PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present a coherent but critical treatment of Islamic work ethic (IWE). It explores the nature of IWE in the context of cultural and political evolution and offers a cultural and religious perspective pertaining to organization and management.Design/methodology/approachIt briefly investigates the economic and cultural conditions that facilitate the emergence of work ethics and the centrality of trade in Islamic culture. The paper, then, reviews the pillars and foundations of IWE and investigates various empirical studies conducted in various countries.FindingsIWE has economic as well as moral and social dimensions. These along with basic elements of IWE seem to provide the faithful with a sense of worthiness and strengthen organizational commitment and continuity. That is, work is viewed not as an end in itself, but as a means to foster personal growth and social relations.Practical implicationsOffers managers and consults various avenues on how to design teamwork and new methods of change that focus on producing results which reinforce existing commitment and enthusiasm. As justice and generosity in the workplace are considered virtues, issues of a hiring and firing become part of a broader concern with consequences far beyond the organization.Originality/valueIWE is a multidimensional concept. It links an organization's prosperity and continuity to societal welfare. Its four elements – effort, competition, transparency and morally responsible conduct – have the promise to strengthen commerce and economic progress in today's world.

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The performance of Kuwaiti small firms was examined, with specific attention paid to gender as a differentiating factor. Differences and similarities between the two gender groups were discussed with respect to human capital variables, family situation factors, business characteristics, and financial performance indicators. The results showed that women had less business experience, higher education levels, and were older than their male counterparts. Furthermore, the results showed that women‐owned firms suffered from liability of newness and their financial performance was significantly lower than men‐owned firms.

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The current economic crisis heightened the importance of the development of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in all the countries. Usually the SMEs' development programmes are developed and implemented for all the SMEs with standard programmes. In this paper, it is argued that SMEs are very diverse in their entrepreneurial characteristics. Such diversity of entrepreneur characteristics would require taking into account the demographic diversity of SMEs' entrepreneurs in designing and implanting the developmental programmes. To test this overall research hypothesis, an empirical study was conducted in Kuwait. The research revealed significant diversity of entrepreneurs across a number of demographic characteristics and hence, the need to tailor made the much needed SMEs developmental programmes.