online

Think your neighbourhood mom and pop stalls are still setting up shop the old-fashioned way? You may be pleasantly surprised to find out that many of your friendly neighbourhood stores have already gone digital.

That’s right, many small and medium businesses have an online presence and are selling their products on 99%SME, a dedicated eMarketplace for SMEs.

Here are 5 local brands you probably never knew were online:

1.      Thye Shan Medical Hall

Thye Shan Medical Hall (泰山药行) is a well-established brand of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) products and services. With more than 60 years of history, the first Thye San outlet was opened in Chinatown in 1955 by Mr Chan Chak Poey.

Rather than make a trip down to one of their three retail outlets, you can buy premium bird’s nest, abalone, tonics and powder blends from their online store.

Visit their online store here: https://www.99sme.sg/thye-shan-medical-hall-pte-ltd/

2.      Yikowei

Established in 1983, Yikowei (一口味) has been serving up homemade traditional Chinese pastries lovingly made with the best ingredients. Get their traditional pineapple tarts freshly baked from the oven and delivered to your doorstep.

Visit their online store here: https://www.99sme.sg/yikowei/

3.      Nam Shiang & Co

Established in 1942, Nam Shiang & Co has grown to become a leading exporter and distributor of housewares in East Asia. They carry a wide range of quality household products and housewares from established brands all over the world, catering to individual home users, F&B businesses, and other corporations.

Visit their online store here: https://www.99sme.sg/stores/nam-shiang-and-co./

4.      Coffeehock

Coffeehock has established itself as a household name in local coffee and tea manufacturing, ever since it started its business in 1997. Known for its great taste and quality, you can find Coffeehock products being retailed in local supermarkets, convenience stores and minimarts.

Craving for a taste of local kopi or teh from the coffeeshop? You can now easily purchase Coffeehock coffee and tea beverages, such as the Signature Coffeehock Coffee-O Kosong, 2898 Coffee Powder and 2 in 1 Teh-O Ceylon teabag from its online store.

Visit their online store here: https://www.99sme.sg/coffeehock/

5.      Fu Wah Department Store

Having been in Bedok for the past 30 years, Fu Wah Department Store is a well-known household name in the neighbourhood. Like a typical neighbourhood mama shop, the store sells anything and everything that you can think of, ranging from cosmetics, beauty, hair, fragrance, healthcare, to slimming products.

Visit their online store here: https://www.99sme.sg/fu-wah-department-store/

99%SME for Small and Medium Businesses

Are you a local Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) like some of the businesses featured above? Jump on the bandwagon now and reach a wider audience effortlessly by selling online with 99%SME. 99%SME is a campaign started by DBS and Singtel in 2015 to help small and medium businesses to go digital. It has since gained tremendous traction and helping Singapore SMEs go places.

Here are some of the fantastic benefits of joining 99%SME:

Benefits of Going Digital With 99%SME

Get started effortlessly with online sales

99%SME is a comprehensive ecommerce platform that allows you to get started with selling online in 3 easy steps. All you have to do is to register for an account, upload your products, select your payment and shipping options, and you are set!

Reach a wider audience with the 99%SME platform

With a common platform to showcase products and services, customers browsing through the eMarketplace for great deals can discover your business. Customers can also use the location-based feature to search for SMEs near them, making your business discoverable to people around you.

Get 90% subsidy and extensive support

If you are ready to bring your business further into the online space, you can get 90% subsidy when you hire a digital professional matched to your business. As a 99%SME participant, you will also get to be invited to free training and seminars offered by DBS Academy and various partners.

99%SME is completely free to join

99%SME is completely free to join – there are no strings attached!

Join as a seller on 99%SME now!

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Surefire Ways To Sell Your Items On Instagram

Whether Snapchat agrees or not, Instagram reigns supreme when it comes to engaging its audience. These days, many Singaporeans refer to Instagram as their catalogue of all things travel or lifestyle-related.

Consider the following tips to help you figure out how to sell your items on Instagram with or without its pesky algorithm.

POST THE BEHIND-THE-SCENES CONTENT WITH STORIES

Over 200 million people use Instagram stories on a daily basis. More than one-third of this number view stories for business purposes. Instagram stories last for 24 hours, and they do not show the comments or likes publicly. This means that you can post as many stories as you want to feature a spotlight product or a flash sale.

Image Credits: pixabay.com

Use text, drawing tools, stickers, and GIFs to bring your brand’s creativity to life.

SELL YOUR ITEMS THRU HASHTAGS

As an Instagram user, you are probably aware of the importance of hashtags. Hashtags are important to brands as these tags direct the specific consumers. Branded hashtags represent the majority of big brands such as #BMW or #Prada.

The most used hashtags come from these well-known brands. You may either use their power to your advantage by using related hashtags or use hashtags exclusive to your brand.

USE INSTAGRAM ADS TO REACH YOUR TARGET AUDIENCE

Instagram provides a variety of targeting options through its Instagram Ads feature. You can choose specific targets that will suit your business’ needs. With promotion, you can choose how much you will spend, where your ads will be seen, and how long you want to run them.

Simply set up your business profile account and click the “promote” button. Instagram ads are critical to the marketing strategies of any business.

HOST INSTAGRAM-ONLY PROMOTIONS

With Instagram, you may host an Instagram-only promotion for your followers. They can click the link in your bio to join. To amp up your promotion, you may consider establishing partnerships with Instagram Influencers within the area such as Melissa Koh.

Image Credits: pixabay.com

Instagram influencers continue to be popular given that sponsorships have nearly replaced digital ads these days. The personal recommendations that they add boost the brand’s image. The personal touch makes it easier for consumers to imagine themselves while using your products.

Sources: 1 & 2

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