Business Leaders Focus on the Imperative of Technological Transformation

Hungarian business leaders are focusing on the imperative of technological transformation, based on a survey of Hungarian CEOs conducted by international consulting firm PwC.

PwC conducted its fifteenth survey of Hungarian CEOs, which is based on PwC’s global CEO survey. During the Hungarian survey, PwC experts interviewed the CEOs of 210 domestic companies between October and December 2025.

The announcement highlighted that

Hungarian business leaders are simultaneously facing growing short-term threats and the constant pressure of technological transformation, requiring a long-term strategic focus.

The research also showed that Hungarian CEOs spend 60 percent of their time on issues with a time horizon of less than one year, significantly more than their counterparts worldwide, leaving less focus on longer-term strategic issues such as corporate viability, innovation, and AI adaptation. CEOs are able to devote an average of 10 percent of their working time to long-term strategic decisions.

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Most Hungarian CEOs are concerned about whether they are transforming their businesses quickly enough to keep pace with technological changes, including AI. Seventy-seven percent of respondents have not yet seen the impact of AI on their company’s performance.

Among other things, the Hungarian survey found that confidence among company executives regarding their own company’s revenue growth has reached a 15-year low, with only 31 percent expecting growth over the next year.

Hungarian executives are much more optimistic than their global counterparts when it comes to global economic growth, with 71 percent confident of an upturn, compared to 61 percent internationally, and only 5 percent expecting a slowdown compared to last year’s pace.

At the same time, the outlook for the domestic economy is more nuanced.

Compared to the previous 60 percent, only 53 percent of respondents expect acceleration this year, which clearly indicates a decline in confidence. In terms of economic indicators, they predict an exchange rate of 397 forints to the euro, 4.6 percent inflation, and 1.5 percent GDP growth by 2026.

They also noted that companies are increasingly recognizing that growth requires crossing traditional industry boundaries. Based on data from the past five years, 35 percent of Hungarian CEOs and 42 percent of global leaders are already competing in new sectors.

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