Conference Board News Release (01/12/23)

Slow growth and a recession are the top external worries of U.S. chief executive officers in 2023, according to a survey of nearly 700 CEOs and more than 450 other c-suite executives by the Conference Board. Sixty percent of U.S. CEOs expect a tepid year ahead, with the economy only picking back up by late 2023 or mid-2024. Inflation ranks as their second biggest external concern for 2023. Higher borrowing costs rank fourth, up from 25th in 2022. Covid-19 ranked fourth in 2022 but has dropped to 18th in 2023.

Despite CEOs bracing for weaker growth and recession, labor shortages and talent retention rank among the biggest challenges of executives. U.S. CEOs ranked finding and keeping talent second as an internal concern. Only 5% of U.S. CEOs plan to expand remote work, and only 3% plan to reduce it.

This article originally appeared on conference-board.org. Use this link to see the full article: CEO Survey: A Recession is the Biggest Worry in 2023