Strategies for talent management: a study of select organizations in the UAE

Purpose – This paper aims at finding out strategies adopted by the organizations to reduce the employee turnover as well as to how to effectively manage human capital for competitive edge over the rivals in the UAE business environment. Design/methodology/approach – It was a quantitative research enquiry wherein the 255 respondents employed with over a dozen private sector organizations in the UAE were administered a questionnaire to register their responses. Findings – The findings of the study say that the strategies adopted by organizations in the UAE are two-pronged: short-term and long-term strategies. In the short term, the organization provides monetary benefits to their employees for their performance. In the long term, employees are more interested in the growth of their organization, because it gives them a sense of job security, as when an organization is growing, there are less chances of it cutting down on the workforce. Practical implications – The findings of the study are valuable to the organizations in the UAE that are engaged in designing and implementing strategies to reduce employee turnover. Originality/value – It has been found that the employee turnover is one of the key human resource issues faced by the organizations across the industry in the UAE, and this research inquiry tries to address those business concerns.