Seoul :  Multinational companies in Korea are still generating demand for professionals with global experience reveals the recently released 2013 Salary Survey by Robert Walters, one of the world’s leading specialist professional recruitment consultancies.

The 14th edition of the Global Salary Survey notes that businesses across many industry sectors are seeking professionals with global expertise and an international mindset. These abilities were required to meet the increasing performance demands placed on employees resulting from growing business abroad, or from adopting more Westernised business practices in Korea. However, due to the general caution exercised by many companies due to economic conditions, the majority of roles were filled predominately on a replacement basis.

The Survey also reveals that given the limited headcount approval for new positions, employers favoured bilingual professionals able to perform both strategic and conventional duties when hiring for departing staff. This up-skilling allowed companies to improve the skill set and expertise of their teams, despite having limited capacity to add staff.

Anthony Modrich, Country Manager of Robert Walters Korea explains:

“The need for global experience is growing in Korea. The recently ratified free trade agreements with the European Union and the U.S, as well as the increased prominence of Korea in general, led to a limited but steady flow of new market entrants, which is set to continue. More Korean companies are also transitioning to Westernised business environments as they continue to look offshore for growth, which has generated stronger competition when hiring globally-minded professionals.

However, companies remained very cautious when approving new headcounts, and as a result the majority of hiring was on a replacement basis. In many cases, these replacement hires were to significantly up-skill their teams with more specialised staff. We expect this trend to continue throughout 2013 if business sentiment remains the same.”