PwC survey: More Romanian CEOs say companies must reinvent business models to survive in the next decade

Roughly 37% of Romanian CEOs believe their organizations will need to reinvent their business model to survive in the next decade, up from 27% in the previous edition of the PwC CEO Survey. Most (80%) cited technology as a key driver of change over the past five years, while 74% named changes in consumer behavior and 68% government regulation.

Meanwhile, more than two-thirds (69%) of Romanian CEOs say the regulatory environment is an obstacle to reinventing their business model, 58% point to a lack of skills in their company’s workforce, 53% to a lack of technology, and 49% to supply chain instability.

Dinu Bumbăcea, Country Managing Partner at PwC Romania, commented: “The conclusion of our survey is that in order to remain viable and profitable in ten years’ time, Romanian companies, like those worldwide, will have to continue the process of reinvention forced by technological and regulatory changes. More and more CEOs are aware of the need for change and are already taking steps in this direction by developing new products and services, adopting new technologies, and entering strategic partnerships to improve capabilities.”

According to the survey, 53% of Romanian executives report a reallocation of resources (financial and human) of more than 10% from one year to the next.

Other findings revealed that 37% of Romanian CEOs expect the economy to grow this year, compared with 26% in 2023, and their main concerns for the year ahead remain inflation, macroeconomic volatility, and geopolitical conflicts.

Meanwhile, 37% of respondents said they are very or extremely confident about their company’s revenue growth prospects over the next 12 months, compared to 52% in 2023, and 30% expect a decline.

Over 60% believe that technological innovation will change the business model to a great or very great extent over the next three years. For example, 53% think that Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) will significantly change how companies do business and increase competition over the next three years.

According to the PwC survey, 65% of CEOs in Romania say their organization is taking steps to improve energy efficiency. Meanwhile, 41% plan to make at least one purchase in the next three years.

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