P14&16 MBAS8 Singapore .qxd 25/3/08 11:09 Page 4
Editorial
CAREERS
Headquarters for big business
The government has also become voraciously
competitive in trying to attract the Asia-Pacific
headquarters of big businesses to the city. The Eco-
nomic Development Board of Singapore (EDB)
actively seeks to attract those companies that may
be considering Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur,
Bangkok or Sydney as major competitors.
The EDB can give tax-breaks to companies
opening branches in Singapore. One such
company is major French luxury goods conglom-
erate Moët Hennessey - Louis Vuitton (LVMH).
Jean-Noel Dollet moved to Singapore with the
company in late 2005: “Because LVMH has a
general agreement with the Singapore government
for tax savings, the company decided to set up its
Asia Pacific hub here. LVMH asked me to move to
Singapore in order to set up a new organization in
charge of sourcing for all of Moët Hennessey’s 24
brands based in Asia. The EDB is also closely
involved with the people that companies bring to
Singapore: they want high potential expatriates
here in order to help manage local people. They
see this as a good way for them to improve.”
For Dollet, living in Singapore is like a resort.
“It’s like Switzerland for cleanliness, like New York
for the business affairs district and like Club Med
for the quality of living! It’s also probably the
easiest place in Asia for expatriates to live, because
of the official language (English) and the low cost
many EU nations make it hard for non-nationals Indeed, even those at the lowest end of the salary of living. The climate is good and there are no
to live and work within their borders), Singapore scale, up to SG$20,000, pay no income tax at all. earthquakes!”
has bucked the trend and is positively encourag- Professor Stéphane Garelli, author of the So what are the negatives, if any? Dennis
ing foreigners to join in the southeast Asian boom IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook, makes Heath believes that the government’s plan to
time. the case that Singapore’s prudent government increase population to 6.5 million could be
expenditure has led to the nation’s meteoric rise: problematic. “There is also a lot more traffic on the
Lifestyle and business choices “Taxes are perceived, in general, as fuelling roads. There was no such thing as a traffic jam
Many are attracted by a number of positive lifestyle excessive government spending. Here, a direct when I arrived but there is now. The recent
and business choices. Dennis Heath, a British correlation with competitiveness is hard to estab- property boom has seen rents for property increase
expatriate in Singapore who owns his own lish. Sweden and the UK display high levels of 30-50 per cent in some areas, though it’s still
business as an executive coach with WayAhead government spending, in excess of 20 per cent of cheaper than Hong Kong. Also, state and private
Leadership, has lived in Singapore for over seven GDP, and (have) a high competitiveness schools are full, which can be an issue if you’re
years: “I have now sold up everything in the UK performance. At the other end of the spectrum, bringing children here.”
and bought an apartment here. I came here as an only 11 per cent of the GDP of Singapore and Jean-Noel Dollet suggests that prices are
employee and got permanent residency (which is Hong Kong goes towards government spending increasing, perhaps too quickly, and urges a little
the next best thing to citizenship). and they also have a top competitiveness perfor- caution for those considering moving there:
“There are many pros. Singapore has permanently mance. It would appear that the efficiency and “Living in Singapore is a great experience for high
warm weather, a low crime rate, low income quality of government expenditure matter more potential people to help the country grow at a rate
tax, it’s business friendly, everything is within than size.” of nine per cent, but nowadays, if you want to
convenient reach, it has an excellent transport It’s not just the tax rate that makes Singapore be an expatriate here, you need to have a huge
system, which is cheap by European standards and an attractive option. For the last three years the package from your company.”
many different cultures and travelling experiences economy has continued sustained growth of 7.5 So, though it may not be the answer to
within three hours flying time. It has also seen an per cent and a very low unemployment rate of 2.7 everybody’s lifestyle choice, Singapore is staking a
incredible investment by the government and per cent. For entrepre-
private sector, such as the building of two giant neurs like Dennis Heath,
casino resorts, the building of a second CBD as big the policies are business-
“ In 2007 a PricewaterhouseCoopers survey, entitled Cities
as the first and the building of a permanent motor friendly and
of Opportunity, Singapore topped the table in the section
racing circuit for 2009.” it’s surprisingly easy to
‘Ease of doing business ”
This low rate of income tax, combined with register and start a busi-
the lifestyle facilities that Singapore offers, is also ness there: “Coming to
a major attraction for business leaders who enjoy work here has been made easier by the introduc- claim for those seeking to do business in an inter-
the high personal spending power the beneficial tion of some new work passes that do not require esting nation with a high standard of living.
tax-rate provides them. The average MBA salary you to arrive here as an employee, so there are If you’re looking for a unique and interesting work
(around SG$70,000 in Singapore) is subject to a means of coming here and setting up your own experience in a very rapidly developing region,
highly competitive income tax scale. business.” Singapore just may be the place for you.
16 TopMBA CAREER GUIDE
www.topmba.com
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