ICT JOB MARKET OUTLOOK IN MALAYSIA - PIKOM Job MarkeT ouTlook In MalaysIa | aprIl 2012 5 preamble by the pIkoM president PIKOM is once again pleased to publish the ICT Job Market Outlook

ICT JOB MARKET OUTLOOKIN MALAYSIAAPRIL 2012

PUBLISHED BY IN COLLABORATION WITH

ICT Job MarkeT ouTlook In MalaysIa

aprIl 2012

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in collaboration with

CopyrightCopyright © 2012. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be produced or transmitted in any form or any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, including recording or the use of any information storage and retrieval system without prior written permission from piKoM.

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Wisma JobStreet.com,27, Lorong Medan tuanku 1, (off Jalan Sultan ismail), 50300 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia t +: 603-2176 0493 (DL); F+: (603) 2698 7200 W+: www.jobstreet.comE+ : [email protected]

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iSSN No: 2180-267Xrelease date: April, 2012

Editor-in-Chief: ramachandran ramasamy, head of policy, Capability and research, piKoMContributor: Dominic Wong, Senior Marketing Manager – Malaysia, JobStreet.comreviewed by : Woon tai hai, Executive Director & harinder Kaur, hr Advisory Associate Director, KpMg

DiSCLAiMErthis publication contains findings based on data provided by JobStreet.com Sdn Bhd (449122-K). KpMg Business Advisory Sdn Bhd (150059-h) and piKoM Services Sdn Bhd (801999-W) collaboratively carried out the data analysis. Although professional effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of data analysis and presentation, all information furnished in this publication are provided strictly on an ‘as is’ and ‘as available’ basis and is so provided for your information and reference only. With this caution, kindly be informed that this release is not presented to address the circumstances of any particular individual or entity. As such, JobStreet.com, KpMg and piKoM including their sponsors, partners and associates, whether named or unnamed, do not warrant the accuracy or adequacy of the data and findings. Moreover, all parties concerned explicitly disclaim any liability for errors or omissions or inaccuracies pertaining to the contents of this publication. therefore, the use of data and findings presented in this publication is solely at the user’s risk. piKoM, JobStreet.com and KpMg shall in no event be liable for damages, loss or expense including without limitation, direct, incidental, special, or consequential damage or economic loss arising from or in connection with the data and / or findings published in this series. however, professional advice can be sought from the producers of this publication.

ConTenTs

Foreword by PIKOM Chairman 4Preamble by PIKOM President 51. Introduction 72. Essence of Data Collation 83. Malaysian Economic and ICT Industry Outlook 104 Feature Article: ICT Graduates and Employment Prospects 155. ICT Job Market Salary Trends 19

5.1. Overall ICT Professionals5.2. Average Salaries by ICT Job Category5.3. Average Salaries of ICT Professionals by Industry Category

5.3.1 Fresh Graduates (Entry level)5.3.2 Executive & Managerial Levels

5.4. Top Paying Industries5.5. Average Salaries of ICT Professionals in the Selected ICT Industries5.6. Comparison between ICT Industry Segments and ICT User Industries5.7. Selected ICT Job Functions5.8. Employment Size5.9. Geographic Locations5.10. Hot ICT Jobs

6. Regional Benchmarking 276.1. Comparison of Average ICT Professional Remuneration in Asian Countries6.2. Benchmarking with Selected Developed Nations

7. Employment Outlook and Perceptions 297.1. Jobstreet.com Employee Confidence Index (JECI)7.2. Job Outlook 2012 7.3. Job Growth for Next 12 Months7.4. Comparison of Job Outlook – Q1, 2011 and Q1, 2012 7.5. Employers’ Perception on Economic Performance7.6. Anticipated Hiring Activities 7.7. Top 10 Specialisations Sought 7.8. What People Are Saying About First Quarter 2012

8. Conclusion 35

ICT Job MarkeT ouTlook In MalaysIa | aprIl 20124

Foreword by pIkoM Chairman

The ICT Job Market Outlook in Malaysia publication series is a significant milestone for PIKOM in its endeavour to champion the information and communications technology (ICT) industry in Malaysia. Once again, PIKOM has successfully produced the 2012 issue with the ardent support of industry partners, in particular Jobstreet.com and KPMG. When it was first published five years ago, it was a simple publication providing only basic information on average monthly salaries of ICT professionals in the country. Today, it furnishes detailed information on average monthly salaries of ICT professionals by industry, job category, job function, employment size

and geographical locations. In addition, the top salary-paying industries for the ICT workforce, hot ICT jobs in demand, perception of jobseekers and potential employers on the economy and job market as well as regional data on selected Asian and English speaking countries are showcased. On all accounts, this issue provides a better understanding of the overall ICT job market and its dynamics in the country.

PIKOM believes the report, with its expanded scope and coverage, will continue to serve as a referral document for users in both the public and private sectors. These sectors are equally concerned about human capital development issues and challenges plaguing the ICT sector. The concerns are especially critical in view of the urgent need to solicit the right talents in tight employment market environment, to optimise their skills and more importantly, to retain these talents and prevent an exodus to competing nations in the region. In this regard, providing satisfactory remuneration for employees is considered paramount by many industries. Indeed, taking cognizance of new age dynamics, many industries are shifting human development focus from resource cost based to quality, productivity and performance delivery. Essentially, the nation requires an innovative, highly-skilled and well-paid workforce to achieve high income status by 2020 when the nation expects to attain fully-developed status.

As PIKOM Research Committee Chairman, I am looking forward to the prospect of ICT industry players becoming more sensitive to employment retention strategies. Much higher salaries offered in our neighbouring country Singapore (average 2.5 times that of Malaysia), the US (4 times) and other English-speaking developed economies like Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand and Canada (at least 3 times) will continue to pose a challenge to the local ICT industry. The country, especially the academic and training institutions, needs to enhance the number and quality of ICT graduates particularly in areas such as C#, C++ and net development, where the demand remains at an all time high.

PIKOM would like to take this opportunity to record its sincere thanks and appreciation to Jobstreet.com and KPMG for their invaluable contribution. PIKOM is also optimistic that industry partners will continue to offer their enduring support in the coming years. With such institutional support, PIKOM is hopeful it can produce more comprehensive information on the ICT job outlook that is of interest and relevance to industry players, policy formulators, development practitioners, job seekers and potential employers as well as academia and students.

woon tai hai

5ICT Job MarkeT ouTlook In MalaysIa | aprIl 2012

preamble by the pIkoM president

PIKOM is once again pleased to publish the ICT Job Market Outlook in Malaysia April 2012 edition. As previously, this publication continues to provide information on average monthly salaries earned by information and communications technology (ICT) professionals in Malaysia in 2011. Data published includes average monthly ICT salaries at industry, sub-sector and job category levels. It is pertinent to note that the overall average monthly salaries of ICT professionals for 2011 was RM6,280, registering an increase of 11.7% from RM5,626 the previous year. The report also highlights the oil & gas sector as the highest-paying industry for the ICT workforce,

continuing the trend of previous years. For the first time, this series also provides some insight on hot ICT jobs in demand, mostly pertaining to technical skills. The report also for the first time offers data on average monthly salaries of ICT professionals by key ICT job functions, employment size and geographical locations. In terms of increments, we noted that ICT professionals with software development skills registered a significant pay rise of up to 19% in 2011 due to increased demand. As anticipated, big corporations and multinational companies offer much higher salaries especially in the highly-industrialised Klang Valley and Penang regions where demand for ICT professionals remains high.

Last year, we highlighted the average annual salaries earned by ICT professionals in seven Asian countries, namely Hong Kong, Singapore, China, Thailand, India, the Philippines and Indonesia. In this benchmarking exercise English speaking developed countries, in particular Australia, Canada, New Zealand, United Kingdom and United States of America are also included for the first time. This year, however, instead of publishing the average annual salaries, reporting is done in terms of scaling numbers. Essentially, the scales indicate how many times higher or lower ICT professionals earn in Malaysia in comparison with their counterparts in benchmarked nations. The scales not only mitigate any confusion arising from erratic fluctuations in foreign exchanges, but also facilitate better understanding of the data. Again, Hong Kong topped the salary scale. ICT professionals in the Special Administrative Region on an average earned 3.10 times more than their counterparts in Malaysia in 2011. In 2010, this scale was only 2.52 times, indicating that Hong Kong is increasingly becoming an attractive destination for ICT job seekers in the region.

Besides average salary, this time the report also incorporated a feature article on “ICT Graduates and Employment Prospect”. This inaugural article was contributed by the PIKOM Research Committee Chairman who is also the incumbent PIKOM Chairman. Feature articles will be a permanent component to provide a reflection on industry thought leadership on human capital development concerns. Interestingly, the perception of job seekers and potential employers on staff hiring in Malaysia are positive and appear confident in the economic performance and ICT job market outlook.

Once again, I would like to take this opportunity to record my sincere appreciation to Jobstreet.com and KPMG for their effort in making this publication into another milestone for PIKOM.

shaifubahrim saleh



1. Introduction

PIKOM, the National ICT Association of Malaysia, has once again taken the lead to compile the ICT Job Market Outlook in Malaysia 2012 in collaboration with JobStreet.com and KPMG. PIKOM undertook the task of data collation and coordination over and above its provision of ICT industry-specific information and outlook. The largest recruitment service provider, Jobstreet.com provided the latest salary information on ICT professionals by industry, job markets, and survey-based economic perception of job seekers and industry players. Meanwhile, KPMG, from the big four international audit, tax and advisory firms, analysed the country’s current economic outlook.

Other contributors to this report include published salary reports and journals from ZDNet Asia, Robert Walters, Kelly Services, Active TechPros IT and the Malaysian Employers Federation on local and regional salary practices and industry insights.

piKoM is the national representative of the information and communications technology (iCt) industry with more than 1,500 members as at end of 2011. its members contribute about 80% of the total iCt revenue in the country.

JobStreet.com is the largest online recruitment service provider for all categories of jobseekers, from fresh jobseekers after graduation to senior level positions. Job Street operates the JobStreet.com (www.JobStreet.com) websites presently covering the employment markets in Malaysia, Singapore, philippines, indonesia, india, Japan and thailand. the group currently services over 50,000 corporate customers and over 6 million jobseekers. Job Street is listed on the Main Board of Bursa Malaysia Securities (JoBSt).

KpMg is an international network of member firms specialising in audit, tax and advisory service. KpMg first established a presence in Malaysia in 1928 and the Malaysian firm now has 65 partners and over 1,700 staff located across 10 offices. globally, KpMg operates in 144 countries with a staff size of 137,000 people.


2. essence of Data Collation

The industry trends, salaries and hiring requirements are analysed in this report as follows:

i. Average ICT Salary by Industry • Agriculture/Plantations/Aquaculture • Automotive/HeavyIndustry/Machinery • BankingInstitutions • ChemicalIndustries • Construction/Building,includingCivilEngineering • Consulting,bothBusinessandTechnical • PrivateEducation • Electrical&ElectronicsSector • FinancialServices/Securities/Insurance • Hotel/Restaurant/FoodServices • Manufacturing • Oil/Gas/PetroleumIndustries • Printing/Publishing • Property/RealEstate • Technology/Aerospace/Bio-technology • Semiconductor/WaferFabrication • Services • Telecommunication • Textiles/Garment • Transport/Storage/Freight/Shipping • Utilities • Wholesale/Retail/Trading • CallCentre/ICT-EnabledServices • Computer/ICT(Hardware) • Computer/ICT(Software)

ii. Average Monthly Salaries of ICT Professionals by Job Category • OverallICTProfessional • FreshICTGraduates • JuniorICTExecutive–fewerthan4yearsofexperience • SeniorICTExecutive–5yearsandaboveofworkingexperience • MiddleICTManager–asdeclaredbythejobseekers • SeniorICTManager–asdeclaredbythejobseekers

9ICT Job MarkeT ouTlook In MalaysIa | aprIl 2012 9

EssEncE of Data collation

iii. Average Monthly Salaries of ICT Professionals by Key ICT Industry Segments • ICTHardware • ICTSoftware • CallCentre • Topfivepayingindustries • ComparisonbetweenICTindustrysegmentsandICTuserindustries • SelectedICTjobfunctions • Employmentsize • Geographicallocations

iv. Hot ICT Jobs

v. Top 10 Specialisations Sought

vi. Regional Benchmarking by Selected Asian and English Speaking Developed Economies

vii. Feature Article – Industry thought leadership

viii. Perception by Job Seekers and Employers • Jobstreet.comEmployeeConfidenceIndex(JECI) • JobGrowthandEmploymentProspects • Employers’PerceptiononEconomicPerformance • AnticipatesHiringActivities • WhatPeopleAreSayingAboutFirstQuarter2012


3. Malaysian Economic and ICT Industry Outlook

The Malaysian economy grew at an average rate of 5.1% in 2011. Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) has projected an economic growth of between 4% and 5% in 2012. Leading private sector research-based institutions such as CIMB Investment Bank and Goldman Sachs, however, have forecasted a lower estimate of 3.8% due to the on-going Eurozone debt crisis and other fragilities that are poised to significantly affect Malaysian economic growth. Nonetheless, PIKOM is optimistic of sustained growth for the Malaysian economy at no less than a rate of 5% in 2012, mainly as a result of the nation’s expanding trade with China and India. . Although the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has revised downwards its original forecast for China and India, nevertheless, it has projected impressive growth rates of 8.25% for China and 7.0% for India for 2012. Indeed, such growth rates for the two Asian trading giants are advantageous to Malaysia.

The positive economic outlook for Malaysia is also underpinned by strong domestic demand. Private consumption is set to rise following the upward salary revisions in the public sector coupled with the one-off financial assistance to low and middle income groups, a new monthly minimum wage set at RM900 for Peninsular Malaysia and RM800 for East Malaysia, as well as continued low borrowing costs for businesses and households. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) for the period January to March 2012 increased by 2.3% to 104.5 compared with that of 102.2 in the same period last year. Compared with the same month in 2011, the CPI for March 2012 registered an increase of 2.1% from 102.4 to 104.5 and when compared with the previous month, the CPI remained unchanged at 104.5. (See Figure 1 below for Malaysia’s inflation rate for 2011).

Source: Bank Negara Malaysia, 2012

Figure 1: Inflation Rates in Malaysia: January – December, 2011

1.8

2.3 2.42.6

2.93.2 3.4

Unit: (%)

3.6

4.04.1 4.2

3.8

Jan-11

Feb-11

Mar-11

Apr-11

May-11

Jun-11

Jul-1

1

Aug-11

Sep-11

Oct-11

Nov-11

Dec-11


Malaysian EconoMic and icT indusTry ouTlooK

Healthy consumption and investment growth are also anticipated in view of the overall low inflation rate as cited above, which as forecasted by BNM, should linger between 2.5% and 3.0% in 2012, down from 3.2% in 2011. The low Overnight Policy Rate of 3.00%, low base lending rate (BLR) of commercial banks at 6.45%, and a strengthening Ringgit Malaysia against the US Dollar, as shown in Figure 2, Euro and other regional currencies are additional factors that should provide the requisite impetus for better growth.

Private sector investments are expected to expand through the implementation of new mega projects like the Kajang-Sg Buluh Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) and expansion of the on-going corridor projects namely Iskandar Malaysia, Northern Corridor Economic Region (NCER), East Coast Economic Region (ECER), Sabah Development Corridor (SDC) and Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (SCORE). In 2011, Iskandar Malaysia was expected to attract public sector investments totaling RM64.38 billion for the construction and improvement of roads, river cleaning and public housing. Mega projects in entertainment, tourism, education and technology like Legoland Malaysia Theme Park, Newcastle University of Medicine Malaysia, Malaysia Premium Outlet, Indoor Theme Park Puteri Harbour, Pinewood Iskandar Malaysia Studio, and Netherlands Maritime Institute of Technology were developed in conjunction with the private sector.

Public and private investments are expected to pour in for the implementation of the Economic Transformation Programme (ETP), Government Transformation Programme (GTP) and of late, the Digital Transformation Programme (DTP) and support projects under the Rural Transformation Programme (RTP) and Political Transformation Programme (PTP), as well as the 1Malaysia overarching programme as shown in Figure 3.

Indeed, in all the policy led transformation initiatives, contemporary ICT has an integral functional role to ensure their efficient and effective implementation. Needless to say, the DTP initiatives are pure ICT projects aimed at providing transformational changes in five broadly categorised domain areas, namely the technological, economic, social, governance and environmental dimensions. It is also envisaged that successful implementation of the Government strategic programmes can increase the contribution of the ICT sector from its current level of 9.8% of the Gross National Income (GNI) to 17% or over RM294 billion by 2020.

Source: Bank Negara Malaysia, 2012

Figure 2: Malaysian Foreign Exchange Rate Per USD: January-December, 2011

3.0595 3.0515 3.0259

2.9735

3.0115 3.0205

2.9555 2.9803

3.1910

3.0735

3.1725 3.1770Unit: Ringgit Malaysia

Jan-11

Feb-11

Mar-11

Apr-11

May-11

Jun-11

Jul-1

1

Aug-11

Sep-11

Oct-11

Nov-11

Dec-11



12

Of this target, RM75 billion is projected to come from DTP and the balance of RM126 billion from the ETP and GTP. The DTP alone, with RM31.1 billion worth of investments, is poised to create 165,000 jobs and RM59.2 billion in terms of GNI through the implementation of 25 potential entry point projects and 28 potential business opportunities.

In addressing the digital divide, the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) is continuing its efforts with the resumption of its Netbook Programme that is expected to deliver 300,000 units during the first quarter of 2012. In the third and fourth quarters in 2011, however, MCMC stopped the supply due to severe flooding in Thailand that disrupted overall supply of hard disks in the market. In the first and second quarters of 2011, a total of 280,000 and 123,000 units were delivered respectively under the Netbook Programme. This shored up PC supplies in 2011.

Portable PCs currently account for 72% of total market share in comparison to 28% for desktop units. However, the market trend is shifting towards much lighter and more convenient mobile devices like the iPad and smartphones that fit into the lifestyles of the XY generation. With increasing broadband penetration currently at 60% and with cloud computing gaining ground among SMEs, the local ICT market can expect buoyant times in the near future. Other grassroots activities and factors that are expected to contribute effectively to local ICT growth include expansion in online sales activities and e-commerce, a 60% achievement in broadband penetration in 2010, a large pool of Internet users across geography and demography, proliferation in Internet and mobile banking, critical mass in technology-savvy XY population and introduction of state-of-the-art technology as well as a paradigm shift in the mindset of the population.

*As at end 2011

Source: PIKOM, 2011 (Contents extracted from PEMANDU, MDeC & MOSTI)

Figure 3: National Transformation Policy Programmes

VISION 2020

1 Malaysia ETP GTP DTP

One Malaysia

Economic Transformation

Programme

Government Transformation

Programme

DigitalTransformation

Programme

Preservation and enhancement of unity

in diversity

New Economic Model: A high income, inclusive & sustainable

nation

Effective delivery of Government services

Accelerate the development of digital

economy; Improve quality of life

People First, Performance Now

131 Entry Point Projects;60 Business

Opportunities;8 Strategic Reform

Initiatives (SRI)

6 National Key Result Areas (NKRA)

25 Entry Point Projects*;28 Business

Opportunities*;

Tenth Malaysia Plan (10MP : 2011-2015) / Eleventh Malaysia Plan (11MP: 2016-2020)

Polit

ical

Tra

nsfo

rmat

ion

Prog

ram

me

(PTP

) Rural Transformation Program

me (RTP)



Source: Department of Statistics and PIKOM Estimates

Figure 4: ICT Enrolment in Institutions of Higher Learning in Malaysia, 2002-2011

0

10,000

20,000

30,000

40,000

50,000

60,000

70,000

80,000

90,000

100,000

2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

23,466 16,529 26,632 23,783 22,408 27,911 23,788 24,595 25,428 24,99196,090 84,366 70,691 53,710 66,476 51,766 51,354 50,813 50,272 49,731

Public University ICT Enrolment

Private University ICT Enrolment

Num

ber o

f stu

dent

s

Significant growth for the ICT industry in Malaysia not only rests on domestic driver conditions, but also on external factors such as the international environment. Specifically, IT spending in China and India - which are projected to register 15.0% and 16.0% respectively - is bound to benefit Malaysia through long-standing bilateral ties as well as increasing activities in ICT trade over the past few years. The US and Japanese IT markets are also rebounding to at least 5.0% growth and are likely to impact positively on the Malaysian IT sector. Based on these factors, PIKOM has predicted that IT spending in Malaysia would net double digit growth of at least 12.0% in 2012, despite global IT spending forecasted to dip to a 5.0% growth rate for 2012, down from 5.7% in 2011 at USD$1.6 trillion, as per IDC projections.

Despite its relatively long history and prospective outlook in 2012, the nation’s ICT sector continues to face several persistent challenges, as follows:

Quantity and quality of ICT Graduates: i. As shown in Figure 4, supply of ICT graduates from both public and private institutions has not improved much in the recent past. In particular, ICT enrolments have been cut by almost half from 96,090 in 2002 to 49, 731 in 2011. Associated issues such as quality, competency and employability of ICT graduates to meet both the ICT producer and ICT user industry needs prevail. Coupled with low remuneration, rampant job-hopping for better terms of employment, and a declining interest among young people in ICT jobs that demand long working hours, continue to provide the industry with this dilemma;

Capability and capacity building:ii. The ICT industry including the workforce generally lack interest in pursuing process and quality improvement certifications such as Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI), People Capability Maturity Model (PCMM), Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL), Six Sigma and Lean Six Sigma, as well as Green ICT Certifications which are critical to globalise Malaysian ICT products and services, or tosolicit ICT contracts from developed economies; and



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Research, development and commercialisation culture: iii. Public and private universities and the ICT industry are still behind in creating globally-recognized brands for ICT products and services due to the lack of a strong R&D and patenting culture.

Economic risks: iv. Investments affected by risk aversion among potential investors who are concerned about shaky global economic performance, slacking in the delivery of the ETP, GTP, DTP, PTP and RTP and Government’s ambitious efforts to reduce the fiscal deficit from 5.4% of GDP in 2011 to 4.7% in 2012 dampening public expenditure and investments as well as poor macro economic performance due to erratic fluctuation in oil and commodity prices in global markets can bring about negative impacts on ICT sector growth.


4. Feature Article: ICT Graduates andEmployment ProspectsBy Woon Tai Hai, PIKOM Research Committee Chairman & KPMG Executive Director, April 2012

How can Malaysia become an innovative nation and migrate from a ‘consumption-based’ to a ‘creative-based’ culture particularly in the ICT industry? Can the industry produce a homegrown brand equivalent to Acer, Samsung, Apple or Google? The nation urgently needs a ‘game changer’ strategy to seed such transformation. Talent and skills, in particular the quality of our ICT graduates, will represent a critical ingredient in this aspiration.

Quality of our GraduatesSurveys and statistics have confirmed that the industry is always hungry for talent in tandem with the demand for ICT products and services. On an average, the country produces about 30,000 ICT graduates a year, but the real challenge lies in the quality of our graduates and whether they have the knowledge and skills set that meet the demands of the industry. PIKOM is of the opinion that the quality of graduates from premier local universities is comparable, if not better, than foreign graduates. However, foreign graduates will have greater exposure in terms of the English language, the level of independence and experience – given that many foreign graduates tend to bring some working experience back when they return home to embark on their careers.

Over the years, there has been a concern over the drop in demand of students pursuing computing studies in local universities. Some of the reasons given include the lack of job opportunities, the relative difficulty of computing programmes, low passing rates, narrow scope and the lack of proper facilities at the universities. Most of these reasons are perhaps based on misconception and myth as well as lingering negative feelings among parents and students from the dot-com bust of the late 1990s and early 2000s. This misconception or misperception should be reversed; else it would have an adverse impact on the ICT industry in the years to come.

So what are the major deficiencies found among our fresh graduates today? An immediate observation that comes to mind is in the demonstration of their soft skills, which include writing and speaking capabilities. A lack of confidence and independence are other major challenges fresh graduates often face as they attempt to assimilate into the workforce. Another shortfall of our fresh graduates is their lack of appreciation and expectation of working in a real life environment. Often some fresh graduates would experience culture shock when they commence work. Analytical and creativity traits are also areas that are visibly lacking in fresh graduates, and this problem seems to be endemic among both local and overseas graduates. Possession of these qualities often sets apart exceptional candidates from the mediocre ones.


FEaTurE arTiclE: icT GraduaTEs and EMployMEnT prospEcTs

16

It is a fact that foreign graduates from Ivy League universities have an edge over their local counterparts as many organisations still use this as criteria for the recruitment of fresh graduates. In addition, foreign graduates living overseas, especially in an English-speaking country, would also certainly have greater exposure in terms of language capabilities, greater independence and early work experience prior to their return home.

Our Education Systems and their Curriculum While tertiary education and its quality have always been the focus of debate, it should be apparent that this stage of learning comprises only a fraction of a student’s entire academic lifespan. It is often unfair and unrealistic to pin this issue exclusively on institutions of higher learning since the foundation of such core competencies should have been laid during the primary and secondary school phases. For too long, our education system has been built on a formal assessment model whereby examinations and the scoring of ‘A’s are given top priorities in terms of recognition and streaming preference, for example into Arts or Science stream. Could this be the root cause of the longer term problem we are facing today?

It is without a doubt that today’s curricula offered by our higher education institutions are of better quality and higher relevance to the industry, as compared to 10 years ago. Promotion of many local colleges to full University status may have also contributed to this improvement. The entry of niche universities have also helped in producing graduates of higher calibre who can focus better on innovation, creativity and the application of knowledge. This is evident from the awards our students have won in regional ICT competitions including APICTA. There is certainly tremendous potential in our graduates. The only challenge is how to galvanise their latent talent and incorporate them into the workforce with ease.

Another crucial area that needs more focus and promotion is the spirit of entrepreneurship. Young minds with creative ideas are often not afraid to venture out on their own and take some risks. What is needed is a supportive environment to encourage such risk-taking and ensure adequate funding from financial institutions or venture capitalists.

To ensure a holistic approach to these challenges, the entire education supply chain from preschool right up to tertiary levels and even post-graduate studies needs to be reviewed. If the issue of command of English can be addressed early, the battle would be partly won. The early introduction of ICT and computing at primary school level would also help increase interest and awareness in computing at an early age. At the tertiary level, the curricula would have to be dynamic and must evolve with the demands of the fast changing industry. Mathematics still makes up the core of any computing programme and as such, these relevant subjects should be encouraged and promoted at the early stages of the education system.

Computing curricula at the tertiary level must not focus too much on specific product training or orientation, but rather on the enabling of skills and techniques given that products become obsolete at a rapid pace in this industry. Focusing on product specialisation would not only address the immediate demand gap but could create longer-term problems when the practitioners do not have the core skills to adapt once the products are outdated and re-skilling is again necessary.



Emerging Regional ConcernsWhat is currently happening in the Australian ICT job market is an interesting trend for Malaysian ICT graduates or potential job seekers to digest. The Fairfax-owned job site My Career reported that the ICT job market in Australia is expected to grow by less than 1% in 2012 (www.theage.com.au). Currently around 524,000 people are working in the Australian ICT sector. The figure is set to rise to only 529,000 by year end. In the late 90’s, the ICT job market in Australia grew at an average 8%; 4% to 8% was common during the pre global financial crisis years.

Whilst the ICT job market in Australia offers remunerations of at least three times higher than our local offerings, such stagnant job growth if continues beyond 2012, may be a discouraging factor for our locals seeking greener pastures in Australia. Such trends if perpetuate into countries in the region will also have a spillover effects; and may influence the Malaysian ICT job market which grew at 6.4% from 365,000 in 2005 to 529,600 in 2011. Indeed, such regional trends warrant due attention not only for industry players, but also mainstream policy makers who need to explore such phenomena further.

What are the Imperative Initiatives and Actions Necessary to Mitigate these Gaps? Initiatives and levers of change can potentially originate from two sources, Government and Academia.

The Government may consider:Looking at the entire education system and reviewing the way we access our students and move •away from an examination-oriented programme;Only ensuring admission and / or accreditation of new higher institutions of learning that are •equipped with the right programmes and skilled lecturers;Regularly reviewing the licences of these higher learning institutions to ensure conformity and •consistent quality.

On the other hand, the academia and Institutions of higher learning may wish to:

Forge closer collaboration with industry players to ensure better understanding of industry •needs;Interact with more established learning institutions (abroad) in understanding best practices •and if possible initiate inter-varsity research programmes;Ensure that an adequate and relevant industry training period is embedded into the curriculum •to provide longer working exposure.

Internship is now almost standard across many universities, albeit for only short timeframes of two to three months. To ensure greater effectiveness, it is recommended that a minimum of six months be allocated for such training.



18

Collaboration between Academia and IndustryThe ongoing collaboration between academia and industry is critical to narrowing the gap between the supply and demand issues. As an industry association, PIKOM can be the “bridge” between the academic institutions, industry and even government agencies in facilitating closer collaboration.

PIKOM can also organise dialogue sessions with government ministries to address some of these education issues which impact our industry. The association can facilitate and organise short duration courses and training workshops to mitigate the immediate shortages in specific areas such as Project Management. There are already some collaboration between government, industry and academia. For example, various universities and private colleges have invited industry representation to their advisory panels. This is certainly a step forward in forging industry and academia collaboration and should be further encouraged and endorsed.

Hence, in answering the question of whether Malaysia can indeed produce our own homegrown ICT brand in the future, the answer is a definite “Yes”. However, this journey must start with producing relevant and employable ICT graduates in the first place while the seed of entrepreneurship, creativity and innovation must be sowed at the early stages for the younger generation.


YearFresh

Graduates: (Entry Level)

Junior Executive:(1-4 Years Working

Experience)

Senior Executive:(> 5 Years Working

Experience)

Middle Management:

(Manager)

Senior Management:

(Senior Manager)

Overall

2010 - 2,936 4,514 7,005 10,795 5,626

2011 2,238 3,151 5,039 7,837 12,166 6,240

Percentage Change (%)

- 7.3 11.6 11.9 12.7 10.9

5. ICT Job Market Salary Trends

5.1 Overall ICT Professionals The average monthly salary of ICT professionals in Malaysia was RM6,240 in 2011; see Figure 5. This represents an average increase of 10.9% from RM5,626 in 2010 as shown in Figure 6. This increase was well above the average inflation rate of 3.2% as cited earlier, resulting in comfortable living for ICT professionals in Malaysia. Given the prospective outlook for the economy and other positive factors within the ICT industry, PIKOM anticipates a 9.0% rise in the average salary of ICT professionals in 2012, which would average out to RM6,800 per month.

Source: Jobstreet.com & PIKOM, 2012

Figure 5: Average Salary of ICT Professionals: 2006-2012


Table 1: Average Salary of ICT Professionals by Job Category: 2010-2011

Footnote: Overall for the year 2011 excluded entry level salary for consistency

6.3% 5.7%

12.3%

6.6%10.9%

9.0%

6,800

6,240

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 20124,184 4,446 4,699 5,276 5,626 6,240 6,800Average Monthly Salary

Aver

age

Mon

thly

Sal

ary

in R

ingg

it M

alay

sia

4,000

4,500

5,000

5,500

6,000

6,500

7,000


ICT JOB MARKET SALARY TRENDS

20


Table 2: Average Monthly Salary of ICT Graduates by Industry in 2011

Industry(Central Malaysia)

Fresh Graduates / Entry Level(Less than 1 year working experience)

Percentiles (Ringgit Malaysia)Weighted Mean

25th 50th 75th

Automotive/Heavy Industry/Machinery 1,800 2,300 2,300 2,175

Bank 1, 900 2,200 2,600 2,225

Call Centre/IT-Enabled Services 1,800 2,300 2,700 2,275

Computer/IT (Hardware) 1,950 2,200 2,500 2,213

Computer/IT (Software) 2,000 2,400 2,800 2,400

Construction/Building 1,500 1,800 2,100 1,800

Consulting (Business/Technical) 2,000 2,300 2,500 2,275

Education 1,600 2,000 2,300 1,975

Electrical & Electronics 1,950 2,000 2,300 2,063

Financial Services/Securities/Insurance 1,900 2,200 2,600 2,225

Hotel/Restaurant/Food Service 1,800 1,800 3,500 2,225

Manufacturing 2,150 2,540 2,800 2,508

Oil/Gas/Petroleum 1,800 2,500 2,871 2,418

Polymer/Plastic/Rubber 1,500 2,890 2,890 2,543

Printing/Publishing 2,000 2,000 2,900 2,225

Science & Technology/Aerospace/BioTechnology 2,000 2,200 3,000 2,350

Semiconductor/Wafer Fabrication 3,280 3,280 3,280 3,280

Services 1,700 1,900 2,500 2,000

Telecommunication 1,800 2,100 2,480 2,120

Transport/Storage/Freight/Shipping 1,500 2,518 2,600 2,284

Wholesale/Retail/Trading 1,500 1,850 2,000 1,800

Geometric Mean (GM) : (Ringgit Malaysia ) 2,238Minimum (Ringgit Malaysia ) 1,800

Maximum (Ringgit Malaysia ) 3,280

5.2 Average Salary by ICT Job Category It can be seen from Table 1 that all ICT job categories across the board registered significant increases in average salary in 2011. ICT professionals in middle and senior management levels received on an average 11.9% and 12.7% pay rises in 2011 over the preceding year. Senior executives registered a significant rise of 11.6% in average salary from RM4,514 in 2010 to RM5,039 in 2011.

5.3 Average Salary of ICT Professionals by Industry Category5.3.1 Fresh Graduates (Entry Level)Table 2 shows the average monthly salary paid to fresh ICT graduates at entry level across key industries. On average, fresh entrants in the ICT job market earned RM2,238 in 2011, as opposed to salaries of between RM1,800 and RM2,000 in previous years.



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Sal

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LL JO

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ean

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it M

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ghte

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ean

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entil

es (R

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ean

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n25

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th

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re/P

lant

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4,60

0-

--

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600

Auto

mot

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vy In

dust

ry/M

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nery

2,60

03,

100

3,60

03,

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4,30

05,

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5,63

04,

989

7,30

08,

800

10,8

008,

925

--

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5,16

8

Bank

2,90

03,

350

4,00

03,

400

4,50

05,

300

6,48

05,

395

6,15

08,

000

9,78

07,

983

8,54

912

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15,0

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6,45

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Cen

tre/

IT-E

nabl

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2,80

03,

200

3,70

03,

225

3,60

04,

312

6,00

04,

556

5,50

07,

250

9,03

07,

258

--

--

4,74

2

Chem

ical

3,20

04,

600

7,15

84,

890

5,00

06,

200

8,26

76,

417

--

--

--

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5,60

1

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pute

r/IT

(Har

dwar

e)2,

230

3,00

03,

777

3,00

23,

625

4,70

06,

050

4,76

94,

850

6,00

07,

000

5,96

37,

600

16,5

0017

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14,4

755,

929

Com

pute

r/IT

(Sof

twar

e)2,

500

3,00

03,

600

3,02

53,

875

5,00

06,

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5,01

95,

750

7,15

09,

000

7,26

37,

500

10,0

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10,0

005,

762

Cons

truc

tion/

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ing

2,50

03,

000

3,10

02,

900

3,50

03,

600

5,70

04,

100

6,20

06,

300

7,50

06,

575

--

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4,27

6

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ultin

g (B

usin

ess/

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l)2,

500

3,10

03,

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3,15

04,

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5,50

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5,52

56,

000

8,00

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8,01

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000

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2,50

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4,15

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4,80

06,

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4,95

07,

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8,50

08,

500

8,12

54,

516

Elec

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al &

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nics

2,35

03,

300

3,50

03,

113

4,10

04,

500

5,90

04,

750

5,36

517

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17,0

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3,35

04,

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3,40

04,

179

5,20

06,

454

5,26

16,

800

7,50

08,

500

7,57

59,

000

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10,2

506,

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5,17

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3,00

03,

960

4,70

03,

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5,00

05,

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05,

300

6,20

06,

300

6,60

06,

350

--

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& Te

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2,50

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4,04

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6,00

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020



22

ALL JOB CATEGORIESAverage Monthly

Salary

Fresh Graduates (Entry Level)

Average Monthly

Salary

Junior Executive(1-4 years working

experience)

Average Monthly

Salary

Oil/Gas/Petroleum 8,020Semiconductor/Wafer Fabrication

3,280 Chemical 4,890

Telecommunication 6,848 Polymer/Plastic/Rubber 2,543 Property/Real Estate 3,905

Wholesale/Retail/Trading 6,608 Manufacturing 2,508Semiconductor/Wafer Fabrication

3,700

Manufacturing 6,522 Oil/Gas/Petroleum 2,418 Oil/Gas/Petroleum 3,500

Bank 6,459 Computer/IT (Software) 2,400Financial Services/Banks/Securities/Insurance

3,400

Senior Executive(5 or more years

working experience)

Average Monthly

Salary

Middle Management (Manager)

Average Monthly

Salary

Senior Management (Senior Manager)

Average Monthly

Salary

Oil/Gas/Petroleum 7,500 Electrical & Electronics 14,091 Oil/Gas/Petroleum 16,146

Chemical 6,417 Wholesale/Retail/Trading 9,888 Services 15,313

Telecommunication 6,193 Services 9,800 Computer/IT (Hardware) 14,475

Semiconductor/Wafer Fabrication

5,563 Oil/Gas/Petroleum 9,760 Science & Technology 13,680

Consulting (Business/Technical)

5,525Semiconductor/Wafer Fabrication

9,496 Manufacturing 13,550


Figure 6: Top Five Paying Industries by Job Category, 2011

As shown in Table 2, the semiconductor and wafer fabrication industries paid the highest monthly salary of RM3,280 to fresh graduates in 2011. This was followed by manufacturing and the oil & gas sector, especially in the case of large corporations and multinationals where fresh ICT graduates were paid average monthly salaries of RM2,508 and RM2,418 respectively. 5.3.2 Executive and Managerial LevelsTable 3 shows the average monthly salary of ICT professionals by job category and by industry. Taking into consideration all categories of ICT jobs, oil & gas was the top-paying industry, where on an average ICT professionals earned a monthly salary of RM8,020. The data showed that oil & gas was the top paying industry for ICT professionals in the senior management level where they were paid an average of RM16,146. Likewise, oil & gas was the top paymaster for the senior executive level with an average monthly salary of RM7,500. At the managerial level, however, electrical and electronics was the highest paying sector where middle managers in ICT earned an average of RM14,091. At the junior executive level, chemical industries were the highest paying where ICT professionals on an average earned RM4,890 per month.

5.4 Top Paying Industries Figure 6 shows the top five paying industries at different job categories. Of the 25 industries analysed, oil / gas / petroleum dominated the list in all ICT job categories. It is followed by the semiconductor and wafer fabrication industries particularly under the fresh graduates at entry level, junior executive and senior executive categories.



5.5 Average Salary of ICT Professionals in the Selected ICT Industries The average salaries of ICT professionals by job categories were examined within three selected ICT industries, namely ICT Hardware, ICT Software and Call Centre / ICT Enabled Services.

Figure 7 shows the overall performance of ICT professionals within the ICT industries over a four-year period. In 2011, ICT professionals in the junior executive category on an average took home RM3,275 a month, registering a pay rise of 17.1% compared to 2010. ICT professionals in the senior executive category also registered a significant increment but at the lower rate of 8.2%. Average monthly salary for this category increased from RM4,417 in 2010 to RM4,778 in 2011. Similarly, the middle to senior managerial category enjoyed an increase of 7.0% from RM8,845 to RM9,461 from 2010 to 2011.


Figure 7: Average Monthly Salary of ICT Professionals by Selected Industries: 2008 – 2011


Table 4: Average Monthly Salary by Job Category and ICT Industry Segment

Year

ICT Junior Executive ICT Senior Executive ICT Middle/Senior Manager

ICT Hardware

ICTSoftware

Call centre / ICT

Enabled Services

ICT Hardware

ICTSoftware

Call centre / ICT

Enabled Services

ICT Hardware

ICTSoftware

Call centre / ICT

Enabled Services

2008 2,325 2,500 2,500 3,400 3,924 3,749 6,360 7,128 8,364

2009 2,767 2,557 2,748 4,130 3,869 4,190 6,893 7,305 6,753

2010 2,720 2,750 2,925 4,320 4,505 4,428 8,498 7,841 10,385

2011 3,025 3,600 3,225 4,769 5,019 4,556 9,291 8,522 10,696

% change:2010-2011 11.2 30.9 10.3 10.4 11.4 2.9 9.3 8.7 3.0

17.1%

8.2%

7.0%

2,797

4,4173,275

4,778

8,8459,461

Junior Executive Senior Executive ICT Middle/Senior Manager

Year 2008 2,440 3,684 7,238Year 2009 2,689 4,061 6,980Year 2010 2,797 4,417 8,845Year 2011 3,275 4,778 9,461

Ring

git M

alay

sia

0

1,000

2,000

3,000

4,000

5,000

6,000

7,000

8,000

9,000

10,000



24

Table 4 show all job categories - except for the managerial category - recorded significant rise in average monthly salaries in 2011 in comparison to 2010. Specifically, junior executives in the ICT Software segment recorded a significant pay rise of 30.9%, increasing to an average monthly salary of RM3,600 in 2011 from RM2,750 the previous year. Similarly, ICT Software professionals in the senior executive and managerial categories also registered substantial increases in their average monthly salaries.

5.6 Comparison between ICT Industry Segments and ICT User Industries There is no clear cut distinction in salaries earned by ICT professionals in the ICT industry segments and ICT user industries. As shown in Figure 8, the average monthly salary earned by junior ICT executives in ICT industry segments was RM3,275, which was 3.6% higher than their counterparts in the ICT user industries comprising banking, insurance, agriculture, manufacturing, oil and gas sector etc. Similarly, in the managerial category, the earning capacity of ICT professionals in the ICT industry at RM8,623 per month was higher by 7.2% than those working in the ICT user industries, who on an average took home RM8,045. In the senior executive level, however, ICT professionals in the ICT industry segments were 5.9% lower than their counterparts in the ICT user industries.


Figure 8: Average Monthly Salary of ICT Professionals by Job Category and ICT User Industries

and ICT Segments

3,162 3,275

5,076 4,778

8,0458,623

Junior Executive Senior Executive ICT Middle/Senior Manager

ICT User Industries 3,162 5,076 8,045ICT Segments 3,275 4,778 8,623

Ring

git M

alay

sia

0

1,000

2,000

3,000

4,000

5,000

6,000

7,000

8,000

9,000

10,000

5.7 Selected ICT Job FunctionsICT professionals in high demand functions experienced a significant rise in salary in 2011. As shown in Table 5, software development applications professionals experienced on an average a 19.3% rise in monthly salary from RM6,960 in 2010 to RM8,310 in 2011. Similarly, ICT professionals in enterprise resource planning (ERP)/business applications received a 14.5% increment from RM7,550 in 2010 to RM8,650 in 2011. The lowest increment movement was in the IT Security Analyst function which experienced a modest 4.5% increase from RM8,410 in 2010 to RM8,780 in 2011. However, this function group holds the highest average earnings which signifies its unique and much sought after skills.



5.8 Employment Size Employment size matters in determining the average monthly salary for employees. As shown in Figure 9, ICT professionals are paid higher salaries in organisations with larger workforce numbers. Corporations or multinationals (MNCs) with a total employment of more than 1,000 persons paid an average monthly salary of RM7,052, which was 36.4% more than companies with fewer than 100 people, where the average monthly salary was pegged at RM5,169. Mid-sized companies with between 100 and 999 employees paid an average monthly salary of RM6,737, higher by 29.5% in comparison to average monthly salary paid in companies with workforces below 100.

Source: ZDNet Asia, Active TechPros IT Salary Report 2011 & PIKOM 2012

Figure 9: Average Monthly Salary of ICT Professionals by Employment Size, 2011

EMPLOYMENT SIZE

1 to 99 100 to 999 1,000 & above5,169 6,694 7,052

Aver

age

Mon

thly

Sal

ary

(Rin

ggit

Mal

aysi

a)

0

1,000

2,000

3,000

4,000

5,000

6,000

7,000

8,000

Job Function2010(RM)

2011(RM)

Percentage Change:2010-2011

Project Management 6,331 6,676 13.4%

ERP/ Business Applications 7,550 8,650 14.5%

Software Development Applications 6,960 8,310 19.3%

System Administration 5,660 6,190 9.4%

IT Security Analyst 8,410 8,780 4.5%

Source: Robert Walters Survey & PIKOM Research

Table 5: Average Monthly Salary of ICT Professionals by Job Function

5.9 Geographic Locations As shown in Figure 10, ICT professionals working in Klang Valley comprising Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and the industrial zones of Selangor earned an average monthly salary of RM6,671. In comparison, ICT professionals in Penang had a marginal decrease of 1.7%, netting an average monthly salary of RM6,559. The dip was more significant in Johor with a 7.0% decrease in comparison with Penang and 8.6% decrease in comparison with the Klang Valley. The average monthly salary earned by ICT professionals in Johor was only RM6,097.



26

5.10 Hot ICT Jobs Published survey reports indicated that certain technical skills and functions appear to be in high demand, such as C#, C++, .Net developers, SAP certification, IT audit and security consultants, data warehousing, business intelligence analysts, senior Oracle and SQL DBAs and Cisco certified engineering disciplines. Similarly, jobs such as software development managers, lead software developers, Unix specialists, senior system engineers, IT managers, SAP consultants, websphere application developers, system engineers, network administrators and helpdesk analysts are in higher demand. Besides typical technical and engineering specialisations, PIKOM also anticipates a growing demand for soft skill-type jobs in project management, business process improvement and quality improvement.

Source: ZDNet Asia, Active TechPros IT Salary Report 2011 & PIKOM 2012

Figure 10: Average Monthly Salary of ICT Professionals by Geographic Locations, 2011

5,800

5,900

6,000

6,100

6,200

6,300

6,400

6,500

6,600

6,700

Klang Valley Penang Johor

Monthly Salary 2011 6,671 6,559 6,097

Aver

age

Mon

thly

Sal

ary

GEOGRAPHICAL REGION

1.7%

7.6%


6. Regional Benchmarking

6.1 Comparison of Average ICT Professional Remuneration in Asian Countries Figure 11 shows a comparative scenario on remuneration earned by ICT professionals in selected Asian countries. Here, average remuneration earned in each country is compared against Malaysia, giving rise to a scaling factor that is free from bias caused by foreign exchange fluctuation. For the purpose of this benchmarking exercise, Malaysia assumes a scaling factor of one. The data published by ZDNet Asia for the years 2010 and 2011 were used. All measurements are tallied in US dollars.

The results showed that more advanced Asian economies, in particular Hong Kong and Singapore, recorded average remuneration which was 3.10 times and 2.52 times more than the average remuneration earned by Malaysian ICT professionals in 2011. Indeed, these figures registered an increase from 2.89 and 2.59 for Hong Kong and Singapore respectively in 2010, indicating that the salary gap in the region is widening. These two island nations, although small in size, remain attractive destinations for ICT professionals. The data also showed that the average remuneration for ICT professionals in Thailand marginally increased by 1.02 times in 2011 in comparison to only 0.93 times in the preceding year in comparison to Malaysia. Interestingly, the average remuneration for ICT professionals in China declined from a benchmarking ratio of 1.05 in 2010 to 0.95 in 2011 in comparison to Malaysia. Against India, the average remuneration for Malaysian ICT professionals gained ground with the ratio improving from 0.66 in 2010 to 0.72 in 2011.

Source: Robert Walters Survey, ZDNEtAsia & PIKOM 2012

Figure 11: Proportion of Average Monthly Salaries Earned by Selected Countries in Comparison

to Malaysia, 2010- 2011

HONG KONG SINGAPORE THAILAND MALAYSIA CHINA INDIA PHILIPPINES INDONESIA

2010 2.89 2.39 0.93 1.00 1.05 0.72 0.47 0.372011 3.10 2.52 1.02 1.00 0.95 0.66 0.43 0.34

Num

ber o

f Tim

es

2.893.10

2.392.52

0.93 1.02 1.00 1.00 1.05 0.950.72 0.66

0.47 0.43 0.37 0.34

0.00

0.50

1.00

1.50

2.00

2.50

3.00

3.50


REGIONAL BENCHMARKING

28

6.2. Benchmarking with Selected Developed Nations Malaysians are also casting their eyes beyond the shores of Asia in the search for greener pastures. These individuals are moving to developed nations for better employment opportunities and remuneration. As English is a prominent language for business in Malaysia, the common destinations for Malaysian job seekers are the lucrative markets of Australia, New Zealand, United States and the United Kingdom. It is pertinent to note that demand for IT professionals in software development is currently at an all time high in these developed markets despite the economic slowdown, particularly in the Eurozone and the United States.

To produce a meaningful comparison between Malaysia and these countries, the average annual salary of a Senior Software Engineer / Developer / Programmer was chosen and the data is depicted in Table 6. The data was extracted from Pay Scale web-based salary reporting. After taking into consideration the average foreign exchange rates against the Malaysian Ringgit (RM), the data shows that these developed markets offer much higher remuneration for IT professionals than in Malaysia. The respective salary is 4.08 times as high in the United States, 3.18 times in Australia and 3.06 times in New Zealand for a Senior Software Engineer / Developer / Programmer. Surprisingly, the rate in the United Kingdom is only 2.78 times the average salary in Malaysia. On the whole, these findings can be applied generally to similar ICT job descriptions from network engineering and IT project management to security analyst, SAP specialist, ERP specialist, helpdesk analyst etc.

Country CurrencyAnnual Salary

2011Annual Salary

(RM)Benchmarking Scale

Against Malaysia

Australia ASD 69,420 220,756 3.18

New Zealand NZD 84,256 212,325 3.06

United States USD 92,431 282,839 4.08

United Kingdom UK Pound 39,587 193,185 2.78

Malaysia RM 69,397 69,397 1.00

Source: Pay Scale (http://www.payscale.com/research/) and PIKOM

Table 6: Average Annual Salary of Senior Software Engineer / Developer / Programmer by Selected Developed

Countries, 2011


MonthYear

2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001

Jan 50.5 52.2 47.0 44.9 50.7 52.6 49.6 47.9 41.7 36.2 31.2 42.0

Feb 50.9 52.5 48.7 43.1 49.0 52.7 50.1 47.4 42.3 31.7 31.8 41.5

Mar 50.4 51.2 48.8 43.8 51.8 52.4 49.7 43.3 41.6 34.6 35.7 39.4

Apr 53.2 51.4 46.9 49.7 51.2 50.4 42.8 39.0 31.0 35.2 40.1

May 51.9 51.9 47.8 49.2 50.0 49.9 44.0 39.6 28.7 36.9 39.7

Jun 53.5 48.1 48.5 48.9 50.1 50.2 41.1 46.4 34.1 35.0 37.5

Jul 54.1 50.2 49.7 47.9 50.4 47.8 42.0 43.5 32.5 34.7 34.9

Aug 52.3 51.9 50.2 50.1 48.7 50.1 49.6 45.1 32.7 36.2 32.9

Sep 48.8 61.0 48.7 49.6 49.5 50.7 48.6 51.9 34.7 34.0 30.6

Oct 51.0 53.7 48.3 49.6 48.6 49.6 46.8 49.6 32.9 32.7 32.4

Nov 49.2 51.6 50.0 47.6 49.3 51.7 47.1 51.3 37.0 34.5 31.2

Dec 49.4 49.7 50.2 47.3 49.6 51.9 49.0 49.9 36.8 31.6 31.5

7. Employment Outlook and Perceptions

The report also attempts to present the overall ICT job market outlook from the industry perspective and from the perception of potential jobseekers. A total of 1,111 managers and senior managers across various industries in Malaysia took part in an employment outlook survey in March 2012.

7.1 JobStreet.com Confidence Index (JECI)The JobStreet.com Employment Confidence Index (JECI), which is compiled on a monthly basis, is shown in Table 7. JECI ranges from zero (very poor) to 100 (very good). A low index indicates a tough job market where people find it difficult to get a job. A high index indicates a comfortable job market, where people are able to secure a good job easily. The index ranged from a low of 30.6 in 2001 to a high of 54.1 in 2011.

Source: JobStreet.com

Table 7: Job Employment Confidence Index: January 2001- March 2012

In Figure 12, over the last couple of years, the average annual JECI moved marginally up from 51.2 in 2010 to 51.6 in 2011, indicating increased confidence in the job market. However, the average JECI has dipped marginally in the first quarter of 2012 to 50.6.


EMPLOYMENT OUTLOOK AND PERCEPTION

7.2 Job Outlook 2012 The Job Outlook Index, as measured by JobStreet.com, looks at the expectations of job growth or employment prospects in the next 12 months. This measurement is undertaken on a quarterly basis. A higher index means that the industries are creating jobs and employment, while a lower index indicates the reverse with fewer jobs on offer.

To gauge the overall job outlook sentiments in terms of the annual trends, PIKOM used the Job Outlook Index Score (JOIS) procedure as shown in Box 1.

Source: Jobstreet.com and PIKOM

Figure 12: Job Employment Confidence Index: 2001-2012.

YEAR

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 201236.1 34.1 33.6 45.2 45.8 50.1 50.4 49.3 47.7 51.2 51.6 50.6

36.134.1

45.2

33.630

40

50

60

45.8

50.1 50.4

49.347.7

51.2 51.6

50.6

JECI

Inde

x

JECI

For comparing the job outlook sentiments over the year, PIKOM calculated a Job Outlook Index Score (JOIS) using the following procedure:

I = ∑ ƒ𝑖 W𝑖 / ∑ ƒ𝑖

In the formula above, “f” denotes the frequency expressed as percentage of responses netted or implicitly weighted, as such, ∑ ƒ𝑖 =1 “W” denotes the values assigned for each response category and “i” denotes the industry. The values assumed for the various categories of responses were 5 for “much better”; 4 for “slightly better”; 3 for “same”; 2 for “slightly worse” and 1 for “much worse”. As such, the expected or implicitly weighted average for JOIS value will be 3; the average for the best case scenario where all the respondents indicate “much better” will be 5; similarly, the expected average for the worst case scenario, where all the responses indicative of “much worse”, would be 1.

Source: PIKOM

7.3 Job Growth for Next 12 Months For the First Quarter of 2012, the Job Outlook Index registered 55 points, which was a 6-point rise from 49 points in the preceding third quarter of 2011. Specifically, for Q1 2012, 43% of the respondents felt that the general job outlook would be slightly better or much better for the next 12 months, which constituted a rise from the previous quarter’s 31%.



Source: Jobstreet.com

Figure 13: Job Outlook Perception First Quarter of 2011 and 2012

Much better

11%

19%

32%

36%

29% 29%

22%

11%

6% 5%

Slighty better Same Slighty worse

1Q2012

1Q2011

Much worse0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

Job Outlook: Will 1Q2012 be Better or Worse than 1Q2011

7.4 Comparison of Job Outlook of Q1 2011 and Q1 2012 Nonetheless, comparison of job outlook in Q1 2011 against Q1 2012, as indicated in Figure 13, reveals that only 43% of the respondents indicated better prospects in 2012 in comparison to 65% in Q1 2011.

Source: PIKOM, 2012

Figure 14: Job Outlook Score Index (JOSI): 2009-2012

Q1 2009 Q1 2010 Q1 2011 Q1 2012JOIC 2.16 3.52 3.53 3.20

Job

Out

look

Inde

x Sc

ore

(JO

IC)

FIRST QUARTER BY YEAR

2.16

3.52 3.53

3.20

2.0

2.2

2.4

2.6

2.8

3.0

3.2

3.4

3.6

3.8

The results are shown in Figure 14. It can be seen that in Q1 2009, the JOIS was as low as 2.16 due to the Global Financial Crisis 2009 and this figure subsequently increased to 3.53 in Q1 2011 following the economic recovery. The job outlook sentiment has declined to 3.20 in the first quarter of 2012. The decline is likely attributed to the continuing economic turmoil engulfing much of the developed world, which is perceived by many to have negative implications on Asia including Malaysia.



7.5 Employers’ Perception on Economic Performance82% of respondents felt that either the national economy is slowing down or remaining stagnant or are uncertain about the economic performance; only 18% expressed confidence in the national economy. These sentiments are reflected in Figure 15.

7.6 Anticipated Hiring ActivitiesThe survey results also reveal that companies are still adopting a more cautious job outlook, where 44% of respondents felt that their companies would be hiring fewer people and replacing or filling essential positions in the next 12 months. Only 23% are confident their company would be expanding their businesses, hence hiring more people; see Figure 16.


Figure 15: Perception on Economic Performance

What is the real state of the national economy?

Slowing down

31.1%

27.5%

17.8%

23.5%

Stagnant Picking up Uncertain0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%


Figure 16: Expectations on job hiring activities, 2012

Company's hiring activities in the next 12 months

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

We’re expending,hence hiring more

people

23.3% 24.6%

43.6%

8.6%

We’re maintainingour hiring rate this

year

Hiring less,replace/�ll essential

positions only

We’re not hiring in theforeseeable future



7.7 Top Specialisations SoughtThe survey also asked respondents about the job specialisations in current demand, should they decide to hire any new staff in the First Quarter of 2012. The results are flagged in Figure 17. For most industries, jobseekers with skills in marketing & business development or sales marketing are the most sought-after employees, followed by people with expertise in customer service and computer & information technology (software). Also required are people with mechanical engineering skills and human resources background. A new specialisation that has entered the top 10 list is electrical engineering.


Figure 17: Top 10 specialisations employers seek

1Q 2012 4Q 2012 ALL INDUSTRIES

1 2 Marketing & business development

2 1 Sales/Marketing (Merchandising)

3 4 Customer service

4 3 Computer & IT (Software)

5 5 Engineering (Mechanical)

6 7 Human resources

7 6 General/Cost accounting

8 10 Sales/Marketing (Technical)

9 8 Maintenance

10 (new) - Engineering (Electrical)

7.8 What people are saying about First Quarter 2012:There are mixed sentiments regarding local job prospects for this year. A sample of comments from survey participants are quoted below:

“The first quarter will be challenging with lots of uncertainty within the region (Asia Pacific). Hence, companies must look at hiring experienced professionals especially those who can drive the company through this unstable economic situation. (Industry: Computers and Information Technology)

“Generally the job outlook is the same as last year. But with expansion in business and new projects coming up, the job outlook will improve.” (Industry: Construction)

“The market is slowing down in terms of purchasing by home buyers/investors as the banking sector is putting restriction on loans.” (Industry: Construction)

“Talent pool will be quite bad due to very low level of competency and skills even among graduates from local universities. The MNC sectors would naturally be highly observant on the level of competencies when hiring new talents in the organisation.” (Industry: Education and Training)



“Qualified talent in project management with good communication skill sets are lacking in the financial industry.” (Industry: Finance)

“The outlook is very challenging and competitive globally especially the hotel industry.”(Industry: Hotels and restaurants)

“Job hopping by employees for better prospects and higher salary will continue to be the same as previous years.” (Industry: Hotels and restaurants)

“The job outlook looks very promising because we have a very good forecast for next second and third quarter.” (Industry: Manufacturing)

“The electronics industry is becoming more competitive due to fast changing technologies, increase in product pricing and higher salary demand among the younger workforce.” (Industry: Manufacturing)

“The overall job market for Q1 is not improving due to uncertainty in the local economy. The food & beverage industry were also affected mainly due to weak purchasing power, competition and escalating raw materials prices. Therefore most companies are not focused on any expansion plans in the future.” (Industry: Manufacturing)

“Even though certain industries are expanding due to higher consumer demand, palm oil / vegetable / edible oils continue with exponential growth especially for Malaysia and Indonesia. These major players may be hiring ‘new blood’ but experience and knowledge of the industry per se is of vital importance. Employers are getting more and more choosier especially for senior positions.” (Industry: Manufacturing)

“The oil and gas sector will be hiring aggressively to meet manpower demand for only a few projects at hand.” (Industry: Mining - including oil, gas and petroleum)


8. Conclusion

In 2011, the ICT sector registered a significant growth in remuneration levels for its professionals. Given the positive economic outlook for Malaysia – with a 5.1% growth in GDP in 2013 as forecasted by the World Bank - the ICT industry is set to flourish on the back of domestic demand created by several of the Government’s mega projects and transformation programmes. Such organic growth is expected to generate wide-ranging employment opportunities for ICT professionals in the country. Based on this positive outlook, PIKOM has projected at least 9.0% growth in average remuneration offered to ICT professionals in 2012. It should be noted that the ICT sector is still being plagued by the shortage in the supply of ICT graduates especially those deemed employable and who have skills sets compatible with industry needs. On top of this problem, the ICT industry continues to be hampered by poor quality broadband in terms of capacity, speed and price.

It is imperative that the Government address the deficiencies in broadband infrastructure so as to accelerate the ICT sector into a new level of value creation through cloud computing, outsourcing, e-commerce, high-end micro-electronics research and development. The capability and capacity building of the ICT sector could become a critical issue given that ICT professionals with high-end technical skills could opt for jobs in neighbouring countries such as Hong Kong and Singapore or English-speaking developed countries where the average salaries are at least two times higher than in Malaysia. Within the country, there continues to be a strong tendency among ICT professionals to job-hop. This poses challenges to the area of employee retention as well as to the industry as a whole as job-hopping could affect effective growth. Despite a generally positive economic and ICT industry outlook as well as an upward trend in the salaries of ICT professionals, the perception of job seekers on the local job market appear to slide for the first Quarter of 2012, as gathered from Jobstreet.com probes.

Persatuan Industri Komputer Multimedia Malaysia(The National ICT Association of Malaysia)

1106 & 1107, Block B, Phileo Damansara IINo.15, Jalan 16/11, 46350 Petaling JayaSelangor Darul EhsanT +: (603) 7955 2922F +: (603) 7955 2933E+: [email protected]+: www.pikom.org.my

PIKOM, the National ICT Association of Malaysia, is a not-for-pro�t organisation. It is the largest association representing information and communications technology (ICT) players in Malaysia. Since its inception in 1986, PIKOM has come of its age as the voice of ICT industry. It has become an ICT referral centre for government and industry players, as well as international organisations. In this regard, PIKOM takes on the responsibility to publish ICT-relevant information in a periodic manner.

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ICT JOB MARKET OUTLOOK IN MALAYSIA - PIKOM Job MarkeT ouTlook In MalaysIa | aprIl 2012 5 preamble by the pIkoM president PIKOM is once again pleased to publish the ICT Job Market Outlook