Leadership Confidence Index

01

Leaders’ confidence in their executive team falls to its lowest point yet

Leadership confidence has declined 1.3 points in the past six months

Our H2 2024 Leadership Confidence Index has found that leaders' confidence in their executive team continues to decline, and is at its lowest point since we began tracking the data in 2021.

A consistent decline is evident across all three constructs (capabilities, behavior and issue management), which speaks to the increasingly challenging business environment which leadership teams have found themselves operating under. External disruptors have consistently increased the complexity that leaders face daily, including uncertainty around economics and geopolitics, the availability of key talent, and tech change.

This global trend underscores the difficulties of aligning leadership capabilities with organizational needs, and supports our finding that CEOs and C-level leaders increasingly feel that their teams must undergo significant changes to succeed in the future. Strong alignment, trust, and quality discourse within leadership teams are essential for continued organizational resilience in the global market.

02

CEOs continue to lose confidence in their executive teams’ capabilities

CEO confidence in their executive leadership team’s capabilities has significantly declined since our index’s inception in H1 2021, reflecting ongoing concerns about their ability to manage key issues and drive success. To help CEOs and their organizations understand the best predictors of success among leadership teams within this changing business context, RRA developed Leadership Portrait. Built upon years of proprietary research, this model assesses an executive’s readiness to meet immediate challenges, as well as their future potential to continue learning and growing in the face of change.

03

C-level executives feel increasingly skeptical about how well they are working together

1 in 3 C-suite leaders strongly doubt their team’s ability to work together effectively

Our research found that less than half of C-level leaders are confident that their ELT effectively works as a team and role models the right culture and behaviors. This skepticism is reflected in the behavior construct of the leadership confidence index, which has experienced the sharpest decline of any confidence index construct since 2021, dropping by 7.8 points. These challenges highlight a critical need for initiatives that strengthen cultural teamwork and adaptability.   

04

Next-generation leaders continue to have the lowest ELT confidence across all leadership levels

Only 30% of next generation leaders feel their ELT is effectively reskilling the workforce for the future

Next-generation leaders report the lowest leadership confidence levels, particularly when it comes to managing issues such as tech transformation and sustainability. Organizations must be vigilant about whether this skepticism has arisen from a productive desire to challenge the status quo or indicates deeper issues with connection and engagement between top leadership and the next level down. Next-generation leaders’ continued doubts highlight a critical need to invest in future leaders’ development, ensuring preparedness for greater responsibilities.

05

Board confidence in the ELT remains higher than CEOs and other C-level executives

Board confidence in their leadership team remains steady and is the highest across role levels, suggesting a macro, long-term view that contrasts with the immediate challenges faced by CEOs and executives. This disparity underscores the need for boards and executive teams to improve communication and alignment. Ensuring that decisions are made with good information and in good faith is crucial for building trust within leadership structures.