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Multicultural Workplace in the UAE

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Multicultural Workplace in the UAE

The paper discusses unique challenges that UAE companies face in relation to the highly

intercultural workplace existing in this country. The UAE demonstrates one of the highest rates

of net migration that contributes to workforce consisting of people who belong to a wide variety

of cultures (Alhashmi, 2017). Though such multicultural workplace can provide multiple

benefits, it may also cause serious challenges, such as language barrier, different level of

comprehension of professional etiquette, conflicting teamwork styles, and adverse cultural

stereotypes or prejudice.

The Main Challenges

One of the most significant challenges faced by UAE organizations is managing

workplace diversity. Workplace diversity can be understood as coexistence of employees from

various cultural and racial backgrounds in a specific organization (Al-Jenaibi, 2011). The United

Arab Emirates employs many workers from various states; in particular, the Philippines, India,

Indonesia, the USA, and Australia are widely represented. Organizations value diversity for

several reasons. Diversity is considered a significant element in ensuring equality of opportunity

and access in the workplace (Al-Jenaibi, 2011). Moreover, workplace diversity enables

companies in the UAE to operate effectively managing people from a wide variety of

backgrounds, so customs, ethnicity, and language usually vary significantly among employees.

Hence, language barrier is one of the most serious challenges to be discussed.

Although quality translation may serve as a key to efficient marketing, there may be a

risk of deteriorated communication as translation may deprive employees of understanding all

points of translated messages. Language barrier is not the only problem because even in the

company where all employees speak English, it may be difficult to grasp a range of accents or
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understand how a native speaker uses idioms (Alhashmi, 2017). Furthermore, effective

intercultural communication involves not only spoken words. Indeed, non-verbal communication

represents a subtle and delicate part of cultural interaction, which may result in misunderstanding

and even insults in some situations between employees from different countries. Gestures, eye

contact, and comfortable personal space vary significantly across cultures (Alhashmi, 2017). A

handshake or a greeting also has cultural implications that should be considered in the

multicultural workplace.

Employees from different cultures can practice various behaviors, values, attitudes, and

etiquette in the workplace, thereby initiating another challenge. Though such differences can be

enriching and useful in a highly diverse professional environment, they may also become a

reason for resentment or misunderstanding among team members (Alhashmi, 2017). For

instance, expectations of organizational hierarchy, formality, and working hours may be in

conflict with one’s culture. For instance, a Japanese colleague may not find it worthwhile to

leave the workplace earlier than the supervisor, while a Swedish specialist may be used to a 6-

hour workday (Reynolds, 2017). Moreover, various approaches to conflict resolution,

confrontation, or punctuality can be problematic as well.

This challenge is followed by another one, which is conflicting styles across teams. Work

attitudes and styles can vary widely, exacerbating differences and involving cultural values.

Conflicting approaches to work, if left ignored and unrecognized, can hinder productivity and

lead to conflict within the company. For instance, approaches to collaboration and teamwork

may vary substantially. In certain cultures, a collective consensus is valued when achieving a

goal; this approach is mainly utilized in Central America and Asia (Reynolds, 2017). In other

cultures, for example, in Germany, individual independence is emphasized. Moreover, the

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emphasis on organization, rigor, and order in the workplace versus spontaneity and flexibility

can show underlying cultural values. Thus, to avoid conflicts in the team, this challenge should

be resolved.

Integrating multicultural teams may cause certain difficulties because of adverse cultural

stereotypes or prejudice. Although local expertise is considered a highly important asset,

integration between teams should be promoted so that employees from different countries do not

work in the environment of limited knowledge transfer and isolation (Reynolds, 2017). It can be

a significant challenge, especially if there are biases in the relations between cultures that make

them less likely to work together. Adverse cultural stereotypes can have a serious impact on

productivity; in addition, they can undermine the company’s morale. For instance, centuries-old

antipathy between Germans and Poles or French and English can impact the company’s

performance (Reynolds, 2017). While not all stereotypes are negative – for instance, there are

ideas that Asians are smart or Americans are confident, – all of them serve as simplifications that

may constrain or cause division in the workplace (Reynolds, 2017). Even though overt

stereotypes or prejudice are a major concern, unconscious and ingrained cultural biases can be

even a more complex workplace diversity issue to manage.

Conclusion and Recommendations

Today, managing workplace diversity is considered a top priority for organizations

located in the UAE. The country demonstrates a high rate of net migration. Over the past several

decades, a number of people from the Philippines, India, Indonesia, the United States, Australia,

and other countries have come to the UAE as employees. Cross-border mobility has led to the

interaction of people from various ethnic backgrounds and with different customs and languages.

Even though diversity has numerous advantages, it also contributes to multiple challenges
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including the language barrier, different comprehension of professional etiquette, conflicting

teamwork styles, and adverse cultural stereotypes or prejudice.

For the company to operate effectively, these challenges should be addressed. One of the

strategies that can be applied to overcome these challenges is careful recruitment. UAE

companies should place a particular emphasis on hiring people with intercultural communication

skills. Besides, strong communication skills are highly important for employees to build healthy

relationships in the workplace. By hiring people with these skills, companies can avoid many

challenges. Moreover, companies should regularly organize team building activities and

meetings. With the help of these strategies, it is possible to unite the team and address the

challenges mentioned above.

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References

Al-Jenaibi, B. (2011). The scope and impact of workplace diversity in the United Arab Emirates:

An initial study. Año VII, Número, 15, 3-34.

http://www.cienciared.com.ar/ra/usr/3/1274/hologramatica_n15v3pp3_34.pdf

Alhashmi, A. K. (2017). Exploring cross cultural workforce management issues in the UAE.

SSRN. http://www.strategyfocusedhr.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Cross-Cultural-

Workforce-HRM-in-the-UAE.pdf

Reynolds, K. (2017). 13 benefits and challenges of cultural diversity in the workplace. HULT

International Business School. https://www.hult.edu/blog/benefits-challenges-cultural-

diversity-workplace/#working-styles