31 research outputs found
Contemporary career concepts and their fit for the Arabian Gulf context
No full textPurpose: the contemporary nature of careers has changed significantly in Western societies, yet studies on the nature of this change in different cultures are sparse. The aim of this paper is to explore how career theories and concepts from Western origin fit the Middle East, particularly within the emerging Arabian Gulf economy, putting in context explanatory propositions expanding the Western view of career theory and applying it to the environment of a rapidly changing society.Design/methodology/approach: this research uses a conceptual analysis approach.Findings: owing to demographic changes, and increasing awareness of the societal, economic and political concerns, the country cannot maintain that implicit promise. The old psychological contract has been breached as the country cannot keep offering similar jobs to the growing number of young people entering the labour market.Originality/value: this paper is the first aiming to explain emerging Middle Eastern countries' labour markets in their entirety, using existing Western career theories and concepts. Implications for individuals and employers in the global private sector who may consider a move to the Gulf are offered
Impact of knowledge management on law firm performance
No full textIt is a management truism that you cannot manage what you cannot measure. To
manage knowledge effectively organisations need to understand how to measure their
knowledge management performance against organisational goals.
The case study organisation has developed a balanced scorecard, which is used to
monitor key drivers for performance within the remit of the knowledge management
function, thereby aiming to improve the delivery of value adding services.
The set of cause and effect relationships at the heart of the scorecard - referred to as
the success map -
is at the core of this research, which aims to investigate if the link
between managing knowledge and financial performance really exists and -
if it does
-
how it can be influenced.
By means of analytical methods including regression, correlation and semi-structured
interviews the existence of this link is supported by evidence and the success map
updated to reflect the relationships among key performance drivers that were positively
identified as relevant. The outcome is a model for managing knowledge that can be
applied to professional service firms or comparable organisations that are highly
dependant on knowledge.
In relation to this model, cultural variations were investigated and found to significantly
influence the relevant performance drivers in several regions and countries across the
case study organisation. Ignoring these cultural variations was found to carry the risk to
base action on deceitful insights.
In addition to this, the analysis of the survey also gave a clear indication of how to
foster knowledge sharing among lawyers of different nationality and levels of seniority.
This thesis provides the empirical evidence for a link between knowledge management
and organisational performance
Career exploration and perceived employability within an emerging economy context
No full textFollowing four decades of unprecedented economic, social, and cultural change, the United Arab Emirates labor market is highly segmented: The native population is almost exclusively employed in the government sector, while the private sector is effectively outsourced to foreigners. This has created an unsustainable situation with growing numbers of young citizens reaching working age and with a public sector that has reached the saturation point. Policymakers repeatedly try to legislate to encourage private-sector employers to hire citizens. These policies have had limited success. We explored the career attitudes of 2,267 United Arab Emirates citizens prior to their entry into the labor market. Using structural equation modeling, we found that the social contract and resulting expectations toward state employment have strong implications for willingness to work in the private secto
Expats and citizens: managing diverse teams in the Middle East
No full textPurposeThe introduction to this special issue aims to describe the papers published in this volume as well as the setting of labour markets in the Arabian Gulf as the basis for the understanding the relationship between expatriates and the indigenous workforce.Design/methodology/approachFirst, the context is explained, followed by a description of the peculiarities of the research setting. Then, the articles in this special issue are described, followed by an outlook on the future of the expatriate‐citizen relationship and suggestions for future research in this area.FindingsThanks to the efforts of authors, reviewers, and the editors of this journal, every single one of the articles in this volume provides valuable insights from new perspectives on the theme of this special issue.Originality/valueThis special issue expands the understanding of a truly underrepresented topic.</jats:sec
Exploring expatriates' behavioural reaction to institutional injustice on host country level
No full textTurning knowledge into value in professional service firms
No full textAbstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present and discuss the
findings of research into the value perception of knowledge management among
lawyers and staff from among the top ten global law firms. Design/methodology/
approach – Interviews were conducted with lawyers as well as knowledge
management (KM) service providers within the selected law firms. The results
were then analysed by statistical means and compared to previous findings in
literature. The methodology is inspired and broadly based on a research paper
into the value perception of information by Broady-Preston and Williams.
Findings – The findings are that respondents showed strong support for the value
of KM to law firm success through concepts such as improved efficiency, quality
and other drivers for better performance. Research limitations/implications –
The survey in the paper itself was limited to the top ten global law firms and
is therefore not representative of the entire professional service sector or the
law firm sector. Practical implications – The results in the paper indicate
strong support from the internal customer side for the notion of KM adding value
to the business of a law firm. Originality/value – Prior to this paper there has
been little research into the value perception of knowledge management within
the professional servic
Gaining legitimacy through hiring local workforce at a premium: The case of MNEs in the United Arab Emirates
No full textThis study examines the process and outcomes of cultivating external legitimacy through the employment of host country nationals by multinational enterprises' (MNEs) affiliates in the United Arab Emirates. It builds on the literatures of both institutional theory and legitimacy. Analysis of data obtained from 48 managers of MNE's affiliates located in the UAE shows that in sectors where the employment of host country nationals is almost taken for granted such as in banking, MNEs are driven by a sense of appropriateness and social legitimacy. In contrast, in sectors where the employment level of UAE nationals is almost nonexistent, those MNEs engaging in localization are driven by the logic of economic efficiency and tend to employ nationals in order to extract rent from the government. The authors discuss the results and their managerial and policy implications. (C) 2010 Published by Elsevier Inc
