Under the backdrop of political and social turbulence in the western world and high rates of unemployment, Asia with its high economic growth provides an increasingly attractive option. Besides traditional sectors like financial services in Hong Kong and Singapore, Asia is increasingly shifting its focus to grooming the next generation of big tech companies. These are no longer exclusive to Silicon Valley, as start-ups like ByteDance, Go-Jek, and Grab join the unicorn ranks. Singapore itself is placing tremendous emphasis on transforming into a Smart Nation and investing in deep-tech and fintech. The Singaporean tech ecosystem provides attractive options for many aspiring entrepreneurs and skilled workers.

Many returnees (sometimes called SEA Turtles, a play on words of the Chinese word 海归) see the region’s growth as an opportunity for greater professional advancement than they might find elsewhere. While some overseas Singaporeans used to favor roles in investment banking or consulting after graduation, our data shows a growing popularity among returnees to pursue jobs in tech. The tech industry in general and startups in particular provide an opportunity for higher impact, greater autonomy, and accelerated professional growth. 

Returnees come back for various reasons, and increasingly, in addition to wanting to be closer to family, it is because they find that Singapore and Southeast Asia offers fertile ground for growing an international career. In the Alariss Global Podcast Episode 4 “From Silicon Valley to Singapore: An Entrepreneur’s Trailblazing Journey”, we featured Derek Wong, an American who moved to Singapore to join Antler’s accelerator program and to start his own company. Like Derek, many from overseas find the Southeast Asian startup ecosystem robust and growing, with ample capital, mentorship, and consumers. The greatest challenge still remains having enough talent to fill all the various open positions at these companies.

And yet, in spite of the clear shortage of talent and the number of open positions, I have spoken to many job seekers who express frustration at the job search process. It is difficult to know how best to position oneself when not fitting neatly into a single box. I can empathize–this gap in knowledge, lack of transparency into companies, and difficulty in assessing one’s own market position, especially from the perspective of global talent, was precisely what inspired me to found Alariss Global in the first place. 

When looking for the right roles, returnees should focus upon ones at companies that have a product or service in which global expansion makes sense, or is even necessary. Luckily, Singapore is often the hub of Southeast Asia and a launching point for globalization; most Singaporean companies have the desire to go global from day one.