LEGO® Middle East and Africa General Manager Kristian Imhof urges business leaders to make time for play this Ramadan

Dubai, UAE, March 19th, 2024: With senior executives under increasing pressure in today’s fast-paced business world, Kristian Imhof, General Manager of LEGO® Middle East and Africa, has called upon fellow company leaders to realise the benefits of spending more quality time with their peers, colleagues, friends and family this Ramadan.

A report by the Harvard Business School has found that CEOs work 62.5 hours on average every week, 3.9 hours each day on weekends, and 2.4 hours every day during their holidays.

Other studies reveal that nearly three-quarters of senior leaders say working long hours undermines decision making, while more than two-thirds admit they are on the verge of quitting due to work-related stress.

The Holy Month of Ramadan is a time for everyone – including CEOs and their employees – to come together and prioritise the things that are most important in life, says Imhof.

“Ramadan is not only a joyous time of fasting and feasting, it is also an occasion when we become more involved in our workplaces and the community. It is a time of giving and opening our hearts to others, of strengthening relationships – at work as well with our friends and loves ones – and, let’s not forget, a time of being kinder to ourselves.”

The General Manager of LEGO MEA has been visiting senior leaders in person across the United Arab Emirates to spread this message, as the brand launches Build With Everrryone – to encourage people of all generations to spend more quality time together this Ramadan.

“In the face of so many demands on our time, we often neglect ourselves as well as others,” Imhof explains. “It’s vital that we rekindle human connections in our modern world, and what better opportunity to do that than the Holy Month of Ramadan.”

The LEGO Group conducts ongoing global research into the health, wellness and developmental benefits of construction play, publishing its key findings every two years in the LEGO Play Well study.

According to its latest research, more than 89% of parents in the UAE and 85% in Saudi Arabia agree that LEGO play strengthens family bonds, but nearly a third (30%) in the UAE, and a quarter (26%) in Saudi Arabia, say they don’t have enough time to play because they have too much work.

“It’s clear more needs to be done to bring play into the workplace as well as the home,” says Imhof. “Play promotes productivity, creativity and teamwork, to name just a few of its positive impacts at work. That’s why I bring LEGO bricks with me to my meetings with senior executives across the UAE.”