Singapore least confident in Asean when it comes to opportunities to get ahead: LinkedIn study

Singapore was the least confident of gaining access to and pursuing desired opportunities among the Asean countries surveyed, including Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines, according to a study by LinkedIn.

Among ^the nine markets in Asia Pacific surveyed in the inaugural LinkedIn Opportunity Index, Indonesia came in tops. This was followed by the Philippines in 4th place, Malaysia in 5th place, and Singapore in 6th place.

In Singapore, it was found that a rewarding job, career advancement, learning opportunities matter most. However, a difficult job market, finances and lack of strong networks stand in the way of them achieving desired opportunities.

Across Asia Pacific, career advancement, entrepreneurship and learning opportunities matter most to people in the region, but less optimal finances and networks stand in the way.

Another key finding was that 40 per cent of the respondents in Asia Pacific indicated that having good work-life balance as their ultimate aspiration of how they would embark on opportunity. This was echoed by respondents in Singapore (48 per cent), Australia (46 per cent), Malaysia and the Philippines (both at 44 per cent).

But there were sharp differences in entrepreneurship attitudes within Asean. In Indonesia and the Philippines, more than half of respondents consider "starting my own business" as their definition of opportunity. In Singapore, only 24 per cent of respondents wanted to start their own ventures.

Olivier Legrand, Managing Director, LinkedIn in Asia Pacific, said: "We believe that access to opportunity should be universal and for everyone. With the inaugural LinkedIn Opportunity Index, our aim is to gain an insight into the aspirations of people across the Asia Pacific region, how they feel about the opportunities they want to pursue, as well as the barriers that may stand in their way. "

"The growing workforce in the region is a key asset that, if harnessed effectively, is going to continue to drive the economies. Over time, by tracking people's perception of opportunity and the barriers they face, we hope we can continue to facilitate more of a balance between demand and supply in the opportunity marketplace."

The study surveyed over 11,000 respondents across nine markets in Asia Pacific.