Benefits August 10, 2004

Executives Name Jobs They Want When They Grow Up

August 10, 2004 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Most business executives do not view the confines of the C-suite as their dream job, as they daydream about positions in entertainment and winemaking.
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More than seven out of 10 (72%) senior-level business executives said their current position is not their “dream job.” Rather, when the respondents were asked to describe their current position, 45% of the 500 executives polled called it “challenging,” while others described their current job as “demanding” (34%) or “frustrating” (31%) and only 14% called their jobs “innovative,” according to the survey conducted by BusinessWeek Research Services.

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When asked what they considered to be a “dream job,” nearly one-third of the business executives named entertainment/events producer, followed by:

  • winemaker or brewmaster (30%);
  • chef or restaurateur (24%);
  • pilot (22%);
  • golf pro (22%).

Other notable individual responses to the “dream job” question included: professional athlete; rock star; neurosurgeon; and bed and breakfast inn owner/operator while a vocation in fashion design was the least popular (8%).

The poll also asked respondents which business leader would get their vote during a hypothetical run for the nation’s top job. Executives who participated in the survey said they would most likely elect Warren Buffet (60%), Jack Welch (42%) or Lou Gerstner (32%), should they run for president. Conversely, when asked which politicians and public service figure would make the most effective business executives, votes of confidence were given to Rudy Giuliani (61%), Alan Greenspan (53%) and Bill Clinton (34%). Of the two currently in the running for US President, only 15% of respondents said George W. Bush would be a top business executive, while 8% named John Kerry.

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