The UAE has taken a lead role in empowering women in the Gulf. Government initiatives in this direction are to be applauded and the private sector must sit up and take notice.
In recent weeks, the Abu Dhabi Government granted employees an extended three-month maternity leave, introduced flexible hours and part-time roles and allowed mothers to leave work two hours early to care for their children for one year from the delivery date.
The UAE Gender Balance Council, meanwhile, is drafting legislation as part of its objective to create a supportive environment for women and change stereotypes about them in the Arab world. Among the likely outcomes is that the UAE will sign collaboration and partnership agreements with international organisations and governments that have made great strides in this area.
This comes at a time when statistics show women accounting for 66 per cent of government jobs in the UAE and holding 30 per cent of the top positions. There are now 20,000 female entrepreneurs in the UAE — that’s 10 per cent of the total number of Emirati entrepreneurs, representing a growth of 58 per cent growth since 2012.
I’ve always been a firm believer that balance in a team is so important in relation to skills and performance, but also in gender. A team that is balanced with equal numbers of men and women will always be more successful than one dominated by one gender.
The work of the UAE Gender Balance Council is to be admired and the private sector would do well to adopt some of their principles, although the danger comes in situations when you try to force the issue.
Back in the 1990s in Europe there was a time when it seemed that just about every minority group was forced upon employers, creating a lot of challenges for both, amid big concerns that the trend was putting people into positions they didn’t merit.
This created unnecessary tension and discrimination.
The balanced approach should be based on the best person for the job principle, with elements of flexibility within the organisation’s operating procedures to allow individuals to blend into their roles.
Leading international businesses should always have the best person available to lead them, whether male or female, and there should be a succession plan in place to help develop and protect opportunities for women with the capabilities to rise to the top.
It seems inevitable that the Gender Balance Council’s new policies will encourage international companies to put more women in senior leadership positions in the UAE.
To make this work, the issues around childcare, flexible working hours and dependent spouses all need to be resolved, and businesses need to be generally more open to the idea of a woman taking the helm.
There is no question that creating a gender balance in an organisation has a noticeable and positive impact on the business, something we have witnessed in our own business within the last year.
During this period we’ve seen that while men and women do think in similar ways in some situations, they are very different in their mental approach to other circumstances. One of the keys for us, and for many business operating in the Middle East, is to have experienced Arabic speaking women in our team at the highest level.
This was highlighted at a recent conference in Saudi Arabia where the role played by a female member of our team who has a deep understanding of local heritage and culture was absolutely crucial.
It’s important to have a balanced gender mix in any organisation. This creates a much better atmosphere in the office and allows the team to react and deliver in different ways.
The gender issue can sometimes be blown out of proportion, but the way behaviour is managed in a company is critical. It’s not healthy to have a male-dominated environment overflowing with locker room talk … or a female-dominated office. On the other hand, no business benefits from a dull working environment.
Dynamism in an organisation is developed by both genders working together, and it’s up to the leadership to build respect and dignity within their team to ensure there are no gender-related problems.
Unquestionably, the UAE is well ahead of the rest of the region when it comes to female empowerment. Illustrating this, the Federal National Council is now chaired by a woman, Dr. Amal Al Al Qubaisi — and becoming the region’s first female leader of a national assembly, while women make up 20 per cent of the UAE diplomatic corps.
Just as government steps will influence the private sector, the hope must be that other Gulf countries will follow the example being set.
The writer is Head of PA Consulting Group, Middle East and North Africa. All opinions expressed are his own.