Fortune/Deloitte CEO Survey: Spring 2025

Over the past several months, new tariffs and policy shifts in the United States have contributed to a growing environment of uncertainty and complexity worldwide. The latest Fortune/Deloitte CEO Survey, conducted from April 1 to April 11, following the announcement of reciprocal tariffs on April 2, revealed a decline in CEO optimism about company performance and increased pessimism around the global economy. The survey results may be influenced by the heightened uncertainty due to tariff announcements, stock market fluctuations, and bond market volatility.

According to the survey, CEO optimism for their own company's performance dropped to 60% from 84% in Fall 2024. This marks the lowest level of optimism observed since the origin of this question in Winter 2022. The uncertainty has also resulted in a notable increase in CEO pessimism towards the global economy: over half of respondents (58%) expressed a pessimistic outlook for the next 12 months. The shift in CEO outlook coupled with top concerns around geopolitical instability, inflation, and macroeconomic uncertainty illustrates the complexity of leading in the current environment.

To navigate the ambiguity, CEOs are focused on taking action and scenario planning to anticipate and address potential challenges. As trade policy rapidly changes, 71% of CEOs say they will evolve their supply chain approaches to mitigate risks. As for cost management, 42% are planning to implement cost-cutting measures to offset increased costs, while only 28% plan to raise prices, perhaps contrary to rising consumer concerns around costs.

CEOs see the next 12 months as a period of uncertainty, yet they also recognize opportunities for growth, innovation, and resilience for the road ahead. Read on for more highlights from the Spring 2025 Fortune/Deloitte CEO Survey.

Key insights

Outlook and disruptors: CEOs continue to rate geopolitical instability as the top disruptor, followed by potential inflation, and other sources of potential financial and market instability, similar to the Summer 2024 survey. One CEO shared that “economic uncertainty makes short-term forecasts and strategic planning more challenging.” There was also a significant decrease in concern about environmental matters (e.g., weather-related events, regulatory and reporting requirements, stakeholder expectations) as a top business disruptor, dropping to 2% from 14% in Summer 2024. 

Taking action in uncertainty: In an era of uncertainty, CEOs are thoughtfully assessing strategies to manage costs and make strategic investment decisions. Forty-two percent say they are planning to implement cost-cutting measures, while only 28% say they plan to raise consumer prices on goods and services. Sixty-two percent plan to maintain current investments for the next 12 months, while 23% plan to postpone any major investments for the next three to six months.

AI journey continues: CEOs continue to invest in and reap the rewards of Artificial Intelligence, with almost two-thirds reporting that Generative AI (GenAI) has delivered value to their organizations. Nine in ten CEOs also say their organizations are considering or implementing agentic AI, with one in ten planning to have at least one business function fully implemented with the technology by the end of the year. Regardless of how they assessed GenAI’s expected impact on their organizations, CEOs are actively exploring the next evolution of AI for their businesses.