Collaboration can drive a global return to growth

Every year, September feels like a shorter month. It’s the period when business gets back to normal after the northern hemisphere’s summer break, and this year felt no different!

My diary has never been busier, talking to clients and leaders across the globe. There’s a sense in all the conversations I have that we’re at a crucial point in history. The planet’s climate crisis is now more visible than ever before – impacting every single one of us, while economic uncertainty is also leaving no nation untouched. What reassures me is the recognition from CEOs and their colleagues that we can’t leave the future to chance and strategic, proactive action is required today.

In the latest KPMG Global Perspectives podcast and video series, I spoke to Halla Mohieddeen about the economic outlook for the world and I was joined by The Times Economics Editor, Mehreen Khan. The common theme in both our interviews was uncertainty. We can look back at previous downturns and periods of instability and try to make predictions, but the reality is that we’re facing some significant unknowns, and we need to prepare for the unexpected. More optimistically, we both argued that the long-term outlook will be a return to sustainable, growth, provided the right action is taken by political and business leaders today. We have the tools; we just need to get to work – and collaboration will be our secret weapon!

That theme of collaboration was present in New York this month as the city welcomed delegates to both NY Climate Week and the UN General Assembly. From President Zelensky’s passionate address at the UN World Headquarters, to US Treasury Secretary, Janet Yellen, warning Climate Week delegates of the economic cost of climate change, there was a common theme. If we don’t all work together, the problems facing the world right now will only continue to grow.

A team of ESG experts from KPMG in the US, supported by colleagues from KPMG International, including our Head of Global ESG, John McCalla-Leacy, were on-the-ground in New York and brought events to a close with the announcement of the new KPMG ESG Academy in collaboration with Microsoft and some of the world’s leading universities and institutions. The scalable, turnkey academy leverages the KPMG Learning Enablement and Analytics Platform and it’s an amazing opportunity for our global organization to help clients support their ESG initiatives by delivering foundational and advanced learning on a wide range of ESG topics and disciplines.

While September may have been busy, October looks set to be a jam-packed month for KPMG and our network of member firms and clients. Our flagship report – CEO Outlook 2023 is launched on October 5 and, while I don’t want to give much away, it’s going to be a genuinely insightful read. We surveyed more than 1,300 CEOS around the world to get a snapshot of sentiment and their take on their own company’s prospects and their forecast for the world economy over the next three years. There were some clear, consistent answers from this year’s respondents, offering unrivalled insight into the aspirations and concerns of board rooms – from a multitude of sectors and countries. Make sure you keep the launch date in your diary!

Regina