The top 15 companies to work for in the UAE, according to LinkedIn

Dubai-based luxury retailer Chalhoub Group is the best company to work for in the UAE this year, according to LinkedIn.

Abu Dhabi’s strategic investment arm Mubadala Investment Company, healthcare provider Mediclinic, Europe’s largest bank HSBC and hospitals operator Aster DM Healthcare complete the top five preferred employers, according to the 2022 LinkedIn Top Companies List.

Other sought-after employers in the UAE include national health insurer Daman, Al Tayer Group, cosmetics company L’Oreal, Dubai lender Mashreq Bank and life insurer MetLife, according to the professional network.

Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank, Gulf Marketing Group (parent of Sun & Sand Sports), business conglomerate and mall operator Majid Al Futtaim, e-commerce company Amazon and energy services company Schneider Electric round out the top 15 list.

“This list is meant to guide professionals at every stage — whether that means a career pivot, jumping back into the workforce after a hiatus or investing in new skills,” Lynn Chouman, senior news editor at LinkedIn, said on Wednesday.

"Seeing new rankers make up 80 per cent of the list for 2022 is an indication of how significant a single year can be in reinvigorating business cultures as the world of work continues to evolve."

The seven criteria LinkedIn used to identify the best companies in the UAE were the ability to advance, skills growth, company stability, external opportunity, company affinity, gender diversity and spread of educational backgrounds. The companies were analysed from January to December last year.

The UAE jobs market has recovered strongly from the pandemic-induced slowdown, helped by the government’s fiscal and monetary measures.

About 76 per cent of employers in the Arab world's second-largest economy plan to expand their workforce in 2022, a February survey by jobs portal Bayt.com and market research company YouGov found.

About two thirds of professionals in the UAE will actively look for new jobs in the first half of this year as business confidence and hiring activity return to pre-pandemic levels, recruitment company Robert Walters said.

To be eligible for the UAE Top Companies list, a company must have at least 500 employees as of December 31, 2021, and the attrition rate can be no higher than 10 per cent, according to LinkedIn.

The most sought-after skills at the UAE’s best employer Chalhoub Group are luxury goods, retail sales and visual merchandising, while the job roles in demand are those of sales executive, fashion consultant and make-up artist, LinkedIn said.

At Mubadala Investment Company, in-demand roles include investment specialists, senior legal counsel and investment associates, the list revealed.

At Mediclinic and Aster DM Healthcare, the most in-demand roles are registered nurses, pharmacists, hospital administrators and medical doctors.

The Covid-19 pandemic opened up a range of employment prospects for certain segments of the healthcare industry. Healthcare jobs now most sought after in the UAE include nurses, laboratory technicians and general practitioners, according to recruitment agency Hays.

The most sought-after roles at lenders HSBC and Mashreq Bank are those of premier client manger, service officer, relationship manager, compliance officer and personal banker, LinkedIn found.

Daman is prioritising jobs for customer service representatives, business development managers and financial officers, while insurance advisers, sales managers and financial advisers are sought after at MetLife, according to the LinkedIn list.

LinkedIn's list of the best 15 companies to work for in the UAE

1. Chalhoub Group
2. Mubadala Investment Company
3. Mediclinic
4. HSBC
5. Aster DM Healthcare
6. Daman
7. Al Tayer Group
8. L’Oreal
9. Mashreq Bank
10. MetLife
11. ADIB
12. GMG
13. Majid Al Futtaim
14. Amazon
15. Schneider Electric