Business Services Industry

Confidence suffers again

Chief Executive, The, Sept, 2006

CONTINUING a fall for the third month straight, Chief Executive's CEO Confidence Index dropped by 4.7 points to 157.9, according to 255 top executives surveyed this month. The drop, while not huge, continues a marked fall from May, when the leading economic indicator stood at 210.6. One CEO respondent, David Schmidt of Scan Health Plans noted, "[the] Economy seems to be in a holding pattern waiting for something to happen--either positively or negatively."

Chief Executive also compiles sub-indexes by combining the six questions that make up the index in various ways. All of these component indexes fell except the Investment Confidence Index, which rose by 2.3 points to 134.1. Over 43 percent of respondents said they expected to increase capital spending at their company over the next quarter.

Related Results

The Employment Confidence Index led the pack of losses this month, falling by 10.2 points. It currently rests at 171.3. Almost 10 percent (9.4 percent) of respondents said they would characterize current employment conditions as "bad," and 17.6 percent of respondents said they expect employment to decrease over the next quarter.

This month, Chief Executive also conducted additional polling to discover personal characteristics about the men and women who lead the economy. They were asked to list their favorite book, their favorite activity for relaxation and their advice to the next generation of young entrepreneurs. For their favorite books, CEOs listed, in order, Good to Great by Jim Collins, The Bible, Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand, The World is Flat by Thomas Friedman, and How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie.

When listing their favorite activities, CEOs commonly listed, among other things, activities undertaken for personal benefits. They listed playing golf, reading, running, spending time with their families, and fishing as their top five favorite things to do.

Finally, respondents were asked to give their best advice to the next generation of CEOs. Their responses varied from the personal to the practical, but several themes rang out in the comments of many CEOs. Certainly the most repeated advice was summed up thus: "Listen." Other CEOs voiced agreement, urging to-be CEOs to hear the thoughts of everybody: their customers, their employees, their families, and virtually anyone who would give an opinion.

Other popular advice from CEOs was to "Have balance in your life. Integrate both your personal and professional life," and "Obtain experience in as many different functional areas as you can." Lastly, but not least voice was a call to strict ethical standards. One CEO, speaking for many, noted, "Demand 100 percent ethical behavior of yourself and others ... 99 percent doesn't count."