87% of MENA Professionals Anticipate a Rise in Virtual Job Fairs says Bayt.com

Posted on 2020 Sep,01

'The Future Hiring Trends in the MENA' survey, conducted recently by Bayt.com, the renowned Middle East's job site, highlights emerging developments in the hiring landscape of the Middle East and explores the role of technology in innovation and job creation.

As the COVID-19 pandemic accelerates digital transformation of work, business leaders and professionals must be prepared to proactively manage this period of transition. According to the survey, 81% of respondents expect remote hiring to increase over the next few months and 74% of employed respondents claim that their company is adopting a fully online recruitment process. Among jobseekers, 72% consider online job sites to be the most reliable source to find relevant opportunities, followed by social media (14%) and company websites (8%).

If harnessed well, the digitalization trend could help the region’s companies broaden their talent base by expanding their pool of advanced candidates located in different parts of the world. In a number of countries, dialogue around remote and virtual work is well under way, with 84% of respondents considering virtual interviews as a reliable alternative to physical interviews.

Online talent platforms have the potential to create significant benefits by increasing workforce participation, shortening the duration of job search and enabling matches that would otherwise not have happened. Respondents list cost and time effectiveness (28%), larger talent pools (9%), better quality candidates (6%), ease of use (5%), and all of the aforementioned categories (47%) as some of the key benefits of online recruitment tools.

“Recruiters in the MENA region are using technology to spur innovation and optimize the hiring process. Data obtained from our latest survey confirms that online job sites can have a substantial impact on the recruitment process in terms of helping companies scale and hire more talent,” said Ola Haddad, Director of Human Resources at Bayt.com.

A whopping 87% of survey respondents expect virtual job fairs to increase over the next few months. In addition, tools such as CV search (36%), job postings (16%), video interviews/candidate selection tool (5%), online applicant tracking system (2%), online onboarding tool (2%) and all of the aforementioned tools (37%) will provide support to hiring managers in the next few months, according to survey respondents.

The nature of hiring is changing, and workforce across the MENA region needs to change and adapt to these new demands and opportunities. Findings from the survey confirm that the key to a successful hire lies in accessing the largest choice of talent (50%), the ability to screen and filter efficiently (17%), the ability to test and assess candidates online (11%), the ability to conduct streamlined onboarding (11%)and strong employer branding (4%).

Employers in the MENA are implementing positive initiatives to prepare for the workforce of the future, 80% of respondents claim that their company has a clear plan to keep up with expected changes in the recruitment landscape after COVID-19.