Organizations in the Middle East need to recognize the added value of female talent in the Arab world to the economy as a whole and to their business, and invest in their attraction, recruitment, development, and retention, said an industry expert.

The role of men and of leadership commitment and inclusive leadership, in particular, are crucial to this process,” added Rana Salhab, partner and Talent and Communications leader at Deloitte Middle East, a leading provider of audit, consulting, financial advisory, risk advisory, tax and related services.

What are the biggest barriers to women’s access to leadership positions? How will cryptocurrencies and Fintech affect the business landscape in the Middle East? These are some of the topics discussed in the

Salhab was commenting on the Spring 2018 issue of Deloitte’s quarterly publication, the Middle East Point of View (ME POV), now in its 25th edition. The Spring 2018 issue tackles several hot topics: from diversity, agility in the public sector, to the Middle East retail sector, business continuity, and Dubai’s affordable housing sector.

Changes are also being felt across the Public Sector in the Middle East, explained Ghassan Turqieh, partner and Human Capital leader at Deloitte Middle East in his article Agile in the public sector.

“Leaders need to consider modernizing their approach to managing the day-to-day business. Particularly in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, women are becoming increasingly involved, heavily encouraged and expected to participate in the workforce. These dynamics will inevitably drive public sector leaders to modernize, embrace changes and deploy appropriate talent solutions, not only to maintain a motivated workforce internally but also to address their citizens’ needs,” he added.

Digital evolution is also analyzed in this issue of Deloitte’s MEPOV, with Fintech and cryptocurrencies main topics of analysis.

On Fintech, Rajeev Patel, director and Uthman Al-Basri, manager, Financial Advisory, Deloitte Middle East said that “failure to address it early, can trounce even the most dominant of companies […] The use of blockchain technology has enabled the rapid ascent of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin into public discourse, igniting a frenzy of interest while creating fundamental challenges to regulators and money markets.”

On cryptocurrencies, Nipun Srivastava, director, and Saad Qureshi, assistant director, Financial Advisory, Deloitte Middle East noted that cryptocurrencies are still “highly volatile” and outline some of the challenges regarding the adoption of cryptocurrencies and some of the ways forward in regulating them.

E-commerce has drastically changed the global retail market said Anish Mehta, director, and Sachin Bhandari, senior manager, Deloitte, UAE in their article, Going digital: the next frontier for Middle East retail. “But this megatrend, which has transformed the dynamics of consumer behaviour and business models in retail, remains untapped in the Middle East and offers huge potential for industry players,” they said.

Martin Cooper, director, Financial Advisory, Deloitte Middle East concluded the Spring 2018 issue with his article “The development of Dubai’s affordable housing sector”, where he addresses some of the challenges facing this  vital yet troubled sector. – TradeArabia News Service