Mhamed Biygautane , Research Associate at the Dubai School of Government 26 June 2013 Bahrain

UNITED NATIONS PUBLIC SERVICE FORUM WORKSHOP Leadership Styles and Government Transformation: Case of Dubai’s Government SectorLEADERSHIP FORTHE TRANSFORMATIONAL GOVERNMENT MhamedBiygautane, Research Associate at the Dubai School of Government 26 June 2013 Bahrain

Presentation’s Outline • DSG’s current research project on leadership • Transactional vs transformational leadership • Is there a unique Arab leadership and management style? • Leadership styles in the Gulf region and UAE • Leadership initiatives in Dubai, UAE • Challenges related to these leadership initiatives • Smart Government Initiative (mGovernment)

DSG’s current Research Project on Leadership Models of Leadership in Dubai's Public Sector Objectives: Interview Directors General/CEOs of government entities in Dubai to identify their leadership styles. How do they lead their organizations and what affects their decisions? What is the impact of religion and HH. Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid on their leadership styles? Is there a Dubai model of leadership that is different and unique than other parts of the world? Research methods: Extensive literature review to identify models of leadership globally, regionally and locally. Then, in-depth interviews with Directors and CEOs of government entities in Dubaito identify existing or new trends of leadership for government transformation.

Transactional and Transformational Leadership • Leadership is generally defined as “the process of influencing employees to work toward the achievement of objectives” (Lussier 1990) • One of the most important aspects of leaderships is the style of the leader. • The classic leadership styles tended to be either: • Autocratic; • democratic (participative) or; • delegative (laissez faire). • The compatibility of the leadership style with the culture and norms of a country is an essential prerequisite for its effectiveness and success.

Transactional vs. Transformational Leadership • Transactional leadership is made of two distinctive features: contingent reward and management by exception. • However, charisma and inspiration are the main two features of transformational leadership. • The leader earns the respect of others and develops a deep emotional connection with them. • The leader’s clear vision is a source of inspiration and motivation to others around him.

Leadership vs. Transformational Leadership From a Western perspective, Baker and Coy (2003) identify 7 leadership virtues: • Humility • Courage • Integrity and impartiality • Compassion and empathy • Humor and imagination • Passion and enthusiasm • Wisdom and judgment

Is there an Arab Leadership & Management Style? (Jackson 2012)

Is there an Arab Leadership & Management Style? • To what extent is our understanding of leadership indigenous? • There is a strong tension between dominant “Western” perspectives on leadership and “local” definition, needs and realities. • To what extent are the “Western” perspectives on leadership applicable to the “local” realities of people and programs in the Arab world? • In some cases, attempts at reconciling “East” and “West” meant taking ready-made frameworks and “masking” them to be culturally suitable.

Is there an Arab (Muslim) Leadership &Management style? (Jackson 2012)

Leadership Traits in Kuwait and Qatar From a Gulf perspective, Abdallah (2001) identifies 6 leadership virtues: • Inspirational • Knowledgeable/experienced • Integrity and honesty • Rapport (having good social skills) • Visionary • Charismatic

Leadership Styles and Virtues in the UAE • A study conducted by Varadarajan and Majumdar (2010) found that the leadership style in the UAE is based on democratic participation. • The dominant style is: democratic style • Virtues that best describe UAE’s context: • Courage • Impartiality • Empathy • Judgment • Enthusiasm • Humility • Imagination

Leadership Styles and Virtues in the UAE “The relationship between the leaders and the people of the UAE is one of the secrets behind the nation’s success… Our leadership style is to make the organization a family with a head whose job is not only to make the family strong and successful, but also to look after the members of the family” – H.E. Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulaymen

Leadership Styles and Virtues in the UAE “The word impossible is not in the leaders’ dictionaries. No matter how big the challenges, strong faith, determination and resolve will overcome them… A leader does not necessarily need to be the most intelligent member of his group… rather he is the one with the clearest and most far reaching vision.” - H.H. Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum

Leadership Initiatives in the UAE Christina and Dabbagh (2010)

H.H. Mohammed Bin Rashid Al-MaktoumLeadership Initiatives • The Mohammed Bin Rashid Programme for Leadership Development (MBRPLD) : • An innovative leadership programme designed to develop future national leaders capable of promoting the sustainable development of the United Arab Emirates. • The long-term training programme consists of four categories: 1) Young Leaders; 2) Promising Leaders; 3) Government Leaders and 4) the Director General Majliscategory

DSG’s Leadership Initiatives and Programs

Challenges to Current Leadership Styles • Psychological and socio-economic environment that does not appreciate and support leadership. • The lack of clarity between leader development and leadership development. • The current leader programs prepare Emirati individuals to think and act in new ways, but they do not help them create new channels of communication, trust and cooperation. • Leadership (or leader) development programs in the Arab world “import” leadership paradigms from Western practice. • Even the ones that are modeled after existing programs and paradigms still carry heavy cultural and social codes mainly from the US and Europe.

Smart Government Initiative • The objectives of the mGovernment: "The Government of the future works 24/7 and 365 days a year. It is as hospitable as hotels, fast in delivering and strong in its procedures". • He instructed the federal and local governments to provide their services in creative channels within 24 months. • Acreative government is the advanced one that forges ahead and breaks the routine, to always be number one.

Objectives of Smart Government Initiative • “Our role as a government is to make people's life easier and achieve happiness for them. Our duty is reach out to all categories of society regardless of their e-status and e-culture, and offer them the best public services,” Sheikh Mohammed. • “Today, we want to take government service centres to clients who can submit their applications through a mobile phone or any other mobile device from any place without waiting ... the successful government is the one which goes to clients wherever they are and doesn't wait for them to come to it,” (HH, Seikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum)…

Mhamed Biygautane , Research Associate at the Dubai School of Government 26 June 2013 Bahrain