By Clare Hutchison
LONDON, Aug 28 (Reuters) - The suicides of two topexecutives in Switzerland has prompted calls for greater supportfor boardroom highfliers.
Heavy workloads, frenetic schedules and extensive overseastravel has obliterated the so-called "work-life balance" formany bosses and the financial crisis has piled on the pressurewith job cuts, firesales and the scramble to survive.
"It has always been tough at the top and it has always beenlonely at the top and certainly since the global financialcrisis, it's got even lonelier and even tougher," said ExecutiveMentor David CM Carter, author of self-help book Breakthrough.
"That's why it's really important that those people at thetop pay attention to the need for balance," he said, pointing toentrepreneurs such as Richard Branson and Bill Gates, who haveteamed glittering careers with a successful family life.
"They do hot air ballooning, they save the planet as well asrunning their fantastic empires. They have holidays and hobbiesor they focus on their family and their relationships and ontheir health."
But career chief executives often face more pressure fromshareholders and their boards than company founders such asBranson and Gates.
And while they usually have a coterie of staff runningaround them, chief executive officers often feel isolated bytheir position and the high-stakes decisions they have to take.The need always to present a "game face" can inhibit them fromconfiding in colleagues.
Zurich Insurance Group's Chief Financial OfficerPierre Wauthier was found dead at his home on Monday in whatpolice said appeared to be a suicide.
Just weeks earlier, Carsten Schloter, the chief executive oftelecoms group Swisscom, killed himself.
The deaths shocked Switzerland's corporate community andhave highlighted the sometimes lonely existence of high-rankingexecutives.
In media interviews, Schloter expressed regret about thedistance between him and his three children in Germany, whom hesaw far less frequently due to the breakdown of his marriage. Healso said he found it "difficult to unwind".
Executives often spend large amounts of time away from theirfriends and family and it is not uncommon for bosses to live ina different city or even country for work and commute home atweekends.
Schloter had also faced pressure after an acquisition hechampioned led to 1.3 billion euros of writedowns. Morerecently, Switzerland's competition body said it had opened aprobe into Swisscom after a rival suggested it abused its marketposition.
BURN OUT
Corporate over-achievers are often reluctant to seek help inmanaging their professional burdens until too late, according toJenny Gould, executive coach and life coach with Oxford-basedstress management and coaching company STP Consultancy.
"Stress is something that's very insidious -- you can dealwith it for quite a long time before you then begin to findyourself burning out from it," she said.
In 2011, Lloyd's Banking Group Chief ExecutiveAntonio Horta-Osorio took a temporary leave of absence torecover from overwork, sleep deprivation and exhaustion.
Horta-Osario was just eight months into his role at thebailed out lender, where he had embarked on a large scalerestructuring programme. He returned after two months off.
"Stress is often caused by a lack of control and a lack ofsupport. If you feel like you can't control certain outcomes anddon't have anybody to discuss your worries and feelings with...that's potentially a toxic mix," Gould said.
In the past year, the chief executive of energy giant Shell has quit and the chairman of luxury goods groupRichemont has taken a year-long sabbatical despite facing noobvious pressure to leave.
They cited a desire for a change of lifestyle or simply abreak from the life at the top.
But companies need to watch for signs that all staff, juniorand senior, are coping with their increasingly demanding roles.
Bank of America Merrill Lynch said last week itwould review the working conditions for junior employees after a21-year old intern, Moritz Erhardt, died after allegedly working72 hours without sleep.
The cause of his death is not yet known.
Neil Shah, director at Stress Management Society, anon-profit organisation dedicated to helping people tacklestress, said firms who turn a blind eye to the pressures onoverworked executives are exposing themselves to commercialrisk.
"We need to view stress as a health and safety risk hazard,"Shah said. "In the UK, we are legally required to risk assessfor display screen equipment but you're not at this stagelegally required to assess for stress.
"This is a major issue not just causing, in the worst casescenario, loss of life, but it has an impact on productivity,efficiency and causes absences. Those are real financial costs."
