Work-Life Balance Considerations Critical to Executives

By David B. Bohl | April 12, 2007 | No Responses Yet

”87 percent of people (recent survey of worldwide senior executives) felt that work-life balance considerations were critical in their decision whether to join, or remain with, an employer”. A few other results that were found during this survey were that 53% have not achieved satisfactory work-life balance and 50% have considered taking a sabbatical but 83% said their companies do not allow sabbaticals.

According to a recent survey of worldwide senior executives conducted by the Association of Executive Search Consultants, “87 percent felt that work-life balance considerations were critical in their decision whether to join, or remain with, an employer.”

Aileen Taylor, AESC member and Managing Director of Eric Salmon & Partners Limited, observed: “For the first time in twenty plus years in the personal care market place, I am seeing candidates prepared to down-size both their salaries and their prospects within large organizations in favor of quality of life.”Speaking only for myself, I interact with people every day who are not only prepared to make these lifestyle decisions, but also those who have made them and are leading well-balanced, fulfilled lifestyles as a result.

Other key findings about these executives were:

53% have not achieved a satisfactory work-life balance.
46% said their work-life balance has changed for the worse in the past 5 years.
59% indicated that new technologies, such as the BlackBerry and mobile phone, had negatively impacted their leisure time.
56% stated they would strongly consider refusing a promotion if it negatively affected their work-life balance.
50% have considered taking a sabbatical; however 83% said their companies did not allow sabbaticals.

The encouraging news to me is that individuals are being given a voice in this discussion - they’re standing up and being noticed and talking with their actions. Corporations will notice or be left behind.

This can only serve to advance the discussion for all of us.