Vision 2030 Requires a Qualification Shift in Saudi Workforce

Mercer Saudi Arabia CEO Mahmoud Ghazi | Asharq Al-Awsat
Mercer Saudi Arabia CEO Mahmoud Ghazi | Asharq Al-Awsat
TT
20

Vision 2030 Requires a Qualification Shift in Saudi Workforce

Mercer Saudi Arabia CEO Mahmoud Ghazi | Asharq Al-Awsat
Mercer Saudi Arabia CEO Mahmoud Ghazi | Asharq Al-Awsat

Global consultancy firms stress that initiatives, projects, and strategies recently announced by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman require that operating sectors in the Kingdom develop several key features.

Meeting under the arch of a national transformation plan, dubbed Vision 2030, projects like “The Line,” initiatives like the “Red Sea Project” and strategies like the “Riyadh Strategy,” demand Saudi industries start a new development phase for fundamental aspects such as human capital, performance assessment, and digital transformation.

It is vital that authorities in both public and private sectors seek to engage in the transformations needed to realize the Kingdom’s aspirations, Mercer Saudi Arabia CEO Mahmoud Ghazi told Asharq Al-Awsat.

According to Ghazi, the desired levels of administrative and operational change have also expanded under the new reality imposed by the coronavirus pandemic.

He recommended shifting focus to optimizing internal plans and strategies and setting clear goals that work in concert with the rapid changes needed help along with a transformation in the Saudi economy.

Ghazi also pointed out the importance of raising the efficiency of human capital to meet foreseeable changes at the level of plans in the Kingdom.

Training and qualification programs and courses for stepping up performance must be administered across all departments and even include boards of directors and technicians.

The Mercer CEO added that it is also necessary to measure performance and production standards in administrative work. This will help enhance the efficacy of motivation, reward, assessment, control, and progress.

Other than identifying and filling existing gaps, improved performance and quality control will help sectors become more flexible and adjust to the expected shift in administrative systems.

With Vision 2030 projects set to generate over two million jobs, Ghazi pointed out that Saudi Arabia will likely witness a boom in job opportunities requiring qualification and training.



Trump Says Fresh US-China Trade Talks in London Next Week

The upcoming meeting in London comes after a call between Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump aimed at calming tensions over tariffs. Evgenia Novozhenina, SAUL LOEB / POOL/AFP/File
The upcoming meeting in London comes after a call between Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump aimed at calming tensions over tariffs. Evgenia Novozhenina, SAUL LOEB / POOL/AFP/File
TT
20

Trump Says Fresh US-China Trade Talks in London Next Week

The upcoming meeting in London comes after a call between Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump aimed at calming tensions over tariffs. Evgenia Novozhenina, SAUL LOEB / POOL/AFP/File
The upcoming meeting in London comes after a call between Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump aimed at calming tensions over tariffs. Evgenia Novozhenina, SAUL LOEB / POOL/AFP/File

US President Donald Trump announced Friday a new round of trade talks with China in London next week, a day after calling Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in a bid to end a bitter battle over tariffs.

The talks in the British capital on Monday will mark the second round of such negotiations between the world's two biggest economies since Trump launched his trade war this year.
"The meeting should go very well," said Trump in a post on his Truth Social platform.
The president added that US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer would meet the Chinese team.
The first talks between Washington and Beijing since Trump slapped levies on allies and adversaries alike took place in Geneva last month.
While Trump had imposed a sweeping 10 percent duty on imports from most trading partners, rates on Chinese goods rocketed as both countries engaged in an escalating tariffs battle.
In April, additional US tariffs on many Chinese products hit 145 percent while China hit back with countermeasures of 125 percent.
Following the talks last month, both sides agreed to temporarily bring down the levels, with US tariffs cooling to 30 percent and China's levies at 10 percent.
But this temporary halt is expected to expire in early August and Trump last week accused China of violating the pact, underscoring deeper differences on both sides.
US officials have accused China of slow-walking export approvals of critical minerals and rare earth magnets, a key issue behind Trump's recent remarks.
While Trump's long-awaited phone call with Xi this week likely paved the way for further high-level trade talks, a swift resolution to the tariffs impasse remains uncertain.