In a first-of-its-kind thesis on a governmental level in the UAE, the academic researcher Khalil Saqer bin Gharib, currently the Director of Corporate Communication Department at Dubai Customs, tackled one of the most important corners of an effective corporate communication. Titled “Toward A Comprehensive Model Of Effective Internal Corporate Communication: A Dubai Government Case Study”, the thesis was discussed and approved by Zayed University, as a prerequisite for Mr Bin Gharib to receive his Master's degree in Communication and Strategic Relations.
“The media industry in the UAE is acclaimed worldwide for being reliable and transparent. It presents an exemplary model for all to follow and learn from. Over my 15 years of experience in the fields of media and government communication, I learned that we need to provide our practical experience within an academic framework, so as to keep abreast of the latest in our field of expertise from an academic point of view,” said Bin Gharib.
“We absolutely need to couple the career approach with academic work, because together they form a driving force to the UAE’s knowledge economy,” he added.
The thesis primarily focused on two main questions and sought to provide sufficient answers for them; which are “What is the connection between internal corporate communication and employee engagement?” and “In what ways does the internal communication affect employees and their level of engagement?”
In order to provide answers to these questions, the researcher resorted to an analytic approach and reviewed some of the best practices worldwide as well as academic output on the same topics.
“Very limited UAE-specific research on this field of study is available and published. The study addresses the lack of internal communication academic research focusing on government organisations in the UAE, by proposing an empirical model for understanding the issues behind ineffective internal communication in government institutions and how internal communication can aid or hinder employee engagement,” Bin Gharib elaborated.
As a conclusion, Bin Gharib proposed and designed a comprehensive and sustainable model for internal communication.