Sixty-six percent of senior executives in the Middle East believe digital adoption and cybersecurity are their greatest business challenges, an international survey of businesspeople working across the Middle East reveals.

According to the Pulse Report commissioned by Headspring, the executive development joint venture of the Financial Times and IE Business School, concerns around digital adoption and cybersecurity have increased significantly in the past two years. In a similar survey conducted in 2017, just a quarter of the managers agreed that these issues at the top of their list of concerns.

The Pulse Report is a study of management attitudes to leadership development and executive education. The Middle East edition, launched in partnership with the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), is part of a wider international survey also covering Western Europe and Japan.

Gustaf Nordbäck, CEO of Headspring, said: “The Pulse Report takes stock of the shifting learning needs of businesses, reflecting the views of C-suite executives, senior business leaders, human resources executives, and learning and development leaders.

“The report shines a spotlight on Middle East findings. In many respects, the business priorities and learning needs of the region are not dissimilar from the global position. Businesspeople are understandably preoccupied with digital issues the world over. However, alongside cybersecurity and digitalisation, our findings also show that the Middle East has not lost sight of the importance financial management,” continued Nordbäck