Kristen Lim

Founder & MD @rockrosesearch
Building IIYS - a wellness app to help you take control of your health

[Kristen Lim @_kristenlim]

Love Claude cowork. I can go to the gym, clock my steps, while instructing my head of engineering agent to build my app. This is the very first glimpse of how the future of work looks like. Getting work done on the go, no longer clamped to a seat that makes us more sedentary.

[Rockrose Executive Search @rockrosesearch]

Knowing what the market pays is the first step to better negotiation.

If you are working in GTM functions, as an Account Executive, Account Management/Customer Success, or Solutions Engineering, this report gives you the benchmark for Singapore.

Check it out here:
https://t.co/hXN9GXvqWy

[Rockrose Executive Search @rockrosesearch]

2026 APAC GTM Salary Report — Free Download!

Over the past quarter, we interviewed 100+ Sales/Account Executives, Customer Success, and Solutions Consulting professionals across Singapore and Hong Kong, and one pattern kept surfacing: high-performing revenue drivers are commanding salaries well above market average.

The gap between top quartile and median OTE is wider than most hiring managers expect.

If you're benchmarking comp for your GTM hires or trying to close a candidate fielding competing offers, check out our latest report.

https://t.co/qepTY6nouC

[Rockrose Executive Search @rockrosesearch]

Our Go-To-Market Salary Report 2026 is live!

Over the past quarter, we interviewed 100+ Sales/Account Executives, Customer Success, and Solutions Consulting professionals across Singapore and Hong Kong, and one pattern kept surfacing: high-performing revenue drivers are commanding salaries well above market average.

The gap between top quartile and median OTE is wider than most hiring managers expect.

If you're benchmarking comp for your GTM hires or trying to close a candidate fielding competing offers, check out our latest report.

https://t.co/9OZq27Tuak

[Kristen Lim @_kristenlim]

Social media came, hacked our attention and took most of it with devastating effects. Now AI is coming to hack our attachments which is going to have even more devastating effects.

Quoted by Jonathan Haidt on DOAC podcast.

[Rockrose Executive Search @rockrosesearch]

Happy Lunar New Year! 🍊 May the Fire Horse bring you good health, blessings, and strong career progress.

Thank you to all our clients and candidates for the trust and support. Looking forward to making this year even more impactful together.

马年大吉，事业腾飞! 🧧

[Rockrose Executive Search @rockrosesearch]

Beyond finding the best-fit candidates, we also surface profiles that differ from the usual mould our clients look for. This gives them more options and fresh perspectives when hiring, and sometimes the non-obvious choice turns out to be the very best hire they make.

Have a difficult role to fill? Drop us a line at [email protected]

[Rockrose Executive Search @rockrosesearch]

New year, new beginnings.

From all of us at Rockrose, we wish you a 2026 filled with growth, meaningful progress, and well-earned success. ✨

[Rockrose Executive Search @rockrosesearch]

A good negotiation starts with knowing your market value. Employers know it when they are underpaying you, they just don’t fix it until you bring it up to them. Your salary wage is an exchange for your time and expertise, it is a business transaction. Take out the emotions and you will negotiate better for what you deserve. Check out our latest article on this topic.

https://t.co/P8FX3EHExD

[Rockrose Executive Search @rockrosesearch]

As the year comes to a close, we’re grateful for the relationships we’ve built along the way. Wishing you and your loved ones a warm and meaningful Christmas.

[Rockrose Executive Search @rockrosesearch]

Grateful for the trust our clients and candidates place in us. Testimonials like this reminds us why we do what we do and pushes us to keep raising the bar.

Have a difficult role to fill? Reach out to @_kristenlim, or drop us a line at [email protected].

[Rockrose Executive Search @rockrosesearch]

2026 Job Opportunities! We are working with our long-term clients to fill critical roles to fuel their growth in 2026. All these job opportunities are newly created.

🍍 Strategic Sales Director, APAC (Team Lead) - SG or HK
•⁠ ⁠Leading a team of 6 Account Executives covering enterprise, mid-market, and growth accounts.
•⁠ ⁠You must have experience closing complex, high-value enterprise software deals (~$1M), selling into financial institutions, PSPs, capital markets, or asset management firms. 
•⁠ ⁠⁠Experience owning sales forecasting, pipeline reviews, and accurate revenue reporting is required.
•⁠ ⁠Fluency in Mandarin is preferred. Japanese or Korean is a plus.

🍍 Strategic Sales Director, APAC (Individual Contributor) - SG or HK
•⁠ ⁠We are looking for an ambitious Sales Director who enjoys winning new logos. 
•⁠ ⁠⁠You must have experience closing complex enterprise software deals and bring a network across financial institutions, capital markets, or fintech.

🍍 Customer Success Manager, APAC - SG or HK
•⁠ ⁠Your main role is to drive net retention and upsell across enterprise accounts in APAC.
•⁠ ⁠We are looking for experience in customer success, managing client relationships, renewals, cross-sell, and upsell. 
•⁠ ⁠⁠You should have experience in SaaS, ideally within fintech, payments, regtech, or blockchain.
•⁠ ⁠Bilingual or multilingual candidates (English plus Mandarin, Japanese, or Korean) are preferred.

🍍 Partner, Corporate Venture Capital - SG
•⁠ ⁠This role manages sub-USD 50m deals, including licensing, PSPs, JVs, and partial or full equity acquisitions, as well as post-deal integration, and includes board directorship responsibilities.
•⁠ ⁠Must have VC experience, and ideally CVC experience
•⁠ ⁠Bilingual in Mandarin and English to deal with stakeholders

🍍 Principal/Senior Associate, Venture Capital - NY or SG
•⁠ ⁠4-8 years of experience, with existing relationships, strong market coverage, and the ability to source deals independently.
•⁠ ⁠Must have experience in investing from pre-seed to Series B, with a VC background and domain expertise in at least one segment across fintech, payments, crypto, or Web3.

🍍 Chief of Staff with PA responsibilities - SG
•⁠ ⁠This role will support a fast-paced founder’s family office and personal matters.
•⁠ ⁠We are looking for a smart, technology-savvy individual with the potential to grow with the founder, represent the founder in external meetings, and who does not mind hands-on groundwork.

JDs: https://t.co/TSVfz8lvr7

♻️ to share with your network.

[Rockrose Executive Search @rockrosesearch]

2026 job opportunities await!

We are still very busy this season supporting our long term clients to look for gems to join their rocket ship!

If you are interested working in a dynamic and fast pace environment, check out our latest roles on https://t.co/FKfZr01xK7

[Rockrose Executive Search @rockrosesearch]

Is AI eating jobs? Will wage gap widen?

What about decision making and high value work - will they still concentrate in global hubs like Singapore or New York?

Dive into this post and let us know your thoughts.

https://t.co/1Ex0grbS7Y

[Sam Altman @sama]

Excited to partner with AMD to use their chips to serve our users!

This is all incremental to our work with NVIDIA (and we plan to increase our NVIDIA purchasing over time).

The world needs much more compute...

[Rockrose Executive Search @rockrosesearch]

Rockrose Weekly #15

Top 3 Tech News
1) Vantage Data Centers Secures $1.6B Investment in APAC Platform from GIC and ADIA
2) Klarna valued at nearly $20 billion as shares jump in NYSE debut
3) Crypto exchange Gemini prices IPO above range to raise $425 million

Plus:
→ With a Federal Reserve rate cut widely expected this week, but will companies expand?
→ Qin En Looi has launched a new fund, Onigiri Capital, focusing on stablecoins, payments, tokenized assets, DeFi, and financial infrastructure.
→ Kailash Madan joins Triple-A as the Chief Commercial Officer.
→ Jan Lim joins Visa as the Head of Global Tech Partnerships.
→ How Larry Ellison (Briefly) Became the World’s Richest Person

https://t.co/d5kaf5OBKN

[Rockrose Executive Search @rockrosesearch]

2025 Q3 Job Market Outlook:

The hiring landscape right now is noticeably softer compared to last year.

Our view of what’s causing this comes down to a few factors:

•⁠ ⁠Global economic uncertainty
•⁠ ⁠Ongoing geopolitical conflicts
•⁠ ⁠The impact of AI on businesses

AI adoption remains high on the agenda for most companies. Non-AI native firms are figuring out how to embed GenAI into business workflows to boost productivity and reduce costs. Traditional companies may take longer to apply GenAI meaningfully, but agile start-ups are already testing and integrating it into their operations.

Back to the hiring pulse of the market.

Companies are still figuring out who and when to hire to grow. When people leave, non-critical roles often aren’t being replaced. Instead, companies are asking: can we use AI to fill that gap?

Many are also taking a wait and see approach given today’s uncertain geopolitical and challenging economic climate. Without clarity, it’s tough to forecast business growth, which leads to paused hiring plans.

We believe these combined factors are making companies hesitate to invest and grow their teams for now, until they adjust to this new world order. Layoffs are still happening too, as firms look to cut costs and adapt to market changes.

And here’s Rockrose Weekly #8: https://t.co/G2kpceYY7Q

[Rockrose Executive Search @rockrosesearch]

The internet era rewarded specialists, but this is starting to shift in the GenAI era.

Here’s how we see work evolving:

1) AI levels the playing field
Knowledge is easier to get. But context, judgement, and taste still set people apart. Experts aren’t going away, they just need to work differently.

2) Generalists get more leverage
People who can learn fast, adapt, and use AI tools well are becoming way more valuable, especially in fast paced environments.

3) Specialists are still essential
Deep expertise still matters when accuracy, scale, or risk is involved, such as infra, legal, R&D, that kind of thing.

4) T-shaped is the future
Breadth helps you adapt. Depth gives you credibility. The mix is what makes someone effective in the decades to come.

→ So here's the question for hiring teams: Are you still evaluating people by whether they can do the job today? Or are you thinking about how they'll evolve with the role tomorrow?

→ And for the rest of us: Are we asking “how do I stay relevant?” or just hoping not to get replaced?

The future won't stop shifting, and how can we evolve in time for the next trend?

Follow us on Substack if you want more thoughts like this. https://t.co/7F817OAPG1

[Rockrose Executive Search @rockrosesearch]

We hired a GM within 2 weeks for a PE-backed company, and here's how we did it!

This is one of our best case studies with a retained search client who moves with us at lightning speed and precision. Our client knows what they’re looking for, and we support them with the best shortlist of candidates and a smooth hiring process.

A good recruiter makes the process smooth and easy for the client. We remove candidates with poor attitude, mismatched values, or red flags the client should never waste time on. Only the best-fit candidates make it through.

Full story→ https://t.co/Vxqjgkw4t5