The perceptions of diversity management and employee performance: UAE perspectives

Purpose The purpose of this article was to investigate the employee perceptions of diversity management and employee performance. To achieve this, employee respondents’ perceptions and perspectives have been tested, and findings are discussed. Design/methodology/approach To address this study's purpose, survey data were collected from 250 employees of two organizations in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Data were analyzed by age, gender and nationality for two variables: diversity management and employee performance. Findings Results showed that respondents perceived an improvement in employee performance when diversity was managed for employees of different age groups, females/males working together and a workplace composed of employees from various nationalities. Research limitations/implications The implication of this limited study is that further studies on the perception of diversity management for employee performance in the Middle East region needs to be conducted. The social implication is that organizational leaders can initiate diversity management to improve employee performance. The research is limited by the geographical context and access to the collection of data during the COVID-19 pandemic. Social implications The implication of this limited study is that further studies on the perception of diversity management for employee performance in the Middle East region needs to be conducted. The social implication is that organizational leaders can initiate diversity management to improve employee performance. Originality/value The contribution to academic knowledge from this research is two-fold: findings from a novel study conducted in the Middle East evidenced diversity management improved perceptions of employee performance. The value of the study for praxis is to incorporate employees' belief in diversity management for its potential to improve employee performance.