Due to economic challenges, many CEO decisions may be attributed to companies adopting a "maintenance" mentality as opposed to previous growth mentality strategies.

In the 2009 CEO survey, significant decreases in ratings from last year were observed for several issues which include: "sustained, steady top-line growth" and "employee retention and recruitment."  Similarly, "customer loyalty and retention" saw a slight increase of importance; emphasizing the new strategy of strengthening current resources in order to maintain and grow in the future.

Not surprisingly, within the next 18 months, the priority of adding jobs decreased since the previous 2008 results, while the prospect of reducing jobs increased.  Succession planning dropped significantly in importance.  "Customer loyalty and retention" and "corporate reputation" continue to be main concerns of CEOs.

When asked what specific activities organizations are taking in an effort to deal with the economic situation, larger firms were more likely to resort to cost-reducing activities, with the most frequent being "reduction in staff" (24.0 percent) and "salary reduction/freeze" (17.5 percent).  Furthermore, smaller firms were more likely to mention revenue-generating activities, the most frequent responses being, "more/different marketing activities" (14.2 percent) and "expand markets" (7.7 percent).

The decision made by many CEOs and their organizations to invest in maintaining their existing business will hopefully facilitate a stable recovery and lead back to a strategy focused on growth.