How Dire Is Singapore’s Engineering Ecosystem?

Where we stand in 2016

Ever since I first dipped my toes into Singapore startups back in 2007, I’ve always kept an eye on its development. I previously observed that the lack of software engineering talent was limiting the tech startup ecosystem.

Startup and engineering ecosystems are symbiotic. Looking back at the historical development of startup ecosystems like New York City, Israel, and Silicon Valley, we can see that they were built on a bedrock of engineering talent. However, startups can’t single handedly create a great engineering ecosystem.

A great engineering ecosystem creates great startups. And that’s where we should focus the conversation.

For the past month, I’ve had the opportunity to understand Singapore’s engineering ecosystem at a much deeper level. In general, I’m pleased with our ecosystem’s progress. But I still remain cautiously optimistic. Let’s walk through it.

Industry

Singaporean culture has typically considered engineering a “non-ideal” profession, behind law, medicine, and finance. But I’ve noticed a recent shift in that mindset. And even though this mindset has yet to fully evolve, there has never been a better time to be a software engineer in Singapore.

First, it’s clearly an engineer’s market. Singapore will face a shortage of 30,000 engineers by 2017. And second, there are plenty of opportunities at interesting companies — email me for suggestions.

This allows software engineers to be discerning. They have the privilege to do so and they should. Be picky — work for companies that value engineering, share personal values, and pay well. There’s no reason to settle for companies that treat engineering as a blue collar profession. We aren’t at that level of maturity as an ecosystem, and having a discerning workforce is the first step.

Grassroots

Singapore has its share of tech conferences in recent years — PyCon, RedDotRubyConf, and DevFest to name a few. But what surprised me the most was the grassroots vibrancy of the ecosystem.

I could spend every day of the week attending meetups on topics ranging from engineering to user experience design. This is a huge leap forward from just 5 years ago.

As this growth continues, I hope to see the community reach beyond the current demographic, and engage more frequently with our youth, our underrepresented, and our underprivileged. Efforts like TechLadies, which is fantastic to see in a nascent community.

Students

Students are the lifeblood of the ecosystem. I was pleased to learn that computer science is one of the most popular — and most selective — university degrees in Singapore at the moment. However, according to my friends at NUS Hackers, there are less than 10 students in the current cohort that will spend their 2016 summer interning overseas, which is disappointing.

Students should spend their summer breaks at companies that provide a great learning experience and personal growth. Companies with challenges at scale, well-oiled engineering processes, and experienced mentors. For startup-inclined engineers, spend a summer at a startup. And from my biased viewpoint, I’d advise students to spend at least a summer in Silicon Valley, which embodies many of the aforementioned traits.

Getting an overseas internship isn’t as daunting as one might expect. Programs like Project Intern evangelize overseas internships, and assists students looking for them.

But student-led efforts can only go so far. The universities have to support their students in seeking overseas internships.

Google

Google is starting an engineering hub in Singapore as part of their “Next Billion Users” team. This will single handedly accelerate the development of the local and regional engineering ecosystem.

On the flip side, local companies will have increased competition for top talent, but this is a necessary evil to achieve a world class engineering ecosystem.

Talent follows challenge and money. These engineers should be valued as they would in other hubs like Silicon Valley or New York City, and get paid similarly (after cost of living adjustments). This will make Singapore even more attractive as the place to be an engineer in the region. As these [hubs] gain momentum and release products we use in our daily lives, more Singaporeans will realize that engineering can be a meaningful career option. — “Fixing the lack of engineering talent in Singapore”

Government

The Singapore government has historically been focused on developing tech startups — evident from initiatives such as NUS Enterprise to MDA’s i.JAM and the NRF TIS.

The money and effort spent through these initiatives have long hit diminishing returns in developing the local startup and engineering ecosystems.

The government has finally realized this. They have recently doubled down on the engineering side of things with:

The esoteric and fuzzy, but well-meaning, Smart Nation Vision.

GovTech, a government organization charged with improving government services through technology.

The S$19 billion investment into R&D, which includes budget to “groom and retain talent.”

Combined with Google’s entry, Singapore does have the potential to cement itself as Southeast Asia’s engineering hub. Should these initiatives play out as planned:

They will create meaningful software engineering career opportunities. The government stands a chance to actually modernize with best practices. GovTech is already doing interesting work, in similar vein to 18f. The society typically takes cues from the government. And the government’s embrace of engineering and technology should progress the country’s cultural attitude towards engineering.

All that said, I’m cautiously optimistic. It all boils down to execution. These initiatives can’t succumb to bureaucratic ineffectiveness. We can’t afford the hit or miss execution that plagued the startup initiatives. The government will need the right people with relevant industry experience to lead the charge, and advise them along the way.

Thought exercise: The NRF Early Stage Venture Fund has received S$100 million since 2008. Now imagine we had used just a quarter of that to entice companies like Google and Facebook to start engineering centers in Singapore. How different would our ecosystems be now?