Latest news with #Csuite
Harvard Business Review
2 days ago
- Business
- Harvard Business Review
3 Ways to Mitigate Executive Turnover
Summary. An experienced C-suite is a proven driver of performance, but retaining senior leaders is becoming harder. According to a Gartner survey, 56% of executives say they are likely or extremely likely to leave their current role in the next two years. Even
Forbes
3 days ago
- Business
- Forbes
Turning Cyber Risk Into Boardroom Metrics That Matter
Bridging the gap between cybersecurity and the boardroom, organizations are translating technical ... More risk into dollars and business impact to drive smarter, ROI-focused decisions. Cybersecurity has always come with a translation problem. Technical teams speak in terms of vulnerabilities and threats, while boards want to understand risk in dollars and business impact. As attacks become more costly and regulatory scrutiny grows, however, the gap between technical risk and business accountability is shrinking fast. The Boardroom Is Asking New Questions Boards and executives increasingly want to know: How much risk are we taking on, in real financial terms? Are cybersecurity investments justified? Are we actually reducing exposure—or just reacting to the latest crisis? All fair and valid questions. The pressure to answer these questions isn't just external. Internally, organizations are moving away from blank-check security budgets. Leaders expect to see risk—and progress—quantified in business language: dollars, business impact, and return on investment. From Jargon to Dollars It is an eternal struggle. For most companies cybersecurity is a cost center, not a revenue-generating function. The better cybersecurity is at achieving its stated objectives, the less necessary it seems—if there are no successful attacks, why spend so much money on defending against them? Cyber risk quantification is quickly gaining ground as a bridge between IT and the C-suite that addresses this challenge. The promise is simple: turn technical scenarios into dollar-based outcomes so everyone is on the same page. CRQ platforms don't just talk about possible vulnerabilities—they show what a breach could really cost, how an investment reduces exposure, and where risk is shifting across the organization. This approach is becoming the new standard as boards and regulators demand clear evidence of measurable progress. A New Player in the US Market The changing landscape is driving international players to expand their presence. Squalify, a Munich-based cyber risk quantification provider, just announced its U.S. entry, launching with a Bay Area healthcare customer. The company's platform, backed by Munich Re's cyber loss data, aims to help organizations move from reactive, compliance-based security toward proactive, ROI-driven strategies. Asdrúbal Pichardo, CEO of Squalify, told me that the timing is no accident. 'We're entering the U.S. market at a critical inflection point for cybersecurity leadership. There's a growing mandate—from regulators, boards, and shareholders—for CISOs to connect cybersecurity decisions with business performance. That means moving beyond technical jargon and translating cyber risk into financial terms,' he explained. Squalify's platform is designed to help organizations model risk across subsidiaries, run simulations on the impact of new controls, and deliver concise, visual board reporting. Pichardo emphasized the importance of aligning security and business outcomes: 'We help leaders go beyond checklists and into financial strategy by giving them the ability to express cyber risk in the same terms used by the CFO and board: dollars, probabilities, and business impact.' Henry Meds, Squalify's first U.S. customer, uses these insights to align security investments with business continuity, patient trust, and regulatory expectations—demonstrating measurable progress to their board. As Brian Cook, senior IT & security manager at Henry Meds, puts it: 'It's the first time I've been able to show my Executive Board, with confidence, that we're focused on the right threats and making measurable progress.' Features That Matter to the C-Suite Multi-entity risk management lets large organizations assess and compare risk across subsidiaries—key for groups operating in highly regulated sectors. Decision simulations allow CISOs to model how new investments or business moves might alter the company's risk profile. Executive dashboards translate complex technical data into clear, actionable insights for leadership. For many security leaders, this ability to speak the same language as finance and risk teams is a potential game-changer. It makes cybersecurity not just a technical requirement, but a strategic lever. Security as a Business Function This shift is happening as industries from healthcare to manufacturing face greater regulatory and operational risk. Boards now expect transparency, defensible metrics, and ROI-driven decisions—not just technical assurances. As Pichardo puts it, 'Compliance is necessary, but it's not sufficient. We help CISOs shift from being viewed as a cost center to being recognized as a business enabler.' Accountability and ROI The U.S. market is especially primed for this shift. High-profile breaches and increasing regulatory demands are pushing organizations to show that security spending delivers real value. The rise of financial metrics doesn't eliminate risk—but it makes it easier to justify, prioritize, and manage across all levels of leadership. Cyber risk quantification isn't a silver bullet. But as companies look to move from checklists to strategy, and from compliance to confidence, quantifying cyber risk in dollars may finally allow boards and security leaders to have the same conversation.
Bloomberg
3 days ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
How the Sell-Side Stays Ahead in 2025 Report
As structural disruptions reshape global markets, sell-side institutions are under pressure to respond with agility, clarity, and resilience. This report features insights from C-suite discussions at Bloomberg's 2025 Sell-Side Leaders Forums in New York and London, offering a comprehensive view of how leading firms are adapting to today's financial landscape. From managing volatility and regulatory shifts to embedding AI across the front office, discover how sell-side leaders are responding to change to stay ahead.
Forbes
4 days ago
- Health
- Forbes
Why CEO Health Is The Leadership KPI That Drives Everything Else
CEO health is the KPI driver influencing all other metrics. Inside boardrooms and quarterly reviews, executives obsess over key performance indicators: revenue growth, profit margins, net promoter scores, and employee engagement, to name a few. But amid all the dashboards and data, one KPI remains underrepresented: CEO health. Executive well-being is more than a personal matter. It's a strategic asset and impactful KPI that shapes performance and potential from the top down. When neglected, it becomes a hidden liability with impactful costs. According to a widely reported Deloitte study, 75% of C-suite leaders have considered leaving their roles for ones that better support their well-being. When a leader's physical, mental, or emotional bandwidth is depleted, their decision-making abilities falter, the organizational culture weakens, and loyalty erodes. Health is the invisible infrastructure beneath every board-level priority. Below are three critical domains directly influenced by executive well-being. 1. Decision-Making And Perceived Leadership Effectiveness The quality of leadership is inseparable from the quality of a leader's decisions. Yet many executives operate under conditions that steadily erode their cognitive edge: unmitigated stress, fragmented sleep, suboptimal nutrition, and inconsistent physical activity. There's a difference between mentally existing throughout the day and mentally thriving. A study published in The Leadership Quarterly found that a one-standard-deviation decline in a CEO's mental health was associated with a 6% drop in firm performance. The effects extended beyond mood, showing up in slower execution, diminished judgment, and weakened presence. And when a CEO is off their game, the consequences cascade through balance sheets, team dynamics, and investor confidence. Well-being also communicates before words are spoken. CEOs who run marathons—or engage in other intense physical training, a proxy for cardiovascular fitness and stress resilience—have been linked to greater firm value, stronger M&A outcomes, and more stable stock performance. 2. Connectivity And Talent Optimization An executive's habits become organizational norms. Leaders who visibly prioritize recovery, boundaries, and health send a signal far louder than any company memo. A study in the Transdisciplinary Journal of Management confirmed that health-promoting leadership directly elevates performance by improving employee well-being. And research from Frontiers in Psychology reinforced this, finding that such leadership reduces burnout and increases engagement by creating a climate where people can consistently operate at their best. Leaders who model strategic energy allocation—whether it's deliberate recovery, mindful delegation, or strategic disconnection—build teams that are more loyal, more resilient, and more productive. In today's talent economy, where replacing key performers is both costly and time-consuming, well-being is a KPI that positively impacts numerous organizational metrics. 3. Stakeholder Trust And Company Image Executives are constantly communicating, even before they speak. Body language, energy levels, facial tension, and vocal tonality all contribute to the perception of confidence, credibility, and control. In high-stakes settings, executive presence precedes executive messaging. A leader who appears physically depleted or emotionally flat can unintentionally project instability. Stakeholders and investors make micro-judgments long before financial results are released, and in a 24/7 media environment, those impressions travel fast. Markets have historically responded to health-related executive signals. When Steve Jobs appeared visibly unwell at public events, Apple shares dipped. When Jamie Dimon underwent emergency heart surgery in 2020, JPMorgan's stock dropped nearly 8%. Both companies eventually rebounded, but the initial response reveals a larger truth: markets react to leadership uncertainty, especially when it stems from health issues. The same principle applies internally. Just as investors respond to perceived stability, teams and stakeholders respond to how leaders communicate under pressure. Trust isn't built on flawless execution. It's shaped by emotional intelligence. A recent study titled "The Trust Dilemma" found that CEOs who expressed personal vulnerability, authentically and strategically, were viewed as more trustworthy by investors. This type of transparency, especially in challenging moments, served as an emotional buffer, improving credibility and confidence. Perception is reality in leadership. CEO Health: The KPI That Influences All Others In leadership, it's not just about what gets done, but how it gets done, and how long it can continue to get done. The infrastructure behind all of it is a leader's capacity. And that capacity is built through health and well-being. CEO health isn't just a personal obligation. It's an organizational driver. Decision-making, team performance, cultural integrity, vision building, and stakeholder trust are all downstream of executive well-being. And unlike market volatility or external risk, CEO health is a variable leaders can fully control.
Arabian Business
4 days ago
- Business
- Arabian Business
Proactively managing AI risk and building trust – a C-suite challenge
When it comes to risk, the stakes are strikingly higher than just a few years ago. As AI becomes a core part of business operations, leaders are under pressure to move fast whilst remaining compliant, secure, and in control. Regulations like the EU's Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) are already changing the rules. At the same time, organisations are shifting to fully digital models and facing a surge in cyberattacks. With generative and agentic AI now in use, managing risk and building trust has never been more urgent. AI risk has outgrown the CIO's remit, it's now a boardroom issue. With AI embedded across a business, risks around data privacy, trust, security, and compliance touch every corner of the organisation. According to Forrester, AI risk and data privacy now rank as the second-highest enterprise risk. Yet managing them is far from straightforward: 29 per cent of employees cite a lack of trust in AI systems as the biggest barrier to adoption. Therefore, the C-suite must lead from the front—building trust, engaging teams, and tackling resistance head-on. Navigating AI regulations and governance As AI regulations emerge across regions, organisations must not only comply but also turn to AI tools themselves to help manage this evolving governance landscape. It's a circular advantage: the right technology can help businesses stay ahead of the very systems that govern it. AI governance is becoming increasingly critical, meaning effective change management will be essential to help employees embrace the technology. Business leaders must also not lose sight of third-party risks, which are often more complex when AI is involved. Just as importantly, they need to ensure AI use is aligned with the organisation's values, ethics, and strategic objectives. A clear governance structure is key. There should be a well-defined owner of AI governance within the organisation. This role can sit with legal, compliance, the chief data officer, or the chief procurement officer and as third-party AI tools are introduced, this person holds responsibility for implementing consistent frameworks to assess and manage associated risks. Trust starts with transparency and data Trust is fundamental to successful AI adoption. Clear communication with both customers and consumers about how AI is being used helps drive acceptance and confidence in the technology. Transparency should be at the heart of every AI initiative. A cautious, phased approach is wise, starting with low-risk use cases and expanding as the organisation builds internal expertise and stakeholder trust. Regulatory compliance should be seen not just as an obligation, but as a trust-building opportunity. Crucially, building trust starts with the data itself. Leaders should seek to address the challenges of disparate systems and prioritise establishing a unified data taxonomy. Strong data quality, visibility and sound practices are the foundation of reliable, ethical, and explainable AI. An enterprise view Centralised software platforms are becoming increasingly important for gathering a real-time enterprise view of these interrelated risks. Unified software platforms offer an enterprise-level view of operational risk postures across the key assets needed to run an organisation, namely people, technology, facilities, third parties, and data. Real-time software platforms also offer the capacity to manage risks in an unobtrusive way. Controls can be embedded in workflows, so employees have no idea they are actually mitigating risk. To the employees concerned, they are simply changing a password or completing a training module, all in response to controls within the platform. Strong employee training and AI literacy programs will be fundamental to implementing AI safely and legally. End-to-end software platforms can also help to manage AI models, particularly in regulated industries. For example, in financial services, there is a significant amount of regulation around AI models, with models requiring regulatory sign-off before they can be put into production. With an end-to-end software platform, models can be managed within the platform, ensuring they align with policies, remain within boundaries, and meet regulatory standards. A proactive approach In the past, the C-suite may have focused on operational resilience, where they react and respond to adverse conditions. However, given today's changing demands, there's a need to shift towards a new kind of resilience: proactive resilience. This involves a predictive management environment, where organisations aim to 'see around corners' to anticipate and mitigate risks, including those related to AI. This is why integrating governance tools into existing software is becoming increasingly important. Threats can take many forms. Some are straightforward, like expiring software licenses, which can potentially halt a critical service. Others are far less predictable, such as the CrowdStrike incident, where a third-party software update caused widespread disruption globally. In the past, predicting such threats was challenging due to siloed systems and the difficulty of having an organisation-wide view. Transitioning to integrated software platforms allows the C-suite to understand the full picture and take this proactive approach. For instance, who is responsible for maintaining and repairing specific systems. This visibility is critical for effective risk management. Mastering risk For the C-suite, mastering AI risk is imperative. AI is already embedded across many of today's operations, and business leaders must now prioritise building trust in the technology, ensuring its use aligns with organisational values, and proactively managing emerging risks. Complying with regulations in advance presents a valuable opportunity. It allows businesses to stay ahead of legal requirements, reinforce stakeholder trust, strengthen governance, and future-proof operations. Integrated software platforms are essential enablers, providing a comprehensive, real-time view of risk and resilience across the enterprise. Ultimately, the C-suite must lead the way by embedding AI governance, championing transparency, and investing in the tools and processes needed to support a safe, scalable, and trustworthy AI future.
