Top candidates looking to move jobs are commanding double digit salary increases, according to the Michael Page Salary & Skills Guide 2020.
Pierre-Emmanuel Dupil, senior managing director, PageGroup, Middle East & Africa, said: “High demand in the Saudi market and competition between major projects to attract talent obviously triggers that trend.”
The report revealed the top reasons people are living and working in the Middle East are career prospects, salary and standard of living; while the top three aspects of their job people are most satisfied with are the current industry/sector, level of responsibility and their manager.
It found that 42 percent of job seekers would consider leaving a company lacking professional growth opportunities, but overall, 80 percent of candidates are positive about the future job market situation.
Dupil said: “Based on a relatively stable oil price, the Middle East market has been active overall. Obviously, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has been the steering economic engine, while the UAE picked up slightly. While the hiring activity has been supported by consistent public investments, mainly in Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia, we also noted positive signs from the private sector in both markets.”
Growing demand
Dupil revealed that there was growing demand for national candidates in both the UAE and Saudi Arabia in the public and private sectors, including multinationals.
According to the report, there was a slowdown in the financial services sector as a result of “major consolidations”.
However, it was the opposite for retail, FMCG and luxury, which showed signed of pick-up after three years of slow activity. “Probably in preparation for Expo 2020,” Dupil said.
Classic support functions, such as finance, procurement and supply chain were seen as stable in terms of recruitment activity but more oriented towards junior and mid-manager profiles. Demand for IT talent, especially data and digital experts, “increased significantly”, supporting companies in their quest for new revenue streams.
“On another note, due to regional specificities and challenges, a demand for legal and consultancy experts was observed,” said Dupil.
While last year saw continued recruitment in the property and construction sectors, given the vast number of projects announced across the region, particularly those satisfying the Saudi Vision 2030.
Source:https://www.arabianbusiness.com/jobs/438069-revealed-which-industries-in-the-middle-east-are-recruiting