This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily on February 13, 2018

KUALA LUMPUR: Global recruitment agency Randstad expects local unemployment rate to remain stable if not continue to improve this year in line with the 2018 gross domestic product (GDP) forecast of 5.2%, says its managing director for Malaysia Ryan Carroll.

Unemployment rate was at 3.3% in November 2017 from 3.4% a year ago.

“The positive GDP projection is likely to lead to a corresponding increment in talent demand, particularly within key infrastructure and commercial sectors,” he said in its market outlook 2018 report released yesterday.

Carroll noted that Malaysia’s employment rate is currently at the optimal level and job seekers can have an overwhelming number of career options to choose from.

He said as the construction market is expected to expand at an above national level of 7% in GDP for 2018, professional and experienced talent in this space will remain highly sought after. “Moving into 2018, infrastructure projects will continue to focus on providing improved connectivity and accessibility between cities and within greater Kuala Lumpur.”

Randstad also continues to see a sustained demand for technology talent in Malaysia as both public agencies and private organisations step up investments to improve their overall digital infrastructure and capabilities.

“The number of job opportunities in technology grew double-digits in the second half of 2017 (2H17) and we predict this trend to continue at a similar rate in 1H18. The financial services sector, in particular, has seen the most significant amount of changes due to the increased awareness of and interest in fintech to improve work efficiencies and customer experience,” said Carroll.

“One to watch — as consumers gain a better understanding of their data protection and privacy rights, the technology market is expected to take on larger moral responsibilities around data security and compliance,” he added.

Carroll also pointed out that the rapid digital transformation within the banking and financial services sector sees companies competing for market share, with many adopting a blended digital and customer-centric sales approach that must then be supported by rigid compliance to ensure proper security measures.

As a result, front office sales roles in banking and financial institutions remain highly sought after in 1H18.

While within the middle to back office functions, we noted a growing demand for talent specialising in risk management, compliance and audit to help boost consumer confidence.