Stimulating the role of entrepreneurs in Qatar towards innovation and diversification in industrial sector through SMEs

The objective of the thesis is to investigate the role of SMEs in the economic development of Qatar, as these organizations may provide the appropriate knowledge, experience and type of training that can produce innovative, inspired, productive and nascent entrepreneurs. These entrepreneurs ultimately share in the building of a highly productive and innovative manufacturing sector and can help to fulfil the goals outlined in Qatar's vision 2030 pertaining to the development of a competitive and innovative economy.

The methodology used in this thesis consists of an exploration of the status of SMEs and the education training in Qatar. The thesis relies on primary and secondary data pertaining to Qatar as well as the GCC countries. In addition, a content analysis was conducted on standardized and semi-standardized interviews. Both qualitative and quantitative analyses were necessary to reach tangible conclusions. The data was collected from various governmental and semi-governmental bodies, the private sector, and institutional organizations. The primary data was collected through questionnaires and face-to-face interviews.

Nevertheless, there were some difficulties at finding credible documented information about Qatar; therefore, there was a heavy reliance on firsthand government reports and interviews to elicit the most accurate information possible. The scope of work of them thesis is more concerned with stimulating the role of entrepreneurs with minor attention to financial aspects and challenges of SMEs. Therefore, the thesis focused on educational theories and the experiences of other countries in order to discover the best practices that could be applied to Qatar's milieu and culture.

The pivotal question of this thesis is how to produce appropriate training for Qatari nascent entrepreneurs working in the industrial sector in order to encourage them to become more innovative, inspired and productive, so that policies can be formulated more effectively and efficiently to enhance the performance of nascent entrepreneurs. The title of this thesis relies on three main components: SMEs, entrepreneurship, and training. Three Islamic perspectives pertain to these components: Kilafa (Vicegerency), Takreem (Esteem & Dignity) and Ihsan (Excellence). Vicegerency relates to the importance of developing highly qualitative characteristics within entrepreneurs to perform at their best according to the power of viceregency. Kelafa's pillars are knowledge and equity. The first is sourced through research, education, and vocational training and the other can be obtained through the construction of efficient and effective policies. In order to be innovative man has to be educated and trained and providing the right kind of training is an aspect of Takreem (Esteem & Dignity). Ihsan (Excellence) is deeply related to innovation and training. Because training paves the way to Al Ihsan (perfection and excellence) and this requires uninterrupted professional development, and consolidated team work, Ihsan can be achieved best in communal environments, because participants can learn from each other, discuss and share opportunities to achieve perfection and excellent quality.
The conclusion of this thesis is to adopt entrepreneurial pedagogy that includes new educational approaches to stimulate innovation and develop entrepreneurial characteristics within Qatari SMEs.