The Forum hosted Dr. Dirk Schmautzer, Middle East Office Partner for McKinsey & Company, Education Director for Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa, and Stephen Hall, Associate Partner, McKinsey & Company' Middle East.

Dr. Abdulrahman Al-Awar: "Abu Dhabi's Experience in Empowering Human Resources deserves to be disseminated"

Dr. Abdulrahman Al Awar explained that holding the Forum in Abu Dhabi was one of the initiatives of the UAE Government meetings held last year in Abu Dhabi, where it was decided to expand the HR Club to cover all emirates in order to achieve the greatest benefit for those concerned with human resources.

He also praised the efforts of Abu Dhabi Human Resources Authority and its initiatives aimed at developing the human capital of the Emirate, and  stressed the need to adopt and disseminate the pioneering experience of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi in empowering its human resources and  preparing qualified national cadres capable of contributing to the development of their country.

HE Dr. Abdul Rahman Al Awar said: “The constructive cooperation between the Federal Authority for Government Human Resources and Abu Dhabi Human Resources Authority will enhance coordination and streamlining of human resources systems, policies, legislation and initiatives, both at the federal or local government levels”.

HE added: "The HR Club provides an important opportunity for cooperation among all stakeholders concerned with human capital development. It provides an ideal environment to discuss topics related to the most important challenges faced by institutions and governments in the development of human capital, and to review most appropriate solutions to these challenges and keep pace with the changes."

Amir Al Hammadi: "Plans and visions for the future of the labor market in Abu Dhabi"

For his part, HE Amir Hussein Al Hammadi, Director General of Abu Dhabi Human Resources Authority, said during the participation of his Authority in HR Forum held for the first time in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, that the Authority is a strategic partner of the Federal Authority for Government Human Resources in promoting and integrating the human resources work system and spreading knowledge at all levels of government function to support the development process and accelerate its pace. He hoped that this cooperation continues to meet the aspirations of the wise leadership to invest in human capital and development of strategies, plans and processes to support Abu Dhabi Vision 2030 aimed at building a knowledge-based economy.

He added: "Abu Dhabi Human Resources Authority plays a pivotal role in developing and implementing long-term strategies and partnerships with stakeholders and preparing plans for the future of Abu Dhabi labor market, making it a promising and attractive market for human capital investment. The Authority takes these responsibilities according to global best practices in human resources development, to support the Emirate’s efforts to meet the requirements of the future in light of the enormous technological developments in the world and increasing reliance on artificial intelligence and modern technologies and software in all fields”.

HE praised the keenness of the Federal Authority for Government Human Resources to organize the forum in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi to provide insight into the best experiences in knowledge transfer and facilitate decision-making process in light of global experiences. He believed that the move will highlight the requirements of tomorrow and skills required in the labor market, as well as the tools to help cope with this change.

HE Amer Hussein Al-Hammadi stressed on the importance of facilitating government action in the field of human capital management and concerted efforts to develop integrated investment plans in a professional and sustainable manner. This, he added, would have the most impact on increasing the participation of citizens in the labor market, contribute to business growth and speed up development in accordance with the aspirations and vision of the UAE’s wise leadership.

375 million employees worldwide are required to develop their skills to cope with the technological revolution

The Forum highlighted the results of McKinsey's global business consulting survey on the impact of innovative technologies on current jobs, which showed that 375 million employees around the world are required to develop their skills and keep abreast of technological revolution and artificial intelligence techniques so as not to lose their jobs in the event that they cannot keep up with the technological revolution and the latest international developments in this field.

Dr. Dirk Schmautzer, highlighted the results of McKinsey's study which involved participants from 46 countries around the world, showing that many of today's jobs will fade under the increasing reliance on artificial intelligence and robotics, and that some existing jobs are changing daily, while new jobs will appear relying entirely on technology such as network developers and smart applications. He praised the UAE for achieving its present global leadership in terms of smart transformation and intelligent automation services and technology investment.

"Automation will greatly affect the skills required in the future labor market, as demand for some skills, especially technical skills and artificial intelligence skills, will increase, and the impact of automation will vary from sector to sector and from job to job," he said. He noted that 50 percent of activities and tasks in the world can be automated in light of the technological capabilities currently available”.

Dr. Dirk Schammautzer stressed the importance of the role that governments should play in preparing their human resources and qualifying them well for the future job market by identifying the gap between the required skills at present and skills that will be most in demand in the future, and the real investment in developing their human capital.

Stephen Hall, demanded governments to identify the skills and competencies that they will need in the coming period so that they can maintain their competitiveness and enhance their efficiency and quality of services. He stressed that governments that do not keep pace with this huge number of variables and rapid technological development will lose their competitiveness and dynamism.

Mr. Hall called on all employees to focus on developing their skills and abilities so that they can adapt to the new realities imposed by the technological revolution on the labor market. He stressed that organizations now are more in need than ever to adopt new strategies and implement mechanisms which will attract and retain talent,  so as to  increase their competitiveness and maintain their image.

He highlighted the impact of modern technology (robotics, artificial intelligence, etc.) on UAE’s future jobs, workforce, and their skills, as well as the implications of that on governments, and the steps taken to seize opportunities and meet the challenges facing the future workforce.

Human resource Club

The Human Resources Club launched in 2010 is one of the most important strategic initiatives of the Authority. It is an interactive platform and an intellectual and knowledge communication channel that brings together interested people, human resources specialists and experts under one roof to share ideas, experiences and solutions that could enhance the roles assigned to human resources departments and other institutional service bodies across different sectors in the country.

The HR Club offers its membership, which has grown to over 12 thousand, an ideal opportunity to learn about the best practices, experiences and success stories of many individuals and institutions, as well as meeting with specialists and practitioners in the field of institutional work.

The Authority is seeking to develop the Club and improve its vision and mission by working hard to expand to expand the base of its beneficiaries beyond human resource professionals, to include support services sectors, and all employees working for these sectors, such as personnel, finance, IT, procurement, etc

The Authority has announced the launch of the new strategy for the Human Resources Club and the restructuring of the Club's advisory board, given the remarkable success of the Club during the past years. The Club held 46 forums which were attended by more than 7,700 human

It should be noted that membership of the Club is open and free for all those interested in human resources and institutional support, etc. Application should be through website: www.fahr.gov.ae, and                         e-mail: HRClub@fahr.gov.ae