18th Annual Global CEO Survey - CEE Results

With the current geopolitical issues in Russia and Ukraine and a potential "triple dip" recession in Western Europe, CEOs in Central and Eastern Europe are facing unique challenges. At the same time, many global trends in the areas of talent, technology, competition and collaboration are also very evident in CEE markets. To help shed some light on the situation, we have prepared a summary of the key findings from Central and Eastern Europe in the 18th Annual CEO Survey.

So what's keeping CEOs awake at night?

  • Growth: Only 16% of CEE CEOs are very confident about economic growth (vs 37% globally) and 30% in their own company’s growth in 2015.
  • Threats: The top threats in CEE are geopolitical risks (78%), lack of skills (77%), over-regulation (70%) and the tax burden (70%).
  • Growth markets: Germany (36%), Russia (22%), US (18%), and China (18%) are seen as the biggest growth markets for CEE companies.
  • Cross-sector competition: 55% of CEE CEOs believe competitors will emerge from other sectors, especially the technology sector (34%) in the next 3 years. 60% of CEE CEOs have entered or considered entering a new industry in the last 3 years.
  • Technology: 85% of CEE CEOs see data mining and analytics as the most strategic technology for their business. This is followed by mobile technologies (73%) and cyber security (72%).
  • Talent: 42% of CEE CEOs are looking to increase headcount in 2015. 81% are looking to recruit a broader range of skills and 78% to upskill their employees through development and mobility opportunities.

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Velina Yosifova

Velina Yosifova

Marketing & Communications Manager, PwC Bulgaria

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