International leaders from world leading brands including IBM, RedBull, Adidas and Linkedin will descend on Dubai on 6 September 2012 for the 2012 World@Work Summit to be hosted at the Hult International Business School Campus at Dubai Internet City.

Delegates will learn from the latest global developments, research, trends and best practices in key workforce areas of leadership, talent management, employer branding, workforce planning and social media.

The aim of the Summit is for leaders to come together to share and discuss local solutions to workforce challenges being impacted upon by global issues.

The Summit comes at a time when employee advocacy is at a low point in the UAE. Amongst sixteen global regions, Employer Brand International's (EBI) latest global survey found in the UAE only 60% of employees would recommend their company to others as a great place to work, compared to the global benchmark of 68%, the second lowest advocacy rating after Poland.

Robert Lillicrapp, Hult International Business School's Executive Director said, "We are pleased to be hosting the International Summit at a time when UAE leaders are looking to capture best practices, as well as, gain experience in addressing the region's most critical workforce challenges."

International employer brand expert and bestselling author, Brett Minchington, who will chair the Summit said, "The World at Work requires a new leadership perspective and capability as we transition to a global landscape with many uncertainties. Technological, social and economic changes are impacting on talent and company performance and have the potential to stifle innovation and productivity. Companies who sit and wait for the economy to turn around will be left behind." 

Engaging employees and customers to drive revenues and growth using social media is a very hot topic right now.

Alberto Chahoud from RedBull will share deep insights into how the company has amassed one of the world's largest followings in social media including more than 29 million Facebook fans. Laura Fox from Linkedin, the world's largest professional network on the Internet with 161 million members in over 200 countries, will share how leading companies are engaging future passive talent across LinkedIn's social media ecosystem.

Dr. Ayoub Kazim, Managing Director, TECOM Investments' Education Cluster comprising Dubai International Academic City and Dubai Knowledge Village, said: "A lack of the right talent required to compete in the current business environment is the biggest challenge that organisations face today. In addition to integrating talent planning with their business strategy, companies need to view human resource management as a long-term, continuous process. "Initiatives such as the World@Work Summit play a significant role in influencing decision makers to prioritise the development of a high calibre workforce. Bringing together thought leaders and industry experts from across the world, the Summit creates a platform that facilitates the smooth exchange of ideas and best practices."

Local media identity Brandy Scott, Presenter of the Business Breakfast on Dubai Eye 103.8 at Arabian Radio Network will moderate a panel of International experts to discuss how to achieve talent management best practice in an uncertain economy.

Panellist, Panos Manolopoulos, Vice President, Stanton Chase International and Managing Partner, Middle East said, "In a global economy of constant change, attracting and retaining talent is a key issue for companies across all industries. The business environment is becoming much more complex at the same time of an uncertain global economy. This has the potential to accelerate the talent challenges already evident in the Middle East. We are pleased to support the 2012 Work@Work Summit that, we believe, will add significant value to the leadership capabilities of companies in the Middle East."