Business chief executives have expressed greater optimism about the economic prospects in 2024 than they had done for the previous year, with a many having plans to expand their workforce in the next 12 months, according to a PwC survey.

PwC’s 27th Annual Global CEO Survey, carried out in 105 countries and regions, featuring responses from 4,702 CEOs, showed a significant rise in economic optimism among business leaders. It was twice as high as it had been for 2023, rising from 18 per cent to 38 per cent.

Despite this positive outlook, nearly half of CEOs expressed doubts about the long-term viability of their businesses in the face of challenges from technology and climate change. PwC Cyprus, as part of its global survey initiatives, is set to unveil the findings of its 13th local CEO survey on February 20.

Concerns about inflation and macroeconomic instability have decreased significantly, despite geopolitical conflict risks. These have seen a decline with 18 per cent of CEOs feeling highly or extremely exposed. However, this newfound optimism is tempered by worries over long-term viability, as 45 per cent of CEOs express doubts that their current business models will remain sustainable in a decade—an increase from 39 per cent in the previous year.

Bob Moritz, Global Chair at PwC, noted the paradoxical nature of this shift, stating. “As business leaders are becoming less concerned about macroeconomic challenges, they are becoming more focused on disruptive forces within their industries,” he said.

“Whether it is accelerating the roll-out of generative AI or building their business to address the challenges and opportunities of the climate transition, this is a year of transformation,” Moritz said.

CEOs overwhelmingly view generative AI as a catalyst for reinvention, with 70 per cent believing it would significantly reshape the way their companies create, deliver, and capture value within the next three years. Despite this optimism, CEOs acknowledge the need for workforce upskilling (69 per cent) and express concerns about rising cybersecurity risks (64 per cent), misinformation (52 per cent), legal liabilities, bias towards specific groups of customers or employees (34 per cent) in their companies, and reputation risks (46 per cent).

Moving forward, the survey indicates a positive trend in CEOs addressing climate priorities. A notable 76 per cent have taken steps to enhance energy efficiency, and 58 per cent report progress in innovative, new, climate-friendly products, services, or technologies. However, only 45 per cent note progress in incorporating climate risk into financial planning, citing regulatory complexity (54 per cent) and lower economic returns for climate-friendly investments (51 per cent) as major barriers.

As CEOs handle the impact of new trends, concerns about long-term business viability havesurfaced. Almost half (45 per cent) worry that their businesses may not remain viable beyond the next decade without reinvention. Regulatory hurdles (64 per cent), competing operational concerns (55 per cent), and a lack of skills in their workforce (52 per cent) emerge as significant obstacles to achieving this necessary transformation.

A further obstacle is inefficiency. CEOs perceive significant inefficiencies across a range of their companies’ routine activities—everything from decision-making meetings to emails—viewing roughly 40 per cent of the time spent on these tasks as inefficient.