C-Suite Outlook

At the start of 2021, inflation barely registered on CEOs’ radars. But as 2022 begins, inflation has soared to the top tier of concerns. Last year inflation ranked 22^nd on CEOs’ worry list; it’s now risen to 2^nd. What’s more, CEOs think rising prices are here to stay: 55 percent expect inflation to last into 2023 or longer.

The Conference Board survey also found a seismic shift in CEOs’ attitudes about remote work: Now, a third of CEOs globally expect a remote-heavy workforce after the pandemic subsides. That is nearly double the percentage of CEOs who said they had remote workforces in 2019. CEOs in the United States (53 percent) are the most likely to expect remote-heavy workforces post pandemic.

The results also reveal that, in 2022, labor shortages will keep the world’s CEOs up at night. And the survey findings confirm the shift from stockholder- to multistakeholder capitalism is underway: CEOs globally see rising expectations from stakeholders as far more of a challenge than stockholder activism. Moreover, CEOs are making advancing economic opportunity and equality their top-ranked ESG-Social priority this year.

The survey reflects the perspectives of more than 900 CEOs and nearly 700 other C-suite executives. Participants weighed in on the top business threats in 2022 and their plans for growth, and were primarily from four regions: North America, Latin America, Asia, and Europe.

Highlights from the C-Suite Outlook 2022 report include:

1)    Economic Concerns: Highlights    

Inflation concerns soar

• US CEOs: In 2022, inflation is the 2^nd top external concern. In 2021, it ranked 23^rd.
• CEOs globally: In 2022, it is 2^nd. In 2021, it ranked 22^nd.

Here to stay: half of CEOs expect inflation beyond 2022

• US CEOs: 59 percent expect elevated pricing pressures until mid-2023 or beyond.
• CEOs globally: Overall, 55 percent expect elevated pricing pressures until mid-2023 or beyond.