Despite significant increases in the number of students graduating from university and organisations investing billions in graduate programmes each year, companies say they cannot find the graduate talent they need or fill positions in a reasonable time frame. Concerns over talent shortages and skills gaps are not new, but the numbers just don’t add up.
According to our global report Driving New Success Strategies in Graduate Recruitment at CEB which challenges the notion of skills shortages – organisations are perpetuating talent shortages by recruiting graduates based on their idea of the perfect candidate. Not only do they expect graduates to have workplace experience and proven technical skills, they also assume that the best candidates will have a glowing academic report. The chances of finding the notional top graduate talent are one in 15, which goes some way towards explaining why there is a perception of a skills shortage in the region.
Our findings suggest that employers do not have a clear understanding of the competencies they need and value in graduates, which means job opportunities are often misrepresented, and are misleading for inexperienced job seekers. This may explain why graduates who have accepted positions are growing increasingly disillusioned with their first jobs. In fact, only one in three says they made the right decision to accept it and one-in-four new graduates plan to leave their first employer within a year.
Companies shouldn’t accept massive sunken costs and low returns on their graduate programmes. So what can firms do to break out of this vicious cycle?
Organisations should focus on these three key areas to improve quality of hire, productivity and engagement of new graduates:
Measure graduate employability
Organisations need to adopt a more robust approach to defining and measuring employability – the balance of hard and soft skills that underpin performance in the workplace – which could improve their chances of finding the right graduates by as much as 7.5 times.
In the Middle East, employers report that their graduate hires lack key skills in communication and teamwork. By using objective assessments, businesses have a more accurate way of determining whether a graduate has the broader range of skills, behaviours and competencies required to be successful in a job. This would go some way towards ensuring highly capable Emiratis are not overlooked.
The data captured can be used to identify whether an individual has the potential to succeed in more senior roles and pinpoint the skills and experience that need to be developed throughout their career if they are to flourish in future management, leadership and technical specialist roles.
Adopting this approach will be critical in the run-up to the World Expo. Jobs and demand for skilled labour in the IT, tourism, hospitality and construction sectors are expected to rise drastically. Companies need to take a longer-term view of talent, balancing recruitment decisions to fill vacancies today with securing the right talent that will stay with the firm to achieve tomorrow’s strategic vision beyond 2020.
Brand for influence, not for mass appeal
Not only do businesses need to be clearer about the skills they are looking for, they also need to give job seekers a more accurate view of what the job entails and the unique offerings – the rewards and benefits – that comprise their employment value proposition.
Recruiters have fallen foul of adopting attraction methods that appeal to the masses, with most firms assuming that graduates are driven by salary and use material rewards to lure talent. But offering a big pay cheque doesn’t guarantee job satisfaction.
In the Middle East, graduates are driven by environments where they are in constructive working conditions, have a clearly defined role and position in a company, can achieve their career goals and progress in the organisation, have opportunities to demonstrate talents and shine against others, and gain recognition for doing a good job.
These are the messages that companies should promote to job seekers to more accurately describe career prospects and culture within the organisation.
Applying this sort of talent intelligence will move from “branding for appeal” to “branding for influence”, helping graduates to wade through generic company messaging to navigate to the right employer. With this strategy companies can expect the quality of graduate applicants to increase by up to 54 per cent, which translates into increased quality of shortlist and subsequently hire.
Improve hiring decision with talent data
Companies that want to see outsize returns need to upgrade their overall recruiting strategies by applying powerful talent data to bring new precision to their employment branding efforts and selection methods.
Our research shows that companies are missing out on strong talent and wasting precious time and money on ineffective graduate programmes. What’s more the skills gap in the jobs market is being misrepresented and could be fuelling today’s hypercompetitive landscape.
Talent data is the critical connector between people planning, investment decisions and business outcomes. The best companies are adopting a more intelligent, data-driven approach to their hiring programmes, which enables recruitment professionals to take on a more strategic talent adviser role in the business.
Harnessing talent intelligence in this way will not only drive stronger workforce engagement but also build a more effective brand as the graduate employer of choice.
Eugene Burke is the chief science and analytics officer at CEB, a member-based advisory company
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A State of Passion
Directors: Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi
Stars: Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah
Rating: 4/5
'The worst thing you can eat'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
Frankenstein in Baghdad
Ahmed Saadawi
Penguin Press
David Haye record
Total fights: 32
Wins: 28
Wins by KO: 26
Losses: 4
Tewellah by Nawal Zoghbi is out now.
Naga
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HAJJAN
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Profile of MoneyFellows
Founder: Ahmed Wadi
Launched: 2016
Employees: 76
Financing stage: Series A ($4 million)
Investors: Partech, Sawari Ventures, 500 Startups, Dubai Angel Investors, Phoenician Fund
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Electric scooters: some rules to remember
- Riders must be 14-years-old or over
- Wear a protective helmet
- Park the electric scooter in designated parking lots (if any)
- Do not leave electric scooter in locations that obstruct traffic or pedestrians
- Solo riders only, no passengers allowed
- Do not drive outside designated lanes
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
Skoda Superb Specs
Engine: 2-litre TSI petrol
Power: 190hp
Torque: 320Nm
Price: From Dh147,000
Available: Now
GOLF’S RAHMBO
- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)
Hydrogen: Market potential
Hydrogen has an estimated $11 trillion market potential, according to Bank of America Securities and is expected to generate $2.5tn in direct revenues and $11tn of indirect infrastructure by 2050 as its production increases six-fold.
"We believe we are reaching the point of harnessing the element that comprises 90 per cent of the universe, effectively and economically,” the bank said in a recent report.
Falling costs of renewable energy and electrolysers used in green hydrogen production is one of the main catalysts for the increasingly bullish sentiment over the element.
The cost of electrolysers used in green hydrogen production has halved over the last five years and will fall to 60 to 90 per cent by the end of the decade, acceding to Haim Israel, equity strategist at Merrill Lynch. A global focus on decarbonisation and sustainability is also a big driver in its development.
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
The biog
Title: General Practitioner with a speciality in cardiology
Previous jobs: Worked in well-known hospitals Jaslok and Breach Candy in Mumbai, India
Education: Medical degree from the Government Medical College in Nagpur
How it all began: opened his first clinic in Ajman in 1993
Family: a 90-year-old mother, wife and two daughters
Remembers a time when medicines from India were purchased per kilo
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LEADERBOARD
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'Tell the Machine Goodnight' by Katie Williams
Penguin Randomhouse
Champions League Last 16
Red Bull Salzburg (AUT) v Bayern Munich (GER)
Sporting Lisbon (POR) v Manchester City (ENG)
Benfica (POR) v Ajax (NED)
Chelsea (ENG) v Lille (FRA)
Atletico Madrid (ESP) v Manchester United (ENG)
Villarreal (ESP) v Juventus (ITA)
Inter Milan (ITA) v Liverpool (ENG)
Paris Saint-Germain v Real Madrid (ESP)
THE LOWDOWN
Romeo Akbar Walter
Rating: 2/5 stars
Produced by: Dharma Productions, Azure Entertainment
Directed by: Robby Grewal
Cast: John Abraham, Mouni Roy, Jackie Shroff and Sikandar Kher
Mobile phone packages comparison
Can NRIs vote in the election?
Indians residing overseas cannot cast their ballot abroad
Non-resident Indians or NRIs can vote only by going to a polling booth in their home constituency
There are about 3.1 million NRIs living overseas
Indians have urged political parties to extend the right to vote to citizens residing overseas
A committee of the Election Commission of India approved of proxy voting for non-resident Indians
Proxy voting means that a person can authorise someone residing in the same polling booth area to cast a vote on his behalf.
This option is currently available for the armed forces, police and government officials posted outside India
A bill was passed in the lower house of India’s parliament or the Lok Sabha to extend proxy voting to non-resident Indians
However, this did not come before the upper house or Rajya Sabha and has lapsed
The issue of NRI voting draws a huge amount of interest in India and overseas
Over the past few months, Indians have received messages on mobile phones and on social media claiming that NRIs can cast their votes online
The Election Commission of India then clarified that NRIs could not vote online
The Election Commission lodged a complaint with the Delhi Police asking it to clamp down on the people spreading misinformation
The President's Cake
Director: Hasan Hadi
Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem
Rating: 4/5
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
Match info
Arsenal 0
Manchester City 2
Sterling (14'), Bernardo Silva (64')
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
The specs
Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors
Power: 480kW
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)
On sale: Now
