Orquest maximizes business efficiency through optimal employee scheduling and automation.
Size and plan your in-store teams to provide the best customer service and maximize your performance.
Feb 26 2024
Recent labor nationalization in MENA policies are reshaping the region’s workforce market, and the retail industry stands at the forefront of this transformation. These policies, aimed at boosting the employment of nationals and reducing dependency on expatriate workers, present both opportunities and challenges for private sector operations and human resource management.
Saudi Arabia has taken the lead in implementing these initiatives, rolling out the saudization of their labor force through sector-specific quotas. Similarly, the Emirati government’s ‘We the UAE 2031‘ project also emphasizes the integration of more national workers across key sectors of the economy.
Labor nationalization in MENA adds up to other industry challenges, notably the need for digital transformation. This calls for a greater focus on innovation and agile solutions to cope with changing industry demands and the evolving legislative landscape.
Retail in the MENA, particularly in the GCC countries, has enjoyed robust growth in recent years, with Saudi Arabia leading the way with $16 billion in consumer spending. As a cornerstone of the regional economy, the retail sector plays a pivotal role in job creation.
However, labor nationalization in MENA presents a big challenge for the industry, especially in the Middle East. Here’s what it means for retailers:
Hiring and training local talent may entail higher expenses for retail organizations, particularly if the pool of available candidates is limited.
Adhering to new labor laws and quotas can be daunting for retailers. Striking a balance between compliance and operational efficiency while ensuring profitability is crucial.
Retaining Emirati or Saudi retail employees poses a significant challenge, especially if there’s a disparity between their expectations and the actual work environment or career advancement opportunities within the company.
Labor nationalization in MENA may also alter the efficiency of retailers, adding administrative complexities, disruptions in store planning, and the need to train new employees. These adjustments could affect productivity in the short to medium term.
Orquest AI-based in-store scheduling software is designed to manage complex realities such as labor nationalization in MENA. Orquest creates the most optimal employee schedule distribution, responding to demand at every moment of the day, ensuring compliance and adjusting labor cost.
The result: efficient stores, productive teams and happier customers. In addition to:
With Orquest, retailers make sure they always have schedules that comply with current labor legislation, internal policies and the contract conditions applied to each employee in a complex and ever-changing legislative context.
Orquest takes full advantage of AI to figure out the optimal number of employees stores will need at any given time, avoiding over- or under-staffing, increasing productivity, and detecting labor cost optimization opportunities, such as part-time hiring.
MENA’s retailers streamline the scheduling process while boosting team efficiency through AI-based scheduling automation and optimization. Orquest minimizes schedule creation time, avoiding errors and allowing managers to make modifications when necessary, always ensuring the most optimal coverage.
Orquest creates flexible schedules, based on reliable demand forecasting and accurate store needs assessment, to place each person strategically where they have the most impact, improving the service experience and driving sales.
Happy employees make happy customers. Orquest’s fair schedule distribution, which takes into account everyone’s skills, availability, preferences and other requests, reduces turnover and absenteeism rates and boosts employee motivation.
Orquest integrates and transfers data easily via API with other platforms for human resources, payroll, clocking… In addition, it allows you to easily and efficiently track your stores’ most important metrics and schedule compliance to make data-driven strategic decisions.
Labor nationalization in MENA highlights the need for retailers in the region for innovative solutions to meet changing industry needs as well as regulatory requirements. In response, Orquest offers the end-to-end solution to adapt to these changes, ensuring regulatory compliance while improving efficiency and productivity.