According to Bupa Global 2022 Executive Wellbeing Index, professionals in leadership positions in UAE are planning to make career changes in 2023, including resignations.
The study said that more than half (53%) of UAE’s top executives in leadership positions were reevaluating their priorities. Concerns like mental health and lack of family time may also force these professionals to resign from their jobs and quit leadership positions.
In the past 12 months, over nine out of 10 (94%) of the UAE’s top executives have displayed signs of poor mental health, according to the report.
“One in five people (20%) reported burnout, 24% said they had “low mood feelings of sadness and anxiety,” and 22% said they had no energy. In addition, 20% of people have also battled rage, mood swings, and burnout.
Additionally, executives cope with “daily worries” such as family stress (23%), changes to COVID management practices (22%), and personal financial security (26%).
More than half of the participants surveyed stated that their businesses hadn’t implemented flexible work policies. Nearly 20% of the women who took a leave from their jobs due to a lack of flexibility claimed that this impeded their professional advancement. They are less willing to work for organizations that don’t provide flexibility.
Around 37% of Middle Eastern women claimed that a flexible work routine might significantly enhance their mental health.
The report also saw a similar parallel among the high-net-worth (HNW) individuals in Hong Kong.
While these business leaders are eyeing new opportunities, 38% (including 37% of the company CEOs) of them are planning to make a major career change within 2023.
The study also cited some 13% of CEOs planning to relocate out of the city or migrate to another country or city (some 10% of surveyed professionals are interested in this option).