Although forecasts regarding the global economy are not as pessimistic compared to previous years, a large number of CEOs around the world believe that due to the pressure of technologies such as artificial intelligence and due to climate change, their companies will not survive the next decade without a thorough reorganization.
This, as reported by the Associated Press agency, was shown by a survey conducted on a sample of 4.700 CEOs by one of the world's largest consulting companies, PwC. The results were announced as members of the business elite, political leaders and activists gathered for the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
Despite the improved economic outlook, the world faces a number of problems, with the World Bank saying last week that it expects the global economy to slow for a third straight year in 2024. The CEO of Norway's $1,5 trillion sovereign wealth fund, the world's largest, told Reuters yesterday that the fund's return on investment during 2024 is likely to be "slow" due to high interest rates, persistent inflation and geopolitical risks.
At the same time, CEOs are pessimistic about their companies' ability to withstand major changes. the survey showed that 45 percent of respondents are worried that their companies will not be sustainable in ten years without a thorough reorganization, which is an increase from 39 percent compared to last year.
Executive directors claim that they are trying to implement changes, but that regulations, lack of expertise and the like work against them.
"Whether we are accelerating the deployment of generative artificial intelligence or building our business to meet the challenges and opportunities of the climate transition, this is a transformational year," said Bob Moric, global president of PwC, the firm formerly known as PricewaterhouseCoopers.
Artificial intelligence is considered both a way to optimize business operations and a threat. Nearly three-quarters of CEOs said AI will “significantly change the way their company creates, delivers and realizes value in the next three years,” according to PwC.
More than half of CEOs said AI will improve their products and services, but 69 percent said their workers need training to gain the skills to use the emerging technology. They are also concerned about how AI will increase cybersecurity risks and disinformation.
The organizers of the meeting in Davos warned last Sunday about the threat posed by disinformation created with the help of AI, such as the creation of synthetic content, AP reminds.
Another global survey also released at the time of the Davos gathering, the Edelman Trust Barometer from PR firm Edelman, found that innovation is being mismanaged and increasing polarization, particularly in Western democracies, where people with right-wing beliefs are more likely to resist innovation. of those with left-wing.
"Innovation is only embraced if there's a sense of looking at the bigger picture of how we take care of people whose jobs are going to change, how scientists are going to communicate directly with people in a way that they understand," CEO Richard Edelman told the AP. "And finally, that artificial intelligence is affordable and makes people's lives easier in one way or another."
The online survey, which again showed that business is the most trusted institution compared to government, media, science and non-governmental organizations, collected responses from more than 32.000 respondents in 28 countries between November 3 and November 22.
PwC's research showed that, like AI, the climate transition represents both a risk and an opportunity at the same time. An increasing number of CEOs, almost a third, said that climate change is expected to change the way they do business in the next three years.
More than three-quarters said they had started or completed changes to increase energy efficiency, but only 45 percent said they had made progress in considering climate risks when putting together a financial plan.
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