Dr. Farid A. Muna
Chairman
Meirc Training & Consulting

April 2011

For the past 21 years our firm and I have been conducting research in Arab countries seeking to better understand successful Arab executives. We focused on many aspects of leadership, and over the years we found significant differences between Western leaders and the leaders we studied in the Middle East. For example, Arab executives were more autocratic and consultative in their decision making. They relied heavily on a different set of Emotional Intelligence competencies. Their leadership styles were more personalized (or person-oriented) and paternalistic. And they were more multicultural (culturally sensitive) in their perspective and practices, mainly due to the diversity of cultures among their followers. In short, a leader cannot lead a New Yorker or a Texan, for example, in the same manner he or she would lead an Iraqi or an Egyptian; and of course the reverse is also true. Culture and context do matter; becoming more multicultural is a powerful competitive advantage in today’s global environment [1].

What about similarities? We found one critical area of similarity when we explored this particular question: what makes great organizational leaders? More specifically, our objective was to discover “the when, the where, and the how” great leaders learn their leadership competencies?

We found out that developing potential leaders depend to a great extent on the early ingredients acquired during the first 20 years or so of one’s life. The findings of the field research revealed five critical ingredients for success. The more of these ingredients a person possesses or exhibits, the greater are his or her chances of becoming outstanding. These five ingredients could very well apply to organizational leaders in any part of the world, as we shall see shortly.

Self development: An insatiable thirst and passion for continuous learning and self improvement throughout life, from the cradle to the grave. It is manifested by an active inquiring mind through avid reading, active listening, and curiosity. Self development is instilled in people early on in life by parents, teachers, peers, and other role models.
Ethics and values: Refers to the importance of integrity, commitment, hard work, determination and persistence, quality of work, and respect for others. All of these values are inculcated during childhood and early educational years.
Quality of education: Aside from the acquisition of both analytical and creative thinking skills, this refers to learning social and emotional skills through extracurricular activities such as sports, student associations, charitable activities, theater, arts, and so on. Many of the leadership competencies such as teamwork, emotional intelligence, and communication skills are learned during school or university.
Early responsibility: Early responsibility (at home or at work) will allow potential leaders to assume greater responsibilities in the future. Such responsibility teaches discipline, accountability, an appreciation of hard work, and the value of money.
Exposure and role models: This ingredient refers to learning from others, from the school of life, and from role models and mentors. Exposure to other countries and cultures widens the horizon of the young, and makes them more “worldly” and culturally sensitive. Learning from admired role models encourages and inspires leaders to excel, long after these role models are gone.

These ingredients are not relevant only to Middle Eastern leaders; internationally-known management thinkers, including Warren Bennis, Charles Handy, and others, have written on this phenomenon. For example, in a chapter titled “Teach Your Children Well”, describing our earliest research, Handy wrote, “The results were fascinating, partly because what they [the Arab executives] said is almost certainly true of successful executives in any other culture, including our own.” [2].

In their book, True North, George and Sims wrote, “The stories of authentic leaders cover the full spectrum of life’s experiences. They include the impact of parents, teachers, coaches, and mentors who recognized their potential; the impact of their communities; and their leadership in team sports, scouting, student government, and early employment.” [3].

In brief, our research in the Arab Middle East shows that leadership development starts early, in the home in fact, and is a continuing combination of education, life and work experience, role models, and mentors. Successful Arab executives attributed their success to the above five ingredients. The implications of the findings are enormous, which cannot be elaborated upon here due to limited space but each is a worthy topic for future articles. The main implications are:

• The five ingredients for success are a result of child upbringing, education, and early life experiences. Each ingredient should be more closely examined by parents, teachers, and employers.
• Potential leaders would have acquired most of their leadership competencies before reaching their mid 20’s. Of course, developing leadership is a continuous, life-time, process of learning; it is never too late to strengthen some of the ingredients that were acquired in the early years.
• Employers must look for some or all the ingredients before making recruitment decisions. The more ingredients one has the better chances of becoming a successful leader.

Notes:
[1] The findings of the field research were covered in three publications:

• Meirc Training & Consulting (1989), The Making of Gulf Managers.
• Muna, Farid (2003) Seven Metaphors on Management: Tools for Managers in the Arab World.
• Muna, Farid and Zennie, Ziad (2010), Developing Multicultural Leaders: The Journey to Leadership Success.

[2] Handy, Charles (1996), Beyond Certainty, Chapter 7.

[3] George, Bill and Sims, Peter (2007), True North: Discover Your Authentic Leadership.