From health care to hospitality, financial services to furniture design, understanding technology and artificial intelligence will be essential to school leavers, whatever their plan for embarking on the working world, human resources experts say.
Speaking to The National about current and future job trends, Jennifer Campori, managing director of recruitment company Charterhouse, said the three sectors to watch are data science, analytics and AI.
Ms Campori stressed, however, that as AI and tech innovation are evolving so quickly, it is important to look for courses and institutions that provide the right support and environment to foster continuous learning – and that may not necessarily translate into starting with a degree.
“I spoke to a client today who has just placed a candidate in a very senior role within technology and they're very focused on cryptocurrency, and they are a very well-known brand, and the individual doesn't have a degree,” said Ms Campori. A willingness to learn can be more important than qualifications, she added.
Ms Campori, who comes from the US but has been in the UAE for more than 21 years, said pupils and students are also increasingly looking for security beyond academic rankings. She said an open and welcoming community is important, as well as safety, with many students and parents closely monitoring global tension and geopolitical issues.
“I wouldn't have said it would have been an issue before but I think [it is] now, particularly in the US,” Ms Campori said. “I might feel uncomfortable [studying in the US] as a non-US citizen.”
Driving business
Recent findings from the World Economic Forum's The Future of Jobs Report published in January showed that 60 per cent of employers expect 'broadening digital access' – for example, through upskilling and reskilling staff at work to improve digital competencies – to transform their business more than any other trend.
When asked which technology trends would be driving business transformation over the next five years, 86 per cent said AI and information processing technology.
Recent findings released by QS World University Rankings showed the UAE had climbed to sixth place in an international league table of most improved countries for quality of university subjects offered, including Ajman University's data science and artificial intelligence course which entered the top 100 for the first time.
Daniel Kahn, senior insights specialist at QS, told The National, that this reflects the country’s commitment to digital transformation. “If universities and businesses collaborate more closely to ensure skills development aligns with industry needs, the UAE’s investment in digital transformation will be well-positioned to deliver long-term economic impact,” he said.
Choose wisely
Sarah Brooks, managing director of HR consultancy Fikrah HR, has been in the human resources industry for more than two decades. She told The National the best advice she could offer pupils planning their career beyond choosing the right academic institution is to get experience.
“Start working as soon as possible, undertake an internship, even an unpaid one in a position that's not related to your interests, as it all helps you learn about work, ethics, develops interpersonal skills, leadership, time management and many other skills,” said Ms Brooks.
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
What is the definition of an SME?
SMEs in the UAE are defined by the number of employees, annual turnover and sector. For example, a “small company” in the services industry has six to 50 employees with a turnover of more than Dh2 million up to Dh20m, while in the manufacturing industry the requirements are 10 to 100 employees with a turnover of more than Dh3m up to Dh50m, according to Dubai SME, an agency of the Department of Economic Development.
A “medium-sized company” can either have staff of 51 to 200 employees or 101 to 250 employees, and a turnover less than or equal to Dh200m or Dh250m, again depending on whether the business is in the trading, manufacturing or services sectors.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Company profile
Company name: Nestrom
Started: 2017
Co-founders: Yousef Wadi, Kanaan Manasrah and Shadi Shalabi
Based: Jordan
Sector: Technology
Initial investment: Close to $100,000
Investors: Propeller, 500 Startups, Wamda Capital, Agrimatico, Techstars and some angel investors
