Husain Jabir is the Group HR Director of Al Barari – a real estate development firm that promises to offer a unique Dubai living experience with villas and a selection of apartments for the seekers of luxury in the thriving emirate. Husain has more than 9 years of experience in the HR field and good knowledge across various industries. In this interview, he tells us about the perks of working at Al Barari, the mistakes he comes across on candidates’ CVs and during job interviews, and what he sees as most useful for employers when hiring on Bayt.com.
1. Tell us more about yourself in a few sentences. I joined the Al Barari team as the Group HR Manager in May 2015. I have a degree in Management and have worked in a number of leading organizations across the Middle East. Al Barari operates within different sectors, including real estate, construction, asset management, and hospitality. Together with the HR department, one of our main challenges is to ensure the alignment between the group’s policies and practices and the industry-specific policies.
2. What's the best part about working at Al Barari? There are so many good things to choose from. I am fortunate to work with inspiring colleagues, the office is surrounded by verdant greenery, which is really soothing and helps me focus, and the passion with which the Zaal family has built Al Barari and continues to work with is incredible. Their passion is infectious! All of these factors make it a wonderful place to work. To know more about our company please visit our website www.albarari.com.
3. What are the top 3 things you look for in candidates when making a hiring decision? We look for people who are passionate, demonstrate technical capabilities, and are proactive in their approach to work. I strongly believe that “you don’t grow the business, you grow the people and they grow the business”.
4. Any advice for employers who want to retain their top performing talent? It is important to communicate with your staff, include them on important projects because studies show that the more invested employees are, the more likely they are to remain with the company. I also recommend acknowledging their performance and impact on the company growth and rewarding them – be it through a company email highlighting the person’s achievement, a promotion or any other initiatives.
5. What are the common mistakes candidates make in their CV and during the job interview? I cringe every time I see a typo on a CV. This is quite common unfortunately. CVs need to be read, proofread and then proofread again. I recommend having at least three people read your CV before you submit it for a job application. Another common mistake is the one-size-fits-all approach. Employers want to see that you have adapted your CV to fit the job and have made the effort to do so.
For example, if you are applying for a teller position in a bank, highlight your customer service, communication and problem-solving skills in each of your past experiences. Employers will look for these keywords and if your CV includes these, you will stand out. Other mistakes include distracting CVs that use too many fonts or have too much white space, and lack of action words. Instead of “responsible for” or starting a sentence with “I did X and Y”, use action words such as “managed”, “led”, “resolved” at the beginning of each sentence.
This way you don’t need to use “I” and each sentence can begin with a different action word. Often, I find CVs which are too long and ‘fluffy’, meaning there is a lot of jargon and overselling without any evidence to back it up. For example, “developed sales initiatives which increased revenue.” The candidate does not mention how he/she developed the sales initiative, what project the initiatives were for, or by how much revenue increased. The best format to use on a CV is the STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Results) format. Situation: Explain the situation; answer the who, what, when questions. Task: Clarify what you had to do. Action: What, why and how you completed the task. Result: What was the impact of the actions you took? Here's a good example of the STAR format: “Advised CFO on supply chain consolidation, resulting in savings of $240,000 for the company.”
Interviews are difficult and that is exactly why it is essential that candidates do their homework. Research the company and learn more about it. This shows initiative and that you are actually interested in the job. There have been times when I have asked a candidate what they know about the company and they had nothing to say because they didn’t do any research beforehand! Demonstrate initiative and a proactive attitude. If you don’t know how to do something, answer honestly and tell them that although you don’t know, you would be very interested in learning more about it.
Dress appropriately. I have seen candidates who came to an interview dressed in jeans and a t-shirt! You only get one impression, make it a good one. Prepare a set of questions you believe the interviewer will ask you during the job interview and practice answering them. Most questions generally ask about past experience and what role you played at each organization, a little bit about your background and why you want to join the organization. Be prepared!
6. What's the most useful Bayt.com feature when hiring according to you? Bayt.com provides the right talent for the right job. As there are multiple filters within the CV Search product, you can minimize your time shortlisting candidates and have a more focused approach.
