U.S. Bank CFO Survey

Corporate Finance Leaders Tighten Belts Amid Uncertainty - Seite 2

• Talent shortages continue as the leading risk (41%), marking the third consecutive year at the top, closely followed by the challenges related to the pace of technology change/digital disruption (38%). Industrial Products/Manufacturing (47%), Hospitality and Leisure (46%) and Technology (46%) finance leaders were most likely to list talent shortages as a top risk.
• Geopolitical tension and war have jumped to become the fourth-most cited top risk (26%), climbing from 10^th place last year.
• Inflation comes in fifth place (25%) as a top risk. It has decreased in urgency for finance leaders from last year’s 38%. Finance leaders in Telecom and Media (42%) and Consumer and Retail (36%) were most likely to list inflation as a top risk.
• Nearly four-in-ten of finance leaders (39%) said they’re not confident about their ability to manage and mitigate new risks.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) and areas for efficiencies

• Finance leaders are prioritizing investments in technology (47%) over layoffs (21%) as the primary solution for cutting costs in the next 12 months. Comparatively, in 2021 layoffs were at 40%.
• After data analytics (52%), AI is the second-highest priority for investment in the finance function (51%) and is most prioritized by finance leaders in Insurance, Oil and Gas and Life Sciences/Pharmaceutical sectors.
• Uses for AI in the finance function are primarily focused on tackling risk (42%), identifying fraud (41%) and automating processes (37%).
• While cost cuts are top of mind, this year’s survey found finance leaders are more confident about balancing growth initiatives and cost cutting. 50% said they struggle to balance the need to cut costs with the need to invest in the future, down from 56% last year.

View the full 2024 U.S. Bank CFO Insights Report.

About the research

The results of this research are based on a survey conducted in January and February 2024 of 2,030 senior finance leaders who work in U.S. businesses across multiple sectors. Half of the survey participants are company, regional or divisional CFOs. The remainder are senior managers within the finance function. Every surveyed finance leader works for a business that generates at least $100 million in annual revenue, and 30% work for a business that generates at least $2 billion.

About U.S. Bancorp

U.S. Bancorp, with more than 70,000 employees and $684 billion in assets as of March 31, 2024, is the parent company of U.S. Bank National Association. Headquartered in Minneapolis, the company serves millions of customers locally, nationally and globally through a diversified mix of businesses including consumer banking, business banking, commercial banking, institutional banking, payments and wealth management. U.S. Bancorp has been recognized for its approach to digital innovation, community partnerships and customer service, including being named one of the 2024 World’s Most Ethical Companies and Fortune’s most admired superregional bank. Learn more at usbank.com/about.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240425962462/en/

The US Bancorp Stock at the time of publication of the news with a fall of -1,03 % to 38,52EUR on Tradegate stock exchange (25. April 2024, 09:30 Uhr).