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The purpose of this paper is to examine attitudes towards diversity in an emerging Gulf economy whose workforce is dominated by expatriates and is under significant pressure to accommodate host country citizens. It seeks to examine employees' attitudes towards workforce diversity in the banking sector in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

A total of 100 employees from 11 banks are chosen randomly from banks operating in the UAE. Those employees are asked to answer a questionnaire containing various questions that cover the applauded benefits of diversity as identified in the related literature.

All banks have a diverse workforce, with nationals representing a minority in all of them. However, banks differ on the various indicators of diversity with some being more religiously diverse while others more diverse in terms of nationalities or languages. Overall, Islamic banks are the least diverse on all dimensions of diversity.

Several obstacles are faced during the course of this study including limitations on access to employees, sampling limitations preventing more in‐depth analysis of certain aspects, lack of regional studies on diversity and the timing of the survey itself which coincide with the summer exodus of expatriates.

This paper provides useful information on attitudes toward diversity in an emerging Gulf economy, dominated by expatriates.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is in the midst of a transformative economic vision, aiming to diversify its economy and reduce dependency on oil revenues. Adopting modern technological solutions like Cloud Accounting Information Systems (AIS) is pivotal in this regard. The purpose of this study is to explore the impact of Cloud AIS on achieving Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 8.

This study uses a quantitative research strategy and bootstrapping to analyze data from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) industrial sector using partial least squares structural equation modeling.

The study findings provide substantial evidence supporting the positive impact of Cloud AIS on achieving SDG 8. Significant relationships were identified between infrastructure readiness and Cloud AIS utilization, the critical role of data quality in driving Cloud AIS utilization and the significance of security compliance in influencing Cloud AIS utilization. In addition, the quality of service providers was demonstrated to be a crucial factor for effective Cloud AIS implementation. This study also established that infrastructure readiness significantly influences the attainment of SDG 8.

The practical implications of this study provide actionable insights for decision-makers in the KSA industrial sector. Leveraging Cloud AIS effectively will enable organizations to enhance operational efficiencies, promote inclusive economic growth and contribute significantly to achieving SDG 8.

This study contributes significantly to the existing literature by delving into the impact of Cloud AIS on achieving SDG 8, specifically in the context of the KSA – an area that has not been extensively studied.

In recent years, a shift in economic focus has occurred, recognizing humans as the primary resource and indispensable element in economic relationships. This shift has given rise to a new economic model known as the knowledge-based economy, which places emphasis on human resources, experiences, skills, ideas, and knowledge generation. The knowledge-based economy relies heavily on information as a strategic commodity to enhance services and national income while increasing employment rates. This economic model has found application across various fields, including education, commerce, medicine, and urban planning. Particularly, the concept of smart cities has emerged as a modern notion linking the knowledge-based economy with urban development. Despite global interest in these concepts, the literature suggests a lack of attention to the knowledge-based economy and smart cities in the Arab Gulf region, including Qatar. This chapter aims to explore the relationship between smart city initiatives and the transformational processes of the knowledge-based economy, especially in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries like Qatar. It argues that smart cities and the knowledge-based economy are mutually interdependent. Smart city initiatives rely on the information and knowledge produced by the knowledge-based economy, while the latter requires better utilization of knowledge by smart applications to flourish. Using the case of Lusail smart city in Qatar, the chapter examines how the integration of smart city technologies contributes to Qatar’s progression toward a knowledge-based economy. It emphasizes the strategic significance, facilitation of innovation, and practical implementation of sustainable urban development strategies in Qatar’s development trajectory.

This study explores the determinants of value co-creation in the semi-government hospitals managed by Abu Dhabi Health Services Company (SEHA) and Mubadala in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The data were collected through a structured survey questionnaire from 1,000 patients attending different healthcare facilities in the UAE. To minimize errors, a pilot study was performed on 50 respondents. The study took the structural equation modelling (SEM) approach, adopting confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), reliability analysis and regression analysis to test the hypothesis.

This study confirms the substantial influence of communication, relationships, technological enhancement and customized service delivery on the co-creation of value. The findings also confirm in all respects the mediating role of trust in building value co-creation. This sheds light on the ways that healthcare facilities can enhance value co-creation and elevate healthcare services. Notably, the direct and indirect influence of knowing on trust is deemed insignificant in the context of value creation.

The main limitation of this research derives from its coverage of a subject that few empirical studies have targeted before; there were few models to draw on to demonstrate validity.

The research aids healthcare administrators in uncovering the dynamics of interactions between practitioners and patients, facilitating advances in the commitment to co-create value. The comprehensive insights into value co-creation contribute to the development of a versatile knowledge foundation, empowering proactive initiatives in the design of healthcare delivery models.

The uniqueness of this study lies in its expansion of previous research, making clear the effectiveness of various engagements that contribute to value co-creation in healthcare settings. It specifically focuses on semi-government hospitals managed by SEHA and Mubadala in the UAE.

Leveraging the job demands-resources (JD-R) theory, this study proposes and validates a mediation model depicting the impact of health-promoting leadership (HPL) on innovation performance (IP), with the relationship partially mediated by two health-related factors: psychological well-being (PWB) and positive conflict (PC).

Employing a structured questionnaire developed from validated scales sourced from the existing literature, the study collected data from a sample of 310 employees across various organizations within the service sector of the United Arab Emirates. The dimensionality, reliability, and validity of scales were assessed using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. The study’s seven hypotheses were tested through structural equation modeling in AMOS and mediation analysis using the Hayes process model in SPSS.

Support was found for all seven hypotheses, demonstrating that HPL exerts both a direct and an indirect effect on IP, with PWB and PC serving as partial mediators.

Distinct from the traditional leadership literature, which often views an employee’s psychological health as a personal matter, this study highlights the organizational role in promoting psychological well-being. It also provides significant theoretical contributions to the underexplored area of conflict management within the context of innovation.

By promoting employees' PWB, HPL can optimize human capital within organizations. Additionally, leaders can leverage the potential of PC to foster an environment conducive to innovation, resulting in enhanced organizational performance.

The findings enrich the leadership and IP literature by identifying inter-relationships between the three health related antecedents of IP.

The aim of this study is to conduct an initial investigation of information sharing between the vast number of expatriate employees and the small minority of local employees in Dubai’s private sector workforce. Research on the impact of the workforce localization policy has highlighted the frequent marginalization of locals within the expatriate-dominated private sector. One form of this is the reluctance of expatriates to share information with local recruits, and the authors conducted this study to assess the reality and extent of this phenomenon.

The authors designed a brief interview survey to probe how Emirati employees secure workplace information and whether they experience information withholding on the part of expatriate colleagues. The authors also explored whether any such experience impacts on their attitudes to working in the private sector since this is a key factor in the success of the localization policy. Complete responses were received from 0.9 per cent of the total local private sector workforce.

A notable lack of information sharing emerged with 58 per cent of respondents reporting their expatriate colleagues’ and superiors’ reluctance to share information with them, and 63 per cent describing experiences of discriminatory behavior.

The authors identify key cultural and communication issues relating to localization within Dubai’s multicultural workforce. These include the broader cultural factors that determine how Emiratis conceptualize information sharing. Future research can pursue this issue to help inform the development of supportive information sharing practices. Such practices are an essential part of the creation of a diversity climate, which is necessary to sustain localization.

This study is a pioneering attempt to empirically investigate the information sharing practices that Emirati private sector employees experience. It suggests that the exclusion of citizens from the workplace through practices such as “ghost Emiratization” reverberates in the workplace through a lack of information sharing.

The purpose of this paper was to assess whether there were differences in body image, physical activity and lifestyle attitudes between single and married Saudi women using gymnasia.

In June 2011, 80 women attending three different gymnasia in Hail, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia were recruited for this study. Anthropometric measurements of weight and height were performed. Socio‐demographic characteristics – activity history; obesity‐related knowledge; and behavior data – were obtained by self‐administered questionnaire.

The prevalence of overweight and obesity in the study group was 22.5 percent and 70 percent, respectively. Estimated weight loss over the last six months was similar for both groups. All subjects recognized the “thin”, “normal weight” and “fat” silhouettes. The majority of the single (76 percent) and married women (90 percent) subjects identified their own body shape as being overweight, but chose the “normal weight” figures as the shape they wanted to be. Reported weekly physical activity levels were low and similar between groups. No significant differences (P>0.05) were found in body image concerns or lifestyle between the two groups.

This paper reveals that the main motive for most of the subjects to use gymnasia was to reduce their weight and improve body image because they were either overweight or obese. There is an urgent need to spread awareness about obesity in Saudi Arabia. More educational programs about healthy weight should be implemented.

This paper aims to investigate how mobile phones can be used to support women’s entrepreneurship in Arab countries. The objective is to explore new ways to close the gender gaps in terms of entrepreneurship in these countries.

The methodology used in this research is an in-depth analysis of the existing literature and recent reports on women’s entrepreneurship and on the adoption and use of mobile phones in Arab countries.

The findings of this research indicate that female Arab entrepreneurs are interested in using mobile phones. However, they have not yet realised the full potential of mobile technology in empowering them beyond its basic use. Several challenges facing women entrepreneurship in the Arab countries were identified. Mobile phones can be used to overcome these challenges.

This research is based on the collection and analysis of secondary data rather than primary data to support the findings.

There is a need for collaboration between telecommunication companies operating in the Arab region and government initiatives to build a solid environment in which female Arab entrepreneurs can operate.

This research provides new insights and recommendations for reducing the gender gaps in terms of entrepreneurship by using new and improved techniques to address women’s needs for economic independence. This will also increase the profit gained by the telecommunication companies operating in Arab countries and bring additional income to this region.

While the legislative side of workforce nationalization as a key target area for public policies has been extensively studied and scrutinized, the marketing side has not. It remains mostly overlooked, leaving both researchers and practitioners with little or no information to begin with. This “marketing” information gap represents the focus of this paper and it is exactly what the author aims to bridge.

A thorough analysis of how nationalization policy has been perceived by the UAE workforce was carried out and the results of that analysis were used to identify the core components of a balanced strategy that aims at enhancing the image of Emiratisation as a public brand, or a public offering, and hence improving the implementation of the policy i.e. increase the employability of citizens and, at the same time, retain the much‐needed expatriate workforce.

The study, which consisted of 180 interviews collected in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), revealed that workforce nationalization as a government offering has been inadequately branded by stakeholders and the government did not engage the branding process at any level. The branding part of the policy was not addressed at all. In effect, the policy was left on its own in that regard. As a result, “brand Emiratisation” now stands for mutual private‐public distrust, implementation difficulties, and serious misgivings about the nature of the policy.

This is the first study internationally to address labor nationalization policies from a marketing perspective. As such the results and discussions therein have wide implications for the employment decisions in organizations, particularly as the number of countries imposing restrictions on the employment of foreign workers continues to rise.