Business Resilience and Market Adaptability: Pandemic Effects and Strategies for Recovery (The Political Economy of the Middle East)

This book assesses the resilience of enterprises and their abilities to adapt to changing circumstances and new business environments in the time of crises. Entrepreneurs, small and medium enterprises, and large corporations proved to be capable of utilizing innovation and technology to survive the economic and financial consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many enterprises have succeeded in turning the pandemic crisis into viable business opportunities, dominating local and regional markets, and putting them at the heart of technological transformation. 

The book also emphasizes the role of innovation, digitalization, and technology in developing new business models and innovative strategies that contributed to enhancing business resilience and market adaptability during the pandemic. The implementation of the new business model and working methods has not only made companies more competitive, but it also ensured the sustainability of the flow of goods and services in the time of the crisis. The analysis is provided through a detailed examination of key sectors, including small and medium enterprises, logistics and supply chain, food security, and labor market.

While acknowledging the unprecedented economic and financial consequences of the pandemic on enterprises and markets, this book stresses the importance of the lessons learned from this experience that are critical for supporting the business sector and strengthening market fundamentals to withstand similar crises in the future.

Ashraf Mishrif is the founding chair of the Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry Research Chair for Economic Studies, Sultan Qaboos University, Sultanate of Oman. Prior to that, he was Associate Professor at King’s College London and taught at several universities in the UK and the Gulf countries. He also served as a cultural advisor for the Egyptian Embassy Cultural Bureau in London, managing director of the London-based consulting firm EU-Med International, and industrial development consultant, UNIDO, Vienna. He is an expert in economic development and the political economy of the Middle East and has authored more than 90 books, chapters, and peer-reviewed papers, including two volumes on economic diversification and nationalization of the labor market in the GCC.