Diversity in the boardroom: One third of new UAE executives are women

Diversity in the boardrooms of UAE-based organizations is on the rise, with close to one third of new board appointments over the past twelve months involving female leaders. That is according to research from Heidrick & Struggles, a global human capital consultancy and executive search firm.

The increase in female participation at the higher levels of business is indicative of a wider shift in the GCC region. The UAE and Saudi Arabia, in particular, have made great strides in recent years when it comes to equal opportunity for women, driven by ambitions around good governance, company ESG goals, but also external pressure.

“We are seeing a rising trend of young leaders and women joining boards, and boards in the UAE should build on this momentum by continuing to strengthen their composition with demographic and experiential diversity,” said Maliha Jilani, partner at Heidrick & Struggles in its Dubai office.

There has also been in increase in the diversity of experience among UAE board appointees. The percentage of UAE board members that have cross-industry experience is now around 63%. The same applies for bringing in more external perspective into the top decision-making organ through non-executive members and advisors.

This diversity of views can be a great advantage for companies, said Shaloo Kulkarni, partner at Heidrick & Struggles. “Non-executive directors and board advisors often bring specialized knowledge that the executive team may still be building, and hence, a deep partnership and engagement model between the board members and the executive management is leveraged to steer companies toward their future business vision.”

A closer eye

While diversity is being prioritized in UAE boardrooms, the role that board members play is also changing: they are getting more hands-on, with 52% of UAE directors saying that they are getting involved with operational matters more frequently.

“Board involvement in business operational matters is relatively more prevalent in the UAE and the GCC when contrasted with several other more mature markets,” said Kulkarni. “Driven by rapid growth and business transformation targets, boards have an appetite to delve deeper into day-to-day operational matters, seeking more details and involvement beyond formal board reporting.”

Focus on technology

Technology continues to be a major focus for UAE boards. The research found that 83% of UAE boards are dedicating more time to AI, which is more than the 71% global average.

The finding echoes a recent report from Arthur D. Little, which suggested that nearly every CEO in the region is – in some form or another – exploring AI to enhance the business. The reasons are evident – AI can transform customer experience, internal operations and innovation organization-wide, and at a more macro-level, the adoption of AI can add up to $150 billion to GCC economies, said McKinsey & Companyy based on its forecasts.

Heidrick & Struggles said that the strong board-level focus on technology highlights the openness regional leaders have towards driving innovative change, and is aligned with the UAE’s aspiration of becoming a global leader in fields such as artificial intelligence.

Similarly, leaders in the UAE spend more time on financial performance and risk, geopolitical stability, and sustainability compared to global peers.

The research further found that board members are increasingly focused on understanding company culture and the views of employees. A total of 91% of UAE board members said that they should have more engagement with the broader workforce, compared to only 86% globally.