skill-link.com addresses EHRMA Conference

The Egyptian Human Resources Management Association (EHRMA) invited skill-link.com to address its first annual "Future of Work in Egypt" conference that took place May 19th to 21st 2003 at the Cairo International Conference Center. Numerous dignitaries, business leaders, NGOs, university professors, HR consultants, HR managers and service providers in addition to media representatives attended the event.

In his presentation, Sherif Samy discussed the current employment situation for Egyptians in various target markets; namely the Arab Gulf and Africa. The Arab Gulf, he stated, while a traditional destination for expatriate Egyptian workers is expected to drastically reduce its reliance on them. This is due to economic pressures, unemployment among their own citizens and a growing tendency to recruit from Asia. Sherif also mentioned the various programs adopted in countries such as the USA and Germany, where tens of thousands of work opportunities could have been availed to Egyptians through temporary (3 to 6 year) work permits. These were unfortunately not adequately exploited, for lack of local media coverage, limited governmental support and the average young Egyptian's disinterest in researching information sources and exploring new venues.

The skill-link.com Chairman also presented the various opportunities offshore outsourcing presents to developing countries such as Egypt. He stressed on the trend of job relocation from industrialized nations to locations where less expensive skills and a good technology infrastructure are available. He identified key opportunities for Egypt in the field of offshore information technology service providing, call center hosting and back office operations processing. He highlighted that while India was taking the lead on that front, other nations such as South Africa, the Philippines and other central European countries have their own aggressive plans. Recent research reveals, he said, that about 2 million support jobs are expected to be relocated to countries capable of providing offshore services.

Ms. Mushira El Bardai, of EHRMA presided over the three day conference that was attended by numerous dignitaries, business leaders, human resources executives, university professors, recruiters, consultants, training services providers and NGO representatives. The conference was held under the auspices of H.E. Dr. Aly El Saidi, Egypt's Minister of Industry & Technological Development.

The following are some of the delivered presentations during the conference:

The Biology of Business-What it Means for HR Managers
· Dr. Laurie Tapozada, Managing Director-HR First

10 Reasons why Training Fails & their Remedies
· Mr. Hisham El Gamal, Managing Director-Quest

Having Fun with "us", HR People?!
· Eng. Ismail Osman, Senior Advisor -Osman Group

How Systems Thinking Could Affect HR
· Dr. Mohga Badran, Professor of Management-AUC

CHRM: When the HR Orchestra Plays Marketing
· Dr. Amr Kais, Managing Director- IMI

A Leader's Tale
· HE Adel Labib, Governor of Qena

A Leader's Tale
· Ahmed Bardai, Chairman, Banque Du Caire

What Does the Future Carry for HR in Egypt and the Middle East?
· Jean-Pierre Cubizolle, Managing Partner- CC&T