Bangkok--Feb 22--Grant Thornton
Thai executives take less vacations than most
Six out of ten business leaders more stressed than a year ago
Stress levels rise in all 30 countries surveyed
The Grant Thornton International 2006 International Business Owners Survey (IBOS) reveals that stress levels among business leaders worldwide has risen by 50% over the last year. Research among more than 7,000 business owners in 30 countries around the world shows that 57% of all business owners reported higher stress, compared to 39% in 2004. Only 6% felt their stress levels had gone down. Top of the stress table for the second year are business owners in Taiwan, where a remarkable 9 out of 10 respondents feel more stressed this year. Taiwan is followed by a range of fast-changing economies: China (87%), the Philippines (76%), Hong Kong (69%), and Singapore (67%). Thailand business leaders rank 10th on the global list, with 62% of executives indicating that their stress level increased from last year.
Without a doubt, the least stressed business people this year are to be found in Europe and the US, although, even there, stress levels have also risen. Swedish business leaders are comparatively the most relaxed, with only 24% feeling more stressed, followed by Italy (40%), Spain and France (42%), the Netherlands and the UK (43%) and the US (45%).
Peter Walker, partner Grant Thornton Thailand said: "All around the world the stress levels of business leaders shot up last year, whether economic activity was picking up or slowing down in their country. Thailand was no exception, with business leaders increasing their stress levels to find opportunities in the current economic growth but also worrying about future political and environmental factors."
The research also showed a direct correlation between stress and the amount of holidays taken by executives around the world (excluding public holidays). The majority of business leaders in Asia suffered from a high stress increase in 2005, possibly as a result of taking few holidays. Coming in at the bottom of this league is Thailand with business leaders saying that, in addition to public holidays, they take just 4 days holiday on average. European countries took by far the highest number of holidays, on average 22 days, compared with an average of just 12 in Asia. In the 'work-hard' environment of the US, average holidays taken were also lower at 14 days. Top of the worldwide holiday league table is France, with an average of 27 days vacation, followed by the Netherlands (25), the UK and Sweden (22) and Germany (21).
Peter Walker continued: "The link between stress and vacation-levels is interesting. Do the results mean that executives who take more vacation feel less stressed? Or is it that the less stressed they feel, the more vacation they are able to take? Either way, the differences in holiday patterns around the world are huge, with Thailand’s business leaders taking an extremely low number of vacation days compared to many others.
Another factor which contributed to stress in some countries included fears over job security. Japan and Thailand jointly topped the league for concerns over job security with 49% of respondents claiming it was a high or extreme stress factor. They were followed by India (48%) and Turkey (42%). Least stressed about job security were executives in Sweden (7%), followed by the Netherlands, the UK and Singapore (9%).
Possibly the high stress levels and concern over job security combined to cause Thai executives to minimize their vacation days last year. Peter joked, “Maybe they were worried that, if they took a vacation, their job would be gone when they came back to the office.” He then went on to caution, “While hard work is admirable, Thai executives need to manage their stress levels and take adequate vacation time, otherwise health problems and quality problems may arise."
Notes to editors
The Grant Thornton International Business Owners Survey (IBOS) was carried out among more than 7,000 owners of medium-sized businesses from 30 countries during Q4 2005. IBOS began in 2002 and builds on the European Business Survey (EBS) which Grant Thornton ran from 1993 to 2001. The research was conducted by Experian Business Strategies Limited and Harris Interactive.
About Grant Thornton International
Grant Thornton International is an international membership organisation, with each member firm independently owned and operated. Services are delivered nationally by the member and correspondent firms of Grant Thornton International, a network of independent firms throughout the world. Grant Thornton International is a non-practising, international umbrella organisation and does not deliver accounting or auditing services.
About Grant Thornton Thailand
Grant Thornton Thailand is well recognized by the business community as one of the leading professional service firms in Thailand and has been in Thailand since 1991. Our services include IT and business consulting, outsourced accounting and payroll, external and internal auditing services, domestic and international tax planning, corporate finance advisory, restructuring and reorganization, executive recruitment, succession and remuneration planning. To learn more about our firm, please visit our web site www.gt-thai.com.
For further information please contact:
In Bangkok:
Peter Walker or Khun , Grant Thornton Thailand
Tel: 02-654-3330 or [email protected]
In London:
Nan Williams or Paul Donlon, Grant Thornton International Press Office.
Tel: 0870 420 3256 / 07774 741 518 or [email protected]
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