Critical expertise is being drained from many of the enterprises that will form the basis of the UAE’s transition away from oil and gas towards a home-grown knowledge economy. This year alone, thousands of redundancies have been announced in the UAE across a range of sectors, from banking and energy to infrastructure, construction and government.
As these employees leave, they take with them their invaluable expertise, amounting to a looming critical knowledge crisis for organisations across the region. It’s at times like these that simple but innovative retention of critical knowledge (Rock) programmes can mean the difference between surviving the current economic malaise and emerging stronger in the aftermath, or packing up your enterprise altogether.
However, even if you identify the problem of knowledge loss and take proactive steps to retain it, as an organisation you will still face the challenge of passing on that wisdom. The huge pool of valuable know-how that results from an ongoing Rock programme must be analysed, filtered and made accessible to your workforce to drive innovation, improve performance or reduce costs.
Fast-tracking Emiratisation and employee induction
It is often the smallest bits of advice that can be the most effective – the tips you are given by an experienced mentor when taking on a new role, for example. But in the present climate of mass redundancies, very few new hires have the luxury of learning the pitfalls of a given role from an experienced colleague, and therefore are forced to learn their predecessors’ lessons from scratch.
This problem becomes particularly acute when seeking to nationalise roles. Emiratisation programmes across the UAE, for example, struggle to absorb and retain the expertise of expatriate staff, retiring senior Emiratis or outgoing consultants, owing to high turnover and the inadequacy of knowledge management tools.
Introductory documents for new Emirati employees are often far too generic, and consist mainly of a job description. A Rock programme can help provide practical and prescient advice from the previous occupant of your new desk; valuable insights that in most cases leave the company between the ears of your predecessor. This isn’t about a 50-page manual crammed with business-speak – rather a clear, succinct and well-designed report based on a thorough Rock interview that has extracted the most vital “dos and don’ts” of the role.
• Read part one of David Grunfeld's series here
• Read part two of David Grunfeld's series here
Putting your critical knowledge to work
The knowledge base that results from an ongoing programme to retain knowledge provides a deep and ever-evolving reservoir to be leveraged to make work faster, easier and cheaper, in essence to innovate.
In some cases, failure to capture and share knowledge within an organisation can have disastrous consequences, such as a recent workplace incident in Abu Dhabi that cost several employees their lives. A Rock interview with one of our clients showed that this may have been averted if a simple lesson learnt from a previous incident had been effectively captured and communicated across the company. Stories such as this, although thankfully often less tragic, can be found in every organisation.
Lessons from a knowledge reservoir can benefit multiple departments – operations can use them to drive efficiency and cost savings; health and safety to improve employee safety and environmental effect; HR to strengthen training and nationalisation programs; communications to promote employee engagement and share best practices; strategy and the C-Suite to identify opportunities for growth or the need to adapt in the face of an impending challenge.
Rock and social collaboration
Many organisations in the region already have powerful software that could be mobilised to enable knowledge retention and distribution. Unfortunately, it is often underused or even completely unused. Similarly, social collaboration platforms are becoming increasingly common in the workplace, but are more likely to be employed to organise the company barbecue than share expertise.
By allowing and incentivising your employees to feed critical information to each other using these platforms, you can facilitate their work and promote better outcomes and deeper engagement. For example, engineers in the field can quickly and efficiently search for project-specific advice from their peers – both past and present – and from previous projects. With such managed systems in place, your critical knowledge begins to naturally evolve and expand, feeding on the successes and failures of your staff, project by project.
This is the ultimate goal of a Rock programme – to create a living archive of expertise that grows and becomes more valuable with the experience of your organisation and its people. Much as Google revolutionised the way the world’s information is organised and accessed, in the right hands Rock has the potential to transform organisations by putting a web of critical experience and real-world advice at the fingertips of their staff.
David Grunfeld is the managing director of Prose Solutions, a UAE-based knowledge and content development consultancy
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MWTC info
Tickets to the MWTC range from Dh100 and can be purchased from www.ticketmaster.ae or by calling 800 86 823 from within the UAE or 971 4 366 2289 from outside the country and all Virgin Megastores. Fans looking to attend all three days of the MWTC can avail of a special 20 percent discount on ticket prices.
What are the influencer academy modules?
- Mastery of audio-visual content creation.
- Cinematography, shots and movement.
- All aspects of post-production.
- Emerging technologies and VFX with AI and CGI.
- Understanding of marketing objectives and audience engagement.
- Tourism industry knowledge.
- Professional ethics.
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Starfield
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The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Tax authority targets shisha levy evasion
The Federal Tax Authority will track shisha imports with electronic markers to protect customers and ensure levies have been paid.
Khalid Ali Al Bustani, director of the tax authority, on Sunday said the move is to "prevent tax evasion and support the authority’s tax collection efforts".
The scheme’s first phase, which came into effect on 1st January, 2019, covers all types of imported and domestically produced and distributed cigarettes. As of May 1, importing any type of cigarettes without the digital marks will be prohibited.
He said the latest phase will see imported and locally produced shisha tobacco tracked by the final quarter of this year.
"The FTA also maintains ongoing communication with concerned companies, to help them adapt their systems to meet our requirements and coordinate between all parties involved," he said.
As with cigarettes, shisha was hit with a 100 per cent tax in October 2017, though manufacturers and cafes absorbed some of the costs to prevent prices doubling.
Secret Pigeon Service: Operation Colomba, Resistance and the Struggle to Liberate Europe
Gordon Corera, Harper Collins
BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
Stage result
1. Jasper Philipsen (Bel) Alpecin-Fenix 4:42:34
2. Sam Bennett (Irl) Bora-Hansgrohe
3. Elia Viviani (Ita) Ineos Grenadiers
4. Dylan Groenewegen (Ned) BikeExchange-Jayco
5. Emils Liepins (Lat) Trek-Segafredo
6. Arnaud Demare (Fra) Groupama-FDJ
7. Max Kanter (Ger) Movistar Team
8. Olav Kooij (Ned) Jumbo-Visma
9. Tom Devriendt (Bel) Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux
10. Pascal Ackermann (Ger) UAE Team Emirate
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THE BIO
Favourite book: ‘Purpose Driven Life’ by Rick Warren
Favourite travel destination: Switzerland
Hobbies: Travelling and following motivational speeches and speakers
Favourite place in UAE: Dubai Museum
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
In-demand jobs and monthly salaries
- Technology expert in robotics and automation: Dh20,000 to Dh40,000
- Energy engineer: Dh25,000 to Dh30,000
- Production engineer: Dh30,000 to Dh40,000
- Data-driven supply chain management professional: Dh30,000 to Dh50,000
- HR leader: Dh40,000 to Dh60,000
- Engineering leader: Dh30,000 to Dh55,000
- Project manager: Dh55,000 to Dh65,000
- Senior reservoir engineer: Dh40,000 to Dh55,000
- Senior drilling engineer: Dh38,000 to Dh46,000
- Senior process engineer: Dh28,000 to Dh38,000
- Senior maintenance engineer: Dh22,000 to Dh34,000
- Field engineer: Dh6,500 to Dh7,500
- Field supervisor: Dh9,000 to Dh12,000
- Field operator: Dh5,000 to Dh7,000
Results
6.30pm: Dubai Millennium Stakes Group Three US$200,000 (Turf) 2,000m; Winner: Ghaiyyath, William Buick (jockey), Charlie Appleby (trainer).
7.05pm: Handicap $135,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Cliffs Of Capri, Tadhg O’Shea, Jamie Osborne.
7.40pm: UAE Oaks Group Three $250,000 (Dirt) 1,900m; Winner: Down On Da Bayou, Mickael Barzalona, Salem bin Ghadayer.
8.15pm: Zabeel Mile Group Two $250,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Zakouski, James Doyle, Charlie Appleby.
8.50pm: Meydan Sprint Group Two $250,000 (T) 1,000m; Winner: Waady, Jim Crowley, Doug Watson.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The Uefa Awards winners
Uefa Men's Player of the Year: Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
Uefa Women's Player of the Year: Lucy Bronze (Lyon)
Best players of the 2018/19 Uefa Champions League
Goalkeeper: Alisson (Liverpool)
Defender: Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
Midfielder: Frenkie de Jong (Ajax)
Forward: Lionel Messi (Barcelona)
Uefa President's Award: Eric Cantona
Who was Alfred Nobel?
The Nobel Prize was created by wealthy Swedish chemist and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel.
- In his will he dictated that the bulk of his estate should be used to fund "prizes to those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind".
- Nobel is best known as the inventor of dynamite, but also wrote poetry and drama and could speak Russian, French, English and German by the age of 17. The five original prize categories reflect the interests closest to his heart.
- Nobel died in 1896 but it took until 1901, following a legal battle over his will, before the first prizes were awarded.
RESULTS
Catchweight 82kg
Piotr Kuberski (POL) beat Ahmed Saeb (IRQ) by decision.
Women’s bantamweight
Corinne Laframboise (CAN) beat Cornelia Holm (SWE) by unanimous decision.
Welterweight
Omar Hussein (PAL) beat Vitalii Stoian (UKR) by unanimous decision.
Welterweight
Josh Togo (LEB) beat Ali Dyusenov (UZB) by unanimous decision.
Flyweight
Isaac Pimentel (BRA) beat Delfin Nawen (PHI) TKO round-3.
Catchweight 80kg
Seb Eubank (GBR) beat Emad Hanbali (SYR) KO round 1.
Lightweight
Mohammad Yahya (UAE) beat Ramadan Noaman (EGY) TKO round 2.
Lightweight
Alan Omer (GER) beat Reydon Romero (PHI) submission 1.
Welterweight
Juho Valamaa (FIN) beat Ahmed Labban (LEB) by unanimous decision.
Featherweight
Elias Boudegzdame (ALG) beat Austin Arnett (USA) by unanimous decision.
Super heavyweight
Maciej Sosnowski (POL) beat Ibrahim El Sawi (EGY) by submission round 1.
Manchester City (0) v Liverpool (3)
Uefa Champions League, quarter-final, second leg
Where: Etihad Stadium
When: Tuesday, 10.45pm
Live on beIN Sports HD
Take Me Apart
Kelela
(Warp)
Heavily-sugared soft drinks slip through the tax net
Some popular drinks with high levels of sugar and caffeine have slipped through the fizz drink tax loophole, as they are not carbonated or classed as an energy drink.
Arizona Iced Tea with lemon is one of those beverages, with one 240 millilitre serving offering up 23 grams of sugar - about six teaspoons.
A 680ml can of Arizona Iced Tea costs just Dh6.
Most sports drinks sold in supermarkets were found to contain, on average, five teaspoons of sugar in a 500ml bottle.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
More from Aya Iskandarani
Syria squad
Goalkeepers: Ibrahim Alma, Mahmoud Al Youssef, Ahmad Madania.
Defenders: Ahmad Al Salih, Moayad Ajan, Jehad Al Baour, Omar Midani, Amro Jenyat, Hussein Jwayed, Nadim Sabagh, Abdul Malek Anezan.
Midfielders: Mahmoud Al Mawas, Mohammed Osman, Osama Omari, Tamer Haj Mohamad, Ahmad Ashkar, Youssef Kalfa, Zaher Midani, Khaled Al Mobayed, Fahd Youssef.
Forwards: Omar Khribin, Omar Al Somah, Mardik Mardikian.
MATCH DETAILS
Barcelona 0
Slavia Prague 0
