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1 Introduction
This paper seeks to rank in importance the characteristics of global leaders within the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The UAE is one of the richest countries based on per capita gross domestic product, and has a population of over 3.7 million, yet only 21.9 percent are nationals/UAE citizens ([27] Ministry of Economy, 2005). These facts have culminated in a move to develop the competencies of local employees in the workforce ([23] Mellahi and Wood, 2004; [9] Budhwar et al. , 2002). Despite its potential economic wealth, academic research investigating skill and competencies among Arabic managers is limited. [1] Abdalla and Al-Homoud (2001) argue scholars often overlook the study of leadership and organizational practices in the Arab context. Much of the existing literature focuses on human resource management ([8] Budhwar and Mellahi, 2007, for a discussion, [31] Rees et al. , 2007), employee commitment within certain industries in the UAE ([36] Suliman and Al-Junaibi, 2010), and some gender-related issues in Middle Eastern countries ([19] Hutchings et al. , 2010; [24], [25] Metcalfe, 2006, 2007; [26] Metle, 2002). This study's examination of leadership within an Arabic region contributes to existing literature, and answers the call for further research into the realm of global management.
This study's examination of global leader characteristics is timely for numerous reasons. First, the UAE's workforce diversity at all organizational levels and the presence of multinational corporations (MNCs) warrant an investigation of management skills. Second, the presence of MNCs in the region has increased the implementation of legal and professional requirements that are partially based on global standards. Finally, the Dubai Government recently launched the 2020 project, and the 2030 project in Abu Dhabi such as Sadiyat Island with the Louvre and Guggenheim museums. This multicultural business environment will continue to grow, and managers must be able to meet the future needs of the region's clientele ([2] Al-Shaikh, 2001).
Specifically, we investigate the views of managers concerning the core competencies and skills required of global business leaders. These competencies include, but are not limited to, their adaptability to foreign environments, technical skills, stress management, communication, intelligence, negotiation skills, as well as teamwork. Existing research documents the importance of global managers possessing these competencies ([29] Oliver et al. , 2009; [34] Schermerhorn