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UAE jobs: Employers prefer skills, experience over qualifications in new hiring trend
HR professionals stressed that candidates who go the extra mile, and have a 'can-do mentality', are the ones who ultimately get hired
- PUBLISHED: Tue 4 Feb 2025, 2:19 PM UPDATED: Mon 10 Feb 2025, 12:29 PM
Skill-based hiring is gaining traction in the UAE, replacing traditional qualifications, with the right attitude and experience also playing a key role in the hiring process.
This is according to HR experts in the UAE who also concurred with a new report released by the Innovations Group, titled Workforce Trends and Market Insights, which highlights that employers prioritise the abilities and skills of candidates over traditional differentiators like degrees or career paths.
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'Can-do mentality'
This hiring process allows organisations to tap into a much wider and more diverse talent pool, while fostering innovation and work culture.
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Zoe Charlton, recruitment consultant at Genie Recruitment, said: “Our clients are looking for skills and work ethics over traditional qualifications. Around 70 per cent of our clients and hiring managers will hire based only on your skills now. From our perspective, not many clients look at educational background. Probably as little as 15 per cent do. Many are now more inclined to be hired based on experience and attitude.”
HR professionals stressed that candidates who go the extra mile, and have a 'can-do mentality', are the ones who ultimately get hired.
She added: “We have also seen entitled candidates who think they will graduate and walk into roles paying high salaries. This is simply not the case anymore and more clients than ever are saying no to recent graduates completely.”
Headhunters explained that when an employer reviews a resume, experience is important.
They also pointed out that for many professions, particularly entry-level or early career roles, the education section has traditionally been critical to landing an interview.
“However, in recent years, there has been a big shift where skills have been replacing traditional qualifications. The reason behind skilled based recruiting is not to overlook anyone in the market who could be capable, but may have been missed because they don't have a degree. Thankfully this is changing,” added Charlton.
She pointed out that in today's rapidly evolving job market, the idea that every new hire must “hit the ground running” is increasingly unrealistic. “Instead, we should be shifting our focus towards long-term growth and potential. After all, a large percentage of jobs can be taught,” she added.
Supporting this view, Aws Ismail, general manager, Marc Ellis, Dubai, said: “I believe skill-based hiring is becoming the norm in the UAE, and we see it happening every day when recruiting. Companies are realising that a degree doesn't always mean someone is the best fit for a role, and what is more important is actual real-world skills, experience, problem-solving ability, and soft skills.”
Improving skills
Headhunters noted that while working with their technology-related clients, they have observed that in certain fields, such as cybersecurity and AI, candidates are being chosen based on practical experience and training certifications rather than traditional degrees.
Ismail said, “These candidates have built up their skills through bootcamps, certifications, and hands-on projects. The same goes for marketing and digital marketing where employers care more about a strong portfolio than where or what someone studied."
Quoting a LinkedIn report, he explained that around 45 per cent of companies in the UAE are already moving towards skills-based hiring.
“Although skill-based hiring has been a long-standing practise in Europe, which also used to be heavily dependent on degree hiring, I believe this shift is a game changer for the UAE and the region. It gives people from different backgrounds a fair shot, widens the talent pool, and ultimately helps businesses find the right people based on what they can do and not just what's on paper, which I like to call 'plug and play hiring'. Companies that embrace this are going to build stronger, more adaptable teams that are high performing,” added Ismail.
Companies must adapt to changing market trends
Professionals underlined that companies must adapt to changing market trends and expectations of a younger workforce to recruit and retain the right talent and leverage their expertise and overcome recruitment challenges effectively.
Nikhil Nanda, director at Innovations Group, said, “The UAE is a dynamic hub offering a pool of skilled workforce. It is important for specialised recruitment agencies to develop strategic approaches to address hiring challenges and skill mismatches.”
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