Survey identifies the best expat destinations for rapid career development

For expats putting their careers above everything, the UK, Bahrain and Germany are the places to be.

Planning exactly the right path to the top of your profession is never easy, especially in today’s fast-changing world, and deserting the home country for a strange land can be a stressful experience. However, career progression is now the number one reason for emigration, with a recent survey by HSBC revealing the UK, Bahrain and Germany as the top spots for ultra-ambitious expatriate professionals.

Given the chaos created by Brexit, the bank’s choice of the UK as one of the best places for career development may surprise many would-be expats but, according to the survey, Britain is the top country in the world for learning the new skills essential for propelling careers in an upward direction. Germany’s work culture was rated second in the world, with its job security and political stability also crucial to its high rating. In addition, many expats rated the German workplace as the world’s most productive.

Bahrain’s reputation for extremely high salaries combined with a satisfactory work-life balance and exceptional benefits packages was enough to catapult the emirate into third place in the survey. It’s also the place to be for expats honing their leadership qualities, with a good number of respondents happy with their progress in this important aspect of career-oriented progression. For the UK, in spite of the Brexit effect, the survey revealed its expat workforce as being ambitious and highly-educated, with more than 40 per cent of respondents having a post-graduate degree in their chosen speciality.

Interestingly, climbing the career ladder in the UK is easier than in many other expat destinations, with almost 50 per cent of arriving expat professionals doing so to further their ambitions in their present careers. However, British expats tend towards seeking an improved quality of life and better weather as well as career opportunities overseas. The USA is the favourite location for Brits, followed by Australia and including other far-flung destinations such as Hong Kong, the UAE and South Africa.