Engaging young Emirati talent in private sector highlighted

Business Bureau, Gulf Today

The Dubai Chamber Sustainability Network Taskforce on Emiratisation recently organised a webinar titled Engaging, Developing and Retaining Emirati Graduate Trainees in the Private Sector, which examined different strategies, tools, processes and best practices for recruiting and retaining Emirati talent in the private sector.

During the webinar, representatives from member companies on the task force shared their experiences in this area and identified specific learning and development-oriented opportunities they designed around the needs of Emirati graduate trainees entering the workforce.

Mona Fekri, Chief Human Capital Officer, Ducab stressed the importance of adopting and implementing a comprehensive programme in place comprising internships, training, and succession planning, and noted that such platforms help companies identify top talent, while helping other trainees develop their skills and build experience.

She advised businesses to be fully transparent when recruiting for new roles, set clear expectations and familiarise new joiners with the organisational culture.

Nisha Verma, Chief Human Capital Officer at Apparel Group spoke about how Emiratisation programmes should be incorporates into existing diversity and inclusion efforts within the company, adding that such programmes should be aligned with organisations’ larger business goals and national strategies.

Verma noted that it’s equally important to identify the different interest areas of young Emirati talent, such as design, marketing, and digital campaigns in order to successfully attract and engage new talent.

Dr Belaid Rettab, Senior Director, Economic Research and Sustainable Business Development Sector, Dubai Chamber, noted that the webinar falls in line with the Chamber’s strategic efforts to support the UAE’s Emiratisation drive and provide Emirati talent with opportunities to contribute to the national economy.

He encouraged businesses to develop new strategies and programmes to attract new Emirati graduates, adding that companies have a responsibility to prepare local talent by helping them build important skills required for a changing workforce.

Established by the Chamber’s Centre for Responsible Business (CRB), the Dubai Chamber Sustainability Network serves as the focal point for the business community to share and exchange best practices in implementing CSR and sharing sustainable best practices.

The Centre’s objective is to engage the Dubai business community in assuming greater responsibility for the emirate’s social and environmental needs. The Centre encourages Dubai Chamber members to implement responsible business practices that contribute to enhancing the performance of their organizations and their competitive capabilities.

Dubai’s business environment is expected to see positive momentum in the third quarter of 2021 as confidence among companies and investors improves ahead of Expo 2020 Dubai, a newly released survey from Dubai Chamber has predicted.

The Business Leaders’ Outlook for Q3-2021 found that 66% of respondents said they expect to see better business conditions during the quarter, compared to 51% who said the same in the previous quarter. At the same time, 66% of business leaders surveyed were more optimistic about the business environment, compared to 48% in the second quarter.

Business leaders’ expectations for factors affecting business conditions in Q3-2021 have improved significantly across the board compared to Q2-2021; with the most notable improvements seen in the “financial transactions” category.

Around 57% of business leaders said they expect a recovery in oil prices to positively affect the business environment in the third quarter, while 62% of business leaders said global restrictions on trade and travel would be a risk impacting business conditions in the emirate.

The results marked the highest readings of the survey since the last quarter of 2014. The increase in confidence is due to several important factors such as pro-active approach of government, growing domestic demand, economic stimulus initiatives and progress of vaccination drive among key factors behind positive attitudes among business leaders.