The latest quarterly Banking Pulse report from global audit, tax and advisory services giant KPMG has thrown some insights into the minds of the best CEOs about business growth resumption, the impact of vaccine roll-outs, evolving organizational requirements, and business transformation priorities.
KPMG’s recent CEO Outlook pulse Survey is a result of interactions with 60 bank chief executives from around the world.
The study reveals that close to half (45 percent) of global CEOs expect their organizations to gain normality sometime in 2022. All of the respondents cited successful vaccine roll-out as the most important factor in bringing back a sense of normality.
Almost all (90 percent) of all CEOs were keen to ensure the safety of their workforce by asking employees to notify them when they’ve been vaccinated. Meanwhile, half of the respondents were concerned that all of their employees may not have access to the COVID-19 vaccines which they believe can potentially jeopardize their operations and competitive advantage.
Mergers & Acquisition
More than half (56 percent) are now interested in mergers and acquisitions. Investments have moved towards being digital to transform the customer experience and offer value propositions.
Customer-centricity and technology are now top priorities alongside investments in data security measures, digital communications and cloud computing.
Sustainability
Driven by the COVID-19 pandemic, the financial industry has heightened its focus on sustainability. 88 percent of bank CEOs compared to 55 in the previous year are looking to lock in the gains in sustainability and climate change that were brought about by the pandemic.
Diversity
Six in every ten respondents observed that progress made towards diversity and inclusion has been slow, with a significant percentage (85 percent) of leaders agreeing that there is still much to be done in regard to gender diversity on boards.
