And what a week it’s been. The very insightful Young Arab Leaders conference over the weekend followed by the superlatively managed and brilliantly attended Celebration of Entrepreneurship Conference Monday and Tuesday. No shortage of bright lights and world-class networking opportunities in Dubai this week.

One theme prevailed across both conferences shared both by the different speakers and the highly diverse pool of professionals I met – the theme of how does one identify world-class talent. The question was not just where to find A-players (all on the Middle East’s #1 jobsite, bayt.com, of course) but how to actually know when you are in the presence of a bright northern light and not a fading meteorite heading south fast . . . how to actually spot a rising star and differentiate one from a comet in a frenzied tailspin.

Speaker after successful speaker drove home again and again through their own stories that A-class managers hire A-class team members and B-class managers hire C-class team members. The notion of successful team building as being one of the key determinants of business success was established through story after story of proud entrepreneurial success. Entrepreneur after entrepreneur claimed they owed their success not so much to a brilliant or revolutionary idea as to brilliant people and sound superlative execution.

Of course as a now-seasoned veteran of the now-seasoned online recruitment industry I was approached by more than one individual asking me where and how to find really excellent people. With over 5 million professionals registered on the Middle East’s leading jobsite Bayt.com, from experienced Ivy League doctors, engineers and MBAs to fresh graduates from the region’s top universities as well as highly respected senior management executives from world class corporations across the MENA, we all knew the answer was Bayt.com. The question was not so much Where as How. How to identify the winners who would go that extra mile to innovation and excellence rather than monotonous mediocrity, winners who would achieve epiphany for their organizations in terms of breakthroughs, excellence and new ground.

In my opinion Rabea Ataya, CEO bayt.com, summed it up best.

- He said firstly he looks for people who have demonstrated passion, a competitive spirit and integrity and embody the vision and values of the organization.

- He said he looks for people who already have and will continue to run a marathon not a sprint and are running it to win.

- And finally he said that after all the technical tests and formal interviews he likes to sit with a candidate for a few hours, listen to his/her life story, and simply see if he would actually enjoy working with him/her every single day, 12 hours a day, for the long haul.

Post your CV: http://www.bayt.com/en/post-your-cv
Hiring? Visit: http://www.bayt.com/en/home-emp