AN EXPLORATORY STUDY INTO THE SKILLS REQUIRED FOR A SAUDI STARTUP TO PROSPER

Abstract

The main objective of this study is to contribute to developing an exploratory study into understanding entrepreneurial skills in relation to non-technical and technical skills required for a Saudi startup to prosper. The aim was to answer the following: Research Question 1 (RQ1): What skills are viewed as important according to successful entrepreneurs in Saudi Arabia? Research Question 2 (RQ2): Are technical skills (i.e., hard skills) more important than non-technical skills (i.e., soft skills) according to successful Saudi entrepreneurs?

Pertaining to RQ1—What skills are viewed as important according to successful entrepreneurs in Saudi Arabia?—the results revealed the most important non-technical skills as 1) Integrity, 2) Communication, and 3) Teamwork. The most important technical skills were 1) Compliance, 2) Budgeting, and 3). Bookkeeping.

In regard to RQ2—Are technical skills (i.e., hard skills) more important than non-technical skills (i.e., soft skills) according to successful Saudi entrepreneurs? —findings from RQ1 show that the entrepreneurial skills rated most important by participants were predominantly non-technical skills. Furthermore, the majority of participants rated a great part of technical skills as low in importance, which suggests that non-technical skills are of higher importance.

Last, the desired objective of this research—determining the skills required for successful entrepreneurship in a Saudi Arabian context—was explored through the findings of RQ 1 and RQ2.