How to get a job in Dubai in the telecom industry?

If you are interested in accelerated career opportunities in the telecom industry, then this article is for you.

1.) Popularity of Dubai

In 2023 Dubai is the place to be. During the pandemic, Dubai remained one of the few safe destinations and became even more popular among tourists. In 2022/2023 the EXPO brought over 24 million visitors. The real estate market is booming, with prime residential prices rising by almost 55% in the last 12 months. Not a surprise that it is an increasingly popular destination for European expats who are escaping from inflation or relocating due to geopolitical reasons. Dubai’s population grew to 3.6 million which is a 1.5% increase compared to the end of 2022. One of the key objectives of the Dubai Economic Agenda (D33) is to increase foreign direct investment from an average of AED 32 billion annually in the past decade to an average of AED 60 billion annually in the next decade to reach a total of AED 650 billion by 2033.

2.) Salaries

1. Technology salaries:

   1. QA / Test Analyst: 15,000-20,000 AED ^{(4,080-5,450 USD)}

   2. Senior Business Analyst: 25,000-45,000 AED ^{(6,800-12,250 USD)}

   3. Senior Back End Developer: 25,000-40,000 AED ^{(6,800-10,890 USD)}

   4. Solutions Architect: 30,000-50,000 AED ^{(8,170-13,610 USD)}

   5. Project Manager: 25,000-60,000 AED ^{(6,800-16,330 USD)}

   6. Chief Information Officer: 70,000-130,000 AED ^{(19,050-35,400 USD)}

2. Digital salaries:

   1. UX/UI Designer: 18,000-28,000 AED ^{(4,900-7,600 USD)}

   2. Product Manager: 20,000-35,000 AED ^{(5,450-9,530 USD)}

   3. Chief Digital Officer: 60,000-90,000 AED ^{(16,330-24,500 USD)}

3. Data salaries:

   1. Data Scientist: 25,000-45,000 AED ^{(6,800-12,250 USD)}

   2. Data Engineer: 25,000-35,000 AED ^{(6,800-9,530 USD)}

   3. Chief Data Officer: 80,000-120,000 AED ^{(21,780-32,670 USD)}

4. Consulting salaries:

   1. Analyst Associate: 12,000-40,000 AED ^{(3,270-10,890 USD)}

   2. Consultant: 15,000-50,000 AED ^{(4,080-13,610 USD)}

   3. Senior Consultant: 20,000-55,000 AED ^{(5,450-14,970 USD)}

   4. Manager: 30,000-65,000 AED ^{(8,170-17,700 USD)}

   5. Senior Manager: 35,000-80,000 AED ^{(9,530-21,780 USD)}

   6. Director: 50,000-120,000 AED ^{(13,610-32,670 USD)}

   7. Partner: 65,000-185,000 AED ^{(17,700-50,370 USD)}

The above are monthly salaries and are not restricted to the telecom industry. The salaries are tax-free in UAE.

Source: Michael Page - UAE 2023 Salary Guide & Hiring Insights

3.) Where to work?

• Telecom companies
  There are 3 telecom companies in the United Arab Emirates, e& was showcased in the following Telecom Truffle article: Why would a telco ever buy a groceries startup?

  • du

    • Employees on LinkedIn: 7,700+

    • Open positions: 5

  • Etisalat by e&

    • Employees on LinkedIn: 48,800+

    • Open positions: 19

  • Virgin Mobile

    • Employees on LinkedIn: 270+

    • Open positions: 0

    Based on LinkedIn, as of 2nd July 2023.

• Telecom solution vendors

  • Alcatel-Lucent

  • Ericsson

  • Huawei

  • Netcracker

  • Nokia

• Consulting and system integration companies, digital agencies

  • Accenture

  • Arthur D Little

  • Atos

  • AWS

  • Bain

  • BCG

  • Capgemini

  • Cognizant

  • Deloitte

  • Delta Partners / FTI Consulting

  • EPAM

  • EY

  • G42 Cloud

  • Google (GCP)

  • IBM

  • Infosys

  • Injazat

  • KMPG

  • McKinsey

  • Microsoft

  • MongoDB

  • Oracle

  • Publicis Sapient

  • Prototype

  • PwC

  • Red Hat

  • Strategy&

  • TCS

  • Wipro

  • Wunderman Thompson

The companies are in alphabetical order.

4.) How to get a job?

It is an extremely competitive market.

1. Focus on your niche. You can stand out from the crowd if you have resolved the same problem that your future employer is trying to tackle.

   1. Have you implemented a marketplace superapp for a mobile operator?

   2. Have you implemented a virtual assistant for a telecom company?

      If there is such an open role, then you might have an unfair advantage and might get hired.

2. Grow your network. Connections are much more important in the Middle East than in other parts of the world. There is even an Arabic word for this: wasta. It refers to using one's connections and/or influence to get things done.

   1. Reach out to the following recruitment companies that are active in the telecom industry:

      1. Halian

      2. Hays

      3. Marc Ellis

      4. RPI

3. Tailor your CV to match the job description. Make it easy for your future employer to find all relevant skills easily.

4. Don’t use Easy Apply on LinkedIn. Don’t become one of the thousands sitting in the recruiter’s inbox.

5. Make sure your online presence reflects the best of you, on LinkedIn and social media. Avoid negative comments as your future employer will definitely do its due diligence.

5.) Cost of living

You can live in Dubai on any budget, there are products and services available for all income levels. The main expense components are rent, schooling fees, and lifestyle expenses. You can explore rental and real estate prices on Bayut and PropertyFinder. You can check school fees on Edarabia. Dubai offers the most glamorous lifestyle perks, such as daycations, brunches, yacht club memberships, and golf course memberships. Salaries of any size can vanish in no time. You can find a cost of living comparison on Numbeo.

Dubai will remain an attractive place for telecom & technology professionals, I wish you good luck if you decided to embark on a journey relocating to Dubai.

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This is a personal post. The views and opinions expressed here are only those of the author and do not represent those of any organization or any individual with whom the author may be associated, professionally or personally.