To include or not to include? A poetics perspective on the Muslim workforce in the West

Abstract

Organizations in the West have to contend with an expanding Muslim workforce, an issue of considerable importance in contemporary workplaces. The dilemma of inclusion versus exclusion is often cloaked in a limited understanding of Islam in tandem with Islamophobia. Our core question is how can organizational practices enable inclusion for the Muslim workforce in the West? We initiate a timely and important dialogue through utilizing and developing a non-conventional approach of poetics, to investigate how organizational practices are embedded in relational space with implications for inclusion and exclusion. Our dual contribution is firstly to illustrate the use of poetics to understand Islam in the West and, secondly, we argue for the use of a multiplicity of discourses and discuss theoretical implications for human relations through thoughtful reflections of Islam. We suggest a nuanced perspective that values heterogeneity, to unfold dialogic engagement and enable organizational practices of inclusion.