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The purpose of this paper is to explore the effect of board independence on firm’s performance from the Stewardship theory perspective.

The study uses panel data of 162 firms listed in Bahrain Bourse and Saudi Stock Exchange during the period of 2013-2015. It also uses several econometric techniques to confirm the robustness of the results, such as firm fixed-effect approach and two-stage least squares (2SLS) in order to overcome the endogeneity which exists in such relations.

The study found an inverse effect of board independence on firm performance which was measured using two accounting-based measures: return of assets and return on equity. Based on these results, it was found that internal directors are more effective in enhancing performance of the firm than independent directors as information asymmetry problem and lack of firm-specific experience hinders the ability of independent directors of taking proper decisions that enhance firm's performance.

The study contributes to the ongoing debate about the relation between board independence and firm's performance in emerging markets, focusing on Saudi and Bahraini markets which have recently sought to form a system of laws that aims at protecting investors. The study indicates the importance of such laws rather than traditional governance measurements in enhancing performance.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the mediation role of public governance in the relationship between entrepreneurship and economic growth in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

To achieve this aim, the study uses a 20-year time series analysis (1996–2015) and tests the effect of entrepreneurship on economic growth, through public governance, via a mediator model.

The study has determined that public governance buoys the positive effect that entrepreneurship activities exert on economic growth in the UAE. Based on this determination, the study posits a set of recommendations that focus on supporting entrepreneurship activities that play a significant role in economic growth.

The study adds to the literature on the impact of entrepreneurship on economies dependent on oil revenues vis-à-vis a public policy perspective. The study provides insights into the type of entrepreneurship that most efficaciously suits the Emirati social and cultural milieu in terms of fostering national economic growth. In addition, the study limns a vision of the role of public governance in creating an enabling environment that stimulates entrepreneurial activity and, in turn, increases economic growth in the Emirates.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure and firms' operational, financial and market performance (measured in the form of return on assets (ROA), return on equity (ROE) and Tobin's Q (TQ), respectively) in the Mediterranean countries from a stakeholder perspective.

Research is quantitative in nature, based on a cross-sectional and time-series analysis of 203 firms listed in six Mediterranean countries for 10 years from 2008 to 2017, with 1,689 observations. The theoretical model is built on a stakeholder theory. The practical model is built on the independent variable (CSR) and the dependent variables ROA, ROE and TQ.

The findings deduced from the empirical results indicated that CSR disclosure negatively affects operational and market performance but does not affect financial performance.

Studying the relationship between CSR disclosure and firms' operational, financial and market performance, with the consideration of variations, can bring many benefits internally by being more conscious of important activities that should be undertaken and externally by detecting what regulators and other stakeholders want for better sustainable development.

This research adds value to the existing limited literature of CSR disclosure on firm's performance in the Mediterranean countries, and it gives tips of advice for firms to manage CSR disclosure wisely.

This study aims to examine the impact of intellectual capital (IC) efficiency on bank’s operational, financial and market performance.

The study examined 59 banks for 5 years to ends up with 295 observations. The independent variable is the modified value added IC component; the dependent variables are performance indicators (return on assets [ROA], return on equity [ROE] and Tobin’s Q [TQ]).

The findings deduced from the empirical results demonstrate that there is a positive relationship between intellectual capital efficiency and financial performance (ROE) and market performance (TQ).

The results of this study may give a wake-up call for banks to examine the reasons of imperfect relationship between the IC and asset efficiency (ROA).

This study aims to investigate the moderation role of the percentage of women in the country labour force in the relationship between firm-level governance factors (board size, institutional ownership, ownership concentration, board independence, performance, firm size, firm’s risk and sector) and women on boards (WOBs) in publicly listed firms in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries.

The study relied on a sample of 436 publicly listed firms in 2018 in six GCC countries (Bahrain, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates).

The study concluded that the percentage of women in the country’s labour force has a moderation role in the relationship between board size and WOB, as well as firm market performance and WOBs. However, ownership concentration, firm size, firm risk and firm sector do not affect the percentage of WOB; consequently, the percentage of women in the country’s labour force did not have a moderation role in the relationship between these variables and the percentage of WOBs.

The study incorporates an institutional level variable which is the percentage of women in the country’s labour force in a firm-level relationship mostly understood by agency theory.

This study aims to investigate the influence of smart technologies on SMEs sustainability and to measure the mediation effect of SMEs’ sustainability strategy in the relationship between smart technologies and SMEs’ sustainable performance in the Kingdom of Bahrain. The sustainability concept for the purpose of this study includes environmental sustainability, social sustainability and profitability factors.

The study applied the quantitative analysis method. The sample size was 403 small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) from Bahrain.

The study concludes that smart technology has a major effect on profitability performance, among other sustainable performance factors. In addition, there is no mediation effect of “SMEs’ sustainability strategy”. The study has recommended improving SMEs’ participation in sustainable development principles by considering supportive global initiatives to “Net Zero Roadmap 2050”, increasing the demand for using technologies and including academic “sustainability” concepts in academic programs.

This study contributes significantly to Bahrain’s economic growth by studying the proactive and innovative methods for increasing SMEs’ efficiency. Furthermore, it adds value to Bahrain’s national economy by investigating the role of SMEs and its strategic practices by implementing smart businesses towards developing business empowerment in Bahrain’s economic vision for 2030 and meeting SDGs regionally and globally.

This study examines how chatbots could improve the client experience in the banking sector. Due to their quick and effective customer service, chatbots are becoming more and more popular, but it is still unknown whether they can improve the customer experience. In order to gather data from a simple random sample of Palestinian banking clients in the Gaza Strip, a survey was conducted utilizing the explanatory technique. To test hypotheses, data collected from 337 individuals was evaluated using simple regression analysis. According to the results, chatbots may enhance the customer experience by offering 24/7 availability, prompt support, and customized replies. However, issues with data privacy, lack of human interaction, and chatbot accuracy were also noted. The study comes to the conclusion that chatbots may be an effective tool for increasing customer experience in the banking sector, but their design, deployment, and interaction with current customer service channels must be carefully considered. This study significantly adds to the body of knowledge on chatbots and their potential influence on customer experience. The study offers useful insights into the particular difficulties and potential of employing chatbots in a highly regulated and customer-focused industry by concentrating exclusively on the banking sector. The results show that chatbot implementation in banking needs to be approached thoughtfully and strategically to maximize their potential for improving customer experience while limiting any possible downsides.

This chapter proposes a model for discovering suspicious financial operations such as money laundering. To achieve this, the authors reviewed research papers on money laundering and financial institutions’ cases and problems, especially those related to financial transfers. They also collected primary data through face-to-face semi-structured interviews with financial companies’ owners and experts in financial transfers to identify hypotheses that help discover suspicious transfers. The chapter discusses the six big data analysis cycle phases from problem discovery to model deployment to identify suspicious transfers. The chapter uses hypothetical data and models to discuss the results and focuses on exchange companies willing to analyze financial operations. The chapter proposes tools that exchange companies can use to monitor and prevent suspicious transfers including data visualization and machine learning algorithms.