Workers going global are on right track

A new survey has found that Singaporeans are keener than most others around the world to work for global companies, although they are not too happy about working across time zones. According to the poll of 5,500 workers across nine countries conducted by employment platform Globalisation Partners (G-P) in August, 93 per cent of the 500 respondents here would prefer to work in companies with overseas operations than in firms with only a domestic focus – higher than the global average of 79 per cent. However, the enthusiasm among those polled here receded if these companies offered inadequate pay and poor growth opportunities, or required them to straddle time zones.

Of course, the rejection of global firms is only natural if they offer poor career prospects. However, workers may choose to think twice about avoiding them because of unaccustomed hours of work. After all, even in Singapore, the nature of shift work in several professions, ranging from the police to journalism, takes employees out of their usual comfort zones and attunes them to the needs of society, not just their own. Rather, Singaporeans should concentrate on foreign firms that offer attractive pay and benefits, the chance to travel or work overseas, and culturally diverse work environments. They should also look at how well foreign companies use technology and serve clients, and what they can pick up from their international colleagues.