The global fashion industry is likely focusing its attention on Dubai this week, as several news announcements were made that suggest London, Paris and New York may have a harder time keeping their grip on being the premier fashion hubs in the world. Aside from several major designers expanding operations into the Dubai market, there is also the fact that the London College of Fashion is focusing on providing short courses in Dubai. Guest lecturers of these courses include non other than Donatella Versace, Jimmy Choo and Tom Ford. These big name players in the fashion world would hardly waste their time if Dubai was not well on the way to being major impact in global fashion.

Dubai’s retail sector has seen surprising growth in the recent months, and there are plans for several new retail complexes to begin construction in the next quarter. These are great signs that the economy is on an upswing, but also provides many job opportunities for people with sales & marketing experience.

While traditionally, most people would think of sales and marketing as it relates to business-to-business sales, the upswing in interest in the fashion industry will create many unique opportunities as fashion companies begin vying for the consumers attention through advertising and branding.

Dubai’s high per capita income levels are the perfect environments to support and sustain growth of the high-end fashion sector. Few areas of the world can cite the income levels and love of luxury items that the people of Dubai provide for the fashion industry. Sales and marketing experts will find the sector rich with opportunities to help designers and retailers secure their share of the consumer’s spending.

Becoming a personal assistant in Dubai may be a bit challenging for expatriates not yet in the area. When you consider the difference in roles and duties between a personal assistant working in the United States, for example, and a person with the same title working in Dubai, you will be quite surprised at the differences. Because of this it is important to understand what skills and education are required to succeed in Dubai as a personal assistant.

Many college   in western countries are considering Dubai jobs as a postgraduate option. The duties of a personal assistant in Dubai typically involve acting as a manager that assists in running a business. Students that are interested in working as a Personal Assistant should consider taking a wide variety of Human Resources, marketing and business management classes during their studies.

The key to finding a job as a personal assistant in Dubai is to network with recruiting firms that specialize in administrative positions. Unlike other positions that require large numbers of employees with specialized skills, most of Dubai’s most influential business people will only hire one or two personal assistants. As a result, the best jobs are rarely posted on public job boards.

A recruiter is the perfect way to discover these jobs that are not publically advertised, as they most typically will have relationships with the client from filling other positions in the organization. Speaking with a recruiter prior to graduation is the best idea, as you can take any additional courses needed to succeed as a personal assistant in Dubai before graduation, thus increasing your chances of securing the position you desire.

The Media Factory has been having a rough couple of years, with the loss of its in-flight magazine and highly profitable Oryx magazine. After four years of producing the magazine for Qatar Airways, the airline decided to end the relationship with The Media Factory.  The Thai Airways magazine similarly came to halt, along with the football magazine Four Four Two and other private titles published for clients of The Media Factory.

Rumor has it that Mediaquest is considering buying out the ailing publishing house, mainly because of its legal, insurance and business titles that are still considerably profitable. While its just rumor, it could bode well for the media sector if the negotiations are taking place and are successful.

The majority of opportunities for jobs in the media and public relations sector over the last few years have been with advertising companies or with large enterprises that are focusing on rebranding after the economic crisis. However, if this purchase takes place there could be some terrific opportunities for media experts to handle the titles after the changeover takes place and journalists to replace those that choose not to work for Mediaquest after the changeover takes place.

For those individuals with the credentials to call themselves media and public relations professionals, Dubai still has plenty of lucrative opportunities. Many companies are changing the focus of their business and making customer service and rebranding a priority for 2011. Experienced expatriates are always in need, and the sector continues to show promise of growth while other sectors are stagnating.

The Dubai government announced its commitment to invest over $1.4 billion in the food sector during the upcoming months, due largely to the fact that over 90 percent of food goods is imported. While there are currently over 150 food processing plants in the emirates now, the plan is to grow this to accommodate the growing demand for production.

Food prices in Dubai and throughout the UAE have been the driving force behind inflation rates that are ranging between two and three percent. With the cost of sugar and rice on the rise, high costs are likely a large driving factor for the Dubai government to invest in more options for processing food locally. While the raw ingredients will still be imported, processing and packaging food locally drives the economy by creating jobs and lowers the overall cost of food in the long run.

HR Solutions in Dubai predicts this investment by the Dubai government will directly impact the job market in the food sector, citing a significant need for skilled labor throughout the food processing plants. As more workers are added to the plants, the need for management personnel will also rise. The new plants will also need to be fully staffed with management of all levels to help launch the business.

Because management personnel in the food production sector is a fairly niche group of the workforce, it is reasonable to assume the majority of these key management positions will be available to expatriates looking for opportunities to begin working and living in Dubai.

The wild popularity of the Dubai governments electronic payment system, ePay, has many other business owners pondering the impact going electronic could have on their businesses. As the world embraces a more green and sustainable style of living, relieving the burden on the environment that traditional billing and reporting causes is a big concern to many consumers. ePay collected over $300 million in electronic payments thus far in 2010, and the number of transactions increased from 13,000 in the first half of 2009 to 23,000 in the first half of 2010.

As more people in Dubai become accustomed to paying their bills via the Internet, companies that bill their customers will have little choice but to succumb to the technology. And of course, they will need Information Technology experts that have managed online finances and bill pay in the past to develop, monitor, maintain and troubleshoot these essential systems.

While the IT sector in Dubai is very well established, it has seen less slow down in hiring than other sectors have had in the last year. Because the majority of modern companies cannot sustain themselves without their IT systems working properly, the IT departments of major companies are the last to see job cuts due to the economy.

With the evolving needs of medium and large businesses in regards to technology combined with how freely the people of Dubai are embracing online bill pay, it seems that now would be a great time to start looking for career possibilities in the IT sector in Dubai.

OPITO has recently established new safety training and compliance standards that are designed to reduce the numbers of fatalities and injuries of workers in the oil and gas sector. Similar to the American OSHA standards, these requirements must be met to avoid costly fines. Oil and gas companies will be responsible for implementing training to ensure these new standards are upheld. Needless to say, the majority of this will fall to companies’ Human Resource Departments to facilitate.

Every year 1.2 million people around the globe are killed in vehicle related accidents. While a normal accident is a tragedy, when a vehicle hauling oil and other flammable materials is involved the results can be devastating. In an effort to help ensure motorist safety, the OPITO has stepped in and tightened the training requirements for all drivers involved in the gas and oil sector.

While it may seem that this training would take place behind the wheel, the OPITO has cited that attitude and behavior of drivers is the main cause behind the majority of accidents. The training that is to be delivered to drivers will need to encompass both on the road driving techniques as well as classroom based attitude and behavior modification classes.

Human Resource departments are typically the professionals responsible for any type of behavior training and enforcement, so it is safe to assume that many new opportunities for HR professionals that specialize in designing and implementing training processes will be on the horizon. If you have an HR background and have been considering a move to Dubai, now is the time to get your resume in front of recruiters that work in the gas an oil sector.