A passion for the beautiful game, the FIFA World Cup, and the allure of gaining international experience led us to help Farid make him move to Qatar. We’ve had the pleasure of assisting Farid secure a fantastic role and recently we caught up with him to find out how life is going living in the Middle East.
In his own words, we’re happy to share Farid’s story, his experiences and the advice he has for others.
‘I felt i
t was the right time to go.’
t was the right time to go.’‘Actually, I had plans to move abroad to gain international experience in my field and become more of an expert. I had offers in the UAE, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar. To be honest I wanted to choose between UAE and Qatar. The UAE has all the Big Four companies that are profitable accounting firms there. But I chose Qatar because they are hosting the FIFA World Cup, you know the football tournament (laughs). I hope I’ll still be here until that time.’
‘Starting from zero in everything again’
‘To be honest, this is not my first experience living abroad as I’ve studied in the UK, in Liverpool, before, and my family is also abroad – my sister lives in Germany. So, I knew what it would be like to go abroad again and starting from zero in everything again – new job, housing, etc.’
‘My transition into my new role here at KPMG was quite smooth. Our Partner within the Tax Department here has worked in Ukraine and Russia before coming here and he’s from Australia so he’s travelled around the world as well before coming to Qatar to be the Director here and he has great connections abroad. At the same time, along with me there were three more that were hired for the same position; one guy from Sweden, one from Hungary, and another from South Africa.’
‘For me that my transition was smooth because I knew what to expect. There were things that surprised me and that I didn’t expect. With respect to the role, my company KPMG already provided me with information about the scope of work, and what kind of clients to expect because tax advisory services can be very broad in this country. So, they prepared me well.’
‘It was to gain that experience that I wouldn’t get anywhere else.’
‘I was surprised by how large the expat community is here. The Middle East was not my first choice to go abroad because it’s quite hot here. But it was to gain that experience that I wouldn’t get anywhere else, and most of the community here are expats. So, it’s good to be in an expat environment where everyone is from a different country and it’s easier in general.’
‘I consider Qatar to be very safe because so many of the people here are expats and everyone is minding their own business. You can even go for a walk at 3 or 4am! And for families here as well in my team, one from Australia, a family from Sweden, one from Turkey, and they also feel that this country is very safe for their family, and for women as well. So, there’s no problems if you come to Qatar.’
‘I think my confidence has increased.’
‘My presentation skills have improved as well because here I have had to present to the CEO and CFO to one of the biggest financial institutions and industrial companies of Qatar, so it’s been good. Here industries are mostly focused on construction, banking, oil and gas. Now because our clients are mostly specialized in these areas, I’m more informed about the activities in this industry, how the commercial side works, and I’ve improved my skills in these areas.
‘We’re happy that finally it’s Autumn!’
‘I came here in June, it was peak summer and you couldn’t enjoy the outdoors. On the bright side, the weather is getting a bit cooler and we’re happy that finally it’s Autumn! The best time to come to Qatar is from October to April because a lot of people take summer off here. I would advise to go online and do your research on the place as well.’
‘I would probably say that in case you’re worried about safety, there is no issue here. And yes, you can get alcohol here. It’s sold in licensed supermarket, which has a very rich range to choose from. It’s not very strict as in Saudi Arabia and other places. So in Qatar, you can find almost anything here.’
We would like to thank Farid for sharing his story with us and wish him all the best the future.
If you’re interested in taking your career global, we’re here to help. Please get in touch with us here to talk about your move abroad with our trusted consultants.
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