UAE Talent Management Strategy with iTalent(4 min read)

Talent management is referred to as strategy for recruiting, retaining, and mentoring fantastic company employees while remaining aligned with your business and commercial goals. It is all about managing the internal business experience of employees from end to end, the same way we try to manage the customer experience. This is often a topic that we have frequent discussions with our UAE and Middle East business clients on and so we have decided to make a quick read article to cover some of the finer points of Talent Management in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, the wider UAE and Middle East.

Talent Management fundamentals

It is quite common for UAE based companies to not think of having a talent management strategy in formalized and in place. If you do not yet have one do not worry, however you will probably find that your hiring methods are mainly reactive or being done on an as-needed basis which is not ideal.

At iTalent we understand why you might have developed a reactive approach to hiring and Human Resource duties. You are probably stressed enough about filling key, or senior positions and wondering where you would find the time to build a whole process around your hiring.

But these days, when it is taking an all-time high of 43 days to fill positions, you are going to have less stress and a lot more success if you plan ahead with a talent management program.

You must ask yourself the question can you wait over a month to bring on your next all-star employee? If not, it is a good time to come up with a hiring strategy that gives you steady access to great talent in the Middle East. It may cost you a bit of extra work in the short term, but long term, when you always know where your next hire is coming from, and this is something we often help most of our clients with.

How Does Talent Management Fit into Your Business Strategy?

In talent management, everyone from the Chief Operating Officer to a frontline employee is charged with looking out for the next great hire, making sure new leaders are being developed, and ensuring the company’s culture inspires and attracts great people. In a company that manages talent, everyone is responsible for creating a great employee experience.

It is especially important though, for HR and CEOs to connect on strategy. If HR understands the long-term business strategy, they can start preparing now for the hires the company will need in the future.

We often find that CEOs are coming around to the idea that talent management is important. And we would not be surprised if we see those numbers swing even more in favor of talent management, given the current state of recruiting.

How Is Talent Management Strategy Evolving?

Right now, there are some big trends shaping the talent management process in the UAE. Employee retention is at a low point, with employees holding onto jobs for an average of just 4.6 years, and hiring, as we mentioned earlier, is taking longer than ever. This shows in HR attitudes towards hiring.

As a result, talent management and recruitment strategies are changing in the Middle East. There is more emphasis on improving both the speed and quality of hiring, getting new employees up to speed faster, and managing the employer brand to be more attractive.

Employee engagement is another big factor in talent management now. In the UAE engagement is currently at about 30 percent and seems to decrease with each generation. Low engagement means low retention, productivity, and profitability, along with higher accident rates.

While talent management in the UAE is evolving, and both CEOs and HR seem aware of the value of talent management and the difficult UAE hiring market we are in, it is interesting to note that 35 percent of UAE companies are still stuck in “reactive” mode – just hiring as needed.

Just 13 percent are actively using a talent management approach that iTalent recommend which is strategically aligned with the business and prepared for future needs.

So clearly, it is not enough to understand what talent management is – companies and organizations need to put it in practice to find, retain and develop talent.

Discover more about iTalent and our recruitment offerings for the UAE, Saudi Arabia and broader Middle Eastern markets.

italent was founded in 2012 in the United Arab Emirates born in a challenging market, one key reason for our success is we have unparalleled commitment and determination to deliver the highest levels of recruitment and executive search.

These fundamentals allowed us to build a reputation and gain the trust and respect of some of the biggest clients and most Senior candidates in the Region. Our team is all seasoned professionals, and with over 100 years of recruitment experience in our office, we are a key part of our clients’ Talent Acquisition Strategies.

You can contact us by using our contact form or call us on +971 (0)4 421 3490 or email us at info@italent-me.com and we will be happy to help.

Check out our useful links

Sectors we recruit for

Construction and Engineering

https://www.italent-me.com/construction-engineering.html

Digital and Technology

https://www.italent-me.com/digital-technology.html

Power and Energy

https://www.italent-me.com/power-energy.html