BrazilEY launches recruitment platform for Middle East contractors
Professional services firm Ernst & Young has launched an online talent recruitment platform aimed at the freelance market of the Middle East & North Africa.
Tapping into the globally growing gig economy trend, the Middle East & North African branch of professional services firm Ernst & Young has launched an online talent marketplace to connect short-term contract workers with opportunities via the firm. Now live, the GigNow platform is currently receiving applications from Bahrain, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the Emirates.
EY currently has a workforce exceeding 284,000 people worldwide, with more than 7,500 of those based in MENA, but states on the GigNow site that the platform provides it access to in-demand skills and new markets, while skilled professionals seeking flexible work arrangements will not only be able to search out fresh opportunities but also benefit from EY’s training and accreditation provisions.
To date, GigNow has been rolled out to nearly 40 countries worldwide, including the US, UK, Indian and Australian markets, with 400-plus job postings added daily and contracts averaging out at six months. In Saudi Arabia for example, there are presently positions advertised in areas such as healthcare consulting, project management, strategy analysis and Arabic proofreading.
“The use of contingent workers through GigNow not only allows EY to engage the right talent for the right opportunities at the right time, but will also support freelancers and specialists who want the flexibility of a short-term contract with the high engagement, innovation, and diversity that projects at EY offer,” said the firm’s MENA Chairman and CEO Abdulaziz Al-Sowailim.
“The launch of the GigNow platform reflects the disruption we are seeing to the traditional business models in the MENA region,” Al-Sowailim continued. "The gig economy is gaining traction with the growth of on-demand expertise and the rising trend of skilled professionals seeking flexible working arrangements that will allow them to expand their qualifications and experiences.”
The consultancy ‘matchmaking’ market continues to grow apace alongside the gig economy itself, with Dubai-based firm Konsälidön being one such example in the region. Other global providers include names such as Talmix, SkillBridge and Comatch – the latter of which has now pushed out to a talent pool of 9,000-plus since its founding in only 2015, along with new offices launched all around the world.
Such platforms have arisen due to convergence of a number of trends, including the chronic and growing global skills shortage, millennial desire for professional variety, advancements in technology allowing for remote working, and the emerging technologies which underpin the platforms themselves. GigNow, for example, is driven by revolutionary AI Auto Match system for candidate matching.
