The Rise and Rise of Diverse Hiring in the Middle East

The Middle East has long been an innovator and pioneer and this is one of the many reasons for the major growth we are seeing at Robert Walters across MENA. 

Often business priorities, objectives, trends and patterns start in MENA only to then expand to other regions.  However, one business imperative that MENA has been slower to prioritise than some other regions is Diverse Hiring. By this I mean the focusing of recruitment strategies on under-represented talent such as people of determination (people with disabilities or those with special needs).  In the past 9 months, this has changed dramatically, with our global and local clients requesting our support to conduct bespoke, tailored searches for under-represented talent in Dubia and across MENA. Helping our clients in MENA unlock the benefits of under-represented talent has been a major area of growth for our business.  I wanted to share with you how we are able to support businesses identify people of determination and minimise bias in their MENA recruiting:

Step 1:  Identify the opportunity

Our clients brief our recruiters on their Diversity & Inclusion objectives and the business areas and roles within scope. 

Omer Zakaria, Senior Manager heading up searches across Saudi Arabia notes,

“Often it’s our Global Clients with offices in Dubai and Saudi Arabia who have an appetite to hire more people of determination but don’t know where to start.  I’m able to talk them through the process and commence a targeted search with a shortlist as well as introduce them to our specialist practitioners”.

Step 2:  Invest in inclusive attraction

Whilst our extensive network is one of the reasons our clients work with us, we do also leverage our extensive range of media channels to engage talent. When working on attracting people of determination or other under-represented candidates, we invest in additional channels and partnerships to achieve our clients’ objectives.

Step 3:  Minimise bias in your hiring process

We need to understand how your hiring process may disadvantage people of determination. Our Director of Innovation, Tom Lakin, notes “Many clients in MENA are unaware of the bias in their process, we can review a hiring process and make quick and simple recommendations to an interview and selection process – from offering interview rooms on ground floors to allowing extra time for neurodiverse candidates with tests. Our Inclusivity Audit provides step by step guidance”.

Our skilled recruitment and diverse hiring practitioners are recognised leaders in Diverse Hiring and we’re able to support your growth projects and Diversity & Inclusion initiatives in MENA.