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12 Highest Paying Jobs In the UAE

Choosing a career to pursue requires an answer a little more complicated than the one to the question “what would you like to be when you grow up?” The choice you make often involves considering aspects like the work-life balance of the job, its flexibility and manageability, and whether it offers good career growth prospects. 

For those who moved to the UAE to work, however, the choice often lies on one question: how much does the job pay? Luckily, a study done by Gulf News, where the news outlet reviewed over 300 professional titles or positions in the country based on basic wage and allowances, revealed the 12 highest paying jobs in the UAE.

The study focused on key job groups including accounting and finance, health care, human resources, information technology, retail and corporate banking, marketing, legal, office support, hospitality and services, and many others. The positions that took the lead were, unsurprisingly, those that required a knack for strategic thinking, mathematics or accounting, with salaries starting at 50,000 Dhs a month. Great leadership, expert communication and an edge for turning prospects in clients also made the list.

Read on for a closer look at the 12 highest paying roles and positions in the UAE:

1. Chief executive officers (CEO)

Average monthly pay including allowances: 100,000 Dhs

Salary range: 75,000 Dhs to 135,000 Dhs

Salary applicable to: Bank and oil and gas company CEOs

About the role: Chief executive officers are primarily rewarded for their powerful leadership skills, where every decision and action they take or make can have a impact on the company’s future. As they are generally appointed to their roles by a board of directors, usually after having been with the business for years, have climbed their way up the ladder have shown a very positive impact on the business’s overall growth and successful ventures, CEOs are also awarded their position as a result to their dedication and loyalty to the company. If a CEO is diligent in his or her role, they can be the keystones to the organization, inspiring leadership and even transforming it to better places.

What it takes to get the job: Ideally, both an undergraduate and a graduate degree in a field that correlates with the nature of the organization, as well as a strong background in leadership and finance. The qualifications would depend on the nature of an organisation, but it is ideal to have both a graduate and undergraduate degree, with a strong background in finance and leadership.

2. Marketing Experts

Average monthly pay including allowances: 95,000 Dhs

Salary range: 80,000 Dhs to 90,000 Dhs

Salary applicable to: Chief Marketing Officers

About the role: Similar to the role of the CEO, chief marketing officers (CMOs) carry great responsibility, where they are in control of an organisation’s marketing operations, and thus hold its brand image in their hands. They are expected to exude strong leadership, as well as excellent planning and strategic thinking skills.
The role of a CMO mainly revolves around the creation and execution of strategic marketing plans that would improve the organisation’s brand image, as well as leading the development and implementation of key brand strategy, managing events, attaining marginal revenue growth and profitability, and ensuring that the brand is a recognizable one, according to Charlie Burke, recruitment consultant for sales and marketing at Hays.

What it takes to get the job: To be a CMO, one should be a strategic thinker, have a creative and innovative nature and commercial awareness, project management skills, and interpersonal skills, as well as the knack for meticulous planning and follow-up skills. A university degree in marketing, sales, or related subjects, and experience in managing a marketing or sales team are essential requirements for the role.

3. Top Accounting and Finance Professionals

Average monthly pay including allowances: 75,000 Dhs

Salary range: 55,000 Dhs to 90,000 Dhs

Salary applicable to: Chief financial officers (CFOs)

About the Role: As the key trusted strategic adviser to an organization, the chief financial officers (CFO) ranks high on the pay scale. Determining the value of company share prices through market analysts’ perceptions and recommendations is a key aspect of delivering future profits and profitable cash flows to shareholders. This is done through the analysis of key data prepared and communicated by corporate CFOs, and thus explains the importance of the CFO role and the high figures of its salary.

What it takes to get this job: Having a passion for finance, accounting and delivering shareholder value are all key to becoming a successful CFO, so is having the confidence to make critical decisions that greatly affect the organisation. A CFO should also hold a degree in economics or accounting, as well as ongoing professional development under the CPA mantra. Of course, the most important qualification is having real life experience of handling tough decisions, according to Ganesh Rabhu, CFO of Simmons & Simmons Middle East.

Other job titles offering similar compensation: engineering project directors

4. Lawyers

Average monthly pay including allowances: 77,000 Dhs

Salary range: 60,000 Dhs to 106,000 Dhs

Salary applicable to: Chief legal officers

About the Role: Many large companies and corporations acquire in-house lawyers to protect their business from any possible lawsuits or legal complications. The responsibility of the in-house counsels is to be the protective front of the company against from a legal and compliance perspective, and they do so by managing all contractual issues and agreements, as well as by ensuring that legal liability is kept at a minimum, explains Kate Bramwell, legal business manager at Hays. 
 

What it takes to get this job: A minimum of a law degree with the right legal qualification is required for one to attain a position as a general counsel. To practice in the Middle East, a qualification from either the UK, Australia, New Zealand or the US are preferred, along with ones qualified to the Jordanian, Lebanese or Egyptian Bar. According to Bramwell, a general counsel would have “a minimum of eight post-qualified experience. They will typically have trained within a law firm and have around five years' experience of working within private practice when they will then move on to work on an in-house basis which is viewed as a more commercial take on a legal role.”

5. Neurologists

Average monthly pay including allowances: 73,460 Dhs

Salary range: Not available

Salary applicable to: Vascular surgeons, child psychiatrists/psychologists, heads of obstetrics and gynecology

About the Role: An extensive period of training and education is required to attain the position of a neurologist. “Neurologists are highly trained physicians who specialize in diagnosing and treating the diseases of the brain as well as any impairment to the spinal cord, autonomic nervous system, peripheral nerves, muscles and blood vessels that are associated with any of these structures,” explains Sharad Sindhwani, head of product development at Naukrigulf.

“Neurology comes under specialty medicine and a consultant in this area is highly valued and highly paid. The time required to become a consultant [or neurologist] depends upon a number of factors [including training]. Training time is minimum eight to ten years. Most often [they] are PhD/doctorate holders.”

What it takes to get this job: Practicing neurology or medical consultancy in the Gulf region requires completion of the registration and licensing process from the respective state council of health. “This is a rigorous process and obtaining a license is difficult,” adds Sindhwani.

6. Senior Bankers

Average monthly pay including allowances: 70,000 Dhs

Salary range: 63,750 Dhs to 77,500 Dhs

Salary applicable to: VPs for corporate banking, retail banking, branch network, alternate channels and asset and liabilities

About the Role: “The VP of the bank is heavily involved in crucial decisions, including long-term large level loans, potential investments that can raise the profile of the bank and, to be honest, the senior level roles within banking are seen as the key decision makers that can transform the image of the bank,” says Jennifer Campori, Managing Director of Charterhouse Middle East

“Normally, banking roles are a monthly salary and then an annual bonus that is made up of the individuals performance, the banks overall performance and potentially linked to key investments the individual has been involved in."

What it takes to get this job:  Working your way to the top is often the main route to reaching a position as a senior banker. “In most cases [they] have started at entry-level roles within the banking industry and worked their way up the ladder,” adds Campori.

Other roles that offer the same average monthly pay: Marketing vice presidents, project directors in oil and gas companies, bank chief operating officers (finance and operations).

7. Senior Mechanical, Electrical and Plumbing (MEP) Engineers

Average monthly pay including allowances: 62,000 Dhs

Salary range: 40,000 Dhs to 68,000 Dhs

Salary applicable to: MEP project directors

About the Role: MEP directors have a variety of responsibilities depending on the company of employment, but their main responsibility lies in the mechanical, electrical and plumbing installations in construction projects. An MEP can either specialize in a specific area for the company, or can instead be the sole responsible figure for all MEP matters for a big project. “[In contracting and consulting firms] they are responsible for all of the work being completed on time and correctly, and for liaising with the developer and consultancy,” explains Corrina Ford, MEP recruitment consultant at Hays.

What it takes to get this job: Work experience spanning over at least 20 years along with a background in MEP as a mechanical engineer are required to become an MEP project director. According to Ford, “[They] must have a degree in mechanical or electrical engineering, experience in managing big projects and have worked for a similar company, a contractor, consultancy or developer.”

8. Top IT Managers

Average monthly pay including allowances: 60,000 Dhs

Salary range: 50,000 Dhs to 80,000 Dhs

Salary applicable to: Chief information officers (CIOs), IT directors

About the Role: Top IT managers are responsible for projects that involve design, deployment, testing and support of various business solutions. Coordinating and setting up an information technology department are key aspects of the job, along with defining policy and procedure, organizing structure and managing the IT team within an organization.

What it takes to get the job: At least ten to 12 years of experience in the IT field are required to become a top IT manager, often starting from an IT analyst post and working up the ladder to a senior role, then a managerial level. “Candidates also need to be up to date with the latest technologies and certifications,” says Farhan Khan, IT recruitment consultant at Hays. A bachelor’s degree in computer science or IT and at least three to four years of working experience in a managerial role are the minimum qualifications needed. “Leadership skills is a must,” says Khan.

Other roles with similar pay: Executive creative directors

9. Retail head buyers/merchandisers

Average monthly pay including allowances: 55,000 Dhs

Salary range: 36,500 Dhs to 52,500 Dhs

Salary applicable to: Head of planning/merchandising, head of buying for a luxury retail brand

About the Role: The head buyer of a retail company holds a crucial role in every business, where his or her decisions can heavily impact the brand or image of the retailer. Therefore, an up-to-date knowledge of the latest industry trends and a rich insight into the potential direction in the customer market are important qualities that a person in this role must have.

“At the end of the day, if customers are not buying what is presented, the brand is impacted and of course, this ultimately impacts the bottom line.  As this role is key to the bottom line of the business, the salary and level of the position should also be aligned to risk and reward,” says Campori.

What it takes to get this job: A degree in marketing, business studies or retail management is ideal for the role. “You most likely would have started your career on the shop floor and worked your way up to becoming a buyer,” adds Campori.

10.  Actuaries

Average monthly pay including allowances: 55,000 Dhs

Salary range: 30,000 Dhs to 80,000 Dhs

About the role: Working mostly in insurance companies, actuaries analyse data to assess the possibility of an event, like the risk of a car crash or a train derailing, may occur. Drawing up insurance policies relies on evaluating risks, as it leads to lowering the cost of that risk.
“These are business professionals who deal with the measurement and management of risk and uncertainty, they are in constant demand within the finance sector and demand is always far in excess of supply,” says Ian Giulianotti, director at Nadia Recruitment Consultants.

What it takes to get the job: Passing a rigorous serious of professional examinations, which often cover the span of seven years, is the main step to becoming a fully credentialed actuary. “In some countries such as Denmark, most studies take place in a university setting, others such as the United States, studies take place during employment through a series of examinations,” says Giulianotti. “In the UK and the countries that follow its process, there is a hybrid university exam structure.”

11. Pilots

Average monthly pay: 52,500 Dhs

Salary range: 30,000 Dhs to 75,000 Dhs

About the Role: The aviation industry in the Gulf is booming, and pilots are therefore very highly sought after in the region. “There is a worldwide shortage of qualified flight deck professionals, and Middle Eastern carriers are a magnet for applicants. Additional benefits include free housing, utilities, school fees and provident fund investment,” says Giulianotti.

What it takes to get this job: Becoming a pilot requires a number of exams and extensive training, in addition to an aviation license. “Commercial pilots require a license which meets the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) standards, and must pass a number of exams both written and oral and crucially pass a medical fitness exam,” elaborates Giulianotti. “Training can either be obtained privately through flight training schools which the individual has to finance at a cost of approximately $ 250,000 (918,000 Dhs) or through a cadetship with an airline where the student is tied to the airline for a set period of years. Pilot training is ongoing throughout the career path.”

12. Restaurant General Managers

Average monthly pay including allowances: 50,000 Dhs

Salary range: 25,000 Dhs to 70,000 Dhs

About the Role: The overall operations of a restaurant are in the hands of the establishment’s general managers. Not only are they in control of the staff team and they day-to-day operations, but they also have the responsibility of boosting sales and monthly revenues. They are often expected to have full control of the budget, and have a rich knowledge of how to prepare “profit and loss statements” that thoroughly explain whether or not the establishment is making money.

What it takes to get this job: A background in finance or accounting is often looked for when hiring a restaurant general manager. Experience in managing profit and loss statements, and a track record of successfully running a food establishment or related business is also preferable.

Source: Gulf News