How can Saudi banks stop locals job-hopping?

In the UAE, job-hopping among nationals in the banking sector has calmed down in recent years, as more companies have made efforts to develop and retain the candidates they recruit. In Saudi Arabia, however, banks are struggling to hold on to their experienced talent.

In Saudi, where the workforce of any bank employing more than 500 people must comprise 49% nationals, experienced local candidates are still switching jobs for more a higher salary on a regular basis and this is creating a brain drain, according to research by recruiters Reed Banking.

In other areas of the GCC, notably Oman and Dubai, banks have invested a lot of time and effort into creating training and development programmes for local recruits. Retention problems still exist, but they are less pronounced than in the past.

The Nitaqat quota system introduced last year in Saudi Arabia has only made the talent shortage in banking worse. Banks in the kingdom need to make their national employees feel valued, says Mark Hibbs, manager of Reed Banking in Saudi Arabia.

"Saudi Arabia can learn lessons from other markets where top banks routinely fast track the best developing talent through their own training schemes. This helps employee loyalty and stops the potential of a brain drain" he said. “There is a relatively small pool of quality Saudi Arabian banking talent to choose from and they can command high salaries.”