The seminars on ‘Global Recruitment Solutions for Local Success’ were held in Dubai on April 6 and Abu Dhabi on April 7; and will be held in Doha on April 8. The event is attended by leading HR and recruitment directors representing blue chip organizations.

Vernon Bryce, Managing Partner Kenexa Middle East, based in DIFC Dubai, said: “The senior-level roundtables focus on evidence-based case studies from the region, offering unique insights into the HR industry. With the region emerging from the challenges of the global financial crisis and embarking on some of the most ambitious business plans across various economic sectors, it is critical that the HR practices are aligned to meet the business goals.”

He added: “The roundtables highlight the strategic drivers of best practice resource planning, sourcing and selection related to the Gulf region. The aspects of cost and quality of hire, and the importance of prioritizing these measurements to enhance overall performance are also being discussed.”

While the industry networking seminars help encourage participating leading HR and Recruitment Directors in the Gulf share their knowledge about the practice, challenges and successful experiences, they also create new industry benchmarks to guide the recruitment process in the coming months.

The highlights of the roundtables include thought leadership presentations linking recruitment solutions to business success. Case study presentations and data derived from leading Gulf and global organizations are shared with participants. Kenexa® will generate an exclusive report on immediate and relevant findings elicited from the three Gulf HR Exchange seminars.

Kenexa Middle East has, in the past, highlighted the trends in the HR industry with a series of insightful reports on the recruitment dynamics, benchmarked against global best practices.

About Kenexa
Kenexa® provides business solutions for human resources. The company helps global organizations multiply business success by identifying the best individuals for every job and fostering optimal work environments for every organization. For more than 20 years, Kenexa has studied human behavior and team dynamics in the workplace, and has developed the software solutions, business processes and expert consulting that help organizations impact positive business outcomes through HR. Kenexa is the only company that offers a comprehensive suite of unified products and services that support the entire employee lifecycle from pre-hire to exit. Additional information about Kenexa and its global products and services can be accessed at www.kenexa.com.

MEDIA CONTACT:
Kelly Home / Meral Hassan
ASDA’A Burson-Marsteller
Tel: (+9714) 3344550
E-mail: m.hassan@asdaa.com

A Careertunity survey of top executives and HR practitioners showed that more companies are searching for ‘knowledge professionals’ with a high degree of technological competency who are innovative, business savvy and ambitious. Data also revealed that more organisations are shifting from the traditional top-down communication model to cross-level communication. Careertunity reports that the global crisis has highlighted the need for human resources that can respond quickly and efficiently to rapidly changing work and business environments.

“The various HR trends we are witnessing have been mostly influenced by the downturn, but they will definitely have long-term effects on HR practices. We can see a higher preference for personnel who are capable of multitasking beyond their job assignments, especially into IT functions. There is also the growing trend towards HR outsourcing, which not only helps reduce operational overhead but enables companies to focus on their core processes as well,” said Bharti Jatti, General Manager, Careertunity.

The Careertunity report acknowledged a greater emphasis among international HR departments on functions such as relocation, orientation and translation to quickly acclimatize employees with their new work environments. It also pointed to an increasing adoption of HR outsourcing as a long-term business strategy rather than as a short-term downsizing tool. The new HR trends are influencing greater integration of employee aspirations into corporate goals through appropriate HR policies.

Results confirmed initial signs of recovery across the Middle East employment markets after the peak of the credit crunch in 2008, with the Gulf in particular showing significant progress. More positive movements are expected in the next few months in growth sectors such as retail, health care, education and renewable energy. Vibrant markets such as the UAE, which posted a 16 per cent increase in private sector salaries in 2008 despite the downturn, are expected to sustain HR development into areas such as policies, worker motivation, enhanced organisational relations, technology proficiency, and quality consciousness.

Careertunity.com is a growing online job portal in the Middle East with a global response from both clients and candidates. The portal offers various branding and recruitment options as well as the regular services that job portals provide. Please log onto www.careertunity.com for more information.

For further information, please contact:
Orient Planet PR & Marketing Communications
PO Box 23345, Dubai, UAE
Tel: +971 4 3988901
Fax: +971 4 3988941
Email: media@orientplanet.com
Website: www.orientplanet.com

The Dubai launch follows the opening of the international offices of K&L Gates in Singapore and Frankfurt earlier this year. Senior officials joining the Dubai office include corporate and projects partner Paul de Cordova, as well as senior dispute resolution partner Neal R. Brendel, who has relocated to Dubai from the firm’s Pittsburgh office.

HE Dr Omar Bin Sulaiman, Governor of DIFC, said: “World-class legal firms constitute an important part of the business community in DIFC because they help financial institutions maximise the benefits gained from DIFC’s globally-benchmarked common-law framework. Over the last five years, DIFC has built a critical mass of legal firms, which include some of the world’s leading names in this sector. The continued interest of global firms like K&L Gates in establishing a presence in DIFC is an indication of the confidence that they have in the growth potential of our region.”

Abdulla Mohammed Al Awar, Chief Executive Officer of DIFC Authority, added: ” DIFC is not only linked to the chain of global financial hubs with one of the most convenient and modern legal and operational infrastructure, but it also offers global firms like K&L Gates coverage of a region stretching from across North Africa, Middle East, Levant and the Caspian to the Indian Subcontinent – a region where two-thirds of the world’s population lives. I am sure, K&L Gates will have a very successful future in DIFC and the region.”

“The Gulf region is, has been, and will continue to be of strategic importance to the global economy,” said K&L Gates Chairman and Global Managing Partner Peter J. Kalis. “K&L Gates is delighted to launch our presence in the region to serve our distinguished clients who are active in the United Arab Emirates and throughout the Middle East.”

Neal Brendel, who has a formidable background in international arbitration and dispute resolution, is a co-founder of the firm’s Dubai office. Brendel’s dispute resolution practice includes major matters in various international venues and subject areas.

Joining Brendel in Dubai is Paul de Cordova, who arrives at K&L Gates from another law firm, where he worked in the London, Tokyo and Dubai offices. An experienced corporate and projects lawyer, de Cordova has worked on a wide range of corporate and commercial matters during his more than 20-year career, including acquisitions and joint ventures; financial regulation; project development and finance transactions in the energy, water, and transportation sectors; general engineering and construction projects; real estate and real estate finance transactions; and government infrastructure projects.

About DIFC
The Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) is an onshore hub for global finance. It bridges the time gap between the financial centres of Hong Kong and London and services a region with the largest untapped emerging market for financial services. In just four years, over 800 firms have registered at DIFC. They operate in an open environment complemented with world-class regulations and standards. DIFC offers its member institutions incentives such as 100 per cent foreign ownership, zero tax on income and profits and no restrictions on foreign exchange. In addition their business benefits from modern infrastructure, operational support and business continuity facilities of uncompromisingly high standards.

Media enquiries:
Shaima Al Zarouni
Assistant PR Manager
Dubai International Financial Centre
Tel: +971 4 362 2432
E-mail: shaima.alzarouni@difc.ae

Iman Ahmad
Regional Media Relations Manager
Dubai International Financial Centre
Tel: +971 50 2058021
E-mail: iman.ahmad@difc.ae

Nova Ghadri
Media Executive
Dubai International Financial Centre
Tel: +971 4 362 2499
E-mail: nova.ghadri@difc.ae

For more information on K&L Gates’ Dubai office, please contact Neal Brendel at +971.4.401.9819 or neal.brendel@klgates.com.

Prior to joining DLA Piper Tony was a partner at top tier Australian law firm, Mallesons and he is recognised by industry publications including Chambers, AsiaLaw and Euromoney as a leading lawyer.

Chairman of the DLA Phillips Fox Board, Martin Wiseman, welcomed Tony’s appointment saying: “The Board is extremely pleased Tony Holland has accepted our offer to join DLA Phillips Fox as Chief Executive. He brings to the role leading law firm expertise, strong client and market experience, a close relationship with our alliance firm DLA Piper and respected leadership and management skills to lead our firm in its next stage of growth and evolution.

“His values are very much in alignment with our firm’s and we believe he is the right person to lead the firm as we seek to leverage the opportunities that exist for us, in particular in the Asia Pacific region,” Martin concluded.

Tony replaces outgoing Chief Executive Tony Crawford, who announced earlier this year that he would be stepping down in early 2010, after ten years in the role.

Tony Holland said: “I am truly delighted to accept the appointment as the new CEO of DLA Phillips Fox. I know DLA Phillips Fox well, and see them as a strong player with great potential in the Asia Pacific region.

Tony Crawford is leaving the firm in great shape to take advantage of the many opportunities as economic conditions improve in Australia and the surrounding region. I am looking forward to working with the leadership group and the partners of the firm in the next stage of its development and growth.”
Sir Nigel Knowles, joint CEO for DLA Piper, said: “We wish Tony all the very best in his new role. He is an inspiring leader and an exceptional lawyer.”

Alastair Da Costa, Managing Director for Asia at DLA Piper, added: “We are looking forward to working with Tony as our two firms build our Asia Pacific service offering for our clients in the region.”

An announcement regarding the appointment of a new managing partner for Dubai will be made in due course.

About Tony Holland
Tony Holland is a distinguished lawyer with over 25 years experience who will become Chief Executive of DLA Phillips Fox, effective 15 February 2010.

Tony has significant management and leadership experience and is presently the Regional Head of Finance for the Middle East and the Managing Partner of DLA Piper’s Dubai office.

Prior to joining DLA Piper Tony was a leading finance partner at Mallesons in Melbourne and worked in both their London and Melbourne offices. Tony served as head of Mallesons’ banking finance and project finance, was a member of Mallesons’ Board for five years.

Tony is a very well known and respected finance and projects finance lawyer and has been recognised as one of the world’s leading project finance lawyers in numerous publications and directories, including Chambers, AsiaLaw, Euromoney and Who’s Who legal.

He has significant experience in project and infrastructure finance, energy and resources, PPP’s, acquisition finance, international finance and restructuring and workouts.

Tony lectured for a number of years on Infrastructure and Project Finance for the Master of Laws programme at the University of Melbourne.

He holds an LLB (Hons) and BComm from the University of Melbourne, Australia.

Tony is 55 and is married with two children.

For further information:
Helen Obi, Media Relations, DLA Piper, Tel: +44 (0)20 7796 6989 or email: helen.obi@dlapiper.com

Notes to editors:
1. DLA Piper is an international legal practice with over 3,500 lawyers across 67 offices and 29 countries. From its offices across Asia, Europe, the Middle East and the United States, legal and business advisers provide a comprehensive range of services to local, regional and international businesses.

2. DLA Piper is ranked 1st by revenue in the Legal Business Global 100 2009.

3. For further information about our organisation and services, please visit our website: www.dlapiper.com.