Emirati Women Inspired to be Leaders, Thanks to Professor
A talented group of young Emirati women students have been inspired to become leaders in their field, thanks to a presentation from an Oxford-based professor at a recent UAE careers event. Zainab Al Sharief and Wadeema Alkhoori are keen to take action to become leaders in their fields after they graduate from university and begin their UAE job hunt.
Before attending the careers talk by Professor William Scott-Jackson, Zainab did not believe that becoming leaders would be a realistic or achievable goal for her. But now, she has changed her opinions and believes that, with some further training, she can finally reach the top of the career ladder and become a brilliant female UAE leader.
And Wadeema is now considering working in the private sector, after Professor William’s talk highlighted the need for more Emiratis to enter the private work sector to benefit the UAE economy.
Zainab Al Sharief, a doctor who is currently studying a PhD in Prostrate Cancer and Stem Cells at Imperial College London, has had her opinions transformed since the leadership talk. She said: “Before I attended the workshop, I believed that to become a successful leader in the UAE, you would need a lot of luck and nothing else.
“But now Professor William Scott-Jackson has inspired me to become a leader myself, because his talk revealed that there are HUGE opportunities to become a leader in the UAE. I will definitely try to be an active and brilliant leader in my field. Professor William given me a much better understating about the thoughts of my fellow people regarding leadership and how the system of leadership works in UAE, compared to the UK.”
Wadeema Alkhoori, an undergraduate currently studying Finance and Economics at The University of Lancaster, said: “Before I attended Professor William’s talk, I was very sceptical about attending a workshop about how to be a successful leader in the UAE presented by a ‘foreigner’. However, Professor William Scott-Jackson’s talk went above and beyond my expectations. I really enjoyed how informative it was and was very interested in the data that he presented.
“Now, my ideas on effective leadership have expanded, especially regarding the Gulf Leadership Style. It was extremely interesting to learn about it from an academic perspective and too see it in writing rather than just experiencing it personally. I never knew people had actually studied it.
“I also believe that I’m in a better position to advance my career as I’m much more willing to work in the private sector. I almost feel it is a duty to do so in order to increase the number of Emiratis in the private workforce and to help enable the UAE’s economy be more independent of foreign professionals, subsequently allowing the economy to be more self-sustaining in the short run.”
Professor William Scott-Jackson of Oxford Strategic Consulting said that the UAE has huge potential to develop global leadership skills in its young people at the recent UK/UAE Pioneers Forum. But in order to harness this potential, young people must take every opportunity to lead at all ages, ideally starting to lead others at a young an age as they possibly can.
New research from Oxford Strategic Consulting, sponsored by energy company BP, shows that the UAE needs at least 64 per cent of Emiratis to become leaders quickly.
The professor says: “There is a huge need for Emirati leaders in the UAE and we are pleased to be able to help these young women to meet the challenge. Our research has shown not just that there is a huge opportunity but also defines exactly how to train and develop young Emiratis to take up these opportunities, fast!”
Professor William Scott-Jackson led a presentation called “Becoming a leader in the UAE” at the UK/UAE Pioneers Forum at Victoria House, Bloomsbury, London on 19th January 2014. Initiated by the United Arab Emirates Embassy in London, the UAE – UK Pioneers Forum was created to give Emirati and UK students a chance to interact with business leaders from both the UAE and the UK to showcase the career opportunities available to them within the UAE.