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To highlight the importance of leadership through identifying the leadership styles and practices in the Palestinian industrial sector and to find out the optimal style most suitable to this country so as to help its business leaders lead their business ventures effectively and efficiently.

The triangulation methodology and Bass' (1985) full range model of leadership was utilized because it covers a full range of leadership behaviors and styles from the highly transformational to the highly avoidant (Avolio and Bass, 1991). The multifactor leadership questionnaire and a structured interview were used as the main instruments to elicit the data of the study.

Transactional leadership style was found to be the most frequently used leadership style; transformational leadership was exhibited less frequently; and laissez‐faire was noted as the least commonly occurring leadership style and more frequently among the leaders with low educational background, low previous managerial experience, and employee leaders. Transformational leadership was found to induce the greatest satisfaction, willingness to exert extra effort, and effectiveness among employees.

The exclusion of the small and medium scale industries, the exclusion of Gaza Strip from the survey, and the unavailability of a complete and official list of Palestinian industrial companies.

The utilization of the transactional leadership style in the Palestinian industrial institutions resulted in high degree of dissatisfaction among employees, which in turn, has dangerous effects and consequences on the overall performance of the organizations. This issue should be given the greatest care, concern, and attention of both the leaders of the Palestinian organizations and the related decision makers if they want to develop and enhance the competitive capacity of the Palestinian economy. Additionally, educators in higher management education in Palestinian universities should include the teaching of leadership theory as an important part of the graduate curriculum.

Many factors were found to have an important impact on the choice of the leadership style. Among these: education, past experience, culture, political and economic stability, and mutual trust. Another important issue revealed by the study is that transformational leadership can be effectively and efficiently implemented in the transitional economies.

Available zakat accounting standards as well as the laws governing business zakat suggest that the adjusted net working capital or the adjusted growth capital of a business may be regarded as the base for computation of its zakat liability. The apparent consensus follows from the fiqhi prescription of imposing zakat on urud al-tijarah or the inventory of goods available for trade. Some contemporary scholars however question the rationale underlying this method and argue that the objectives of the Shariah are better met by seeking recourse to alternative methods of zakat determination for business organizations. There is therefore a need to revisit the issues and subject them to fresh scrutiny in terms of economic rationality and consistency.

The paper examines the arguments of the “orthodox” school as well as those of some contemporary scholars on alternative methods of computing business zakat. It also undertakes a comprehensive review of the laws of zakat as they are related to businesses and the related accounting pronouncements along with their underlying rationale. As the issue of incentivizing zakat payment is an important one, and it is often linked to provision of tax benefits, the paper examines a few suggestions in this regard.

On examination of specific suggestions – specifically, of treating earnings as zakat base – to scrutiny in terms of economic rationality and consistency, the authors argue that the “orthodox” position is not only consistent but also makes enormous economic sense. Further, the issue of incentivizing zakat payment and that of lack of harmonization between business zakat accounting and taxation need not be and should not be resolved by making changes in the former because the same has a sound Shariah basis. It can be easily resolved, if need be, by making changes in methods of taxation (tax deduction or tax rebate) and base them on specific items in the balance sheet or the income statement.

The paper provides useful insights to policy makers who are concerned about the huge gap between actual and potential collection of zakat and are considering tax reforms for incentivizing business zakat mobilization. It highlights the diversity in practices relating to zakat computation and related taxation across Muslim countries.

The paper searches for and observes consistency and compatibility between the orthodox Shariah-legal position and several accounting and taxation-related policies relating to business zakat. The policy prescriptions are expected to rejuvenate and strengthen the global zakat sector.

This study aims to devise policies in implementing cash waqf system of Baitul Maal wat Tamwil (BMT) in Indonesia, enabling the BMT to optimize its commercial and social activities to better achieve outreach, sustainability and welfare impact.

This study uses the strategic assumption surfacing and testing (SAST) method, with three groups of knowledgeable respondents, including expert, BMT practitioner and regulator to formulate important and certain policies.

The results show that four types of policies are required to improve cash waqf system of BMT, including 12 internal strategic policies, 15 internal operational policies, 15 external strategic policies and 9 external operational policies, which were found to be within a “certain planning region.” All of these policies have been agreed significantly by each group of respondents, as well as by all respondents combined. The most important-certain policies include Shiddiq, Amanah and professional Nazir, inculcate Islamic values to BMT employees and members, standard operating procedure and standard operating management of cash waqf management, technical assistance for Nazir to manage cash waqf and IT systems for BMT-cash waqf administration.

The qualitative method used has its limitations, which could be improved by incorporating other methods. Moreover, the case and respondents are all Indonesian, so that the results are possibly only applicable to BMTs in Indonesia.

BMTs could adopt these policies in implementing their cash waqf management optimally.

The management of cash waqf by BMT could help improve the social activities of the Baitul Maal directly from social cash waqf and indirectly from productive cash waqf.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study using SAST method to determine policies needed by the BMT to upgrade its cash waqf management producing more social programs for the society.