The Saudi Arabian Business Environment - Literature review Example

The paper "The Saudi Arabian Business Environment" is an outstanding example of a business literature review. This chapter presents a review of the research literature relevant to this study. The study synthesizes knowledge from a number of different fields of business and management research, and because the available background is so extensive, it is helpful to approach a review of the literature in several parts, which are briefly described below.

The Saudi Arabian Business Environment: This section of the literature review will examine contemporary analyses of the Saudi business and economic environment, with particular focus on the conditions that affect firms listed on the Saudi Arabian stock exchange. Some of the information here is drawn from reports of investment and business analysts (Samba Financial Group, 2009; BMI, 2010, 2011), and some are found in academic research studies (At-Twaijri, 1991; Naser & Nuseibeh, 2003; Rice, 2004; Al-Abdulqader, et al., 2007; Alkathlan & Prabakaran, 2009; Maghrabi, et al., 2009; Al-Moghaiwli, 2010; Kayed & Hassan, 2011).

A critical aspect of the Saudi business environment is the influence of Islamic law and culture on organizational culture. Shari’ah law imposes clear guidelines and constraints on the conduct of Saudi business in terms of overall business ethics, but most particularly with respect to finance and transactions. In order to fully-explore this feature of the Saudi business environment, a number of analytical and comparative studies on organisational culture are first reviewed (Bjerke & Al-Meer, 1993; Dedoussis, 2004; Idris, 2007; Al-Gahtani, et al., 2007; Al-Yahya, 2008), followed by a review of literature on Islamic business practices (Rice, 1999; Rosly & Abu Bakar, 2003; Rahman, 2007; Aioanei, 2007; Grais, 2008; Abraham, 2008; Khan & Mirakhor, 2009; Esler, 2011).

Concepts, Theories, and Practises in Strategic Management: The list of literature concerning different aspects of strategic management is extensive, but can be roughly divided into three main areas. Conceptual studies address the definition of strategic management.