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Rising Star
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Today is a huge struggle. I want to do nothing. 😢
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Personally, no.
They will have the money for sure, but they need to diversify their economy - and fast - if they want to become a true economic superpower. Their Vision 2030 is a good step toward that and they’re pouring everything into it, but it remains to be seen if they’ll be able to make it work - and if it’ll be enough. From what I’ve seen, it’s probably a no on both fronts. I don’t think it’ll happen in the next 20 years at least, if it even does.
However, getting KSA experience can be an interesting experience in and of itself, and will probably help you grow a bit professionally too.
The KSA is like those people who win the megabucks lottery, then five years later when journos follow up on them, turns out they lost it all in catastrophically bad financial decisions and they’re back living in the same place they were at when they won
Rising Star
Relative to the region, they are already a regional power. There are two economic super powers : China and US. They are huge and they have their hands in almost all businesses. KSA simply will not have that kind of pull based on their ultra reliance on oil. US and China also has a massive domestic market. KSA will not have that in decades
I would not bet on them becoming a economic superpower because they just don’t have the ingredients. But then, you don’t need them to be a superpower for individual opportunities.
Rising Star
No, they’re squandering away what they have on flashy projects that don’t have a tangible long term impact on the real economy.
Pro
I’ve worked in both KSA and Kuwaiti, working closely with Saudis and Kuwaitis. Based on the work ethics I personally witnessed, I find it hard to believe either will ever do better than they are currently doing, especially as the world’s reliance on oil continues to decrease. They tend to import most of their professional services, and with the exception of oil, don’t really have much they can export.
With that being said, the US will probably continue to support KSA for my entire lifetime to act as a “stabilizing” power in the Middle East because we do not want that government to crumble as their oil exports decrease.
Short answer to question 1: hell no.
Answer to question 2: Absolutely. I worked in KSA before it was cool/as “progressive” as it is today (🙄) and it opened lots of doors to interesting opportunities and continues to do so today. It’s a worthwhile experience for a year or two, if you can stand it.
Agree with all the other points mentioned about Saudis being lazy AF, importing talent, reliance on oil.
Like the saying about putting lipstick on a pig, the Saudis try to cover all their human rights abuses, religious fundamentalism and racism with gold and 💵. At the end of the day, once a pig, always a pig…
Hey Muslims don’t eat pigs, and you are what you eat A1
As others have said, they’re already a regional powerhouse, but to become a global superpower they need some significant workforce overhauling, which just does not seem possible in the next 20+ years.
Most of the talent leaves KSA for the UAE, EU, or US. A lot of the talent they do have in-country they have imported from the EU or US. Westerners that do set up shop there usually only do it for a short stint, and I think it’s usually a money thing. They’ve made “progress” in recent years, but that progress only means they’re slightly less behind other countries than they already were.
KSA is a hyper growth rapidly changing place. Neon , start up scene - all rapidly evolving . Getting staffed in KSA might the best thing for you global career ever .
NEOM* is pretty cool, but the deficit of domestic talent is a deep problem