1. 28 november 2010 29november 2010
(Isabel Carter is a Managing Consultant
at Talent2 International.Talent2 are an
international end to end HR Solutions
business, believe in making a long term
contribution to the Middle East by ensuring
Nations, Employers and People achieve
their highest potential).
Human Resources
The Rise of the Bahraini Woman
Gentlemen Beware…
Women in Bahrain are
stepping up to the plate
and challenging men for
positions in power. With
Bahrain having the highest
female literacy rate in the
Gulf Bahraini women are set
to take the world by storm.
 Having worked in recruitment
across several different markets, I’ve
always been impressed by the number
of incredibly capable female candidates
who I’ve met in recent years. Talent
aside, however, women routinely face
challenges within the workplace. In the
United States, for example, a woman can
currently expect to earn a mere 77 per
cent of the annual income received by
her male counterparts. Wage inequality,
in turn, is supplemented by routine
workplace discrimination. However, if
one looks back on the global financial
crisis, it would appear that character
traits historically perceived as being
detrimental to a woman’s ability to
effectively contribute to the workplace
may not necessarily be as disadvanta-
geous as previously thought. If females
have traditionally been reprimanded
for choosing to engage in risk averse
business behaviour, the heady risk
taking on the part of Wall Street bankers
that led to the collapse of financial
institutions like Lehman Brothers has
revealed that caution is a quality which,
under the right circumstances, can
contribute to business success.
Bahrainiwomenhavemadeenormous
progress over the last ten years. In recent
decades, women across the globe have
come to realize that obtaining a quality
education is one of the best means of
breaking through the glass ceiling.
This is also true for Bahrain. Women in
Bahrain currently benefit from some of
the best education opportunities within
the GCC region; for example, Bahrain
has the highest female literacy rate in
the Gulf. Businesses in Bahrain are keen
to take on the large number of well-qual-
ified female Bahrainis who graduate
from the Kingdom’s top universities
every year. As a business, Talent2 is
dedicated to nurturing Bahraini talent
and working with Bahraini women
looking to begin a career in business. As
part of this initiative Talent2 has worked
closely with a number of key institu-
tions within the education sector. A few
months ago, we organized and executed
a highly successful Careers Convention
at the Royal University for Women in
Riffa which brought some of Bahrain’s
best educated women in contact
with top national and international
employers – Bahrain Airport Company,
Unisono and Hill & Knowlton to name a
few. Having then surveyed convention
attendees, we were again reminded
about the importance of encouraging
and nurturing female talent in Bahrain.
Our research revealed that a massive 92
per cent of attendees wished to enter the
working world on graduation, and that
the majority regarded employment as
a means of attaining financial indepen-
dence. Respondents provided us with a
very clear message: Bahraini women are
ambitious and hungry for success. This
has been noted by key players within
Bahrain’s education sector.
Pam Wahlers, HR Manager of the
Bahrain Polytechnic comments ‘At
the Bahrain Polytechnic we definitely
recognise the potential of young
Bahraini leaders and we are particu-
larly excited about the opportunity to
work with Bahraini women who wish
to take on leadership roles in business
and industry, we really get a buzz when
working with Bahraini women because
they readily embrace leadership oppor-
tunities and want to give something
back to the Kingdom: we act as the facil-
itator to that process.’
Of those Bahraini women holding key
jobs within the private and government
sectors, many have succeeded in
juggling workplace and family commit-
ments.Ratherthansacrificingtraditional
family values for career success, the
women I’ve met have been truly inspi-
rational in terms of their ability to ‘do it
all.’ Take, for instance, Hind Mahmood:
educated at Bahrain University and the
University of Nottingham (where she
received the prestigious Chevening
Scholarship), Hind currently works as
the HR Director & Board Secretary at
Tharawat Investment House, a boutique
investment advisory and private equity
firm. Aside from her workplace commit-
ments, Hind also lectures at the Bahrain
Institute for Public Administration
assisting with the development of young
people in Bahrain. She is also mother
to three and plays an extremely active
role in their day to day lives, as well as
making time for her to reflect. ‘“I want
to go out and change the world, but I
couldn’t find a baby sitter” - Graffito.
That quote really inspired me to be
proud and dare to break all boundaries
to move forward and grow. My career
is very important to me but my family
also. The truth is no one is perfect and
to be able to handle so many important
aspects of my life I have to use my time
wisely. By having a supportive husband
and family behind me, with decent time
management and routines in place this
enables me to achieve all that I want. It
is important to me to help society with
my expertise, to deliver and be a part of
the 2030 vision for Bahrain both profes-
sionally and personally. I take time out
to continually develop myself so that I
can be the best that I can be and make
the most of the opportunities are I have
been given.’ By holding on to traditional
values, Bahraini women have done an
exceptional job of maintaining a healthy
work-life balance.
Bahraini women certainly have a lot
going for them. They are well-educated
and determined to succeed; they’re
ambitious and hard working too. As
a group, they’re making impressive
inroads into sectors where they have
previously had a limited presence. Scott
Wilson has been one of those organisa-
tions in the Kingdom that prides itself
on the quality of its female employees.
Eman Al Sabah, a Graduate Structural
Engineer at Scott Wilson can identify
with the difficulties faced within a
male dominate environment. ‘After
being selected as a recipient of the
Crown Princes Scholarship I was able
to studying Civil Engineering at Purdue
University in the States. Many of my
teachers believed I wouldn’t make
it in this field and felt my ambitions
were unrealistic. However, I am now
able to demonstrate my own concepts
and designs just as much as my male
counter parts…I was successful because
of my own drive, self motivation and
awareness, I was optimistic and kept
striving for what I believed in, no matter
how crazy my dreams sounded.’
Having held on to traditional values,
they have managed to successfully
balance workplace and family respon-
sibilities. Perhaps the biggest barrier
encountered by Bahraini women
today is that of perception. Women are
generally more modest when it comes
to their achievements and by failing to
speak up, management are not made
aware of female employees’ business
successes. So, ladies, speak up! Ensure
that you inform key figures within your
firm about your achievements. Women
constantly add value to businesses, and
if my experiences within the Bahrain
market are anything to go by, things
aren’t about to change anytime soon.
Watch this space!