The 2018 Global CEO Outlook finds chief executives optimistic about the economy and excited by the growth opportunities offered by disruption. At the same time, CEOs are managing their exposure to a range of headwinds. Driving growth will require CEOs to combine equal amounts of resourcefulness and realism.
Growth headwinds
CEOs' ability to fulfill their growth ambitions is challenged by significant uncertainty. In a volatile world, geopolitics has hit the boardroom. Cyber risk can slow technology-driven growth. And CEOs are concerned that their organization's brand is out of step with the aspirations of crucial generations, for Millennials and beyond.
Realistic growth
CEOs are confident in national, global and industry growth prospects. However, their optimism is tempered by a healthy dose of pragmatism, with most predicting cautious growth. As traditional products and services become obsolete in a digital world, CEOs are seeking new digital propositions and defining success with performance indicators beyond target revenue.
Digital gets personal
CEOs are stepping up to the challenge of an uncertain world. They are using new digital technologies to grow and reshape their business, taking responsibility for securing consumers' trust, and transforming their workforces for a future where smart machines augment human workers.
Instinct over data
With customer demands continually changing and the technology landscape in a constant state of flux, CEOs believe that agility is the dominant currency of business. And they are combining their experience and intuition with data-driven, predictive intelligence to spot new growth opportunities.
CEO profiles
CEOs from a range of large and complex organizations around the world — from American Water's Susan Story to SoftBank Group Corp's Masayoshi Son — speak candidly about the issues they face. Leading CEOs outline their digital transformation agendas and the implications of new technologies, such as AI and automation, for their workforces.
Perspectives
CEOs in the Americas, Asia-Pacific, Europe, Africa and the Middle East face similar dilemmas in different ways. Their challenges include the risks of cyber, shifts away from a globalized marketplace and disruptive changes to demographics. Explore the different points of view and business implications of the survey results from our experts from across different sectors, countries and areas of expertise.