These are not C-Level salaries. The table represents everybody up to maybe just below the C-level people and their direct reports like global unit presidents, continental GMs and that ilk. According to the consultants, execs get about another 15-20% of their basic via discretionery bonuses, managers 20-30% and directors 40-50%.

Most global MNCs are manufacturers and traders. The fact that they have to work through many jurisdictions prompts them to have fairly structured pay scales and transfer pricing for tax and consolidation. Many professional services firms don't use that kind of structure because they don't actually "move" anything across borders and often remunerate on a profit sharing basis (for the senior folks). They operate local entities are are "aligned" but not "legally owned" by a mother firm so that they are not caught by extra-territorial taxes eg US etc upon consolidation.

This post has been edited by seantang: Jan 24 2013, 10:21 AM

If you don't mind me asking, when were you last in primary or secondary school? And are you talking about SRK/SMK (Sekolah Kebangsaan) or SRJK/SMJK (Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan) or SMP (Persendirian)?

If you were a product of the SK, SMKs in the 80s and early 90s like me... you are right. We turned out okay, effectively multi-lingual, good English and reasonable maths & science. But that's when the Chinese and Indian teachers were still around. When there were still non-Malay principals in SKs.

In the mid 80s to early 90s, entire generations of Chinese and Indian teachers retired (those who went to Teacher Training, rather than Maktab Perguruan...). They were replaced entirely by ustazs and ninjas. By the late 90s... you can hardly find a non-Malay teacher in any of the SKs. Only the La Salle, ACS, convent, Methodist schools etc still had non-Malay principals. By now... the teaching faculty is virtually fully mono-racial. 99% of the teachers in SKs can't speak a damn sentence in English (not the kind that normal people can understand anyway). Religion and race permeates all aspects of the SK, despite the fact that there's still 10-30% of students who are non-Muslim, non-Malay and have parents who do not consider themselves to be subservient to tuans.

The SJK Cina are better, not in small part to the donations of Chinese businesses and public... since the entire system of a thousand or so SJK schools in Malaysia receive more or less the same amount of govt ie. tax funding as a SINGLE mono-racial sekolah berasrama penuh or maktab MARA... Tax that barring PETRONAS, the Chinese pay 90% of (according to Mahathir, ya... I'm not making this shit up). The majority of the teachers are Chinese. Many are not very well trained, but they are aware that their job is to teach language, science and math, not indoctrinate or practice their religion or display their racial or linguistic 'maruah'.

The SJK Tamil are... sigh... I pity those guys. Rock and a hard place.

This post has been edited by seantang: Jan 24 2013, 11:47 PM

The vast majority of our employees retire at exec to senior exec level. But to be frank, the 'senior exec' salaries in the table would qualify for senior managerial salary in local listed, and director level salaries in SMEs.

Retiring at director's level is pretty good. It's S$500,000++ per annum including bonuses, share options and car allowances. That's as much as many C-suite salaries (barring the CEO) in the vast majority of SGX companies.

This post has been edited by seantang: Jan 27 2013, 11:22 PM

I'd be very,.. very,.. surprised if anyone in this forum comes from a Top 10 business school. Actually I'd be surprised if anyone in this forum is a personal friend of someone from a Top 10 business school.

Would you pay the same price for a CBU Honda or Toyota from Japan (JDM) or CKD one from Thailand or Indonesia, rebadge from Perodua or even Asia only model like Avanza or Kijang? Or CBU BMW/Merc from Germany vs CKD from Kulim?

This post has been edited by seantang: Jan 28 2013, 01:20 PM

You have to put it into perspective.

The Harvard-NUS MBA or Insead Singapore MBA will trade at a discount to a Harvard US MBA or Insead France MBA. No doubt about it.

But then, I would rather get Harvard-NUS or Insead SG in my resume rather than spending a year or two in University of Bath or Herriot Watt or what not, to do a full time MBA.

This post has been edited by seantang: Jan 28 2013, 02:56 PM

Actually... I think it is as well. I don't think any MNC is hiring freshies for less than 3K these days. My company is paying fresh execs 4K this year. But then in Singapore,.. you don't get an exec's salary just because you have a degree. You have to actually have an exec role as well. For instance, my secretary has a degree in business from NTU but she is not paid an exec's salary.

M'sia private uni... Aha! Therein lies the issue.

As above. There's an abundance of stronger candidates in SG that Microsoft can attract.

To be honest, sometimes... they need a smack in the face.

They want fewer foreigners working there, but they don't want to do the work themselves.

They want employers to hire more Singaporeans by offering higher pay, but don't want to pay more for goods and services.

They say foreign talent are taking away their high paying PMET jobs, but they don't want to realise that if these foreigner weren't here, neither will the jobs. It is not Singaporeans who are drawing those companies to base the high level jobs in Singapore, but it is Singapore itself... its laws, its policies and its foreigner friendly environment. You don't see MNCs clamouring to set up their HQs in Malaysia or Indonesia.

They want development, prosperity and higher standard of living. But they don't see a problem if senior citizens > working adults by 20xx.

They want more benefits to get married, buy HDB and have kids. But they don't see a problem when there are fewer working adults to pay tax or the fact that they are chasing away their singles with their discriminatory policies, and it's these folks who by default pay much more tax per head than non-singles.

This post has been edited by seantang: Jan 30 2013, 11:24 AM

S$2500++ will fully pay the monthly instalment for a 30 year $800K bank loan... meaning that you have purchased a $1 million property with 20% downpayment... (ok, ok maths a little different now with the cooling measures but for first timer, you're more or less there... give or take ~5%).

Might as well put that 2.5K towards an instalment rather than rental. If you need to leave Singapore before the 30 year loan expires, AND you don't want to keep the property for rental... you can sell it to get the capital gain.

BTW, isn't the demon called Mephisto?

This post has been edited by seantang: Jan 31 2013, 02:44 PM

True.

But with reference to the dude who posted the rant,.. if he's considering a S$2.5K++ rental, he's bound to have something stashed away or be in a position to accumulate a significant amount over the next few years.

Risk and return.

SG private property is as close to risk free as you can get, with the sole risk factor being the govt not allowing foreigners and non-residents to buy.

For a salary man to dump RM500K into a business in Malaysia which he doesn't run on a daily basis, doesn't know the industry nor the players etc... all I can say is come talk to me. I can set you up as an investor in any number of businesses in Malaysia. Anything you want, I can set you up. Just bring the cash, and my associates will run the business profitably for you.

This post has been edited by seantang: Jan 31 2013, 07:56 PM

Expats have it much better. Rental budget alone for director level expats is S$15-20K. Execs is S$5-12K depending on job level.

This post has been edited by seantang: Jan 31 2013, 08:03 PM

Of course they are.

A guy in another country wants to invest 500K cash with you, has no knowledge of the industry and leaves you to run the business, write cheques etc... if not water fish, then what?

This post has been edited by seantang: Jan 31 2013, 09:23 PM

That's what I'm saying. In order for business ventures to occur with such regularity, accessibility and with so little discrimination of knowledge that they become relevant alternatives (in terms of opportunity) to investing in Sg property - the success rate these ventures will have defy all logic and probability.

This post has been edited by seantang: Feb 1 2013, 03:27 PM

From this one comment... we can confirm your friend doesn't know any Singaporean girls.

Hmmm... not shaping up to be a good year for finance people in Sg.

Simple rule... RESIDENTS of Singapore cannot drive foreign cars in Singapore. If you live on the island, cannot.

Don't bother going to the police if it's a rental dispute. If it's not a crime, it's not a police matter. You have to take it to court, where if you win, the judge will issue a judgement in your favour. Then the judge will instruct the police to enforce his judgement.

Can confirm Changi airport and Ipoh airport no jam today. Kung Hei Fatt Choy.

@mules

If you only have only 3-4 boxes of household items, then is it worth the effort & money to bring them over? Buying all this te ling ta lang stuff is also quite cheap in Sg if yiu go to the hypermarts or hdb shops.

But if they are worth it, can consider DHL jumbo box. Cheaper than taxi here, taxi there and it's door to door.

If you must do car transport door to door, then you're stuck with hired cars/limo service.