The Conference Board’s 2022 survey, *Reset and Reimagine: Surviving and Thriving in a Uniquely Challenging Business Environment*, shows that CEOs are primarily focused on a cluster of external pressures rather than a single issue. Across regions, the top external challenges are: 1. Covid-19 disruptions 2. Rising inflation 3. Labor shortages 4. Supply chain disruptions 5. Changing consumer behaviors These are seen as the factors most likely to affect business performance in the near term. U.S.-based CEOs show a slightly different emphasis: - They rank **labor shortages as their number-one concern**, ahead of other issues. - They place **cybersecurity in the top five**, indicating a higher level of concern about digital risk than some of their counterparts in other regions. Some topics rank relatively low on CEOs’ external worry lists, including: - Corporate debt levels - Vaccine availability - The future of cities - Cryptocurrencies - Shareholder activism Climate change appears in the middle of the pack at **number 16 globally**. The survey suggests this is not because CEOs dismiss climate risk, but because many now treat it as a long-term, ongoing operational issue rather than an immediate external shock. In other words, climate considerations are being built into day-to-day business management instead of being viewed only as a disruptive event. Overall, the data points to CEOs managing a mix of health, economic, labor, and digital risks at the same time, with regional nuances in how they prioritize them.

Inside their organizations, CEOs are concentrating on a set of practical, near-term priorities that support both performance and resilience. The survey highlights several internal areas of high focus for 2022: 1. **Attracting and retaining talent** – Keeping critical skills in-house is a central concern, especially in a tight labor market. 2. **Accelerating digital transformation** – Leaders are looking to reimagine processes, customer experiences, and operations with digital tools. 3. **Improving cash flow** – Managing liquidity and financial flexibility remains important in a volatile environment. 4. **Developing the next generation of leaders** – CEOs recognize that future leaders need more than technical expertise. 5. **Modifying business models** – Many organizations are rethinking how they create and capture value in light of shifting customer and market dynamics. The push to develop new leaders is driven by the recognition that **technical skills alone are no longer enough**. The hybrid work model, in particular, is reshaping expectations of leadership. CEOs are prioritizing capabilities such as: - Agility - Resilience - Empathy - Digital fluency - Inclusive leadership - Strong interpersonal communication In contrast, some internal topics are lower on the 2022 priority list, including: - Revisiting the company’s mission or purpose - Paying down debt - Preparing for rising interest rates - Decentralizing decision-making - Significantly changing capital allocation priorities The overall picture is that CEOs are balancing talent, digital, and financial priorities while building leadership skills that fit a more flexible, hybrid way of working.

The 2022 Conference Board survey suggests that CEOs are rethinking whose interests guide decision-making and how prepared their organizations are for different types of crises. **Stakeholder priorities and stakeholder capitalism** When boards and C-suites make decisions, CEOs globally rank their key stakeholder groups in this order: 1. **Customers** – first 2. **Employees** – second 3. **Shareholders** – third This ordering reflects a shift toward what is often called **stakeholder capitalism**: the idea that businesses should serve the long-term interests of multiple groups, not just shareholders. Consistent with this, CEOs say that **evolving stakeholder expectations about the role of business in society** rank much higher as a factor than shareholder activism. **ESG and social priorities** The study notes an increased focus on several themes that are central to many ESG strategies: - Environmental and social issues - Equity and inclusion - Employee well-being - Workforce management - Community impact While **climate change ranks 16th globally** as an external concern, the interpretation is that many companies are now integrating climate risk management into everyday operations instead of treating it solely as a disruptive external event. **Crisis preparedness and resilience** The survey also highlights a gap in how prepared CEOs feel for different types of crises: - **More than 40% of CEOs globally** say their companies are well prepared for a major crisis related to a pandemic, financial instability, or an economic downturn. - **Less than 40%** feel well prepared for major crises related to: - Inflation - Cybersecurity - Supply chain disruptions - Climate change This difference raises reasonable questions from stakeholders about enterprise resilience. It suggests that while many organizations have strengthened their response to health and financial shocks, they may still need to rethink their readiness for inflationary pressures, cyber incidents, supply chain volatility, and climate-related events.