Hunt for talent to get more difficult, experts say

KPMG's report found that while the UAE's schools and universities are producing increasing amounts of high potential human capital, there is still a heavy reliance on expatriate labor to satisfy the local job market.

The hunt for talent in the UAE and the GCC is likely to get more, not less, difficult as time goes on, experts at KPMG revealed.
Speaking at the launch of KPMG's 2016 CEO Outlook report, Vikas Papriwal, head of markets at KPMG Lower Gulf, said: "The world is not getting any less competitive for our CEOs. When I speak to CEOs, they tell me that there is an ongoing big war for talent, and not just any talent, but the right type of talent."
KPMG's report found that while the UAE's schools and universities are producing increasing amounts of high potential human capital, there is still a heavy reliance on expatriate labor to satisfy the local job market. Also, there is no doubt that there is still a considerable need to hire new talent, with just under two-thirds of CEOs expecting to increase headcount over the next twelve months, and almost 90 per cent of CEOs expecting headcount to increase over the next three years. In addition, 41 per cent of UAE CEOs ranked talent as a top three risk; and four per cent identified talent development & management as their top five strategic priorities.
According to Papriwal, CEOs in the UAE predicted a gap for specialist skills in the research & development and strategy sectors. With strategic skills, there were concerns about hiring talent that specialised in data and analytics, cyber security, digital, and innovation. The question regarding where talent was going to come from tended to vary, often according to the sector the CEO represented. In sectors with a strong push for Emiritisation and few cultural barriers, there is increasing competition for locals, both seasoned professionals and fresh graduates.
In other sectors, where reliance on expatriate labor is more pronounced, there was some concern expressed regarding the source of labor - with both regulatory pressures and competition for talent, not least from home countries that have seen steady economic growth - and the challenges of recruiting and retaining skilled and trained expatriates.
There was broad agreement among UAE CEOs on the most important ways of attracting and then retaining staff. Around three quarters of the CEOS agreed on three suggested answers which included interesting career paths, financial incentives, and an entrepreneurial environment.
While financial incentives are always going to attract and motivate an overwhelmingly expatriate workforce, CEOs may find that developing HR competencies that can offer interesting career paths and an entrepreneurial environment, both help negate the hunt for talent - and reduce the cost of financial incentives.
- rohma@khaleejtimes.com