Which jobs most in demand?

Jobseekers can expect more opportunities coming their way in the next few months as a majority of employers in the country are planning to hire.

In their latest survey, online job portal Bayt.com and YouGov, a research and consulting organisation, reveal that more than half the companies in the  Middle East and North Africa (Mena) are considering hiring in the next three months.

In the UAE, 32 per cent claim to be ‘definitely hiring’ within this timeframe, with 69 per cent of such companies expecting to fill up to 10  positions.

Within the UAE, six out of 10 respondents (57 per cent) state that their company will be ‘definitely’ or ‘probably’ hiring in the next three months  (also at 57 per cent in Q1), with 67 per cent claiming the same in a year’s time from now (also at 67 per cent in Q1).

A majority of respondents (69 per cent) indicate they aim to fill up to 10 positions. Of these, 25 per cent claim they will look to fill between 6 and  10 positions, suggest the survey findings.

The more desirable qualifications for job candidates in the UAE to hold are those in engineering (27 per cent), business management (24 per cent) and  commerce (23 per cent), while employers prefer candidates with good communication skills in both English and Arabic (51 per cent), who have good  leadership skills (49 per cent) and who are team players (45 per cent).

In terms of experience, candidates who have the ability to manage a team (37 per cent) are desirable, as are those who have experience in sales and  marketing (32 per cent) and computer skills (30 per cent).

More than half of UAE respondents (54 per cent) believe that the country is much more attractive as a job market than other Middle East countries. The  most attractive industries in the UAE are perceived to be banking and finance (34 per cent), construction (33 per cent) and oil, gas and petrochemicals (33  per cent).

Previous surveys also indicate that hiring is going up in the UAE and is expected to improve further in the coming months. According to the latest  Morgan McKinley UAE employment monitor, professional job opportunities in the UAE have increased by 6 per cent between Q2 2012 and Q2 2013.

Recruitment activity in the professional jobs market increased by 2 per cent between Q1 2013 and Q2 2013 – there were 6,189 jobs recorded in Q1 and 6,310 in Q2. This represents a 6 per cent rise when compared to Q2 2012 when vacancy levels stood at 5,861, says the survey.

(Home page image courtesy Shutterstock)

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