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We asked 1,198 global business leaders what lessons they had learned on:

Risk management

"Need to focus more on risk management as a long-term strategy because business is long term."

Risk management

"Need to be fully aware of risks and manage risks within the business, especially in relation to external dependencies."

Risk management

"Never assume that today's environment will be there tomorrow."

Risk management

"The importance of strengthening forecasting systems, and the necessity of managing by balancing growth and risk management."

Risk management

"Think in scenarios and make sure you know what to do when a scenario unfolds."

Volatility and flexibility

"The speed of development of the economic crisis: remembering how fast everything can turn around. It is easy to make long-term plans but also necessary to remain flexible and to review long-term planning constantly."

Volatility and flexibility

"Be better prepared because there are things you cannot foresee with the magnitude and speed of change."

Volatility and flexibility

"Remaining very flexible and dynamic to respond quickly to sudden shifts and changes into the market place. A lot of companies were slow to react."

Volatility and flexibility

"Global volatility causes more risk than previously thought and our business is more subject to rapid and global factors than previously thought."

Volatility and flexibility

"The economic cycle can be much more dramatic than we or anyone anticipated."

Cost structure

"When you are forced to cut costs, you realise how inefficiency is hidden in your system."

Cost structure

"You have to stick to your long-term strategy, but get more fit in terms of being cost efficient. Becoming fit, in turn, will help you to stick to your long-term strategy."

Cost structure

"A crisis helps you analyse unnecessary costs. Pay more attention to costs, as it makes you more competitive globally."

Cost structure

"Never lose sight of your cost structure. When everything is OK, you tend to forget the cost structure."

Cost structure

"Act early to work out the cost and inventory to get in line with GDP, whether it grows or declines."

Financial health

"Strategise your working capital so that you do not get into too much financial trouble. Choices have to be made regarding which markets / regions you want to stay structurally active."

Financial health

"Protect the balance sheet. It’s a lesson that we all understand as CEOs."

Financial health

"Capital markets can close without notice."

Financial health

"One of the things we haven’t learnt is to monitor and watch capital requirements for the long term and make sure you are well capitalised so you are not put at risk when things go wrong."

Financial health

"The biggest challenge we've had relates to our shareholders over levels of acceptable leverage. We felt we had a comfortable level of leverage, but it was not acceptable to them."

The financial sector

"This crisis has made people put their feet back on the ground, especially in the financial sector, where they had lost a bit of touch. It has brought more humility."

The financial sector

"Innovation in finance and banking is a double-edged sword. We have to use it very carefully."

The financial sector

"The financial community completely lost their way in relation to risk management. Their compensation schemes need to be more aligned with the long-term interests of the business."

The financial sector

"The world banking community was not aggressive enough in monitoring risk. We did a poor job and the lesson learned is to monitor risks more closely."

The financial sector

"We need to be brave enough to tackle taboos within the banks."

Trust, reputation and values

"Be absolutely true to your fundamentals and engender integrity and trust."

Trust, reputation and values

"The business world increasingly needs the ethical values of people. The most important lesson is the importance of ethics in the world of business."

Trust, reputation and values

"My main concern is with the long term impact in terms of a crisis on trust and confidence. Both in the US and globally, the hangover will mean the corporate entity has lost permission to operate."

Trust, reputation and values

"We have had to put significant focus on continuing engagement with our workforce and maintaining trust with our customers."

Trust, reputation and values

"Trust is irreplaceable."

Regulation

"The capitalist system requires the existence of rules that need to be established and controlled."

Regulation

"The importance of co-operation between states to anticipate and manage the impact of major economical and financial changes."

Regulation

"Regulation of financial institutions needs to be tougher."

Regulation

"Global cooperation must continue and we have to fight against protectionism."

Regulation

"A very strong risk of over-regulation has emerged from this global crisis because of the banks."

Rethinking strategy

"Diversification, having more than one product and having product flexibility. Understand the processes of the delivery chain and your customers."

Rethinking strategy

"This crisis has helped to better understand where the reality of business and industry are. We were on an artificial model, a leverage-based system. Now we're back to basics."

Rethinking strategy

"We need a better kind of strategy that includes the possibility of a crisis coming and changes among customers."

Rethinking strategy

"Have a strategy that allows you to be flexible to face these crises without changes to our objectives."

Rethinking strategy

"Importance of basic management principles, enough equity capital, and innovative products and services."

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