Labor Market Development in the UAE - Case Study Example

Graduate labor market in the UAE

Graduate labor market is the general outlook of what the present employment and economic situations offer new graduates. The UAE represents a successful and rapid development story in terms of the economy and infrastructure of the country and the development of its people. The labor market has recruitment patterns, graduate destinations, present trends in employment areas and an average starting income. The labor market in the United Arab Emirates is largely made up of emigrants compared to the natives. The private sector is important in the graduate labor market in the UAE, which accounts for roughly 63% of the workforce, 8 percent are absorbed in the federal government, local governments have 11 percent and the local-federal departments absorb almost 4 percent (UAE Government). The latest specialization in the United Arab Emirates is evaluated from the global economy context. The Supply Chain Management and a logistic program are fully designed in enhancing a lasting success of companies and organizations. This course is a greatly specialized field, which provides demanding but rewarding employment opportunities. Jobs in the UAE are mostly found in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. The supply of logistics and Supply Chain Management graduates has significantly grown in the labor market. The government of the United Arab Emirates advocates for the creation of additional private sector careers, which attract the native job seekers. The Emiratization policy in the UAE advocates for the employment of the nationals as compared to the expatriates by offering the native the necessary educational skills to get in the job market (Randeree, 2009).

Graduates in the United Arab Emirates leave full- time learning in their mid-20 to join the workforce. Sixty-eight percent in the UAE of young people aged between 20-24 years’ work currently in the defense and public administration sectors. The compulsory social security and public administration and defense sectors do not entirely provide public employment. The logistics and Supply Chain Management students are employed in the shipment, finance and property industries. The graduate labor market in the UAE for the logistics and supply chain graduates is rising at an alarming rate. This is owing to the transformation of the economy of the UAE and the escalating demand for the necessary goods in terms of imports and exports. The rise of the need for the graduates into this job market is due to growth of FMCG, construction, retail and infrastructure sectors (ASC staff, 2011). These areas of employment look out for the best talent in the appointments, particularly in the senior and mid-level positions. The salary of the logistics and supply chain employees in the UAE rises annually. This is because of the acquisition of the inter-companies competition to employ the best possible talent, the government and private sector business strategies and 2020 World Expo. The ABB Technology Company and the DHL have General Cargo Planner and Front Office Manager Job vacancies respectively in the U.A.E (Laimoon.com, n.d).

Fresh University graduates play a vital role in developing a country’s economy and they are expected to compete equitably when they enter the labor market (Lynn, n.d). Employability is a major concept framed differently by the employers and policy makers regarding demand.

Advantages

• The graduates are granted the autonomy to through internship programs so as to devise their own methods of working in order to use their skills effectively. This is because they are fresh from college and the employers believe they have potential to uplift the company to great heights in market penetration and innovation. This helps the employees to feel motivated since they have the responsibility of actively identifying and tackling the problems faced by business organization organizations.
• The salaries offered by the companies are much higher since most of the natives are uneducated. Logistics and supply chain graduates are of high demand in the United Arab Emirates since the growth of its economy depends on strategic location of as leading global business logistic hub .This has made these graduates to be highly valued by the potential recruiters.
• Fresh graduates are exposed to international opportunities in the profession since they interact with many people from different nationalities. The UAE is known to have most of its employees from other countries since the natives lack competence and hands-on in the logistic sector.
• The employees obtain important international skills and build a valuable network with individuals from diverse nations since the logistics careers entail frequent traveling and signing of deals that enhance which enhance networking, for instance, the DHL Company that deals with transportation of merchandise.

The employees’ welfare are catered for by the companies they offer their services. They are assured of their housing, food, entertainment, travelling allowances. This helps the employees to save which improves the investment prospect, for example establishing other income stream through establishing small scale businesses.

• The trainee programs offered help the employees to expand their knowledge and skills at work. This helps the staff to be able to get higher positions in their places of work as long as they exhibit competence in the places their places of work.

Disadvantages

• United Arab Emirates faces fierce job competition in the graduate labor market. The graduates experience job shortages and the head managers in the ABB Technology Company say they have many job applications but the vacant slots are limited.
• Technological advancements are replacing the human workforce. The Majority of the companies like DHL prefer to install trackers to monitor its trucks instead of applying human labor, which they deem to be expensive, compared to the machines.
• Fresh graduates are not able to handle the pressure that comes with high turnover. This mainly happens during the high seasons of exporting and importing. The graduates are forced to work extremely to prove their competence to their employers (Thomas, 2016).
• The UAE countries face harsh weather conditions during summer since it has a desert climate with no or very little rainfall. This makes it hard for the expatriates to cope with the harsh weather conditions compared to what they are used to in their home countries (Randeree, 2009).
• The bureaucracy system in the UAE companies is not friendly. Most of the employers harass the graduates since they lack the experience to handle the jobs. The employees are overworked, as they are required to deliver the best and for the companies to realize their profits.

Economic growth in the United Arab Emirates in the logistics sector has been a major constraint for companies in the staffing and maintenance of the experienced logistics and supply chain employees.

Skills required by employers

Most of the employees are concerned about the education that is given to the logistics and Supply Chain Management graduates (khan, 2013). They are offered the academic understanding compared to the needed practical skills for working. The skills graduate employers look for include:

• The graduates are required to be equipped with commercial strategy and execution awareness. For the DHL managers, they expect the employers in the logistics section to be aware of the marketplace and the business activities they operate. Graduates are required to know the kind of services customers need (Perry, 2011).
• The graduates should be adaptable which enable them to multitask. They are required to be flexible as they may be issued with transfers to work in other branches.
• Teamwork is an important attribute for any logistics graduate, as they are needed to work with different kinds of people in the company. Employers require the graduates to team up with the other staff for the growth of the company.
• The employees require the graduates to have the people skills. This helps them to be able to handle and interact with the customers. This skill helps in maintaining customers of the company.

Implications of deficiencies on employers and graduates

The lack of logistics and supply chain skills has great implications for both the employers and graduates. Most managers require the job applicants to have job experience in the field they are applying for in order to eliminate the cost of retraining (Chris, 2014). Companies are not ready to invest in training the graduates in what is required of them in accomplishing their work. For the employers, the lack of skills leads to the companies to run to losses, as they are unable to get the needed logistics talent to propel the company to the better financial performance. The employers are faced with tough decisions of absorbing the graduates into the job market when they lack the necessary skills ( Pennington, 2015).The graduates are not able to secure job opportunities if they lack the skills, as the job market requires job applicants to be equipped with the required expertise.

Part B

Career Goals in the long-term

My long term objective is to become the supply chain manager at the Etihad Airways and work in the Logistics department. I wanted to work in this field because I am very interested in this sector and my knowledge in English would find great applicability. The supply chain management (SCM) is one of the most important parts of the entire operation of the organization. This field can provide me with immense knowledge how to manage and coordinate with the different aspects of the airlines company. Etihad Airways is one of the leading airline companies in the world and an employment opportunity in the concerned company will help in my future career growth. My previous job experience will act as preliminary knowledge because there, I was also responsible for organizing and managing the logistics requirement including checking of the stocks and making sure that replacements were made timely. This opportunity at Emirates Wedding Company had introduced me to the concepts of logistics management, which will help in contributing to my employment in Etihad Airways productively.

Currently, I am studying in the second year at Northumbria University in New Castle. After completion my graduation, I will have to get myself enrolled in the career development program of Etihad Airways. They not only provide classroom knowledge but also an opportunity to work in their offices to develop candidates’ practical knowledge. When I shifted to the UK for higher studies I found that communication is the key to interaction with people around and this encouraged me to improve my English knowledge. As I made friends, it made my stay in the UK easier. I had to experience the change in culture and lifestyle and I found that in order to understand and express my opinions having proficiency in the English language was important. The learning courses in English prove to be of great significance because it helped me in participating in team work and individual assessments during my first year in the college. My professors and friends had helped me a lot so that I can improve my communication skills and working on the group projects developed my understanding of particular aspects of supply chain management, like, inventory and quality management. The theories included in my undergraduate course provide insight on making the entire value chain efficient by incorporating suitable amends in the SCM. This will increase my knowledge base and will also help in executing the responsibilities of the supply chain manager at the Etihad Airways independently.

I also wish to pursue post-graduation in the ‘logistics and supply chain management’ so that it adds to my qualifications. The current trend in the logistics market in UAE looks highly promising with 4-6% rise in the salaries due to greater investment in the manufacturing sector. I am also planning to apply for the APICS Certified Supply Chain Professional (CSCP) program which is a recognized program and will make my profile more appropriate for the job role at Etihad Airways. This will take up almost a year after the completion of my graduation during which I will also prepare myself to enroll in the development program of the company. However, after acquiring experience and the necessary capital, I will be starting to set up my own logistics company like FedEx, since there is no such specialized logistics company in UAE offering bright prospects for the business venture. Owning a company involves a lot of responsibility and workload but most importantly expertise to run an organization. The work experience in Etihad Airways will provide me with the knowledge which defines running supply management of a company of such stature. It will act as the step which will equip my expertise so that when I will be working on my own company, I would be more informed of the consequences of each business decision.

Assessment of Strengths and Weaknesses

The psychometric test provides a clear understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of an individual and this serves a measure which reflects the areas where further emphasis is required so that he or she can become more developed in the personal and professional life.

The abstract reasoning skill identifies the ability of an individual to identify the relationships and patterns, which are helpful in developing intelligence for problem solving. The result reflected that I have the speed to identify and solve logical patterns but I am still required to work on the level of accuracy.

My weaknesses lie in the accuracy but I have skills in efficient time management. This resulted in my low scores in the numerical reasoning. This happens because I get easily distracted.

Further feedback from the assessment center depicted that I am detail oriented and have the ability to point out important details if someone misses them. I am capable enough to create innovative ideas but further attention needs to be diverted while communicating the same to others. I give ample importance to the views and suggestion of others this will help me in working as a team and earn trust of my subordinates.

The results of the TDI report have presented me as a ‘surveyor’ implying that I have the right amount and energy to take the central role in an activity and I am more enthusiastic about work that involve action. This makes me more practical and realistic, which is highly suitable to the job role of the supply chain manager. In case of SCM, coordination is the most important aspect which necessitates efficient time-management (which is one of my strengths). Although, frequently I am not able to pay heed to what others have to say since there are time constraints related to projects. The personality traits of the surveyor reflect that I am flexible and relaxed in my approach which will be helpful in adapting to the changes. This will also help me in achieving breakthrough in a crisis. Moreover, the development program at Etihad Airways will provide me with the training to develop my skills so that I am more suitable for the job.

Although I am able to get my task done within a given time-line, yet I face challenges in verbal reasoning skills. This also affects my communication significantly because if I am not able to understand and think what is written in a particular instruction, I will not be able to transpire the same message to the suppliers or to my subordinates. However, I have undertaken different courses to improve my English communication and have passed the certification course with distinction but the results in the verbal reasoning test were disappointing. There were 44 questions and the results depicted that I was successful in only answering 13 correctly. My school and other assessment had shown that I am a good performer and have good academic records. The structures of the questions asked in the psychometric tests were very different from the ones that are asked in the schools or in colleges. This took much of my time as I was required to follow instructions and answer accordingly. Thus, in order to complete all the questions, I could not concentrate all the questions, which may have resulted in the unsatisfactory results. I have always been result oriented which has inspired me to keep track of the deadlines. Although, this helps me in keeping a track of the progress of the task, I am not able to work on the minute aspects of a project. I keep myself emotionally detached from the project which helps me in maintaining a particular pace. However, the assessment reflects that I am required to work on the accuracy so that I could develop the art of completing a task by fulfilling all the instructions that are asked in the task.

In the TDI report and the interview, I was evaluated to be an introvert, who likes to adhere to his own ideas and feel shy to communicate with others. This can restrict my performance as I would be required to clearly allot responsibilities to the workers and maintain contact with the suppliers so that the deliveries and the stocks are to be maintained at the optimum. This necessitates that I work on my language and expressions to get the best out of my performance for my future employment. I have always found criticism as the best opportunity of self-improvement and these results have motivated me to develop myself as a better profession and successful in life.

Future plans for developing Professionalism

Although I have a clear plan for my future, I have a long way to land my dream job. Currently, I have to get high grades in my graduation so that it could help me to get the required attention of the employer. The next step is to get myself enrolled in the master degree course and simultaneously, look for opportunities to learn more about the domain. Etihad Airways is one of the pioneers in the aviation industry and they will always value experts. Therefore, I am planning to take up vocational courses during my vacations so that I can develop my communicative skills.

Further, I would also work on my numerical skills so that I am able to grasp knowledge quickly and finish the task within a stipulated time. I would be more careful so that I render equal importance to short-term and long term objectives because sometimes there are different stages of a particular task specifically in inventory management because it involves order placement, shipment, warehouse storage and final distribution. It requires both fulfillment of immediate requirements and accomplishment of future goals and care should be taken to eliminate the chances of overlapping. For example, many times stocks are to be maintained keeping in mind that fluctuations in the market demand, which is a futuristic planning but delay in the shipment can affect both short and long term objective. However, I would pay more attention to the immediate need rather than keeping aside resources for future use. I would try to be more expressive so that I can overcome my shyness. Having a voice is more important when leading a group of individuals; thus, I would work to acquire assertive skills.

My next step involves developing the habit of concentrating without giving away to distractions and numerical problem solving. The maintenance of stocks at the optimum level involves sufficient numerical data which being a manager will be my responsibility. One of my friends has suggested that I should try meditating to overcome the issue of lack of focus. This will also help me in getting a piece of work done accurately.