Companies in the Mena region are increasingly hiring independent consultants and moving to more agile and flexible workforce models to reduce costs amid the global boom in remote working, according to a report.
Organisations in the region are switching to a distributed and virtual workforce by integrating freelancers into their teams to make use of skilled talent globally, increase cost savings and reduce their office footprint, the report by talent-on-demand platform Outsized found.
“Prior to the onset of the pandemic, enterprises were struggling to find the right talent to meet their needs and skilled talent found it difficult to find the right opportunities with blue-chip clients due to a very fragmented market,” said Vikram Malhotra, managing director for the Mena region at Outsized.
“The Mena region is [now] witnessing the dual benefit of local talent getting access to global opportunities and regional organisations getting access to global talent. Overall, the region will benefit greatly from the growth of the global on-demand talent economy.”
Since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, employees are leaving their jobs at much higher rates than normal, in what has been called “The Great Resignation”, as they seek a better work-life balance and more flexibility with their jobs.
In March, a survey by financial services company Prudential found that 42 per cent of remote workers planned to look for a new job if their company did not continue to offer options to work from home in the long term.
The UAE is emerging as a hotspot for remote cross-border hiring, with companies in Canada, the US, the UK and Israel tapping into a “pool of high-quality jobseekers” looking for full-time remote positions, according to a recent report by payroll and remote onboarding company Deel.
The Middle East is one of the fastest-growing regions in terms of growth in the freelance economy, according to the Outsized report.
“There is a growing demand for specialist skills in the area of digital products and services in the region,” Outsized said.
“The top desired skill sets in the Mena region for 2022 are digital transformation, payments, data governance and analytics, agile methodologies, cards, project and programme management.”
The top sectors utilising freelance talent in the Mena region include financial services, management consulting and strategy consulting companies, the report said.
The education and training sectors are expected to be the next big growth opportunity for skilled freelancers, it said.
The increased acceptance of remote working, combined with growing digital adoption during the Covid-19 pandemic, led to a steep pick-up in registrations on Outsized's platform from local and international technology and data specialists, it said.
E-commerce and buy now, pay later services have also been in demand with freelancers, leading to increased interest from payments and card experts.
Qosty Byogaani
Starring: Hani Razmzi, Maya Nasir and Hassan Hosny
Four stars
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
Profile of RentSher
Started: October 2015 in India, November 2016 in UAE
Founders: Harsh Dhand; Vaibhav and Purvashi Doshi
Based: Bangalore, India and Dubai, UAE
Sector: Online rental marketplace
Size: 40 employees
Investment: $2 million
North Pole stats
Distance covered: 160km
Temperature: -40°C
Weight of equipment: 45kg
Altitude (metres above sea level): 0
Terrain: Ice rock
South Pole stats
Distance covered: 130km
Temperature: -50°C
Weight of equipment: 50kg
Altitude (metres above sea level): 3,300
Terrain: Flat ice
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl, 48V hybrid
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 325bhp
Torque: 450Nm
Price: Dh289,000
Company profile
Company name: Dharma
Date started: 2018
Founders: Charaf El Mansouri, Nisma Benani, Leah Howe
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: TravelTech
Funding stage: Pre-series A
Investors: Convivialite Ventures, BY Partners, Shorooq Partners, L& Ventures, Flat6Labs
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Paatal Lok season two
Directors: Avinash Arun, Prosit Roy
Stars: Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Lc Sekhose, Merenla Imsong
Rating: 4.5/5
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
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Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
Personalities on the Plate: The Lives and Minds of Animals We Eat
Barbara J King, University of Chicago Press
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Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
How it works
A $10 hand-powered LED light and battery bank
Device is operated by hand cranking it at any time during the day or night
The charge is stored inside a battery
The ratio is that for every minute you crank, it provides 10 minutes light on the brightest mode
A full hand wound charge is of 16.5minutes
This gives 1.1 hours of light on high mode or 2.5 hours of light on low mode
When more light is needed, it can be recharged by winding again
The larger version costs between $18-20 and generates more than 15 hours of light with a 45-minute charge
No limit on how many times you can charge
