PwC’s29thGlobalCEOSurvey

Leadingthroughuncertaintyin

theageofAI

Contents

01Theopportunityhorizon05

02Confidencedown,threatsup11

03Theroadtoreinvention14

04Dynamismordenial?21

05Surveymethodologyandnotes23

PwC,s29thGlobalCEOSurveyPwC3

It’softensaidthatsuccessfulleadersneedbothamicroscopeandatelescopetohelpthemidentifynear-termthreatswhilespottinglong-termopportunities.Thistensionacrosstime

horizonsisarecurringthemeinPwC’s29thGlobalCEOSurvey,basedonresponsesfrom4,454chiefexecutivesacross95countriesandterritories.

Intheyearahead,CEOsseeaworldbesetbychallenges.They’vegrown

significantlylessconfidentabouttheshort-termgrowthoutlookfortheir

companiesandmoreworriedaboutarangeofthreats,includingmacroeconomicvolatility,cyberrisk,andgeopoliticalconflict.Atthesametime,they’refocusingonmultiyearopportunitiestoreinventthebusiness.CEOsareforgingahead

withinvestmentinAIeventhoughimmediatereturnsareoftenelusive.They’reprioritisinginnovation.Andmanyareenteringnewsectorsastheyleanintoa

reconfigurationofindustries

that’sreshapingtheglobaleconomy.

Importantly,CEOsmovingfastonthesedimensionsofreinventionareoutperformingtheirpeers.

Amongthekeyfindingsfromthisyear’ssurvey:

?MostCEOssaytheircompaniesaren’tyetseeingafinancialreturnfrom

investmentsinAI.Althoughclosetoathird(30%)reportincreasedrevenue

fromAIinthelast12monthsandaquarter(26%)areseeinglowercosts,morethanhalf(56%)saythey’verealisedneitherrevenuenorcostbenefits.

?CEOsareseekinggrowthopportunitiesoutsideoftheirsectors.Morethan40%saytheircompanieshavestartedtocompeteinnewsectorsinthelastfiveyears.Amongthoseplanninglargeacquisitionsoverthenextthreeyears,fourintenexpecttododealsinothersectorsorindustries.

?Comparedtolastyear,CEOsarelessconfidentabouttheircompany’snear-termrevenuegrowthprospects.Only30%areveryorextremelyconfidentabout

revenuegrowthoverthenext12months,downfrom38%inlastyear’ssurveyandtherecentpeakof56%in2022.

?AlmostathirdofCEOs(29%)saytariffswillreducetheircompany’snetprofitmarginoverthenext12months.Themajority(60%)expectlittletonochange.Amongthoseexpectingmargincompression,mostanticipateonlyaslight

decline.

PwC,s29thGlobalCEOSurveyPwC4

?Two-thirdsofCEOs(66%)saystakeholdertrustconcernshaveariseninatleastoneareaofbusinessoperationsoverthelast12months.There’sasignificant

gapintotalshareholderreturnsoverthisperiodbetweenpubliccompaniesexperiencingthemostandthefewesttrustconcerns.

Navigatingsuchacomplexenvironmentplacesapremiumonleadershipagility,includingtheabilitytomovequicklybetweenissues,opportunities,andtime

horizons.CEOssaytheyspendnearlyhalf(47%)oftheirtimeonissueswithtimehorizonsoflessthanoneyear.That’sthreetimesmorethanthe16%dedicated

toactivitieswithahorizonofmorethanfiveyears.Aretheystrikingtherightbalance?It’saquestionCEOsshouldaskthemselvesastheystrivetobuild

organisationstothrivebothtodayandtomorrow.

01

PwC,s29thGlobalCEOSurvey|01TheopportunityhorizonPwC5

Theopportunity

horizon

AIatenterprisescale

WhenweaskedCEOstopickthequestionthatconcernsthemmostthesedays,therewasaclearwinner:arewetransformingourbusinessfastenoughtokeepupwithtechnology,includingAI?

Aboutone-thirdofCEOs(30%)saytheircompanyhasrealisedtangibleresultsfromAIadoptionoverthelast12monthsthroughadditionalrevenues.Onthequestionofcosts,26%ofCEOssaycostshavedecreasedduetoAI,while22%reportanincrease.Morethanhalf(56%)saytheircompanyhasseenneitherhigherrevenuesnorlowercostsfromAI,whileonlyoneineight(12%)reportbothofthesepositiveimpacts.

PwC,s29thGlobalCEOSurvey|01TheopportunityhorizonPwC6

Mostcompanieshaven’tyetrealisedfinancialreturnsfromtheirinvestmentinAI

Q.Inthelast12months,whatimpactdidAIhaveonthefollowingatyourcompany?

12%ofCEOs

havesuccessfullydecreasedcostsandgrown

revenueusingAI

Cost

InceasceaserNochangeDeceaseceaser

Morethanhalfhavenot

reducedcostsorincreased

revenue

1%

13%

12%

0%

42%

8%

1%

12%

9%

Revenue

DecreaseNochangeIncrease

Clearly,we’reintheearlystagesoftheAIera.Askedabouttheextenttowhich

theirorganisationsaredeployingAIacrossthebusiness,arelativelysmall

proportionofCEOssaythey’reapplyingittoalargeorverylargeextenttoareassuchasdemandgeneration(22%);supportservices(20%);thecompany’s

products,services,andexperiences(19%);directionsetting(15%);ordemand

fulfilment(13%).Consideralsothatin

PwC’sGlobalWorkforceHopesand

FearsSurvey2025

,only14%ofworkerssaidtheywereusinggenerativeAIdaily.

PwC,s29thGlobalCEOSurvey|01TheopportunityhorizonPwC7

Yournextmove:BuildAIfoundations.Ourworkwithorganisationsconfirms

mountingevidence

thatisolated,tacticalAIprojectsoftendon’tdeliver

measurablevalue.Tangiblereturnscomefromenterprise-scaledeployment

consistentwithcompanybusinessstrategy.This,inturn,demandsstrongAI

foundations,includingatechnologyenvironmentthatenablesAIintegration,aclearlydefinedroadmapforAIinitiatives,formalisedresponsibleAIandriskprocesses,andanorganisationalculturethatenablesAIadoption.

Datafromthisyear’ssurveyshowsthatcompaniesinthevanguard—theoneineightachievingbothadditionalrevenuesandlowercostsfromAI—arefurthestaheadinbuildingthesefoundations.They’realsoapplyingAImoreextensivelyacrossdifferentareasofthebusiness.Forexample,44%ofthoseinthevanguardhaveappliedAItotheirproducts,services,andexperiences,comparedtoonly

17%forothercompanies.(Throughoutthisreport,ouranalysisisadjustedforsector,companysize,geography,andotherextraneousfactors.)

Sectorswithoutborders

AIisn’ttheonlypowerfulforcereshapingglobalbusiness.

Thecollisionof

technology,climatechange,geopolitics,andothermegatrends

iscreating

newcustomerneedsandpreferences,enablingnewbusinessmodels,andblurringtheboundariesbetweenindustries.Manycompaniesarealreadyventuringacrosssectorandindustryboundariesinpursuitofreinventionandgrowth.FourintenCEOs(42%)saytheircompanyhasstartedtocompeteinnewsectorsinthelast

fiveyears,consistentwithlastyear’ssurvey.AmongCEOsplanningtomakeatleastonemajoracquisitioninthenextthreeyears,asimilarproportion(44%)expecttododealsoutsideoftheirexistingsectororindustry.

PwC,s29thGlobalCEOSurvey|01TheopportunityhorizonPwC8

Askedaboutwhichothersectorsthey’relookingtoforgrowth—whether

organicallyorthroughacquisitions—thetoppickamongCEOsgloballyis

technology.TechnologyCEOs,inturn,areseekingtogrowinhealthcare,businessservices,andbankingandcapitalmarkets.Thelastofthesereflectscontinued

expansionbyfinancialtechnologyfirmsintobankingandpayments,aswellas

effortsbylargetechnologyplayerstopartnerwithordisruptincumbentfinancialinstitutions.

Companieswithmorerevenuecomingfromnewsectorsaremoreprofitableandmoreconfidentaboutfuturegrowth

Q(left).Howconfidentareyouaboutyourcompany’sprospectsforrevenuegrowthoverthenext12months?(Showingonly“Veryconfident”and“Extremelyconfident”responses)

Q(right).Whatwasyourcompany’sprofitmarginforthemostrecentlycompletedfiscalyear?

ShareofCEOsreportinghighconfidenceingrowthReportedprofitmargin

50%

40%

30%

20%

10%

0%

46%

40%35%

0%25%50%

Shareofrevenuefromcompetinginnewsectors

14%

12%

10%

8%

6%

4%

2%

0%

14%

11%

9%

0%25%50%

Shareofrevenuefromcompetinginnewsectors

Note:Valuesarepredictionsfromregressionmodelling,adjustedforcountry,sector,ownershipstructure,revenue,andheadcount(n=1,140;1,685).

Source:PwC’s29thGlobalCEOSurvey

PwC,s29thGlobalCEOSurvey|01TheopportunityhorizonPwC9

Yournextmove:Reinventtooutperform.Datafromthisyear’ssurveyshows

astrongassociationamongahigherpercentageofrevenuecomingfromnew

sectors,biggerprofitmargins,andgreaterCEOconfidenceincompanygrowth

prospects.Inotherwords,playinganactiveroleinindustryreconfigurationis

payingoff.Companiesthatwanttoseizethemomentshouldlookinwardsattheirowncapabilitiesaswellasoutwardsforopportunities.Whenitcomestodeal-

making,forexample,PwCresearchhasfoundthatacquisitionsaremorelikelytoaddvalueifthefocusison

acquiringcomplementarycapabilities

,asopposedtostrengtheningmarketpoweroracquiringcustomers.

Beyondsmartdeal-making,playingacrosssectorboundariesrequires

collaboratingatscalewithnewecosystempartners,whichisaskillmany

companiesneedtohone.Collaborationatscalemayalsorequireinvestmentincoresystems.Considertheexampleofanindustrialmanufacturerweknowthathasembarkedonamajorupgradeofitsdataenvironmentandsystemstoenableinteroperationwithnewvaluechainpartnersacrossthemobilityecosystem.

Globalisationinmotion

AlittleoverhalfofCEOs(51%)areplanningtomakeinternationalinvestmentsintheyearahead.Delvingfurtherintotheseglobalambitions,theUnitedStatesconsolidatesitspositionasthetopdestination,withmorethanathird(35%)ofCEOsplacingitinthetopthreecountriesthatwillreceivethehighestproportionoftheirinvestment.TheUnitedKingdomandGermany(both13%)andthe

ChineseMainland(11%)remainpopularchoices.

Amongthesignificantchangesfromlastyear’ssurvey,13%ofCEOsplanningtomakeinternationalinvestmentsselectedIndia,upfrom7%.

TheUnitedArabEmiratesandSaudiArabiabreakintothetopten,withstrong

representationfromCEOsinconsumerpackagedgoods,bankingandcapital

markets,healthservices,technology,andengineeringandconstruction.Thisis

areminderofhowtheMiddleEasteconomyisdiversifyingawayfromoiland

gasasGulfCooperationCouncil(GCC)countriesembarkonanambitiousmulti-decadeinfrastructureexpansionthatincludesmodelcities,industrialclusters,and

large-scaledatacentreprojects

.Thedatacentreopportunityextendsnotonly

totechnologycompaniesbutalsotoengineeringandconstructionfirms,utilities,infrastructureinvestors,andbanks.

PwC,s29thGlobalCEOSurvey|01TheopportunityhorizonPwC10

TheUnitedStatesandIndiahaveincreasedinpopularityamongglobalCEOsasdestinationsforinternationalinvestment

Q.Whichthreecountries,excludingtheoneinwhichyouarebased,willreceivethegreatestproportionofyourcompany’soverallinvestmentinthenext12months?

20262025

US

Germany

India

UK

ChineseMainland

UAE

SaudiArabia

France

Spain

Singapore

13%

12%

13%

7%

13%

14%

11%

9%

8%6%

7%5%

7%7%

6%3%

6%5%

30%

35%

Base:Allrespondentsplanninginternationalinvestmentsinthenext12months(n=2,265).

Source:PwC’s29thGlobalCEOSurvey

Yournextmove:Followcapitalflows.Oursurveypaintsapictureof

globalisationintransition—notinretreat.Althoughthisviewisincomplete(ourdatadoesn’tcapturethescaleofplannedcompanyinvestmentsorspeaktolong-termcapitaldeploymentbybanksandotherfinancialinstitutions),itunderscoreshownewvaluepoolsareemergingastheglobaleconomyreconfigures.We

recommendthatcompaniesconsidertrackingglobalinvestmentflowsasacore

considerationoftheirstrategicplanningprocess,iftheydon’talreadydoso.CEOsshouldalsolookatthebigpictureoftheirowncross-borderactivitiestospot

opportunitiestheymaybemissing.

02

PwC’s29thGlobalCEOSurvey|02Confidencedown,threatsupPwC11

Confidencedown,

threatsup

Comparedtothefindingsfromlastyear’sGlobalCEOSurvey,leadersare

significantlylessconfidentabouttheircompany’srevenuegrowthoutlookover

thenext12months.Confidenceinthethree-yearrevenuegrowthoutlookhasalsodeclined,althoughthedecreaseislesssignificant.

Whatexplainsthisebbingconfidence?AlthoughCEOsremaingenerallyoptimisticaboutgrowthprospectsfortheglobaleconomy,they’relessconfidentinmany

countriesaboutthelocaleconomicoutlook.Industrycyclesarealsoatwork.Forexample,lowerconfidenceaboutshort-termrevenuegrowthamonginsurance

CEOscomesasagoldenperiodforindustryprofitabilityisnowending.Equally,oilexecutivesarefacingweakdemandandindustry-wideconcernaboutoversupply.

Beyondthesesector-specificdynamics,CEOsgenerallyhavegrownmore

concernedaboutarangeofnear-termthreats,includingmacroeconomicvolatility,cyberrisk,technologydisruption,andgeopoliticalconflict.Almostathird(31%)saytheircompanyishighlyorextremelyexposedtotheriskofasignificant

financiallossfromcyberthreatsintheyearahead,upfrom24%inlastyear’s

surveyand21%twoyearsago.Cyberrisksnowrankalongsidemacroeconomic

volatilityasthetopthreatsidentifiedbyCEOs.Abouteightinten(84%)say

they’replanningtoimproveenterprise-widecybersecuritypracticesinresponsetogeopoliticalrisk,underliningtheinterconnectednatureofthethreatstheyface.

Uncertaintyrelatingtotariffsisanewconsiderationasgovernments

recalibrate

taxpolicy

tosupportnationalinterests,securesupplychains,andaddressfiscalshortfalls.OneinfiveCEOs(20%)saytheircompanyishighlyorextremely

exposedtotheriskofasignificantfinanciallossfromtariffsoverthenext12months.Trepidationvariesgreatlybygeography,rangingfromjust6%on

PwC’s29thGlobalCEOSurvey|02Confidencedown,threatsupPwC12

averageacrossMiddleEasterncountriesto28%ontheChineseMainland,30%inTurkey,and35%inMexico.AmongUSCEOs,22%saytheircompanyishighlyorextremelyexposedtotariffs,whichisclosetotheglobalaverage.

AlmostathirdofCEOs(29%)globallysaytariffswillreducetheircompany’snetprofitmarginintheyearahead,versus60%expectinglittletonochangeand6%anticipatingmarginimprovement.Amongthoseexpectingmargincompressionduetotariffs,mostanticipateadeclineoflessthan15%.

CEOconfidenceinshort-termcompanygrowthhasdeclinedsharply

Q.Howconfidentareyouaboutyourcompany’sprospectsforrevenuegrowth?

(Showingonly“Veryconfident”and“Extremelyconfident”responses)

OverthenextthreeyearsOverthenext12months

60%

50%

40%

30%

20%

10%

0%

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

2022

2023

2024

2025

2026

Note:ThescaleusedtoassessCEOconfidencechangedin2022.Answerspriorto2022showCEOswhoanswered“Veryconfident”versusboth

“Extremelyconfident”and“Veryconfident”sincethatyear.

Source:PwC’s29thGlobalCEOSurvey

PwC’s29thGlobalCEOSurvey|02Confidencedown,threatsupPwC13

Inaworldoflowerconfidenceandelevatedthreats,itcomesasnosurprise

thatmanyCEOsarefeelinglessinclinedtomakebigmoves.Athird(32%)say

geopoliticaluncertaintyismakingthemlesslikelytomakelargenewinvestments.

Yournextmove:Calibrateyourconcerns.Uncertaintyisalwayspresent.The

questionfacingCEOsishowtoavoidbecomingfrozeninaworldwheredynamismpays.Datafromthisyear’ssurveyshowsthatcompaniesplanningtomakemajoracquisitionsandotherlargeinvestments—despitetheuncertainenvironment—

aregrowingfasterandenjoyinghigherprofitmargins.

Asecondkeyquestionfacingleadersiswhethertheirperceptionsandplansare

basedoncurrentandrelevantintelligence.Aswe’vefoundinpreviouseditions

ofPwC’sGlobalCEOSurvey,itcanbestrikinghowthreatperceptionscanvary

greatlyevenamongcountriesincloseproximity.Forexample,morethanathird(34%)ofCEOsinGermanysaytheircompanyishighlyorextremelyexposed

tocyberrisksintheyearahead.Thatfigurecomparestoonly16%amongUK

CEOs,eventhoughcompaniestherecontinuetoexperience

regular,high-profile

cyberattacks

.Movinginto2026,CEOseverywhereshouldtaketheopportunitytorevisittheirassumptionsandcalibratewithpeersacrossborders.

PwC’s29thGlobalCEOSurvey|03TheroadtoreinventionPwC14

03

Theroadtoreinvention

Innovatetoreinvent

WhenweaskedCEOstopickthequestionthatconcernsthemmostthesedays,insecondplace(aftertechnologyandAI)wasanissuerelatedtoinnovation:ismycompany’sinnovationcapabilityadequateforouruncertainfuture?What’smore,halfofallCEOssayinnovationiscentraltotheircompany’sbusinessstrategy.

Whenaskedaboutspecificpracticesthatsupportinnovation,however,weseea

gapbetweenaspirationandreality.OnlyoneinfourCEOsagreetoalargeorverylargeextentthattheircompanytolerateshigh-riskinnovationprojects;hasroutineprocessesinplacetostopunderperformingresearchanddevelopmentprojects;

orhasadefinedinnovationcentre,incubator,orcorporateventuringdivision.Inall,weaskedaboutsixinnovation-friendlypractices.FewerthanoneintenCEOs(8%)saytheircompanyhasimplementedatleastfiveofthesixpracticestoalargeorverylargeextent.

PwC’s29thGlobalCEOSurvey|03TheroadtoreinventionPwC15

HalfofCEOssayinnovationiscriticaltobusinessstrategy,butfewerhaveimplementedproveninnovationpractices

Q.Towhatextentdoeachofthefollowingstatementscharacteriseyourcompany’sapproachtoinnovation?

ToalargeextentToaverylargeextent

3

3%

17%

20%

19%

18%

26%

24%

6%

5%

5%

6

6%

%

Weviewinnovationasacriticalcomponentofouroverallbusinessstrategy

Wecollaboratewithexternalpartnerstoaccelerateinnovation

Wetestnewideasrapidlywithcustomers

orend-users

Wetoleratehighriskininnovationprojects

WehaveroutineprocessestostopunderperformingR&Dprojects

Wehaveadefinedinnovationcentre,incubator,orcorporateventuringdivision

Source:PwC’s29thGlobalCEOSurvey

Yournextmove:Buildinnovationcapability.CEOsneedtoguardagainst

whatmanagementwriterSteveBlankcalls

innovationtheatre

—activitiesthat

resembleinnovationbutproducenotangiblevalue.Thepracticesweaskedaboutinthisyear’ssurveyaren’tafoolproofrecipeforinnovationsuccess.Butthey’reagoodstartingpointforfrankdiscussionsamongCEOs,theirtopteams,andboardsaboutwhetherinnovationismorethanarhetoricalpriority.Thisyear’ssurvey

datashowsthatcompaniesemployingacriticalmassofinnovationpracticesareachievingnotonlyahigherpercentageofsalesfromnewproductsandservices(asyoumightexpect)butalsofasteroverallrevenuegrowthandhigherprofitmargins.

PwC’s29thGlobalCEOSurvey|03TheroadtoreinventionPwC16

Fromclimaterisktoclimatevalue

MorethanfourintenCEOs(42%)saytheircompanyisatleastmoderately

exposedtotheriskofasignificantfinanciallossarisingfromclimatechangeintheyearahead.CEOsintheinsurance(51%)andpowerandutilities(67%)

sectorsaremostlikelytosaytheircompanyisatleastmoderatelyexposed.

Yetfewcompaniessystematicallytakeclimaterisksandopportunitiesintoaccountaspartofdecision-making.OnlyaboutoneinfourCEOsagreetoalargeorvery

largeextentthattheircompanyhasdefinedprocessesforbringingclimatechangeintobusinessdecisionsrelatingtosupplychainandsourcing(24%)andproductdesignanddevelopment(24%).Forcapitalallocationdecisions,includingM&A,thisfallstooneinfive(20%).Whilethesepercentagesaregenerallyhigherin

sectorswithgreaternear-termexposuretoclimaterisk,wefinditsurprisingthat,forexample,fewerthanoneinthreeinsuranceCEOssaytheircompanyhasdefinedprocessestoaccountforclimaterisksandopportunitiesincapitalallocation.

Mostcompaniesdon’thavestrongprocessesforbringing

climateopportunitiesandrisksintobusinessdecision-making

Q.Towhatextentdoesyourcompanyhavedefinedprocessesthataccountfortheopportunitiesandrisksassociatedwithclimatechangeinthefollowingareas?

ToalargeextentToaverylargeextent

20%

4%

6%

Supplychainandsourcing

18%

Productdesignanddevelopment

4%

16%

Capitalallocation,includingmergersandacquisitions

Source:PwC’s29thGlobalCEOSurvey

PwC17

Yournextmove:Integrateclimatechangeintodecision-making.Abyproductof

newsustainabilityreportingrequirements

istheexpandedstoresof

sustainabilitydatanowavailabletomanycompaniesthatcanbefedintodecision-makingprocesses.Withbetterdataathand,thesecompanieshaveanopportunitytomovefromariskmanagementmindsettoactivevaluecreation.Whileevery

companyhasauniquesetofsustainabilityfactorsthatinfluenceitsabilitytocreatevalue,ourexperienceworkingwithorganisationspointsto

fiveinterconnected

topicsthatdrivevaluecreationformost:physicalclimaterisk,regulation,energystrategy,supplychains,andtaxcreditsandincentives.

Inaddition,oursurveydatashowscompanieswithdefinedprocessesforbringingclimate-relatedrisksandopportunitiesintodecisionsarefastertomarketand

moreagilewhenitcomestoadaptingtochangingdemandorsupplyconditions,whetherthesechangesarecausedbyclimateeventsorotherfactors.

Competeontrust

Stakeholdertrusthasneverbeeneasiertolose.Cyberattacks.Unpredictablegeopolitics.Risingexpectationsfortransparency.Rapidlyshiftingattitudesonsustainability.Thenthere’sAI,acauseforexcitementandanxietyinequalmeasureamonginvestors,customers,andemployees.InourlatestGlobal

WorkforceHopesandFearsSurvey,morethanaquarterofemployeessaid

theywereworriedaboutAI’simpactontheirwork.Asinglemissteponanyoftheseissuescanprecipitateacascadeofstakeholderconcernswithdamagingconsequencesfortrustandvalue.

Two-thirdsofCEOs(66%)saytheircompanyexperiencedtrustconcernstoatleastamoderateextentinthelastyearontopicssuchasAIsafety,dataprivacy,transparency,andtheimpactofclimatechangeonbusinessperformance.To

assesstheconnectionbetweenstakeholdertrustandvaluecreation,welookedattotalshareholderreturnsforpubliccompaniesinoursample.Theresults

arestriking.Companiesexperiencingthefewesttrustconcernsdelivered

totalshareholderreturnsovera12-monthperiodthatwere,onaverage,ninepercentagepointshigherthanthoseexperiencingthemosttrustconcerns.

PwC’s29thGlobalCEOSurvey|03TheroadtoreinventionPwC18

Manycompaniesexperiencedstakeholdertrustconcernsinthelast12months

Q.Inthepast12months,towhatextenthasyourcompanyexperiencedanyofthefollowingtrustconcernsfromyourkeystakeholdergroups(e.g.theboard,customers,regulators,

investors,employees)?

(Showingaggregateof“Toamoderateextent”,“Toalargeextent”,and“Toaverylargeextent”responses)

Questionsaboutdatauseandprivacy

Demandsforgreatertransparency

ConcernsaroundAIsafetyorresponsibleAI

Increasedscrutinyofleadershipdecisions

Questionsabouttheimpactofclimatechangeonbusinessperformance

Withdrawalofsupportorinvestmentinthecompany

38%

38%

37%

36%

32%

26%

Source:PwC’s29thGlobalCEOSurvey

Yournextmove:Maketrustaboardroomtopic.Althoughit’simpossibleto

fullyinoculateacompanyagainstlossesofstakeholdertrust,manyCEOscoulddomoretoanticipateandproactivelyaddresspotentialareasofvulnerability.Asouranalysisdemonstrates,trustisn’tanintangiblesofttopic.Valueisatstake.

Thismeanstrustshouldbeprioritisedasaboardroomtopicandconsidered

across

threeinterlockingdimensions

:operationaltrust(builtonefficient,

resilientoperations),accountabilitytrust(restingonhigh-qualityreportingandcommunications),anddigitaltrust(basedonsystemsandprocessesthatprotectsensitivedata,maintainsecureoperations,andenableorganisationstousedigitaltoolsresponsiblyandethically).

Asthisimplies,companiescanbuildandpreservestakeholdertrustthrough

deliberateinvestmentsindata,processes,andcontrols.Totakeonedigitaltrust

example,PwCresearchshowsthatrobustResponsibleAIprogrammes

buildtrust

andcreatevalue

byreducingthefrequencyofadverseAI-relatedincidentsand

helpingcompaniesrecoverfasterifsuchaneventoccurs.

PwC’s29thGlobalCEOSurvey|03TheroadtoreinventionPwC19

Resistthetyrannyoftheurgent

AsaCEO,howyouinvestyourtimeisoneofthemostimportantdecisionsyou

canmake,especiallywhenitcomestodividingyourattentionbetweenissues

thatwillplayoutovertheshort,medium,andlongterm.CEOs