What are the chief executive officers of the country’s biggest companies worrying about when it comes to the U.S. economy in 2024? The threat of a recession elevated inflation, mostly. The big problem? Most CEOs admit that they aren’t prepared for either financial challenge.
Those are some of the top results from the Conference Board’s C-Suite Outlook 2024 released earlier this month.
The Conference Board from October 24 of last year through November 24 asked 1,247 C-Suite executives, including 630 CEOs, for their views on the country’s economy and its challenges. Topping the list were fears of a recession and persistently high inflation.
The problem? Just 37% of U.S. CEOs said that their companies are prepared for a recession while just 34% said that they were prepared for high inflation.
Another interesting finding? The C-Suite Outlook survey shows that most CEOs have largely given up on bringing their workers back to the office on a full-time basis. Just 4% of U.S. CEOs said that they will prioritize a full-time return to the office in 2024.
What else are CEOs worrying about in 2024? According to the survey, their anxiety is increasing over higher borrowing costs. CEOs across the globe ranked higher borrowing costs as their fourth most-pressing concern for 2024. That’s up from 10% of CEOs who said the same thing in 2023.
In the United States, CEOs ranked higher borrowing costs as their sixth-most important external concern. This is down slightly from 2023’s report, when CEOs said that that higher cost of borrrowing ranked as their sixth-most pressing issue.
The survey wasn’t focused solely on challenges, though. The Conference Board also asked respondents on how they expect to grow their profits in 2024. According to the results, U.S. CEOs said they are focusing on introducing new products and services, investing in technology, increasing sales through enhanced marketing efforts and entering new markets.
For long-term revenue growth, CEOs said that over the next three to five years they plan to invest in innovation; add new lines of business; invest in the digital transformation of their businesses, including AI; marketing and promotions; and retain existing talent and invest in new talent.
On the political side, respondents told the Conference Board that they are most worried about the national debt and deficits, which they cited as the top geopolitical threat to their operations in 2024.
The rise of AI is another factor on which U.S. CEOs are focusing. The survey found that 92% of U.S. CEOs believe that AI will increase productivity at their companies, while 86% said that they expect this technology to improve their marketing capabilities. A total of 63% told the Conference Board that they expect AI to boost their sales, revenue and profits. What about environmental, social and governance issues, or ESG? The Conference Board’s survey found that CEOs see the benefits of clean energy but are not making investment in renewable energy a priority. Just 32% of U.S. CEOs said that the transition to renewable energy will be significantly positive for their organizations. That’s a big difference from global CEOs. A total of 51% of these respondents said that moving to renewable energy will be a positive for their companies.