An exclusive interview with Nikhil Nanda, Operations Manager at Innovations UAE.
Nikhil: It’s clear that in 2022 the IT demand has only picked up and the number of jobs has increased drastically. Even in larger nations such as India, candidates have multiple job offers in hand and are also transitioning from one job to another within 6 months. Companies are short of strong IT talent and are willing to pay a higher salary to lure the right talent. Today’s IT market is very much an employee’s market. Some of the positions expected to be available for hire are Data Scientist, Data analytics manager, Data Architect, Business Intelligence, Cyber Security, Power BI, Backend developer, Frontend developer, Fullstack developer, Devops Engineer.
Nikhil: Companies are implementing stronger ATS and assessment systems to monitor candidate capabilities. More streamlined assessments are used to track language expertise, back-end code design, and front-end development. This is resulting in a more consistent approach towards building strong candidate pipelines as companies are confident in their growth curve and manpower requirements.
Nikhil: Businesses are building digital experiences for their customers and now with Metaverse gaining popularity, several existing jobs are expected to be transformed with new career descriptions and profiles.
All profiles will be in massive demand and there will continue to be a surge in hiring within the IT industry as we are essentially creating another internet that will have endless possibilities. Designers will also play a large role as we are moving from 3D designs to 4D designs within a very different framework. Industries like Gaming and Art are also embracing the new trends in Crypto, NFTs and due to this, there will certainly be new positions created to fulfil the new demands.
Nikhil: Technologies are changing and advancing rapidly. Companies need to outsource their manpower based on specific project requirements rather than trying to fit people from one project to another.
It is much tougher and more expensive to hold onto talent in the long run. It is better to pay a higher wage and outsource the hiring process for a shorter amount of time or a specific project. Post project completion one can try and negotiate and decide whether it makes sense to hold onto the talent or not.
Incentive structures are much weaker in IT than most other industries. KPI driven/project-based incentives through an outsourcing company could result in higher productivity as well as improved employee satisfaction.
Nikhil: Employee wellness has become more critical for organizations than ever. With the pandemic changing the work scenario across the globe, employers have re-learned the power of human resources and how creating an experience for the employees’ wellbeing is a key to propelling growth.
Employees are expecting more flexible work timings/work from home options to be able to balance the needs that emerged during the pandemic, be it health or managing time for family along with their respective jobs. Companies are expected to continue embracing the new work culture by providing ‘Ease of work’ to their employees.
With the pandemic as well as all the global uncertainty, UAE has become even more of a safe haven for immigrants. With the recent
Many industries like hospitality, and aviation has witnessed layoffs during the pandemic. Even the large firms had to rearrange their manpower and let some of them go. Taking these instances into account, a lot of candidates are willing to sacrifice pay for long-term job security. Stability will be chosen over large remuneration.
Part-time/freelance / project-based employment is also going to continue to grow drastically.
Nikhil: It is here to stay regardless of the covid situation. Employees have identified better work-life balances whilst maintaining the right amount of productivity. However, it will only apply to some industries which are more suitable for a hybrid work model.
