Reports show that Saudi Arabia leads the region with close to USD 600 billion projects to be awarded. It is followed by the UAE with slightly more than USD 350 billion worth of contracts and Kuwait with a little over USD 150 billion. Between Qatar, Oman, and Bahrain, more than USD 250 billion are expected to be awarded this year. It is of no surprise that the construction sector is said to be the backbone of the region's future success.
The question is: how will companies find all the necessary people to deliver these projects? In the construction world, not having enough of the right employees when needed has a huge business impact.
The financial penalties for not delivering on time and missed opportunities due to lack of resources can represent colossal amounts of money.
Unfortunately, the reality is that qualified people with solid experience working in such massive projects elsewhere in the world are hard to find. What makes it even more challenging is that many of them don't even think of coming here or know these projects exist. This is why recruitment has become a highly strategic issue in this sector.
What do most organisations in the industry do to find their workforce? They use agencies, publish vacancies on job boards and newspapers, receive thousands of poor quality applications and then go through everything manually hoping to find the gems. And they do this every time they need to hire someone. It's inefficient, time-consuming and it unfortunately doesn't deliver the expected results.
What's the solution?Whilst there is no silver bullet in recruitment, there is a solution. Companies need to arm themselves with the right tools, good recruitment processes and a smart strategy so that they can find, attract and hire the best people at the right time.
Here are some fundamental things our clients in the sector do in order to succeed:
1. Build a database of qualified candidates
Some companies in the GCC look through their database of qualified past applicants and source a sizeable portion - up to 40% - of their employees this way. This "talent pool" is the most effective way of hiring someone. The problem for most companies is that they don't have the required technology or strategy to build one.
2. Invest in specialized technology
A good recruitment management platform is to recruitment what big ERPs are to finance and accounting. It allows the recruitment department to become modern and effectively manage their processes. It reduces processing time by 80%. Screening becomes automatic, and recruiters can qualify, classify, and easily search through applications. Such a platform is also essential in building a talent pool.
3. Devise a good marketing strategy
Software will help identify qualified candidates quickly, but if a majority of poor quality candidates are applying, it won't be of much help. Employers need to communicate their job opportunities in all the right places so that they can generate interest amongst potential employees. On average, successful employers in the Middle East use 15 different advertising channels, including specialized job boards, employee referral programs, social media, industry websites, professional networks and their own career websites.
4. Build a brand
As part of the above marketing strategy, companies should build a brand. Regardless where someone hears about a job opportunity, whether it is through a friend, a job board or an agency, the first thing they will do is visit the website to find out more about it. Having a career website that talks about the region, the country, the project and the opportunity allows employers to "sell" their jobs to good candidates. It gives them a competitive edge when trying to attract qualified people.
Yes recruitment is challenging in the construction sector. But most of the time, it's because it is not being approached correctly. Companies can achieve their talent acquisition goals but they need to change the way they look for and engage with candidates. Einstein probably said it best, "the definition of insanity is to keep doing the same things and expecting a different result."
Guy Rickett is the CEO of Cazar, a leading provider of cloud-based recruitment solutions in the Middle East and Asia Pacific. The company empowers employers across 46 countries and a variety of industries through smart talent acquisition marketing strategies and their Sniperhire recruitment technology.
© Zawya 2013
