Mmmm, While I support the general concept of Qatarization, there are things I need to say about these posts. I know extremely hard working and highly qualified Qataris, but they tend to be at the upper levels, very cosmopolitan, educated outside the Gulf, etc, etc. Very competent and industrious; they are quite common at higher management levels, but I have to say that my experience with Qatari employees at the lower levels has not been positive. Just incredible amounts absenteeism, young men refusing to take instruction from women, failure to attend training, forgery of sick notes, etc, etc. I'm afraid that a great deal of time is wasted by managers passing these employees around from department to department as no one wants them. The goal seems to be put on "administrative holding", which is where they get paid while they wait for a suitable position to turn up.
My big concern is for the young Qatari men. What has happened? The PIRLS and PISA as well as the MENA Education report shows an INCREASING gap between the achievement levels of young Qatari men and young Qatari women is the largest in Gulf. Why? Quite frankly, the young women we've had been working with, with a couple of exceptions, have been wonderful. Yes, they come from educationally deprived backgrounds and need very extensive training in the most basic of skills (sorry, but that is the truth, the reforms haven't had the desired effects yet, but that is a topic for another thread)but they are willing to learn and make an effort and seem to enjoy the socializing and stimulation of the office environment.
What's the deal with the young men though? I know that I'm not the only one who has noticed or commented on it, it is officially an area of concern for the Qatari government. Anyone have any idea why so many young Qatari men are performing so far below their ability levels?
I'm particularly interested in the differences between here and Oman. When I worked there the Omanization campaign was just getting into full force. The education that many of the Omanis had received was just as weak as the what many of the students here receive, and the young men were just as unprepared to enter the workforce, but the approach and attitude was different...usually, and the young men seemed to have more interest in learning and more pride in their work. What do people think, is this a cultural difference between Oman and Qatar, or is it more of a result of the financial (dis)incentives to Qataris in the workplace.
One thing that I think really needs to be addressed has been mentioned, and that is assessment, but it is such a delicate issue I don't know how it would be handled. All the Qatari staff have been taken out of the normal assessment system and are assessed using a completely different system from everyone else that has no bearing on their actual abilities, it is basically based on the time clock and whether they punched in, not how effective they are.
I do have concerns for Qatarization's future though. I don't see the continuity and skills being developed long-term from the bottom up, at least in my field. By rights the assistant to the supervisor should be a Qatari learning the ropes so that he or she can take over in a few years. I've only been with the organization for two years,and we've gone through seven Qatari assistant supervisors. They've all been men, and they've all quit, either the pay was too low, they resented being mentored and trained by an American, the work was too hard, or the commute to work took too long! I see a divide developing with extremely hard-working, diligent and well-educated Qataris in the very top positions and many more Qataris in positions that are relatively low-skilled and low-status and perceived by them to be low paid. I have no idea how to prevent this from happening, particularly with the young men who have graduated from CNA-Q or some of the technical schools. We have a hard time explaining that a certificate is the floor or the absolute starting place, it is not the ceiling or final end product, and that it doesn't qualify them to manage a dozen people.
I do see the potential for many more highly motivated women to take advantage of the opportunities of Qatarization to advance themselves, but the resentment, no, hostility would be a better word, from young Qatari men disturbs me.
Right, I think that I have written an essay. What one gets with too much coffee and insomnia. Would be interested in opinions, particularly from the Qatari crowd who could give me some insight into the psyche of so many of the young Qatari men.
Mmmm, While I support the general concept of Qatarization, there are things I need to say about these posts. I know extremely hard working and highly qualified Qataris, but they tend to be at the upper levels, very cosmopolitan, educated outside the Gulf, etc, etc. Very competent and industrious; they are quite common at higher management levels, but I have to say that my experience with Qatari employees at the lower levels has not been positive. Just incredible amounts absenteeism, young men refusing to take instruction from women, failure to attend training, forgery of sick notes, etc, etc. I'm afraid that a great deal of time is wasted by managers passing these employees around from department to department as no one wants them. The goal seems to be put on "administrative holding", which is where they get paid while they wait for a suitable position to turn up.
My big concern is for the young Qatari men. What has happened? The PIRLS and PISA as well as the MENA Education report shows an INCREASING gap between the achievement levels of young Qatari men and young Qatari women is the largest in Gulf. Why? Quite frankly, the young women we've had been working with, with a couple of exceptions, have been wonderful. Yes, they come from educationally deprived backgrounds and need very extensive training in the most basic of skills (sorry, but that is the truth, the reforms haven't had the desired effects yet, but that is a topic for another thread)but they are willing to learn and make an effort and seem to enjoy the socializing and stimulation of the office environment.
What's the deal with the young men though? I know that I'm not the only one who has noticed or commented on it, it is officially an area of concern for the Qatari government. Anyone have any idea why so many young Qatari men are performing so far below their ability levels?
I'm particularly interested in the differences between here and Oman. When I worked there the Omanization campaign was just getting into full force. The education that many of the Omanis had received was just as weak as the what many of the students here receive, and the young men were just as unprepared to enter the workforce, but the approach and attitude was different...usually, and the young men seemed to have more interest in learning and more pride in their work. What do people think, is this a cultural difference between Oman and Qatar, or is it more of a result of the financial (dis)incentives to Qataris in the workplace.
One thing that I think really needs to be addressed has been mentioned, and that is assessment, but it is such a delicate issue I don't know how it would be handled. All the Qatari staff have been taken out of the normal assessment system and are assessed using a completely different system from everyone else that has no bearing on their actual abilities, it is basically based on the time clock and whether they punched in, not how effective they are.
I do have concerns for Qatarization's future though. I don't see the continuity and skills being developed long-term from the bottom up, at least in my field. By rights the assistant to the supervisor should be a Qatari learning the ropes so that he or she can take over in a few years. I've only been with the organization for two years,and we've gone through seven Qatari assistant supervisors. They've all been men, and they've all quit, either the pay was too low, they resented being mentored and trained by an American, the work was too hard, or the commute to work took too long! I see a divide developing with extremely hard-working, diligent and well-educated Qataris in the very top positions and many more Qataris in positions that are relatively low-skilled and low-status and perceived by them to be low paid. I have no idea how to prevent this from happening, particularly with the young men who have graduated from CNA-Q or some of the technical schools. We have a hard time explaining that a certificate is the floor or the absolute starting place, it is not the ceiling or final end product, and that it doesn't qualify them to manage a dozen people.
I do see the potential for many more highly motivated women to take advantage of the opportunities of Qatarization to advance themselves, but the resentment, no, hostility would be a better word, from young Qatari men disturbs me.
Right, I think that I have written an essay. What one gets with too much coffee and insomnia. Would be interested in opinions, particularly from the Qatari crowd who could give me some insight into the psyche of so many of the young Qatari men.