Middle Eastern Promise By Donna Marsh, Consultant, Farnham Castle International Briefing & Conference Centre

The Middle East is a particularly diverse area in terms of its politics, religion, geography, economy and culture. 

This is un-surprising as it is made up of numerous nations including: Bahrian, Egypt, Iran, Turkey, Israel, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE and Yemen.  Yet despite the potential cultural challenges of doing business in the region, today, the Middle East is becoming an increasingly attractive prospect for exporters, as growth in some areas are outstripping the world average, while Europe and the West’s economies continue to struggle. 

For example: earlier this year, Bahrain entered the top 30 economies ranked by World Economic Forum,  Egypt has been recognised as having now one of the fastest growing ICT markets globally by Business Monitor International (BMI).  Similarly, in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), foreign direct investment is expected to grow by over 20 percent year on year.  Tarek Kabrit, Principal at investment holding company, Siraj Capital, recently stated this is: “mainly due to the continuing global recession where international capital is looking for alternative markets to achieve the high returns they had grown accustomed to.” 

However, nowhere is cross-cultural understanding arguably more important than when embarking on a business venture in the Middle East.  To illustrate such cultural differences, take the simple example of language.  Within the various nations that make up the Middle East: Kurdish, Assyrian, Armenian, Arabic, Hebrew, Russian, French, Baluchi, Urdu, Greek and Indian dialects are all spoken depending on which country you visit.  If businesses are keen to explore commercial opportunities in the area or wish to maximise benefits from existing operations they must ensure their staff have an enhanced cultural knowledge of their particular host’s native culture.

The good news is that Middle Eastern countries welcome those from the West looking to do business in the region.  In many of the Gulf countries, guest workers outnumber nationals, sometimes by as much as 8:1.  Today’s new generation of Rulers realise the importance of utilising local talent in the business world.  Programmes such as Emiratisation are encouraging young people to expand their horizons from government services and take up positions in the private sector. 

However, Western operational staff will benefit a great deal from familiarizing themselves with the various structures and ways of working of Middle Eastern business.  Arab business associates for example are more willing to do business with people they know.  They place more emphasis on goodwill and good faith than they would on performance and deadlines.  Anyone wishing to develop an effective business relationship needs to have a clear idea about how trust will be built and how it will be nurtured once it is established.

One example of a way to achieve this is to build in some time within meetings for social talk - ideally before a business discussion is started.  Your Arab counterpart will be keen to know the person behind the business and make a decision about your viability as a trustworthy business partner.  In fact, the business agenda should place as much emphasis on knowing your business counterpart as on the quality and value of the product or service offered. 

Likewise, do not underestimate or overlook the value of the contribution you can make to the development of skills and structures in the corporate environment of your host society.  Most expatriates are working in the Middle East because of demand for a product or service their organisation can provide.  With the support of localisation programmes (e.g. Emiratisation, Saudisation, etc.) it is becoming more likely that ex-pats will be working with highly-skilled, Western-educated nationals of each country in which they do business. 

However, be aware that local economies will look for a way to adapt your product or services to their own business practices.  Thus, your flexibility may be required when dealing with a number of routine activities, from contract negotiation to organising a training seminar to dealing with the importance of deadlines.  Again the key to success is gaining the trust of your colleagues.

Beyond this, there are many individual local cultures of the Middle East and an effort must be made to take this into account in everyday business life.  Some leeway is always given by the locals who realise we may never fully learn some of the more subtle cultural nuances of the region, however, there are some basic starting points for consideration:

Firstly, learn about the specific country you are visiting.   Be aware that Syria and Oman are very different places.   With today’s technology, it isn’t difficult to source news from local media, including on line newspapers and English language Arabic satellite television.  Remember a little empathy and cultural understanding goes a long way.   Never underestimate the importance of courtesy, hospitality, and honour.  These are the keys to gaining trust and respect which is so important within this region of the world.

Find out more about the Fundamentals of Islam.   Islam is more than a religion; it’s a way of life.  Regardless of your own background, learning the fundamentals of Islam will help you understand everyday behaviour as well as the underlying values that impact business practices.

Although many languages are spoken, due to the multicultural workforce, much of the Middle East conducts business in English.  However, it is helpful to learn at least enough Arabic to cover basic courtesies, common words and expressions.

In the Middle East connections between people are particularly important.  It’s who you know more than what you know.  Quickly build your own ‘wasta’ – the use of local connections to influence decisions and get things done..  Network through business associations as well as social settings.  Leverage resources within your ex-pat community, but do not use them as a crutch.  Get to know your competition and make friends with the press.

Finally to be successful in business in the Middle East you will need time and patience.  The region has a pace of its own; everything from a different business week to all of the ramifications of In sh’allah.  Business executives must adapt to this pace to survive.  Successful business executives will need to educate their colleagues back home to thrive.

To understand more about the business culture in the Middle East and  the specific nation you are aiming to do business with, organisations such as Farnham Castle International Briefing Centre specialise in cross cultural management development programmes and international assignment briefings and language training for every country in the world.  For a small investment, such programmes, delivered by regional experts will be invaluable to help make connections and overcome the inevitable cultural hurdles to maximise the likely success of business dealings in the area.  For further information about Farnham Castle’s tailored programmes visit www.farnhamcastle.com or call:  01252 721194.