Developing a Retention Strategy for Emiratis in the Middle Management Level in an Islamic Bank

AlSuwaidi, Fatima (2022) Developing a Retention Strategy for Emiratis in the Middle Management Level in an Islamic Bank. Doctor of Business Administration thesis, University of Liverpool.

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Abstract

This study seeks to develop a retention strategy for an Islamic Bank in the UAE context. It was necessitated by the attrition of the middle management employee base, which made it challenging for the firm to attain its Emiratization quotas. The study explored what XYZ Bank can do to delay the exit of middle management staff and increase the probability of retaining the middle management employees, the reasons why middle management employees leaving the organization, the retention strategies which can be developed and implemented, and the anticipated challenges in implementing strategies. The study used a qualitative methodology, involving interviews and focus groups, and adopted an action research approach that was situated in a practice-based problem and co-constructed actionable knowledge. The action research involved three cycles. The first cycle involved collecting reasons for exits during from former employees, using face-to-face or online interviews. The data was analyzed to draw out themes (and their sub-themes): lack of career development opportunities, negative effects on efficiency and work–life balance, limited product portfolio, lack of innovation, feeling underutilized, traditional ways of working, fairness and culture, and limited product portfolio. The second cycle involved two rounds of focus groups, discussing the strategies and their implementation methodologies. During this phase, approaches to implementing the proposals, as well as the strategies to mitigate employee exits, were discussed. Here, methods such as mentoring, performance-cum competency-based promotions, constructive feedback, and innovation-igniting mechanisms were proposed and discussed. As a result, the study co-produced an actionable framework for retention of middle managers within the organization’s context. The final cycle focused on presenting these strategies and the actionable knowledge to the company’s top level management, thereby obtaining their feedback and usability. Overall, the study presented an informed retention strategy and developed an actionable framework that the bank could utilize to retain middle managers and ensure that the organization met its Emiratization objectives.

Item Type:	Thesis (Doctor of Business Administration)
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Retention, Middle Management, Islamic Bank, Digitization, Work–Life Balance, Performance and Reward-Based Compensation
Divisions:	Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences > School of Management
Depositing User:	Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited:	29 Aug 2023 14:33
Last Modified:	29 Aug 2023 14:34
DOI:	10.17638/03167772
Supervisors:	Akbar, Hammad
URI:	https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3167772