Singapore's millennials are practical, non-materialistic and care for community: OCBC survey

SINGAPORE — Contrary to popular opinion that millennials are an entitled and self-centred lot obsessed with social media fame, an OCBC Bank survey of young Singaporeans found that the majority are driven by the motivation to care for their parents, the environment and social causes.

Most of them want to be rich not to buy material goods, but to support their parents in old age and gain new experiences, findings from the local bank showed.

The results of the survey were released on Wednesday (April 3) at the new Frank by OCBC Store at the National University of Singapore (NUS).

The online survey was conducted in January and February this year and polled 866 young Singaporeans aged 16 to 29 who were young working adults, and polytechnic and university students.

Called Frankly Asked Questions, it will be conducted annually to help the bank better engage youths and tailor products and services that will help them achieve their aspirations, said OCBC’s Head of Consumer Financial Services (Singapore) Dennis Tan.

RICH, BUT NOT MATERIALISTIC

Survey results show 86 per cent of Singapore’s millennials are motivated to understand their inner self while 32 per cent have ambitions for being well-known.

“Certain experiences shape the way I think. When I’m struggling with something that affects me emotionally, I try to deal with it and I learn more about myself through these experiences,” said Ms Preetashini Nagarajah, 22, a third-year student at NUS.

Some 72 per cent want to be rich but:

• About the same number of survey respondents find it important to give back and help others

• 73 per cent are concerned for their parents’ finances for retirement

• 82 per cent feel that gaining life experiences such as travelling is of greater priority than gaining physical possessions (49 per cent) if they have the financial means

Mr Joshua Chan, 24, who is on a student exchange programme in the United States, said that travelling to nearby cities and countries helped put his own life into perspective. He added that this was more important than what worldly possessions could ever provide.

“Learning about different cultures has made me more empathetic and appreciative of the things I have,” said Mr Chan, a third-year psychology student at NUS.

Young Singaporeans have generally responsible attitudes towards personal finances, said the survey.

Two out of three of those surveyed said they have an expense budget and stick closely to it.

About 70 per cent proactively set aside part of their salary as savings and want to start investing and buying insurance policies. However, only 38 and 44 per cent consider themselves knowledgeable about investments and insurance, respectively.

PRAGMATIC, NOT IDEALISTIC

Millennials here may also not be as idealistic and are perhaps more conservative than some may believe, according to survey results.

Less than half (45 per cent) of survey respondents will consider being a freelancer in the gig economy, while 83 per cent want to secure a job with regular income.

A majority also believe that employers should adapt more to the needs of young employees. The top three qualities of an ideal job for them are: Work-life balance, good working culture and passion for their work.

Mr Sim Wei Nan, 23, said that younger employees like himself prefer flexibility and a more consultative relationship with their employers, rather than blindly following old ways of doing things.

“Employers are usually not as knowledgeable as the employees who are in direct contact with their tasks, and younger employers understand that,” added the Nanyang Technological University undergraduate, who is currently interning at a chemical engineering firm.

But beyond their own life goals, the results also show that youths are largely concerned with larger societal and environmental causes.

In each of the following social causes, four in five young Singaporeans say these are issues that are important to them:  

• Human rights

• Poverty

• Environmental awareness

• Helping the elderly

• Mental health awareness