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Apr 20

Challenges of Doing Business in the UAE

Cross Cultural Training, Cultural training for Relocation, Culture, Culture training for Business & Management, Culture training for Human Resources, Culture training for the Public sector No Comments »
Dubai shao weiwei i Challenges of Doing Business in the UAE

© istockphoto.com/ShaoWeiwei

 

Combining the strengths of seven individual states, the United Arab Emirates takes each state’s unique histories and identities to form an innovative, modern and vibrant state. The UAE balances its commitment to forward thinking and modernisation with a strong Islamic tradition, however this can often present challenges for those doing business in the United Arab Emirates without an understanding of the culture.

Cross Cultural Training Middle East programmes such as Doing Business in the UAE will help employees in your organisation raise their level of awareness and understanding of the differences and challenges of doing business in the UAE. The following are some of the major challenges of doing business in the UAE.

Communication Style
Communication styles vary across the world, from country to country and region to region. This can be challenging for organisations operating outside their home country. Organisations doing business in the UAE must be aware of some of the communication differences they will come across. For instance, the multiple meanings of ‘yes’ and ‘no’ may differ greatly from their own cultures. The level of formality and directness in the United Arab Emirates may also be hard to adapt to.

Islam
While the UAE is an increasingly modern state, especially in relation to its Gulf State neighbours, religion still stands at the centre of Emirati culture and society. Islam plays a crucial role in people’s everyday lives, in the office and outside. Islamic customs should be observed and the effects of the Islamic religion on business interactions must be respected when doing business in the UAE.

Attitude to time
In comparison with Europe and the US, timekeeping is viewed with a far more relaxed attitude in the UAE. Meetings, for instance, will often run over, start late or be cancelled at the last minute without any warning. Another important difference in business culture in the United Arab Emirates is that the working week is different from that of Christian countries, running from Saturday to Wednesday, with the ‘weekend’ covering the Muslim Sabbath.

Hierarchy
Hierarchy remains a very important concept that you should consider when doing business in the UAE. It is essential to respect people’s titles and position in society. Most businesses have a top-down hierarchy, with one important individual making most of the decisions.

The UAE is modernising rapidly but traditional Muslim practices are still at the heart of Emirati society. Organisations doing business there must understand the balance between the new and the old. Participating in a cross cultural training programme for business management such as Communicaid’s Doing Business in the UAE will help you develop strategies for operating effectively in the UAE thereby enhancing your organisation’s success.

© Communicaid Group Ltd. 2010

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Feb 22

Camels on a Catwalk: Cultural Differences in the Concept of Beauty

Cross Cultural Training, Culture, Culture training for Business & Management No Comments »

A recent BBC news article describes how in the Middle East whole families attend beauty contests held in the middle of the desert. These, however, are not beauty contests as you might know them where glamorous models parade on a catwalk like in Paris, London or Milan. Instead, these are beauty contests attended by Saudi families who come to admire camels.

These camel beauty contests, also known as camel competitions, can be huge events which attract hundreds of families in the Middle East who all come to watch, buy or sell camels. This year the competition was so big there were over 28,000 camels being presented.

istock 000003344979small1 300x199 Camels on a Catwalk: Cultural Differences in the Concept of Beauty

©istockphoto.com/Klaas Lingbeek- van Kranen

Owning camels in the Middle East can be a sign of prestige and wealth. This is particularly true if the length of the camel’s neck, the firmness of its ears or the colour of its skin are right making it worth more than $2 million in some cases.

At such a price, camels can unsurprisingly be considered a status symbol for whoever can afford one. As such, Saudi families fiercely bid against each other to buy the most beautiful camel on display in the same way Europeans might bid for a Van Gogh canvas.

Understanding cultural traditions like this and being aware of the impact they may have on individuals is extremely important when doing business in the Middle East. If your Middle Eastern colleague proudly tells you his brother or uncle is the owner of a herd of camels, it’s important you recognise this is as a marker of status and wealth. In hierarchical societies like Saudi Arabia or the UAE, respect is an invaluable asset shown to those with status gained through wealth or family connections.

This is just one Middle Eastern tradition that might impact your business counterpart’s behaviours and attitudes. A cross-cultural training programme such as Doing Business in the Middle East will help you understand a plethora of other cultural customs. By simply being aware of some of these cultural customs, your ability to build relationships with your counterparts in the Middle East will improve and your understanding of the culture will help you be more successful doing business in the Middle East.

© Communicaid Group Ltd. 2010

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