UAE business leader urges graduates to be wary of job fads and 'follow their hearts'

Graduates in the UAE have been told to manage their salary expectations and "follow their hearts" rather than chase the latest career trends to make their way in an ever-changing job market.

Leading businessman Hisham Al Gurg, chief executive at the Private Office of Sheikh Saeed bin Ahmed, a major investment group, said the rise of Covid-19 would change the face of the workplace in the future.

But he called on job seeker not to pursue quick-fix options, which may not stand the test of time, and instead build their careers carefully by trying to find work in a sector they are passionate about and have knowledge of.

“Don’t just go for jobs that are at the top right now. Follow your passion, your interests, and your heart," said Mr Al Gurg, who oversees investment opportunities in diverse sectors such as technology, healthcare, tourism and hospitality for the Seed Group.

"The job market could change after six months.

“After Covid-19, we will see a complete shift in jobs and many jobs will be replaced by machines. This will create new kinds of work.

“Don’t think that you can stick to how you used to do your job.”

Mr Al Gurg advised students they might have to temper financial expectations as the global job market slowly recovered from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

"Expectations are very high and these need to come down if you are a fresh graduate."

He said students were often not used to long hours of hard work required in private sector jobs, while most small businesses could not afford to spend a lot of time training graduates.

Sultan Bin Kharsham Al Ali, managing director at Ordino SBS, an accounting company in the UAE, also cautioned students against going for trending jobs unless they were passionate about these.

“Trends keep changing,” said Mr Al Ali.

“A few years ago, we saw that compliance in banking had a huge demand and everybody started getting certificates in this field.

“Now, half of these people are unemployed."

While he agreed it was important to the market’s needs, he urged students to pursue careers they cared about.

“A lot of degrees will become redundant and jobs that will be in demand will be very different” said Vandana Mahajan, founder of Futures Abroad, an education consultancy in the Emirates.

In the face of uncertainty, she said students would need to be resilient and think constructively.

In 2020, top hard skills companies were looking for included Blockchain, cloud computing, analytical reasoning, artificial intelligence and video production, according to the The Covid-19 Response Report published by the Oxford Business Group, a global business intelligence and advisory firm, and the University of Manchester Middle East Centre in Dubai.