You might expect that a Middle East workforce which has endured an unprecedented pandemic and whose jobs are threatened by new technologies would view the future with foreboding. Think again. We talked to 2,500 employees across the GCC in January and February this year for PwC’s annual Hopes and Fears Survey. To our surprise, the story they have to tell is one of optimism and eagerness to learn new skills, in order to capture the opportunities of the region’s digital transformation.
For proof, consider just two of the survey answers. More than three-quarters of our survey, covering Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar and Kuwait, believe that their employment prospects will improve because of AI, robotics and other digital technologies being implemented in their workplaces. Despite many of the respondents accepting that their current jobs will soon be made obsolete by technological progress, 86 percent also say they are confident that they can adapt to using new technologies introduced by their employers.
Several things struck us when we tried to explain this positive outlook and what it might mean for the region in the post-pandemic era. One is our survey group’s youthfulness: around 60 percent are in the 18-34 age group, reflecting their countries’ demographic profile. Secondly, their youth makes them “digital natives”, accustomed to constant online interaction in their working and personal lives. They are at ease with rapid, continual technological change, unlike their parents and grandparents.
Indeed, most of the survey respondents appear naturally disposed to regard upheaval as an opportunity. You might expect, for instance, that most respondents would be narrowly preoccupied by simply hanging onto their job, given the social and economic trauma of the past year. But this isn’t the case as 81 percent say they want to work for an organisation that will make a “positive” social contribution, as the Middle East begins to recover from Covid-19.
A shared drive for progress
This isn’t the end of the story, because when we compared our findings with the results of our latest annual Middle East CEO Survey we discovered another significant trend. On a range of workplace issues, from digital transformation to health and wellness, we found that the region’s business leaders were on the same page as their employees. For example, 59 percent of CEOs, compared with only 11 percent in our equivalent 2010 survey, aim to increase their digital investments by 10 percent or more over the next three years.
At the same time, half of the 2021 respondents regard the good health and wellbeing of their employees as a business priority, while 70 percent say nurturing a skilled, educated and adaptable workforce is also essential to their organisation’s success.
Tomorrow starts today
From the boardroom downwards, there is a prevailing sense of urgency about embracing the fast-approaching, post-pandemic future; for these organisations, Tomorrow starts today – the phrase we use to sum up our own research into the Middle East’s rapidly transforming economic and social landscape.
We would argue that agile, digitally-enabled businesses, concerned for the welfare of their employees and with a strong sense of social purpose, have a head start over competitors as countries in the region pursue their goal of building high-tech knowledge economies. Forty-four percent of survey respondents said that they want to do a job that makes a difference, and 81 percent responded that they want to work for an organisation that makes a positive contribution to society.
Of course a sense of perspective is necessary: At PwC Middle East, we have spent much of the past 12 months advising our clients on how to navigate an unprecedented global and regional crisis, and the social and economic damage caused by the pandemic will take time to repair. Yet we also encountered many businesses which rapidly realised that the seismic impact of Covid-19 demanded that they rethink and reset the organisation on a fresh course.
_0.jpg?33CRiKWP)
In effect, Covid-19 has forced employers and employees throughout the region to implement programmes and initiatives faster, better and – most critically – by working together. There is a greater understanding of what each side brings to the organisation’s success. A good illustration is digital upskilling, which too often was a vague statement of good intent by business leaders before the pandemic. Now, nine in 10 of our Hopes and Fears survey respondents report that their employers are allowing them time at work to improve their digital skills, compared with less than a quarter in the previous survey, conducted in late 2019.
We are a long way from the end of this transformation story, but what we know already is that the narrative is moving forward at speed, propelled by a generation who are ambitious, digitally connected and want their work to benefit society. We know too that employers are ready to help them achieve this.
Randa Bahsoun, PwC Middle East New World New Skills Leader.
by Staff Writer
More of this topic
New Middle East workforce is young, digitally-skilled and socially aware
PwC Middle East’s latest survey of employee thoughts, hopes and fears across the region reveals a generation that is keen to help build a better post-pandemic future, says Randa Bahsoun, PwC Middle East New World New Skills Leader.
Randa Bahsoun, PwC Middle East New World New Skills Leader
You might expect that a Middle East workforce which has endured an unprecedented pandemic and whose jobs are threatened by new technologies would view the future with foreboding. Think again. We talked to 2,500 employees across the GCC in January and February this year for PwC’s annual Hopes and Fears Survey. To our surprise, the story they have to tell is one of optimism and eagerness to learn new skills, in order to capture the opportunities of the region’s digital transformation.
For proof, consider just two of the survey answers. More than three-quarters of our survey, covering Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar and Kuwait, believe that their employment prospects will improve because of AI, robotics and other digital technologies being implemented in their workplaces. Despite many of the respondents accepting that their current jobs will soon be made obsolete by technological progress, 86 percent also say they are confident that they can adapt to using new technologies introduced by their employers.
Several things struck us when we tried to explain this positive outlook and what it might mean for the region in the post-pandemic era. One is our survey group’s youthfulness: around 60 percent are in the 18-34 age group, reflecting their countries’ demographic profile. Secondly, their youth makes them “digital natives”, accustomed to constant online interaction in their working and personal lives. They are at ease with rapid, continual technological change, unlike their parents and grandparents.
Indeed, most of the survey respondents appear naturally disposed to regard upheaval as an opportunity. You might expect, for instance, that most respondents would be narrowly preoccupied by simply hanging onto their job, given the social and economic trauma of the past year. But this isn’t the case as 81 percent say they want to work for an organisation that will make a “positive” social contribution, as the Middle East begins to recover from Covid-19.
A shared drive for progress
This isn’t the end of the story, because when we compared our findings with the results of our latest annual Middle East CEO Survey we discovered another significant trend. On a range of workplace issues, from digital transformation to health and wellness, we found that the region’s business leaders were on the same page as their employees. For example, 59 percent of CEOs, compared with only 11 percent in our equivalent 2010 survey, aim to increase their digital investments by 10 percent or more over the next three years.
At the same time, half of the 2021 respondents regard the good health and wellbeing of their employees as a business priority, while 70 percent say nurturing a skilled, educated and adaptable workforce is also essential to their organisation’s success.
Tomorrow starts today
From the boardroom downwards, there is a prevailing sense of urgency about embracing the fast-approaching, post-pandemic future; for these organisations, Tomorrow starts today – the phrase we use to sum up our own research into the Middle East’s rapidly transforming economic and social landscape.
We would argue that agile, digitally-enabled businesses, concerned for the welfare of their employees and with a strong sense of social purpose, have a head start over competitors as countries in the region pursue their goal of building high-tech knowledge economies. Forty-four percent of survey respondents said that they want to do a job that makes a difference, and 81 percent responded that they want to work for an organisation that makes a positive contribution to society.
Of course a sense of perspective is necessary: At PwC Middle East, we have spent much of the past 12 months advising our clients on how to navigate an unprecedented global and regional crisis, and the social and economic damage caused by the pandemic will take time to repair. Yet we also encountered many businesses which rapidly realised that the seismic impact of Covid-19 demanded that they rethink and reset the organisation on a fresh course.
In effect, Covid-19 has forced employers and employees throughout the region to implement programmes and initiatives faster, better and – most critically – by working together. There is a greater understanding of what each side brings to the organisation’s success. A good illustration is digital upskilling, which too often was a vague statement of good intent by business leaders before the pandemic. Now, nine in 10 of our Hopes and Fears survey respondents report that their employers are allowing them time at work to improve their digital skills, compared with less than a quarter in the previous survey, conducted in late 2019.
We are a long way from the end of this transformation story, but what we know already is that the narrative is moving forward at speed, propelled by a generation who are ambitious, digitally connected and want their work to benefit society. We know too that employers are ready to help them achieve this.
Randa Bahsoun, PwC Middle East New World New Skills Leader.
Follow us on
Latest News