Dubai Knowledge Village underlines role of academic and training institutions in shaping future workforce

Dr Kazim added: "Academic and training providers have access to only some basic information on future market expectations and demands. A number of reasons contribute to the trend such as difficulty in collating data in our region, lack of information exchange across different organisations and uncertain regional market conditions driven by current insecurities in the geopolitical landscape."

Dr Kazim's remarks came during a panel discussion at the Arabian Society for Human Resource Management (ASHRM) Conference and Exhibition 2012 held from March 25-28 in Abu Dhabi. The discussion focused on 'Do academic institutions, professional services companies and consultants possess the appropriate skills, methods and tools to adequately train and develop the workforce of the future?'

Chaired by Tim Sebastian, Chairman of Doha Debates, the discussion included guest speakers Murray R. Barrick, Professor at Texas, A&M University, R.V. Balasubramaniam lyer, Vice-President, Learning & Development, Reliance Industries Limited, Jim Matthewman, CEO, Hay Group UAE, Dr Mamdouh Najjar, CEO, Microsoft, Saudi Arabia, and Professor C.H. Wee, Nanyang Technological University Singapore.

The ASHRM conference themed 'Economic growth through HR' built upon the notion that economic growth can occur organically with the adoption of good HR practices. The event generated a healthy debate on the influence of good HR practices on the economic growth of companies, countries and the world among participants that included HR practitioners, academics, entrepreneurs, senior executives, businessmen, and government officials.

As part of the discussion, Dr Kazim underlined new tools and methodologies such as life-long learning that could be adopted to raise the skills set of working professionals and prepare them for potential obstacles in the future.

Fouzi A. Bubshait, President, ASHRM, said: "Despite registering strong economic growth, the region is also witnessing an equally high rate of unemployment or essentially an underutilization of the region's human capital. The three major stakeholders including business, academia and government are confronting the challenge of continually balancing the supply/demand equation for human capital. Against the backdrop of change in the economic situation, a fundamental question arises on the future of the HR function and the delivery of HR services."

DKV is a unique hub that offers the right investment opportunities in human capital empowerment, skills development and enhancement. With over 450 business partners, the free zone cluster has evolved into an effective catalyst for training and learning for the entire MENA region, hosting a large number of HR training and development centres, management consultancies and e-learning providers.

Dubai Knowledge Village's participation in ASHRM 2012 came as part of its mission to support the development of a knowledge economy and promote best practices in human resources management.