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Bosses, burnout and business: Mental fatigue at ‘alarming rates' among CEOs globally, posing risks to company wellbeing

Bosses, burnout and business: Mental fatigue at ‘alarming rates' among CEOs globally, posing risks to company wellbeing

Burnout among CEOs and high-ranking corporate individuals is on the rise in recent years, led by several factors that have fundamentally reshaped the role of a corporate leader. Between navigating a pandemic and steering companies through geopolitical and economic shocks, the demands on company leaders have been intensified, and the toll is starting to show.
Globally, CEO burnout has emerged as a serious risk to leadership effectiveness and corporate stability. And while this has been long acknowledged in markets such as the US and Europe, new evidence shows that business leaders in the Middle East are also experiencing comparable, if not higher, levels of stress and fatigue.
According to Deloitte's 2024 Well-Being at Work survey, 71 per cent of C-suite executives globally revealed that they would consider leaving their jobs for roles that better support well-being.
Additionally, DDI's Global Leadership Forecast 2025 revealed that nearly one in six leaders is facing burnout. 'Burnout is hitting leaders across industries at alarming rates,' said Stephanie Neal, Director of DDI's Center for Analytics and Behavioral Research. 'Our data shows that leaders in education, healthcare, and technology are under the most strain, putting organisations at risk of losing high-potential talent and seeing performance decline.'
In the Middle East, a PWC Middle East CEO survey found that nearly 50 per cent of regional CEOs expect to change their business models in the next three years to remain viable, with over 40 per cent admitting that they struggle to balance transformation demands with personal well-being.
The new pressures on leaders
Experts say the convergence of several factors has made the modern CEO role more demanding than ever. Beyond the traditional responsibilities of revenue growth and shareholder value, today's CEOs are also expected to lead on sustainability, diversity, AI adoption, and corporate social responsibility. In most cases, this is all under heightened scrutiny from regulators, investors, employees, and the public.
Public scrutiny in the digital age is far more relevant than in previous years, a recent example is of US-based tech company Astronomer's ex-CEO Andy Byron, who has been under severe public scrutiny after videos of an encounter with a female co-worker at a Coldplay concert went viral on social media, forcing him to quit his role in the company.
As stated previously, Astronomer is committed to the values and culture that have guided us since our founding. Our leaders are expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability, and recently, that standard was not met.
Andy Byron has tendered his resignation, and… pic.twitter.com/aTTUhnnyVz
— Astronomer (@astronomerio) July 19, 2025
Since the incident, Astronomer released a public statement stating, 'Our leaders are expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability, and recently, that standard was not met.'
Bimo Ningthoujam, Director of Wellness at Kamalaya Koh Samui, in an exclusive interview with Arabian Business, said: 'Even for the most resilient leaders, quiet or subtle burnout may occur. It is not always acknowledged, but becomes apparent when we see emotional exhaustion, withdrawal from active involvement in decision-making or strategic meetings, as well as disengagement from the team, and a sense of depletion even after holidays or breaks.'
Reflecting on factors within the last five years, the pandemic exacerbated pressures on company leaders. Lockdowns and the shift to remote work blurred boundaries between professional and personal life. CEOs alongside employees often worked longer hours, shouldered the emotional burden of workforce uncertainty and faced criticism for decisions on layoffs, mandates, and office returns.
In the Middle East specifically, the rapid economic diversification from Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 to the UAE's push to be a global tech and finance hub has increased competition and pressure on leaders to deliver transformational change in compressed timeframes.
The region's ambitious development strategies has created a unique environment of both opportunity and strain. Executives in sectors such as real estate, technology, hospitality, and energy have had to scale operations dramatically to meet national targets while contending with global headwinds.
In 2024, the UAE recorded foreign direct investment flows of over $45 billion, according to the UNCTAD World Investment Report 2025, while Saudi Arabia's economy continues to restructure away from oil. Such growth has elevated the expectations placed on corporate leaders in the region.
In a culture where mental health struggles still remain a taboo topic at the leadership level in many companies, an increasing number of private mental health clinics and executive coaches are reporting rising CEOs and senior executives seeking confidential support for stress, insomnia, exhaustion and other stress-related factors.
In an exclusive interview with Arabian Business in January, Jane McNab, COO at Harbour Clinic London, said: 'They come from a different world in a lot of cases, so we've created a safe environment for these individuals to get the care that they need away from the eyes of the public away from the weight of expectation.'
Due to the high-profile nature of clients, the clinic clarified that strict measures have been put in place to meet the growing demand whilst ensuring complete privacy.
'A lot of the multi-bed facilities, whether it's addiction or mental health, understandably have a lot of restrictions. No phones, no meetings because they have to serve the whole group, for a CEO to disappear for four weeks is really, really costly,' she explained.
Understanding the need for leaders to be available whilst receiving treatment, the clinic creates bespoke plans to ensure availability during treatment plans. Clients can keep their phones on (if determined as safe) and attend online meetings.
'Because we recognise that they have to go back into the world and engage with everything again, and we have to balance that they are in treatment, but still need to keep everything afloat outside of treatment,' Clinical Director Shahira Kamal said.
Packages are priced at £49,995 to £95,000 per week and includes high living standards, luxury residences, opulent amenities and more.
The business impact of burnout
Beyond the personal cost, CEO burnout carries clear business risks.
According to Gallup's State of the Global Workplace 2025 report, last year global employee engagement fell, costing the world economy $438 in lost productivity. The report states that leadership engagement is directly linked to team engagement which ultimately affects productivity, business performance and GDP growth.
For family-run enterprises, which are dominant in the Middle East, the stakes may be even higher as leadership transitions and succession planning are often less formalised than in public companies. Harbour Clinic London, for instance, has reported a rising demand from ultra-high-net-worth individuals with undisclosed anxiety and depression.
'The extra layer that people from the Gulf and the Middle East add is around shame and secrecy because no one knows. They cannot disclose to their family or their colleagues, there is no support network and they don't seek support online…There is secrecy around it, something they have not spoken about in years,' Kamal explained.
Specifically for dynastic families, which account for a significant portion of clientele, McNab attributed mental health struggles to 'lack of purpose that leads to a level of anxiety, shame, and unhelpful behaviour.' Oftentimes, family-run enterprises struggle with the pressures of wealth and influential positions along with a lack of purpose and overwhelming expectations.
Globally, a growing number of companies are recognising the need to support leadership resilience through measures such as executive coaching, structured sabbaticals, mental health benefits and broad-level discussions about CEO well-being.
As regional economies continue their transformations, the pressure on corporate leaders will likely intensify. Companies that fail to address CEO burnout risk instability.
'Recognising these signs early is essential – not only for the well-being of the leader, but also for the wider organisation – as it offers an opportunity to address the imbalance and help prevent long-term consequences,' Ningthoujam concluded.
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