The Federal Authority for Government Human Resources (FAHR) recently held a coordination meeting with LinkedIn at its headquarters in Dubai to review the latest developments regarding the Skills Bank & Online Forum Project, launched by FAHR last year under a government partnership with the professional network, as the first of its kind globally.
The meeting was attended by HE Dr. Abdulrahman Al Awar, Director General of FAHR, Ali Matar, head of LinkedIn Talent Solutions in the Middle East and North Africa,.HE Laila Al Suwaidi, Executive Director of Programs and HR Planning, FAHR, and representatives from both sides.
The Skills Bank is of significant importance for the UAE Government in general, and the Federal Government employees in, as it will provide FAHR with unique insights into the government talent, as LinkedIn’s data can, for example, help in identifying those areas in which talent is most and least plentiful and where there may be skills gaps. It will also facilitate talent search, attraction and retention in the Federal Government.
Laila Al Suwaidi confirmed that the project showed an abundance of talent and skills at the Federal Government level in areas like IT, human resources, education, engineering, and scientific research, including all specializations such as project management and planning, training and skills management, curriculum development, and planning, and data analysis .
She explained that these results were obtained through benchmarking processes with staff from the United States and UK Governments and employees working for government and private entities within the UAE.
Laila Al Suwaidi said: “The data from the Skills Bank has revealed some strengths and weaknesses in skills on the Federal Government level, and FAHR will take these into consideration to fill the gaps by focusing on certain skills such as talent attraction, risk management, performance management, governance and sustainability, within the various initiatives of FAHR.
“The number of employees in ministries and federal entities who have their own accounts on LinkedIn has increased to reach 12,500 rising by almost 13% of the total Federal Government employees a relatively large number compared to other countries. This happens at a time when the number of those who follow FAHR account on LinkedIn has reached more than 10,530 since the beginning of October 2016.”
As for the Online Forum linked to FAHR page on LinkedIn, it has proven successful and interactive in a short period of time, with followers rising to 2300, actively engaged in discussing nearly 30 topics related to human resources.
The Online Forum is considered an ideal platform for sharing knowledge management experience between HR departments in the Federal Government, and counterpart departments in local and international companies. In addition, the Forum facilitates search for, attraction and retention of talent, and helps constructive dialogue on the most important topics related to the growth and development of federal human capital, such as workplace happiness, harmony, engagement, loyalty and job satisfaction.
Laila Al Suwaidi noted that under the strategic partnership between FAHR LinkedIn the latter had prepared six local and global studies addressing human resources issues, including search for talent in UAE, employment trends in the Middle East and North Africa, how people change jobs, employment trends in Britain and America, and attracting young people and graduates.
It should be noted that LinkedIn has introduced an annual award for the ministry and federal entity that is most supportive and interactive with the Skills Bank and Online HR Forum project, to encourage and appreciate the great efforts of these entities to ensure the success of the project.