Inside MJ’s Mind — 7 Interesting things in doing business in UAE & Israel
By: Mani James
Tags: Israel, Business, Uae

I had to travel to Tel Aviv for the steering committee meeting with our client. It was my birthday and my family was a bit upset that I had to travel. I assured them that when I get back to Cape Town we will have a celebration. The meeting began and midway the client said that we have someone in the room celebrating his birthday & off came a birthday cake with my name written on it. I was so surprised that they took this extra effort to celebrate my birthday during the meeting. They had also arranged for a surprise dinner by the beachside. I was truly overwhelmed. It is an experience that I will never forget in my life.

We had delivered an intense engagement with the ministry of economy in UAE and the team decided to celebrate in one of the most popular hotels in Dubai. Thirty minutes into the dinner, one of the team members realized that her phone was missing. And she couldn’t recollect where she missed it. We also didn’t take the receipt from the driver and had no way to contact him. After 1 hour, we had someone from the reception called us to tell us that there was a taxi driver who wanted to see someone from the party. He had her cell phone and had traveled almost 45 km back to give her the phone. I was amazed to see how he went out of his way to deliver customer delight.

Over the past 10 years, there were many business trips that I have made to both countries, and every time I came back with great memories and experiences. With the recent peace deal, I see tremendous growth opportunities. Having been on both sides, here are the 7 common things I have found about both the countries that could help you while you engage in business

Relationships matter in both countries. I have learned over the years to make sure that you develop good personal relationships with people you do business with. They value the personal attention that you provide on insights and knowledge all the time. Giving that extra attention to your clients goes a long way in your business dealings. I have experienced this unique oneness in the national pride of being an Emirati or Israeli. Every time I talked to them about projects or concepts I found them drawing references to some instances or ideas that relate to the nation. Given the similar population sizes of both the countries, it doesn’t surprise me that both have similar GDP per capita levels. Being on time is very important be it online or offline. Quite interestingly I have experienced now government agencies in both countries are almost run as private sector entities. It brings in a lot of entrepreneurship style to the way they operate. You can expect to receive straightforward and to the point responses in both countries. I haven’t come across many instances of them trying to beat around the bush. It enhanced my respect for doing business with them over the years. This straightforwardness is part of the overall culture. This ensures both parties get the best results from a business relationship. Establishing trust takes a lot of time and you need face time to build that kind of rapport. Meeting face to face is usually preferred in most of the business dealings and more so in government where it is expected, almost always. The initial phases of establishing this trust can be difficult and time-consuming and you need to be prepared for that. So be patient in both the countries to win deals. I have been the first-hand witness to both Israelis and Emiratis on their creative and unique ways of how they come up with concepts and ideas. For Israel, I think it comes from the way they do things as part of their daily life and in UAE, it flows in the system right from top to bottom as they are all inspired and guided by their enigmatic leaders On a lighter side, on the business communication side, it is very common for Israelis& Emiratis to answer their cell phone and take calls during meetings. Do not be surprised or offended as this is a part of the culture.

Some contrasts that I have observed that are unique

Doing business in Israel is more informal than in other countries. Israelis are known to be straightforward and assertive. UAE doing business is quite formal and very business-like in every sense The dress code in Israel is usually business casual- a dress shirt and trousers whereas in UAE it is mostly a suit and a tie in most meetings.

It has been a memorable experience working in UAE and Israel over the years. I am very excited about the peace deal and for both the countries to come together and unleash the economic potential & becoming economic powerhouses in their own right. I wish both the countries good luck as they progress from this historic deal and move ahead to exciting times.

What are some of your working experiences that you will add to the above while working/traveling in the UAE and Israel?