
Shareholder Pressure, AI And Economic Volatility Erode Long-Term Planning, Survey FindsÂ
Board members and CEOs report growing difficulty maintaining long-term focus amid shareholder demands, macro uncertainty and accelerating AI-driven change.
Corporate Board Member conducts survey-based research throughout the year to gather firsthand accounts from public company board members on shifting boardroom strategy discussions and processes. We also offer a timely look into boardroom sentiment with our Director Confidence Index, a monthly flash poll of board members on the economy and top-of-mind issues.
Every year, Corporate Board Member surveys U.S. public company board members to take their pulse on the issues that are most prominent in the boardroom for the year to come and the strategies companies are implementing to overcome the biggest challenges ahead.Â
Corporate Board Member and Farient Advisors examine how forward-thinking boards are moving beyond traditional succession planning to build predictive, data-driven talent strategies that transform potential disruption into competitive advantage.
Using survey findings and insights gained from ongoing conversations with leading directors, we provide a look at what directors view as the keys to resilience and suggest four conversations boards can have to help management to take action.
What makes a great board? To answer that question, RHR International and Corporate Board Member partnered to survey more than 400 directors at U.S. public companies in December 2023 and January 2024 and compared the answers from those at top-performing companies against the rest of the group.
In the fall of 2024, Corporate Board Member partnered with Diligent Institute and FTI Consulting to survey more than 200 directors of publicly traded companies in the U.S. on what’s on the board agenda for the year ahead.

Board members and CEOs report growing difficulty maintaining long-term focus amid shareholder demands, macro uncertainty and accelerating AI-driven change.

After three quarters at a five-year low, director confidence jumped 23 percent in December—yet the outlook for 2026 remains muted. One director’s advice: ‘Defend and survive.’

The Q4 Business Risk Index finds business risk 16 percent higher than it was at the start of the year, as domestic political uncertainty and regulatory upheaval continue to cast a shadow over the compliance sphere.