Executing Strategy - Once Again The Top Priority for CEOs

According to recent research from The Conference Board, while executing their corporate strategy effectively is still the highest priority, the key concerns these days for CEOs are managing and securing finance, maintaining confidence and risk management.

While "excellence of execution" remained as the top challenge for the second year in a row, nearly half of the executives said they were now most concerned about speed, flexibility and adaptability to change.

Top Five CEO Challenges Due to Financial Crisis

1. Excellence in execution
2. Consistent execution of strategy by top management
3. Speed, flexibility, adaptability to change
4. Global economic performance
5. Financial risk, including liquidity, volatility, and credit risk

Source: CEO Challenge 2008: Top 10 Challenges--Financial Crisis Edition (Conference Board.Org)

According to the report: "business leaders across the globe are focusing more urgently on execution and immediate bottom-line issues, and leaving the people management systems built up during the tight labor market of the past five years to operate how they are intended."