Don’t Ask an Executive “What Keeps You Up at Night?”

This is a favorite question of anyone who’s interviewing a C-level executive, whether it’s for The Wall Street Journal, an alumni magazine, or an internal publication. That’s because it offers quick insight into what’s top of mind for business leaders.

The problem with this question is that it’s restrictive. It focuses on pressures, usually negative, and often limits the executive to one answer that gets disproportionate attention.

The reality is, if you’re at the C-level in your organization (or the VP or the manager, often) you’ve got multiple pressures, concerns, and opportunities in play at once.

However, if you’re marketing or selling to the C-suite, you often don’t have the opportunity for an in-depth session with each executive to find out everything they’re concerned about.

That’s where the CXO Priorities Dashboard: Accelerating Growth Amid Tech Transformation comes in. A joint project from ITSMA and Boardroom Insiders, the CXO Dashboard provides timely insight into the current business priorities of Fortune 500 C-suite executives based on the “in their own words” commentary aggregated in Boardroom Insiders’ BI Pro platform.

The most recent edition of the CXO Dashboard focuses on CXO priorities as of October 2021 and shows that accelerating growth amid tech transformation is top of mind for C-level executives. In addition, the report takes a closer look at CXOs in the Financial Services and Manufacturing industries and reveals that customer engagement and the war for talent are among the top concerns.

If you just want an overview of the current thinking of CXOs, check out this dynamic version of the CXO Dashboard or download the full report to dive in a little deeper.

The CXO Dashboard is provided at no cost for corporate clients and members focused on deepening relationships with the C-suite in their most important accounts.