The Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance https://corpgov.law.harvard.edu The leading online blog in the fields of corporate governance and financial regulation. Sat, 04 Apr 2026 11:30:51 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.5.8 https://corpgov.law.harvard.edu/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/cropped-photography-4-e1706898544564-1-32x32.png CEO and C-Suite ESG Priorities for 2026 – The Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance https://corpgov.law.harvard.edu 32 32 CEO and C-Suite ESG Priorities for 2026 https://corpgov.law.harvard.edu/2026/02/13/ceo-and-c-suite-esg-priorities-for-2026/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=ceo-and-c-suite-esg-priorities-for-2026 https://corpgov.law.harvard.edu/2026/02/13/ceo-and-c-suite-esg-priorities-for-2026/#respond Fri, 13 Feb 2026 12:32:13 +0000 https://corpgov.law.harvard.edu/?p=179078?d=20260212171536EST Posted by Matteo Tonello, The Conference Board, Inc., on Friday, February 13, 2026
Editor's Note:

Matteo Tonello is the Head of Benchmarking and Analytics at The Conference Board, Inc. This post is based on a report developed by The Conference Board and co-authored by Andrew Jones, Principal Researcher, US Governance & Sustainability Center and Brian Campbell, Center Leader, US Governance & Sustainability Center at The Conference Board.

Drawing on The Conference Board® C-Suite Outlook 2026 global survey of business leaders, this report analyzes how CEOs and CSuite executives in Europe, North America, and globally are recalibrating environmental, social & governance (ESG) priorities for 2026 amid heightened disruption, uncertainty, and execution risk.

Trusted Insights for What’s Ahead®

  • CEOs globally ranked AI as the leading societal or technological shift expected to negatively impact their business in 2026—ahead of political polarization and shifting consumer behaviors—as leaders grapple with scaling new technologies amid regulatory volatility and societal disruption.
  • CEOs globally ranked political uncertainty and public policy shifts as key external governance factors expected to impact business in 2026, with many planning for sustained policy volatility, institutional fragility, and rising AI governance and regulatory complexity.
  • CEOs’ environmental priorities diverged sharply by region, with a significant share of North America’s leaders deprioritizing sustainability issues altogether while others emphasized resource efficiency and advancing clean technology tied to competitiveness.
  • Social priorities in 2026 were anchored strongly in workforce resilience, with CEOs prioritizing education, economic opportunity, and mental health as top enablers of growth and execution.
  • Governance priorities for 2026 reflected an emphasis on performance alongside compliance, with CEOs and C-Suite executives elevating strategy execution and revenue growth while continuing to address established governance areas such as enterprise risk management and succession planning.

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