Oman’s labour market challenge is often discussed in terms of one simple question: Are there enough jobs? But for an economy trying to accelerate diversification under Oman Vision 2040, the more important question may be whether the labour market is producing the skills, mindset and productivity needed to support growth.
A training and development specialist said the issue goes beyond vacancies alone. In his view, labour market performance depends on how well policy, education, training and workplace culture are working together.
That link matters because economic growth is not driven only by investment and new projects. It also depends on whether businesses can find the right people, whether employees can contribute effectively and whether workplaces are able to turn skills into real productivity.
He said job creation is closely tied to the wider business environment. When regulations and policies support company growth, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises, hiring is more likely to expand. But when businesses face limits to growth, employment opportunities also become harder to create.
At the same time, he said, there remains a gap between what many employers need and what many graduates bring into the market.
A large number of graduates, he said, leave academic institutions with theoretical knowledge but without the practical readiness that allows them to move smoothly into the workplace. Employers are increasingly looking for candidates who can adapt quickly, solve problems and perform from the start, rather than relying only on academic credentials.
This mismatch, he argued, should not be seen only as an employment issue. It is also an economic issue.
For Oman, which is pushing to strengthen the private sector, raise competitiveness and build a more dynamic non-oil economy, a weak match between skills and demand can slow growth, reduce productivity and raise the cost of hiring and training.
Training is often presented as the answer, but the specialist said its impact is frequently weaker than expected because it is not always designed around real labour market needs.
Too often, he said, training is treated as a short-term event rather than part of a longer process linked to hiring, expansion or performance improvement. When programmes are delivered simply to consume budgets or fill schedules, they may end with certificates but not with jobs.
He said training becomes valuable when it is tied to a clear purpose inside institutions, such as expansion plans, succession needs, role-specific gaps or replacement hiring. Without that link, it risks becoming an administrative exercise rather than an investment in employability and output.
The challenge, he added, is not only about programme design.
Some training courses still need updating to keep pace with digital transformation and the changing needs of the workplace. At the same time, some trainees still assume that completing a programme should by itself guarantee them a job. In reality, he said, training can improve readiness, but it cannot replace self-development, initiative and the willingness to keep learning.
That is becoming more important as employers place greater value on broader workplace capabilities.
Beyond technical know-how, businesses increasingly need people who can think clearly, solve complex problems, manage themselves, work well with others and use modern digital tools effectively. These capabilities are becoming more important as companies focus more closely on efficiency, adaptability and execution.
In that sense, he said, the labour market challenge is also tied to work culture.
The issue is not always whether a position exists, but whether employees and institutions are approaching work with the right expectations. A culture of waiting, entitlement or minimum effort can weaken productivity even when opportunities are available. By contrast, a culture built on initiative, responsibility and value creation can make both workers and institutions more competitive.
That becomes especially important when organisations expect training to raise productivity but fail to create the conditions needed for improvement.
According to the specialist, skills alone do not guarantee better performance. Employees may attend courses and gain knowledge, but the results can quickly fade in workplaces that lack clear performance systems, supportive leadership or a culture that allows people to apply what they have learned.
Productivity, he said, is usually shaped by a combination of capability, workplace environment and leadership quality.
That puts management at the centre of the issue. A capable employee in a poor environment may lose motivation, while an average employee in a well-managed institution can improve over time and create real value. Leadership, therefore, is not only an internal management issue. It is part of the wider economic picture because it affects efficiency, retention and output.
He also linked personal financial pressure to workplace performance.
Employees facing constant economic stress, he said, are often less focused and more vulnerable to burnout. That can weaken engagement, reduce productivity and affect long-term job stability. In this sense, financial awareness is not separate from labour market performance; it can influence how effectively employees function at work.
Taken together, these challenges suggest that Oman’s labour market cannot be strengthened through education or training alone.
What is needed, he said, is better alignment across the system: policies that help businesses grow, education that develops relevant skills, training that responds to actual demand and workplace cultures that reward productivity and continuous improvement.
For Oman Vision 2040, that alignment is becoming increasingly important. Diversification will depend not only on infrastructure, sector strategies and investment flows, but also on whether the labour market can supply people who are ready to support a faster-moving, more competitive economy.
In that sense, the labour market is not only where jobs are found. It is one of the places where economic growth will either accelerate or slow.
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