Top CEO concerns vary globally

CEOs of Asian companies are more likely to be concerned with people issues—such as stimulating innovation and acquiring top talent—than their U.S. and European counterparts, who are concerned most with top-line growth as economies recover. Conversely, only among U.S. executives does vigilance regarding ethics issues rank anywhere in the top 10 job concerns. These global regional differences in priorities are the findings of The Conference Board's fifth annual CEO Challenge Survey, released in August.

"The challenges Asian companies face in gaining greater speed, flexibility, and adapting to change largely arise from the lack of management bench strength and the inability of many Asian CEOs to systematically develop their organizational ranks," says Kyung H. Yoon, vice chairman of executive search and leadership services firm Heidrick & Struggles, Chicago, one of the survey's sponsors. "First, the depth of innovative managers with global perspectives is relatively thin. Second, Asian cultures are risk-averse as to losing face, so that they are less likely to take on projects that might be 'out of the box,' " says Yoon.

Of those surveyed, 51 percent of CEOs in Asia report that stimulating innovation is their greatest concern, with 47 percent stating that acquiring talented managers is their top priority. Only 34 percent of the CEOs based in Europe and 28 percent of U.S. CEOs cite innovation as their top concern, while only 32 percent of European CEOs and just 22 percent of CEOs in the U.S. say availability of talented managers is their greatest concern.