Want to reinvent your business? Consider other sectors.

Companies are looking outside of their existing industries for new growth opportunities. In PwC’s 29th Global CEO Survey, four in ten CEOs (42%) say their company has started to compete in new sectors in the last five years. Among CEOs planning to make at least one major acquisition in the next three years, a similar proportion (44%) expect to do deals outside of their existing sector or industry.

The interactive graphic above shows the cross-sector moves that companies are eyeing, based on survey responses from 4,454 CEOs globally. We asked CEOs in which sectors (if any) they’ll seek to grow their business over the next three years. Respondents could choose up to three. The results help leaders see where their competitors are looking to expand, as well as the industries that could bring new competition.

• Technology is on top for cross-sector growth among CEOs globally. Among health CEOs for example, 35% of those planning to grow in new sectors picked technology. Similarly, 31% of technology CEOs planning to move into new sectors are eyeing health services.
• Among automotive CEOs, 27% planning to move into new sectors picked aerospace and defence. Conversely, 43% of aerospace and defence CEOs picked the automotive sector as an area for growth.
• For consumer-packaged goods CEOs, 32% are seeking growth in retail. A smaller portion of retail CEOs (22%) are seeking growth in consumer packaged goods.

These moves underscore how value is shifting beyond traditional sector boundaries. AI, climate change, and shifting geopolitics are transforming the way people live and work. The result? New domains of growth that companies can only capture by working across sector boundaries to meet fundamental human needs—like how we feed and care for ourselves; how we move, make and build things; and how we fuel and power it all. PwC’s Value in Motion research indicates that these shifts will create new value pools in a global economy that could grow to US$132 trillion by 2035.

Your next move: Build a reinvention-ready organisation

Moving successfully into new sectors requires some foundational elements. First, for those considering acquisitions, PwC research has found that the process is more likely to add value if the deal adds complementary capabilities, as opposed to strengthening market power or acquiring customers.

In addition, companies need to consider what it takes to collaborate successfully as part of new ecosystems. This may entail harmonising data standards or transforming core systems to enable interoperability with new partners. Lastly, it’s important to be attuned to how external players may be moving into your own sector. These moves may create new opportunities for collaboration—or, for those caught flat-footed —new competition.