Sustainability and ESG initiatives are driving strong demand in Hong Kong for experienced professionals in finance and accounting, risk & compliance, and office professionals and operation, said Hays recently.
In 2022, organisations started to implement sustainability as a pivotal corporate development agenda and embedded ESG in connection with business activities to reshape recruitment strategies for talent, the recruitment agency observed.
Data from Hays Asia Salary Guide 2023 showed that 47% of employers in Hong Kong implemented sustainability reporting in 2022.
Due to the current shortage of local and expatriate talent, Hong Kong employers face challenges in hiring talent to drive their sustainability and ESG initiatives.
Hong Kong wants experienced global talents to revive the job market amid talent outflow and regional economic recovery, said Sue Wei, Managing Director, Hays Hong Kong SAR.
According to the report, 38% of employers in Hong Kong anticipate recruiting staff in 2023 to meet peaks in demand, while salary increments are expected to be more than 30% for these hires, Hays pointed out.
“Demand for experienced professionals in ESG, compliance and digital and technology such as cloud computing, cyber security, big data, data privacy and artificial intelligence are expected to flourish,” Wei noted.
In general, Hong Kong staff levels in 2022 have slower growth than anticipated, said Hays, adding that 41.8% of employers in Hong Kong reported hiring more staff in comparison to the initial projection of 44.6%.
However, trends show that employers are still keen to hire as demonstrated in the projected increase of 43.9% of new hires in 2023, the recruitment agency observed.
In particular, there is a rising trend for employers in Hong Kong to hire contingent workers on a regular, ongoing basis, the firm added.
Matching salary expectations to retain talents
The salary expectation gap between employers and employees is still prominent in Hong Kong, as most employees expect to increase between 3-6%, whereas employers only plan to increase up to 3%, Hays said.
In fact, the gap remains to be a key deciding factor for employees to leave a firm, the firm added.
In addition, the salary guide reveals that 80% of respondents in Hong Kong are willing to leave their jobs for better salaries, Hays pointed out.
Salary satisfaction also emerged as the top motivator for almost 70% of respondents who did not intend to switch jobs, Hays noted.
