Diversification Becomes the Decisive Requirement for Growth

Forvis Mazars Group, an international provider of audit, tax, and advisory services, announced on June 4, 2026, the latest findings from its annual survey, the 'C-suite Barometer,' which tracks shifts in executive sentiment and business trends six months after initial projections.

This mid-year insight, based on the latest global survey, reveals that diversification has become a core strategic approach across all industries and regions under the current business environment. The trend spans operations, business models, expansion plans, financing, and products and services. Companies are also responding to global developments by reallocating resources, revising investment strategies, and reassessing trade partners.

The survey, conducted among over 1,000 executives across 18 countries and regions, identified the following key changes:

A global paradox is evident: while growth ambition remains high at 92% and market conditions are still viewed favorably, rising energy costs, supply risks, and geopolitical instability are making business environments harder to control, significantly eroding executive confidence.

Key business-influencing trends are shifting: economic factors (40%, +2 points) have overtaken AI (37%, -3 points) as the top influence. Energy price hikes and supply shortages surged 12 points to enter the top three (37%), surpassing intensifying competition (26%, -5 points).

Capital and investment reallocation is underway: while the proportion of companies expanding investment remains high, slight declines are seen across sectors. Capital is being redirected from traditional priority areas such as skills development, talent acquisition, and new products and services. Notably, supply chain management is the only area where priority has increased.

Expansion plans are being rebuilt alongside operational and trading relationship reviews: executives are revising expansion strategies to strengthen operations and broaden trading relationships. Key target regions include Greater China, Latin America, and Australia/Asia-Pacific.

AI is entering the return phase—moving from concept to results: companies are beginning to see tangible returns from AI investments, with measurement of outcomes advancing in scale and focus areas. Over 60% of companies report returns of up to 10%, and about one-fifth report gains exceeding 20%.

In response to these findings, Mark Kennedy, Partner and Chief Client & Markets Officer at Forvis Mazars Group, commented: 'Diversification is shifting from a peripheral strategic consideration to a core one. The challenge for executives is no longer whether to diversify, but how to do so with clear intent across markets, supply chains, capital, and technology—building resilience without excessive complexity. This approach varies by company size, industry, and target, but successful leaders balance growth ambition with flexibility, speed, and control. AI, in particular, is not only a source of productivity gains but also a critical competitive inflection point in measuring returns, productivity, efficiency, and growth, increasing its importance. In today’s environment, diversification is not an option but an essential condition for growth, and embedding flexibility into strategy becomes the source of resilience.'

Data shows optimistic outlooks for future growth remain high, with 92% of executives maintaining a positive stance on growth since the beginning of the year, matching 2025 levels. About three-quarters of executives still assess market conditions for growth as favorable, both domestically (78%) and internationally (73%). However, due to global uncertainty and disruption, executive confidence in managing external factors significantly declined to 35%, down from 43% six months ago, reaching the lowest level since the pandemic peak in 2021.

Over the past six months, economic factors including inflation have become the top business-influencing trend (40%), surpassing AI (37%). Energy price hikes and supply shortages, after a 12-month lull, have re-entered the top three (37%). Supply chain challenges also rose to 27%, entering the top five for the first time.

Capital and investment reallocation in response to economic ripple effects

While the number of companies expanding investment remains high, priorities are shifting from long-term foundations like talent, sustainability, and branding toward supply chain management. This pragmatic shift is reflected in growth strategies, where strategic partnerships and joint ventures (50%) slightly surpass private equity (44%) as preferred means for scaling and funding. High interest in both indicates the importance of flexibility, risk diversification, and securing necessary capabilities.

Additionally, over half of companies have advanced resource diversification in response to geopolitical changes over the past six months. However, only about a quarter have adopted or accelerated friend-shoring, off-shoring, or near-shoring. Furthermore, cost increases are more often passed on to customers (54%) than absorbed internally (46%), testing companies’ pricing power and customer loyalty.

Restructuring operations, trading relationships, and expansion plans in response to market changes

C-suite executives are reviewing operations and trading relationships. This movement continues to validate earlier expansion plans but also reflects an intensified focus on market diversification. Companies are strengthening presence in domestic and neighboring markets while targeting Greater China, Latin America, and Australia/Asia-Pacific as key regions for trade expansion. Central and Eastern Europe stands out as the only market attracting interest from both nearby and distant regions.

AI enters the return phase—clear divergence between concept and results

Over 60% of companies are achieving up to 10% returns from AI investments, and about one-fifth are realizing productivity gains exceeding 20%. Overall, positive outcomes are evident in the current environment. Executives are beginning to refine assessments of transformation outcomes and use cases, clearly recognizing the shift from conceptualization to actual value creation. Currently, emphasis is shifting from internal adoption to external outcomes such as productivity and customer satisfaction.

Mark Ke