Tag: shareholder activism

PwC’s 2024 Corporate Directors’ Survey—how are boards addressing the current uncertainty?

The title of PwC’s new 2024 Corporate Directors’ Survey, Uncertainty and transformation  in the modern boardroom, might clue you in to one of its themes:  uncertainty—anxiety?—arising out of the looming election.  According to PwC, the “2024 election matters more than usual. Not only is the American electorate more polarized than anytime in modern history—making corporate leaders’ every statement and decision subject to public criticism—the results could rapidly reshape the business landscape. Which political party emerges victorious in November, in the White House and/or the houses of Congress, may prove enormously consequential for how every industry functions. The impacts could be dramatic.”  We may see policy changes on “tariffs, sanctions, treaties and alliances” that might “upend international trade and disrupt supply chains.”  We could see revised tax policy and enforcement priorities, transformed attitudes toward DEI and ESG programs, different views on antitrust enforcement, immigration and possibly, “most significant for many industries, the incentives that have fueled recent sustainability investments could grow further—or be diminished.” That makes “a board’s ability to be agile and stay current in the face of uncertainty” more important than ever.  To assess the state of current boardrooms, PwC surveyed 500 public company directors, concluding that boards just might be evolving “too slowly to effectively meet the challenges facing companies today and tomorrow, irrespective of potential political disruptions.” PwC attempts to understand what is driving the results and recommends approaches to addressing the issues.