Wednesday, August 13, 2008

dealing with the outflow of talent in Singapore

Loh also raised a 3-fold solution. 1) The authorities have to stop using the term “foreign talent”. “It implies that all foreigners are talents, and the locals are not,”2) “forget about nationalism and what it means to be a Singaporean”. He added: “Focus on the family — people stay with their families, they miss their families, and not the country state; a pro-family centered policy or work environment would help.”3) And lastly, preserve buildings that Singaporeans grew up with. Said Dr Leong: “These are the places where our collective memories of childhood, courtshipsand friendships were embedded.”

The first part of the solution is definably feasible. Over the past few years, the hype over foreign talent has generated much dissatisfaction amongst the local. People adopted the perception that foreign talents are far superior then them. By removing such terms, it appeals to the Singaporeans and make them feel wanted. It shows their talent is appreciated in the Singapore society too.

The second fold of the solution has its limitation. The development of technology allows long distance communication between kinds. Tools such as the telephone and even webcam are mediums between the family and the member aboard. Thus, this part of the solution is not applicable.

The third fold of the idea largely appeals to the more emotional Singaporeans. Retaining such buildings create a homely and familiar environment for Singapore to settle in. However, the opportunity cost for such a policy may prove costly. Are the economic costs of the land worth it? The land may be better allocated for better uses. Land scarcity is a pressing problem of the island. Thus we should measure such costs before embarking.

The author also mentions that materialistic incentives may help to retain local talents too. Such form of extrinsic motivation would prove effective in the short term. Money to bait local talent would no doubt prove effective. However, we must consider intrinsic motive of the talents. Would they abandon Singapore during an economic turmoil? Hence extrinsic motivation is effective only on the surface

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