The two most pressing challenges for an executive are labor and costs

By: Trademagazin Date: 2025. 04. 23. 09:03

The global CEO survey, jointly conducted by the International Executive Search Federation (IESF), an international organization specializing in executive search, and its Hungarian member company, HR consulting firm Prime by JobGroup, provides a clear picture of how company leaders see the business challenges of 2025. The survey, which collected the opinions of top executives from 4 continents, 26 countries, and nearly 700 companies, makes it clear that company leaders must be more agile, more forward-looking than ever before, and be ready to adapt to highly unpredictable global changes.

Adaptability and strategic foresight are the keys to success in 2025

The IESF Global CEO Outlook Study 2025 clearly highlights that company leaders today operate in an increasingly complex and extremely rapidly changing market environment. Based on the survey, there is global consensus that adaptability and strategic foresight are the keys to success in 2025. CEOs need to be ready to respond quickly as:

preserving financial resilience is key – a delicate balance between cost management and growth opportunities is needed, increasingly acute labor market challenges require innovative approaches to talent retention and development,
international expansion requires strategic risk management, digital transformation is no longer just an advantage, but a prerequisite for maintaining competitiveness,
and sustainability has taken on a new role: not just a compliance requirement, but a cornerstone of long-term business success.

The top 6 key leadership challenges in Hungary

“Our global study for 2025 revealed six key leadership priorities. Although these topics are similar worldwide, the order of importance may differ by region and country. In the case of Hungary, leadership priorities differ from international trends. – stated Éva Fehér, Managing Partner of Job Kft. According to Hungarian respondents, the biggest challenge in 2025 is the shortage of professionals and wage pressure, followed by ensuring cost efficiency and the need to manage geopolitical and economic uncertainties. While the focus is primarily on stimulating innovation and improving competitiveness at the global level, in Hungary, labor market difficulties, maintaining political and economic stability, and risk management are at the center of leadership thinking.”

– the expert summarized the results of the research in Hungarian terms.