Strategic Skills for Master’s Degree Holders in Dubai: The job market in the UAE is competitive. As the nation becomes a global corporate and tourism hotspot, it attracts notice. MNCs now routinely establish regional headquarters in Dubai or Abu Dhabi. This is great for residents who are interested in leveling up their careers. However, even master’s degree holders need to display certain strategic skills to land their dream role.

The UAE boasts not just one, but two geographical business hubs: Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Meanwhile, the nation’s decision to diversify beyond the oil and gas industry has led to a flourishing economy. The real estate, marketing, data analytics, project management, and logistics industries are doing especially well.

Ambitious job seekers can showcase these strategic skills regardless of whether they were learned on the job or through a program or course. However, a certificate like an MBA traditionally imparts this information and can send a good message to potential employers. That aside, management and leadership roles require a lot of these. As you do earn your master’s degree, though, it is worth remembering that some skills have more value than others. So, what are these strategic skills that can benefit careers?

Find the 15 Strategic Skills for Master’s Degree Holders in Dubai

• Communication

  The hallmark of a good leader is. As anyone who has spent time in a corporation knows, communication can make or break a team. A leader’s ability to communicate with his employees directly impacts the success of their projects. A Forbes survey revealed that poor communication left workers with less trust in their team and leadership. Needless to say, this is a vital strategic skill for professionals to cultivate.

• Analytical skills

  We believe you’re aware of the value of analytical skills. Most are because breaking down difficult problems into manageable chunks for better understanding is beneficial to any role. However, this strategic skill becomes extremely crucial in leadership roles. Then, the ability to analyze variables becomes a necessity to select the best outcome.

• Data Analysis

  You may be wondering why we added Data Analysis to what looks like a list of soft skills. Well, we believe that the rapidly changing technology has moved the market to a very data-heavy one. With new technologies like AI on the scene, we can process and comb through vast amounts of data. This strategic skill helps us make better decisions and have much better insight into the lay of the land.

• Time Management

  From students to worker bees, time management is a skill that all adults should cultivate. Be it managing a home, school work, or professional work, it helps us stay efficient and work smart. That aside, this is one of the most impactful strategic skills that anyone can cultivate with or without a Master’s degree in the UAE. Find the Top 28 Online MBA Programs in Dubai

• Creativity

  Many think of this as being associated solely with the arts. Or with creative roles at work. However, we’re here to tell you that creativity is a powerhouse of strategic skill. Creative thinking helps people fly high professionally by helping them approach a problem through multiple perspectives. It helps them create ingenious and unique solutions that boost business productivity or efficiency.

• Problem-Solving

  The Yin to Creative thinking’s Yang in the corporate world. Problem-solving is a skill every master’s degree places emphasis on, yet one of the hardest to master. This strategic skill requires people to truly comprehend the issue, evaluate it fully, and come up with a fix. However, it doesn’t stop there. It also includes implementing the solution and ensuring its efficacy.

• Critical Thinking

  Perhaps one of the most important takeaways from a master’s degree as you make your way up the corporate ladder. As strategic skills go, this one is, well, pretty critical. Critical thinking is the ability to examine a situation, judge it appropriately, and come to a solution. A good solution, that is. This is because it includes the ability to grasp the bigger picture, making the solution practical and powerful.

• Leadership

  A Master’s degree trains you in leadership because that is the final purpose of the degree; to push you higher in your career. Ideally, the degree and skill you learn there help you achieve a management or leadership role, where you implement the strategic skills it taught you. And so, you can move the company towards a bright future while holding on to your ethics, and compassion.

• Networking

  Many interviews with the leaders of top companies around the world, including the UAE, come to one conclusion. It’s not just what you know. It’s whom you know. Networking during your Master’s in the UAE, or at work helps you build relationships with others in the same industry. Having a strong industry network allows an exchange of ideas, experience, and information to help you as you rise through it. In turn, this benefits you with better business opportunities, cultivating a good reputation, and better visibility in your industry.

• Interpersonal Skills

  This may not come as a surprise, but good interpersonal skills significantly help career growth. This strategic skill is the ability to build good relationships with colleagues and other professionals through good communication, empathy, and emotional intelligence. As we mentioned earlier, networking is a huge boon to a career. And good networking relies on good people skills. It depends on being able to share thoughts and ideas without conflict. In leaders, this directly correlates with better employee retention and better teamwork.

• Strategic Thinking

  You may think that this is similar to critical thinking. And you are partially right. However, strategic thinking specifically refers to being able to strategize for better business growth. It is the talent of spotting patterns and trends and implementing them into your plans and actions, benefiting the enterprise and its people alike. As strategic skills go, this one includes a big dose of rationality and foresight.

• Strategy Implementation

  A valuable mix of problem-solving and good communication, strategy implementation is a key feature of being a leader. It is the process of implementing a plan of action once it has been finalized. This includes communicating with employees and shareholders alike about the plan and explaining its viability. The team should understand why changes are being made. This proficiency includes the ability to follow up on implementation and monitor it.

• Team Building and Motivation

  Once again, a mixed strategic skill that enfolds communication and interpersonal skills. As a corporate leader in the UAE, you are responsible for your team’s performance and welfare. Much like anywhere else in the world, this comprises building strong team spirit, conflict management, and excellent communication and empathy. Over time, this yields higher productivity by improving employee morale and motivation.

• Emotional Intelligence (EQ)

  Another social facet of being a professional leader. It also doubles as compassion and empathy in the workplace. That being said, it is also a highly valuable strategic skill for employees to have. In multicultural cities like Dubai and Abu Dhabi, this is also connected to cultural sensitivity and responsiveness. Cultivating an empathetic and kind workplace leads to robust team spirit and increased collaboration between members.

• Negotiation

  Lastly, we arrive at a notable strategic skill for leaders to cultivate. Negotiation. No matter if you’re negotiating your salary or a deal for your company, negotiation skills can be priceless for building your career. For most, this is often an overlooked part of our day-to-day lives, as we rarely call upon these skills. However, managers and C-level staff in a business use these skills to save time, and money regularly. This directly benefits the firm and earns them a lot of prestige as they wrangle the best outcome in any situation.

Being a model employee who thrives in the UAE requires a huge mix of skills. Some are cultivated through master’s degrees, like MBAs or certification courses. Others learn along the way. However, while this list of 15 Strategic Skills for Master’s Degree Holders in Dubai may seem overwhelming, you are probably already a master of many of them. Don’t lose heart, and take your time as you slowly build these strategic skills.