Dubai, UAE–The gloves are off in what is turning out to be a great battle between the UAE and Saudi Arabia for recruitment of business executives from around the world.
The two biggest economies of the region are leaving no stone unturned to hire the best and most talented professionals in order to run the ever-expanding companies.
With the economies of both the countries projected to grow at a rapid pace in the years to come, their headhunting for talent has seen them both reach out beyond the borders of the MENA region.
According to industry insiders, corporate groups are enticing chief executives from corporations in the West with an array of choices, including large joining bonuses and buying out extended notice periods.
The insiders disclosed that Western CEOs are highly sought after by regional businesses, who hope to have them lead their organizations away from more conventional methods and toward adopting the most influential corporate governance models available worldwide.
But much before the feverish hiring spree began, both the countries brought in a new set of reforms to lure away young professionals. While the UAE has ushered in a new set of visa and employment rules, Saudi Arabia is investing in tourism, hospitality, and real estate development to position itself as a magnet for global investors and visitors.
Ted Raffoul, at Mercer Consultancy, told TRENDS that the UAE has been much more focused on attracting workers from outside the region. “They’ve implemented a new labor law, golden visa systems, and many plans for many expatriates, so they’re attempting to make it more appealing to people from all over the world to come here,” he said.
While Saudi Arabia has a large and promising economy, achieving significant progress in terms of quality of life and economic development, Raffoul believes it still lags behind the UAE in terms of quality of life.
“Both governments are working to attract expats, but the UAE isn’t competing back in any way so I wouldn’t call it a battle either. However, they are both attempting to meet their own needs while also attempting to attract talents.” He added.
Michael Page, a professional services recruitment company, believes that the hiring process underway in the region is very high.
“The UAE has always been an attractive choice of country to move to, owing to its international environment, while Saudi Arabia as a culture is now opening up, coupled with its growth goals, it has set itself up for success.”
“This is a huge advantage. There is a positive hiring trend across the Gulf region, which is not limited to any one country specifically,” Michael Page told TRENDS.
Raffoul maintains that incentivizing the offer packages with equity plans and other benefits has won over many professionals from cities like London, Singapore.
“It is uncommon for candidates to relocate to Saudi Arabia from Singapore, London, the Netherlands, or any other country without expecting a significant increase in pay and salaries,” says Raffoul, adding that this is one of the reasons why executives come here.
“So, these days, we do a lot of work with companies to put what we call equity plans or long-term incentive plans, which were not very common in the past. It’s a great way to keep and attract candidates because you bind them financially for a number of years.”
Recruiters hiring for Saudi Arabia have a harder time though to convince professionals to relocate to the kingdom than do headhunters recruiting for the UAE.
According to Abdul-Rahman Risilia, CEO of ARC Talent, a specialist recruitment consultancy, the UAE is probably more appealing to executives “because the market is mature and the lifestyle is more open and established. I believe there is still a genuine desire for executives living abroad, whether in Europe or North America, to relocate to the UAE rather than Saudi Arabia.”
He feels that Saudi Arabia’s conservative lifestyle discourages many professionals to move there. “Saudi Arabia is difficult, as their (professionals) lifestyles differ from the Saudi culture and environment. For example, most of them dislike working Sunday through Thursday. Saudi and UAE lifestyles differ significantly. Thus, the executives think they would rather work and live in the UAE than Saudi Arabia right now.”
Risilia believes that though senior executives have great opportunities to enter the Saudi market and work for big companies expanding or opening there, the Saudi market, however, is currently focused on Saudization, whereas the UAE nationals are a minority in their own country. As a result, the workforce in the UAE is primarily composed of expats.
The rising stock of the UAE in the eyes of professionals and headhunters has stood the country in good stead. According to the Global Talent Competitiveness Index (GTCI) 2022, the United Arab Emirates is one of the most competitive countries in talent, ranking 25th globally.
The country has low personal income tax collections and attracts many international college students. When it comes to senior-level managers, it was also runner-up worldwide. In terms of the global index of highly skilled immigrants, it is placed third.
In regards to both the availability of trained labor and international expertise, the UAE is also placed fourth in the world. It has made remarkable progress in many other indicators of the report, showing outstanding performance globally, contributing to placing the UAE among the leading countries in attracting and preserving global talents, and in more than one way to meet the demands of the labor market.
The leading job board in the Middle East, Bayt.com, partnered with YouGov, a market research firm, to study MENA professionals in order to learn more about their professional and personal goals and their general perceptions and attitudes toward their professions and the workplace as a whole.
As a result, the survey entitled ‘Career Aspirations in the MENA’ has indicated that nearly 8 in 10 UAE professionals (86 percent) have an optimistic attitude for the upcoming year.
Sixty-seven percent of working adults in the United Arab Emirates said they had planned for their professional future by setting goals like changing careers (67 percent), expanding their skill set (47 percent), and increasing their income (44 percent).
More than seven out of ten respondents (72 percent) think they are qualified for a higher-level position, and almost half (45 percent) are open to switching to a different department or field of expertise to advance their careers.
And 37 percent of UAE respondents say they would consider switching careers entirely if given a chance.
At the same time, professionals in the UAE value compensation and perks (cited by 69 percent), prospects for advancement (42%), and employment stability (33 percent), according to the survey.
Interestingly, most respondents (52 percent), rather than being business owners (22 percent), would instead work for someone else.
Sixty-nine percent of respondents cited a desire to constantly learn and gain experience as a motivating factor in their job search in the United Arab Emirates. This was followed by making money (58 percent), feeling valuable to society (48 percent), and being financially independent (42 percent).