Shanghai puts out 10,000 high-end jobs to lure overseas talent

Ti Gong

Shanghai has released more than 10,000 high-salary job positions from nearly 3,000 local companies to attract professionals from across the world, especially Chinese studying overseas.

More than 200 jobs, with an annual salary of above 1 million yuan (US$154,600), and some 1,000 jobs with over 600,000 yuan in annual payments are among the 14,122 "high-end posts" unveiled at the opening ceremony of the Global Talent Innovation and Entrepreneurship Summit in Xuhui District on Wednesday.

"Shanghai is longing for global professionals more than ever," Hu Wenrong, director of the organization department of Shanghai, told the opening ceremony, which was livestreamed to hundreds of representatives of overseas students across the world.

The event was hosted by the city's talent promotion and development committee and organized by the Xuhui District government.

An innovation and startup competition will be held in December 2021 – as part of the summit – at the West Bund Art Center in Xuhui to invite global professionals to compete with each other.

The job opportunities cover the sectors of finance, high-end manufacturing, education and health, biomedicine as well as aviation and aerospace. Applicants can check details on the website www.sotsw.cn as well as the overseas study service websites of Chinese embassies and consulates in the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Russia, Canada, Australia, Japan and Singapore.

Some 2,000 technical research tasks have also been released for global specialists to bid for and make technical breakthroughs. The projects, with a total investment of 3 billion yuan, were released by more than 600 state-owned, foreign and private companies. They cover the digital information, biomedicine, artificial intelligence, high-end manufacturing, new material and new energy sectors.

Denmark's Simon Lichtenberg, CEO and founder of Trayton Group, said Shanghai is more attractive than other cities around the world, especially during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic with its effective control and prevention measures.

"I can feel that the services provided by the city government to foreign professionals and companies have improved every year," said Lichtenberg, who has been living in the city for about 28 years.

American Justin O'Jack, University of Virginia's chief representative in China, said most Chinese students studying in the university now intend to return home due to more employment opportunities here, especially in Shanghai, for jobs in financial services and business consulting.

The situation has been changing compared with over a decade ago when many Chinese graduates opted for careers in the US.

To make it more convenient for overseas professionals and entrepreneurs, the Shanghai Customs has launched an integrated website (https://kcnewportal.eport.sh.cn/kcportal), which offers quick clearance for their imported and exported equipment.

Scientific innovation professionals can enjoy online and swift clearance for their scientific research and teaching facilities as well as personal belongings, the customs announced at the event.