Amel Karboul

Part 5: We are all first generation

The diversity within Arab society is enhanced by a great number of migrant workers – from 1% in the Maghreb to 18% in Saudi Arabia and as much as 80% in Dubai. Working as a coach you will have not only Arab clients but also managers and leaders from more than 100 different cultures. ‘If I learned something here [Dubai], it was a lot about people and a great level of listening – diversity in the UK meant working with a second-generation person from India born and bred in London. Here it’s a different game; everybody is “first generation”, with some western education, perhaps, but deeply embedded in their culture and values.’ Most leaders and coaches I talked to from Dubai stressed the aspect of listening. ‘I did not learn a lot about IT or new things in my field that I did not know before but I did learn a lot about people management and diversity’; ‘I worked in the last five years with people from 120 cultures – I definitely learned to listen.’ Coaches need strong listening skills everywhere in the world. However, working in a less diverse environment, one tends to see repeating patterns. As a coach we also tend to hold some assumptions that are accurate in a homogeneous environment most of the time can be easily tested with the client and his or her feedback.

Implications for coaching

• In such a diverse and especially fast-moving world as the UAE, people need to shift their own mindset and habits. ‘This morning I had a coaching session with a multimillionaire Saudi and then with a Ugandan lady working for the UN. This afternoon I am meeting an Indian executive. This makes my work fun and enriching on the one side, challenging on the other. You cannot make assumptions – most of the time they are wrong.’
• As a coach working in a cross-cultural context you should read about the region and culture you are working in. It is not about putting people in boxes but about an increased awareness of cultural features. For example, you need to know that demonstrations of emotions are a normal part of doing business: that way you will not assume wrongly that the Arab managers you were dealing with were upset during negotiations.

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