Global mobility among top senior executives is a myth

This is the result of an intensive study of the top end executive market in Dubai done by global executive search firm Taylor Hofer Partners UAE Ltd. ("Taylor Hofer").

Based in Dubai, Zurich, Johannesburg and Perth (Australia), Taylor Hofer observed a number of misconceptions, both among banks and top executives, which lead to an inevitable trade-off between available positions and the right candidates to fill them.

"There have been reports of a large-scale move of Western senior managers to banks in the GCC under the topic 'from sub-prime to sunshine'. This is a myth", says Thomas W. Hofer, Managing Partner at Taylor Hofer.

"A tax-free salary package offered by a financial institution is not enough in order to attract and retain senior executives from London, Zurich or elsewhere", Thomas Hofer explains.

"Banks in Dubai must offer more sophisticated packages with additional incentives such as stock options, executive educational programs and pension plans for the family. The latter schemes are still in a development stage in the Middle East.

"Human Resources Managers must clearly illustrate to potential decision makers that a new position gives them the chance to create in the long-term, rather than being a pure administrator on time", Mr. Hofer adds, who has 20 years experience in the global executive top end search market.

Among the candidates Taylor Hofer observed the attitude that their Executive MBA from a Western school might be better: "An Arab manager with an Executive MBA from a top school such as the American Universities of Dubai or Beirut does not necessarily lack behind his Western counterparts", says Managing Partner Cécile Hofer, who lived herself for many years in Saudi-Arabia.

"Besides professional and academic skills, cultural competence and lack of preparedness to integrate in a new environment are surprisingly often neglected by candidates and potential employers alike.

Cécile Hofer: "After significant amount of interviews done in the Region and Dubai in particular, it is clear that even those applicants who wish to continue their career in Dubai are very often ill prepared for this geographic distinctive region."

Among Western female executives, Taylor Hofer noticed the basic misconception of 'natural frontiers' in the Middle East, which allegedly exclude women from top positions. "This is totally unfounded. In fact, women are climbing the career ladder much faster than for example in Europe", says Cécile Hofer.

It is most obvious that beneath the surface of any organization, though sometimes well-concealed under strategies, business plans or budgets, are people, according to Thomas W. Hofer: "The times of self-made-recruiting-strategies are definitely over. A professional executive search is decisive in order to attract and retain highly skilled and highly motivated decision makers."