CEO Survey: Post-Pandemic Recovery Insights, Outlook from Mid-Market Companies

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CEO Survey: Post-Pandemic Recovery Insights, Outlook from Mid-Market Companies

7/9/2020
Chief Outsiders, the nation’s largest and fastest growing Chief Marketing Officer firm with more than 70 fractional CMOs with Fortune 500 experience, has released the results of their CEO survey about the timing and impact of a post-pandemic business recovery.

“Post-pandemic business recovery, performance, and challenges were the focus of our CEO recovery outlook survey. We polled more than 170 mid-sized company CEOs on their expectations and strategies for a market comeback from the COVID-19 lockdowns,” said Art Saxby, CEO, co-founder and principal of Chief Outsiders. “What we found will help CEOs of small and mid-level companies overcome the growth headwinds we’re currently facing.”

“One of the most important takeaways in this survey is that these CEOs share a largely positive outlook for the future,” said Pete Hayes, CMO and principal of Chief Outsiders. “And their responses and commentary point to adaptability, persistence, and optimism as the mantra for success to all who seek a healthy recovery.”

Key Survey Takeaways:

CEOs' perspectives on timing of economic recovery vary greatly; Many say conditions are expected to begin to improve in five months or less (43%), but most (57%) believe it will be six months or more.
Almost no one sees their businesses “significantly weakened” by the COVID-19 crisis looking out six months, and most CEOs expect to be “normal” or “stronger than before” in this time frame.
With modest to high-growth goals coming into 2020 pre-pandemic, 2/3 of CEOs don’t expect to meet their growth targets for the year. But that means the other 1/3 expect to hit their targets or exceed them.
CEOs recognize the need for COVID-19 trends to diminish, but overwhelmingly (64%) view their organizations’ ability to execute their recovery plans as critical to meet revised 2020 goals.
Key company growth strategies include some combination of targeting new customers and markets, deploying new offerings, and ramping up digital marketing capabilities.
CEOs’ advice to their peers largely includes staying focused, keeping the course, paying attention to company culture, and not giving up. “We’ll all get through this.”

The entire survey results can be viewed here.

About Chief Outsiders
Chief Outsiders, LLC (www.chiefoutsiders.com) is a nationwide "Executives-as-a-Service" firm, with 70 part-time, or fractional, Chief Marketing Officers (CMOs) engaged from coast-to-coast. Unlike other strategic marketing and management consulting firms, each CMO has held the position of VP Marketing or higher at one or more operating companies. Chief Outsiders have served on the executive team of over 900 client companies to drive growth strategy and execution plans for a fraction of the cost of a full-time executive.

Because of its market-based growth plans, quality of leadership, and experienced team, Chief Outsiders has been recognized for the past six years by Inc. Magazine as one of the 5,000 fastest growing privately held companies in the US and was recognized in 2019 as a Forbes Small Giant. Chief Outsiders’ CEO Art Saxby and Principal Pete Hayes are the co-authors of “The Growth Gears: Using a Market-Based Framework to Drive Business Success,” an Amazon #1 best-seller for business owners and CEOs. For additional information about the companies who trust Chief Outsiders as their premier source for business growth acceleration, click here.

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