Analysis Employment Companies seek new CEOs for maximum profits By Gavin Gibbon January 23, 2025, 5:27 PM Gorodenkoff/Shutterstock CEO appointments in Saudi Arabia increased by 14% and the UAE by 20%, according to a recruitment company Record level of replacements UAE CEO appointments up 20% Search for expatriate candidates The number of UAE and Saudi companies looking to replace their CEOs reached record levels in the fourth quarter of 2024, according to a leading recruitment company. Trefor Murphy, founder and CEO of Dubai-based Cooper Fitch, says the number of companies launching searches for the top job during the end of last year saw “heavy double-digit growth” year on year over the three-month period. “It was the biggest quarter ever,” he tells AGBI. Murphy says that 75 percent of the roles were aimed at recruiting expatriates, with a vast majority from the fast-moving consumer goods sector, technology and digital banking. He attributed the high attrition rate to companies chasing greater profit margins. “It’s probably greed dressed up as ambition or ambition dressed up as greed,” he says. “It’s like the CEO that was getting a 9 percent growth year on year, they’re trying to swap them out for someone that can get 50 percent growth.” Murphy says the fourth quarter of 2024 was ‘the biggest ever’ for CEO searches According to Cooper Fitch’s latest report from the third quarter of 2024 the hospitality and real estate investment industries fuelled a “strong demand” for CEO talent, which was reflected in a 3 percent increase in hiring activity for the top jobs. “Although there was a temporary slowdown in CEO mandates over the summer, we are now witnessing a shift in the types of industries pursuing executive leadership, reflecting evolving business priorities,” the report said. Throughout last year, the number of CEO appointments in Saudi Arabia increased by 14 percent and the UAE by 20 percent, says Murphy. Among a raft of changes towards the end of last year, Aiman Al-Mudaifer was appointed acting CEO of the Saudi giga-project Neom in November, while Adnoc Gas announced last month that Fatema Alnuaimi was the company’s new CEO. The hiring has continued into 2025. In January hospitality giant Jumeirah welcomed Thomas B Meier as CEO and Ashraf Al Ameria was named CEO of El Seif Engineering Contracting. One fifth of the CEO appointments in the UAE were external, with 80 percent via succession plans, while almost a third in Saudi Arabia were externally appointed CEOs. Jumeirah appoints acting CEO to lead expansion plans UAE and Saudi Arabia are magnets for global talent UAE and Kuwait companies struggling to hire staff According to the latest salary survey from Hays Middle East recruitment, one of the strategic goals for this year was to increase operating profit, while 41 percent of those interviewed said they had difficulty filling management-level positions. “It is projected that the industries with the highest growth in new companies and CEO requirements will be in the education, digital and healthcare sectors,” says Ewan Walton, senior director, leadership and board appointments at Hays Middle East. According to the survey, the CEO of a company in the banking and financial services sector can earn as much as AED600,000 ($163,000) per month, or an average of AED280,000. CEOs of management, procurement and supply chain companies can earn, on average, AED120,000 ($32,675) a month.
