Leadership challenge: juggling cultures
The question of whether women in Saudi Arabia should involve themselves in business has persisted for quiet some time.However the issue still remains to be understood whether women are allowed to participate in business dealings or not.Its true that just like many women around the world face a lot of challenges in terms of equality,leadership,their participation in business among other things.The case is no different for Muslim women in Saudi Arabia who for many years have undergone through the same ordeal s,which has not only been brought about by the religion but also by the cultures in Saudi Arabia.in this essay i will discuss the role of women in business with consideration to how they have been perceived to be in the past and what has changed(Nahavandi, 2006) .
Until recently ,women had been denied their rights to participate in various businesses as well as their social roles for opportunities that exists today.I think their participation in business transactions has changed with the continued availance of high education to girls in Saudi Arabia which leads to a more elaborate role in the business world.Though the career opportunities are somehow controlled ,it isn’t that overstated since more women are still finding their way to leadership positions in the oil companies to even the rank of an executive officer.Prince Adelah once stated that if more women would be involved in the work force,the number would rise tremendously improve and hence reduce the number of the unemployed.The princess said, “We have to open the door for women in the fields of energy and transportation. Women have to be included in the decision-making process.” (Saudi Arabia, n.d) This suggest that the leaders have realized of the major boost women would impact the business world(weforum, 2010.).
The purpose of the negotiation is to try and come up with a business draft with a potential Saudi Arabia potential business person.The kind of negotiation we plan to engage in requires one who understands the various cultures of the citizens of Saudi Arabia .This is of utmost importance since ,for a successful business deal in this country ,it requires one who knows their etiquette and the manner in which to behave in regard to inter-personal relationship.So prior preparations and a good understanding of the business culture would mean a success in the dealer .The religious holidays of Ramadan and hajj together with their daily prayers breaks should be well understood before planning business meetings.For this reason i will be more inclined to use the experienced woman executive whom we can capitalize on to ensure successful transactions.Some of the adjustments we would make is to ensure that foremost that we are well conversant with the customs of the Muslims to avoid any disappointments along the transactions.We would first opt to make a business schedule once we get to Saudi Arabia as most of the business-people like to attends to meetings once the other party has jetted in the country.We should also be sensitive of the attire we put on as the natives of the country are critical on how their counter-parts are dressed. Our business cards which we would use for exchange needs to be printed in English on one side and Arabic on the other side. Since most clients are interested in face-to-face transactions ,we would ensure to conduct several meetings to ensure everyone is comfortable with the their party.This would mean that the signing of the agreements and contracts are done from a free consent of both parties(Shoult, 2002).
The implications my decision would have on why i would opt for a female negotiator is the fact that ,all members of the team should be all involved in ensuring the successful fulfillment of the business deal since this is the core reason why we are in the business world. This decision should also act as a challenge to male executives to involve themselves more in learning the various cultures that exist so that as the business world continues to go global ,our business would not be left behind(Rehman, 2007).
References
Nahavandi, A. (2006). The art and science of leadership (4th ed.). New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
Rehman, A. A. (2007). Global Strategies for Doing Business in the Gulf States . New York : McGraw-Hill; 1 edition.
Shoult, A. (2002). Doing Business with Saudi Arabia . Wisconsin: GMB Publishing .
weforum. ( 2010.). The Global Gender Gap Report 2009. New York: World Economic Forum.
Saudi Arabia - Business Women. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.saudi-us-relations.org/articles/2007/ioi/070321p-women-forum.html
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