Business Outlook for 2022: Global Chief Executives Positive

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Dec 15, 2021, 10:00 ET

NEW YORK, Dec. 15, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- More than 80% of global chief executives across 44 industries believe economic growth will remain strong in 2022, although it's not without a high level of uncertainty, according to a new survey by YPO.

Conducted 18 November – 5 December with 1,700 chief executives in 101 countries responding, top YPO Global Pulse Survey findings include:

Things are looking up for many companies in terms of revenue growth and hiring.

Among those surveyed, 37% reported a 20% increase in revenue or more since the beginning of 2021, and only 17% saw a decrease of 10% or more since the beginning of the year.
Hiring has picked up, with 38% of respondents experiencing a 10% increase or more in the number of employees since the beginning of 2021, though 45% of firms said their total head count is about the same as it was in early 2021 and 16% said they saw a decrease.

Most chief executives (71%) are very or somewhat concerned about the impact of inflation on their businesses next year. U.S. leaders (77%) are more concerned about inflation than their global counterparts.

Inflation concerns could spell bad news for consumers, with respondents in the Food and Beverage (74%), Manufacturing (73%) and Retail and Wholesale Sales (62%) industries planning to raise prices in response to inflation.

There seems to be no immediate end in sight for supply chain issues, with only 2% of respondents believing they will be resolved in early 2022. Thirty-nine percent believe resolution will come at the end of 2022, and 38% expect it in 2023 or later.
The global labor shortage continues, with 67% of respondents saying it is somewhat or very difficult to find employees for the general workforce and 57% of respondents reporting the same levels of difficulty when it comes to C-suite and executive hires.
Even though only 1% of executives surveyed believe employees are more productive at home, 74% of business leaders shared that some form of flexible work arrangements will become permanent.
With pandemic pressures taking a toll, some businesses are improving mental health benefits, with 35% reporting some type of mental health investment for employees and 16% planning to add one.
Heading into 2022, YPO members shared all business leaders should focus on:

Improving employee engagement and work culture/retention
Exploring alternative cash streams/protecting existing cash flows
Preparing for inflation
Planning for supply chain issues
Understanding evolving customer needs

YPO Global Pulse Methodology:
The YPO Global Pulse was conducted by YPO from 18 November – 5 December 2021 via an online questionnaire. A total of 1,700 YPO members responded and represent 101 different countries. The margin of sampling error is plus or minus 2.3 percentage points at the 95 percent confidence level.

About YPO:
YPO is the global leadership community of more than 30,000 chief executives in 142 countries who are connected by the shared belief that the world needs better leaders. Visit ypo.org for more.

SOURCE YPO