Trends Identified
Growing abroad: East meets west
Nearly half the CEOs interviewed for our survey are involved in cross-border mergers and acquisitions, but the stereotypes of acquiror and target are set to change.
2007
10th Annual global CEO Survey
PWC
From cost to collaboration: Redefining the value chain
Outsourcing (both supply chain and traditional back office functions)1 has been a regular feature of business life for many years. Through their responses to this survey, CEOs have indicated a marked shift in their motivation for using external suppliers, from simply as a mechanism to lower cost to a means of achieving a more strategic, collaborative framework. In tandem, CEOs tell us of an increasing trend to expand the scope of activity that is covered by outsourcing arrangements, from the traditional component supplies and IT infrastructure to other activities that, in the past, were held sacrosanct, including human resource management (HRM) and R&D.
2007
10th Annual global CEO Survey
PWC
Defining the role of business leaders in society: A business imperative
Ask a classically trained financial economist about the role of the company in society and the response is likely to be to maximise shareholder returns. The 10th Annual Global CEO Survey reinforces a growing recognition among academics and practitioners alike that this traditional view of the long-term objective of a company is too narrow; that to sustain long-term financial growth, management need to balance the needs of the shareholder against those of other stakeholders – most notably the employee and society.
2007
10th Annual global CEO Survey
PWC
Business confidence: Vigour & Circumspection
For 11 years, our Annual Global CEO Surveys have tracked how confident global leaders feel about the prospects for growth. The overall level of confidence has now dipped for the first time in five years. But this troubling picture masks two very different regional trends. CEOs in the industrialised Western economies are less confident about the prospects for business growth than they were last year. Those in the emerging economies of Asia, Latin America and the ‘new’ Europe, by contrast, see increasing opportunities for expansion.
2008
11th Annual global CEO Survey
PWC
Mergers & acquisitions: Underlying optimism & Contrasting direction
The economic prognosis may be gloomy, but many CEOs are still keen to expand overseas. However, North American CEOs are more cautious than their peers in other regions, and Asian CEOs favour strategic alliances over M&As.
2008
11th Annual global CEO Survey
PWC
Global risks: A riskier &/or Safer world
Does greater connectivity increase the risk that local difficulties will turn into global disasters? Or does it provide opportunities to diversify and thus dilute the dangers? The preliminary evidence suggests that it may actually do both.
2008
11th Annual global CEO Survey
PWC
Climate change: Pragmatism & Heightened awareness
During the past 12 months, climate change has soared up the public agenda. So what are CEOs now doing to combat the threat of global warming? At first glance, our survey suggests that they are largely reactive. But closer inspection shows greater levels of commitment, especially among CEOs running big companies.
2008
11th Annual global CEO Survey
PWC
People and change: Strategy & Execution
Talent remains a major issue, but results fall short – suggesting competitiveness is hampered while opportunities lie within reach. Two-thirds of CEOs want recruitment, motivation and development improved. But they give HR a low vote of confidence. Leaders and all-around performers prove hardest to find, while organisational structures get in the way of collaborative people. Senior or middle management weaknesses are blamed most often for hindering change programmes. A gap separates vision from execution. Discipline is needed to drive strategies through tactics, structures and results.
2008
11th Annual global CEO Survey
PWC
Collaborative business networks: Opportunistic & Systematic
More than half of all CEOs believe that collaborative networks will play a major role in the way companies operate in the future. CEOs in Asia Pacific – one of the world’s fastest-growing regions – are particularly convinced about the value of collaborative networks. At present, networks are mainly used to accomplish ‘soft’ goals such as the advancement of learning and sharing of best practice, rather than to enhance product and service pipelines. Most companies have not yet developed a systematic way of developing and capitalising on networks. They are still opportunistic in their approach. Effective collaboration requires a clear understanding of the kinds of networks that are possible, the business objectives of the different stakeholders and the risks.
2008
11th Annual global CEO Survey
PWC
Regulations: Public & Private
Nearly two-thirds of CEOs – rising to more than three-quarters in some parts of Europe – factor the regulatory framework into their business decisions to ‘a great extent’. Taxation and the labour laws are the two areas of regulation CEOs would most like to see improved. However, there are significant national variations in opinion. More than half of all CEOs support global harmonisation of critical elements of the regulatory regime. Very few CEOs believe that their governments are reducing the regulatory burden or creating a business-friendly environment. A study with the World Bank concludes that there is a win-win on both sides, if government simplifies tax systems, eases the compliance cost on businesses and reduces tax rates.
2008
11th Annual global CEO Survey
PWC