Jobs in UAE: Sectors that will lead recruitment growth in 2011

There is good news for employees looking for a change next year as certain sectors are expected to offer good job opportunities in the country. In this period of challenges, all’s not gloom and according to recruitment experts in the country, we should closely watch some sectors that are expected to see growth and will offer better job prospects.

The traditional defensive sectors continue to outshine others and will offer jobs in the market. “In 2011, sectors that are likely to be more robust are pharma, healthcare, FMCG, and technology (IT & telecom). All these sectors are still in [the] growth [mode] in the Gulf region, and demand for talent will be increasing as multinationals seek to increase their market share in the Gulf region,” Michael Al-Nassir, Partner in charge of Middle East, Africa & India, Pedersen & Partners told Emirates 24|7, while talking about jobs at the top level.

Even the most battered sectors like financial services is expected to see an upswing and so may be in a hiring mode next year.

“To some extent, we will see increased demand [from] financial services, as many financial institutions have this year cut further or at best not hired significantly. They will also seek growth in 2011 [and] will [look] to reverse the trend and build up their businesses. This is likely to affect investment banking, private equity and insurance more than retail banking,” added Al-Nassir.

Agrees Konstantina Sakellariou, Partner, Marketing & Operations Director at Stanton Chase. “Regarding the sectors that present higher movement in terms of hires, we would highlight the financial services sector (not so much in retail banking, but in private banking and investment banking), the industrial sector, technology and consumer and retail.”

Cliff Single, Commercial Manager at BAC Middle East said that most sectors are in the recovery mode. “We have been seeing a general recovery in most sectors over the last several months. For example, in the last week, we have sourced candidates for industries as diverse as food manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, financial services and publishing. The main exceptions are the construction and real estate sectors, where confidence remains more fragile; however, we are still recruiting for construction positions in Qatar and Saudi Arabia, for example,” he told this website.

Even the last quarter of this year is expected to see more jobs in the market before a better performance next year.

“The Middle East job market has seen a relatively slow but steady improvement in 2010 - hiring has broadly picked up across all industries and hopes are high for the upcoming quarter - according to [our] Mena job index survey - with 54 per cent of Middle East employers stating they are planning to recruit,” said Mona R. Karaoui, Editor at Bayt.com.

“Industries perceived to be attracting and maintaining top talent in the region today (as per the same study) are: banking and finance (36 per cent of votes), telecommunications (35 per cent) and construction (31 per cent).

“Despite the fact that sectors [like] banking & finance and construction saw the steepest inflationary trends in the early to mid-part of the decade, they continue to be among the highest paying industries today. These sectors have historically built a solid ‘brand’' in the Middle East, as industries that are capable of attracting and retaining top talent, from both local and overseas [market]. We have seen that even while companies in these sectors downsized in recent years, much world-class top pedigree talent was retained and replacement talent for strategically key positions was hired with very top requirements and expectations,” she further added.

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