Kevin Figueroa
Professor Silva
BUSI 370
27 November 2017
As the business world flourishes, firms and entrepreneurs must consider expanding their endeavors globally in order to innovate. Although expatriates seek opportunities in other countries, they may also encounter cultural differences. A universal cultural difference that has been exposed throughout history is the role of a woman. In the past century, the role of a woman has evolved to the point where she can take most responsibilities a man can in the workforce.
Despite women’s increased involvement in higher education, in some conservative cultures, a woman faces hardships that cause them to fail. In the Middle East, women are generally no longer considered second-class citizens, but their status are still not equivalent to men. In this paper, a SWOT analysis will be used to explain how women expatriates in the Middle East could affect a firm. Due to the highly global nature of business today, firms worldwide emphasize the success of expatriates on international assignments.
Strengths
Women and men differ in their capabilities and therefore are able to make different but equally valuable contributions to the organization. Women should be considered for expatriate assignment because they have a diversity of skills that can add to the venture. There are plenty of female expats already residing in the Middle East. According to go-gulf.ae In the UAE, 37% of expatriates are women, which is less than the global average (53%). According to psychologist, James Adler women tend to be more skilled when it comes to intrapersonal skills compared to men. He explains that this is true to an extent because women are mainly driven by emotion while men are mainly driven by logic. Another words, women tend to read subtle cues such as nonverbal communication and general vibes in a social setting. Although there is a lot of critical thinking and logic in a work setting, the emotional part is also important especially when it comes to understanding new cultures. On the other hand, the contrast in which women have to adapt culturally is higher.
Weaknesses
For this reason, companies are often hesitant to send female expatriates. Companies also hesitate to send women abroad because they felt that foreigners would be prejudice against women and those female mangers could not succeed even if sent (Adler, 1995). For instance, it is the only country in the world that restricts women from driving and makes it obligatory for women to cover their full body with abaya. Due to the strict segregation of roles for both male and females, it is expected that female expatriates would be stereotyped negatively and face challenges in their cross-cultural adjustment relating to family issues, gender stereotypes and specific gender based restrictions in the host culture. (Caligiuri and Cascio 1998). From a female perspective, living and working in Iran will require an understanding of the culture and the respective laws of the country. The common sentiment of female expats is that Iran can be tough to live and work in at first. Understanding the cultural differences and the expectations placed on females within this society takes some getting used to. However, once able to navigate Iranian society successfully, it seems they feel safe and respected (attacks on foreign women in Iran is virtually non-existent) -although frustrations may not be far away, such as no physical contact at all with males, dressing appropriately and needing to be accompanied when outside. As noted by Al-Asmari (2008), ‘a distinctive feature of Saudi Arabia is the significant proportion of expatriate workers in the labor force and the segmentation of its Widespread Western perceptions of the Middle East tend to centre on stereotypes portrayed in the media of violence, instability and oppression amidst untold oil riches. Not many Westerners would imagine Western female expatriates choosing to work in such an environment and much
less, doing so successfully. Yet, in pockets of the Middle East, such as the United Arab
Emirates (UAE), Western female expatriates appear to be finding great opportunities to
effectively pursue interesting and varied professional careers.
Opportunities
Female graduates should be aware that worldwide women hold a very low percentage of all international management positions. This circumstance, in my opinion, hinders businesses around the world because the best candidate for an assignment might not be chosen. However, knowing this opens up opportunities for businesses to diversify and women to offer value.
Due to the plentiful oil and gas reserves and growth in industry, the arrival of corporations in the Middle East are increasing, which in turn has caused an increase in expatriation in places like the UAE and Saudi Arabia. The Middle East offers great career opportunities, higher wages, tax-free incomes, and excellent conditions, not just to men but also women. Women with the right qualifications and experience can find high-paying jobs in senior positions across any industry. For the first time in its history, Saudi Arabia is also encouraging the female population to join the workforce.
Threats
A major threat a business may encounter is expatriate failure. Women expatriates face the extra challenge of overcoming the host culture's perception of female roles on top of the differences in culture (Bartol 2004). It can be quite difficult for a woman expatriate to compete in a position in which have been historically dominated by men. The Expat Explorer Survey (2012) conducted by Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) reveals that in Saudi Arabia (34%) roughly one- third of expats want to leave their current country which is much higher than the global average of 13% (one in ten expatriates wants to leave). Because of this, female expatriates could potentially cost companies a lot of money.
Conclusion
Although women are partaking in international assignments, there are certain things that might hinder women from being successful in the Middle East. Is it a good idea to send female expatriates to the Middle East? I think that conservative cultures are slowly but surely changing female roles in the workforce and therefore it is a good idea to do so. A century ago, women hardly had jobs and now even conservative countries are starting to change that. I think that if a woman is aware and is properly trained to work in an environment where she is highly like to be discriminated against, then it is a risk worth taking. Although it could cost firms hundreds of thousands of dollars, the company could still benefit from expatriate failure because that employee will now be able to excel in an environment where they are not prejudiced against. I think women who take on assignments in the Middle East are the ones who can and are changing the world.
Works Cited
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work, Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA (2004), pp. 239-261
Bartol K.M, Butterfield B.A Sex effects in evaluating leadersJournal of Applied
Psychology, 61 (1976), pp. 446-454
C Bowen, J.K Swim, R.R JacobsEvaluating gender biases on actual job performance of real
people: A meta-analysis Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 30 (2000), pp. 2194-2215
Nancy K, and Sully Taylor. 2002. “Experiences of Women Professionals Abroad: Comparisons
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J Swim, E Borgida, G Maruyama, D.G MyersJoan McKay versus John McKay: Do gender
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(2017, May 9). Retrieved November 23, 2017, from
https://www.expatfocus.com/c/mode=prnt/id=4197/articles/general/what-is-life-really-like-for-expat-women-in-the-middle-east/
http://www.expatwoman.com
http://www.expatwoman.com
https://www.expatfocus.com/c/mode=prnt/id=4197/articles/general/what-is-life-really-like-for-expat-women-in-the-middle-east/