PEOPLE | CULTURE
IT ’ S NOT ABOUT PUTTING PEOPLE AHEAD OF PROFIT , IT ’ S ABOUT REALISING THAT PEOPLE AND PROFITS GO HAND-IN-HAND
Edward Matti Managing Director , CCM Consultancy , Dubai
customer services , retains loyal customers and attracts top talent .
Global leadership advisory Heidrick & Struggles is also seeing a sharp focus on shaping culture , with 82 % of 500 CEOs surveyed in 2021 citing organisational culture as a priority
As Principal in the Dubai office , Neha Mohunta says more companies in the Middle East have started to focus on purpose and ensuring employees are ‘ fulfilled ’ – testament to the shift towards people-centric environments .
“ We are witnessing a humbling convergence in this space . Unprecedented complexity in the work environment , geopolitical shifts , and the pandemic have increased complexity in the leader ’ s role . This is prompting the leader to lean in and reinforce a culture of peoplecentric leadership ,” she says .
“ We are seeing more C-suite leaders ask the question on how they can personally rolemodel a people-first culture to cascade this across organisations . They have started to realise that with collaboration , they are better
9.1 %
Revenue growth rate
( CAGR ) in organisations that prioritise culture-shaping . This is more than double the rate of those that don ’ t , according to a 2021 Heidrick & Struggles study
able to solve some of the evolving challenges they face .” Talent scarcity driving transformation Driving this shift is the region ’ s rapid diversification , with the national economic vision of numerous countries , from Abu Dhabi to Saudi , powering demand for foreign talent with new skills , valuable industry-specific expertise , and global exposure .
Saudi has seen its strongest increase in employment in almost five years . Even at C-suite level , global and cross-cultural exposure is highly sought-after with 43 % of CEOs in Saudi boasting cross-border
76 September 2023