How do you reinvent your business model to remain relevant and protect your company for the future?

It is a question that many CEOs are trying to answer.

And they are trying to answer it at a time of major change, disruption, and transformation—from technological advancements to shifting geopolitical sands to heightened economic uncertainty.

Amy Ball works closely with business leaders to help them navigate uncertainty and drive meaningful change.

And, based on her experience, companies that embrace transformation, rather than resist or postpone it, are setting themselves up for long-term success.

Ball, Transformation Leader with PwC Ireland, argues that business leaders understand this themselves. However, she also accepts that the accelerating pace of change, and the complexities of implementing major transformation, can easily overwhelm a business.

“It is hard to reinvent a business,” Ball says in the latest edition of the Tech Agenda, a podcast series sponsored by PwC. “But if you can set the vision, and if everybody can understand the rationale for making changes, you can do it.”

Cautious optimism

The world of business is in flux. Economic volatility, geopolitical tensions, and the breakneck speed of technological advancement have left many CEOs wondering how they can secure the future of their companies.

According to PwC’s latest CEO survey, 29 per cent of Irish business leaders believe their organisations won’t be viable in ten years without reinvention and most accept that the pace of reinvention needs to quicken

Yet, despite these challenges, 74 per cent of Irish CEOs expect Irish economic growth to improve in the next twelve months, up from 50 per cent last year and 16 per cent in 2020, while an overwhelming majority, 93 per cent, remain bullish about their company’s revenue prospects for the year ahead, up from 86 per cent last year.

Amy Ball says the 2025 survey points to a “cautious optimism” among Irish CEOs. But she argues that it also highlights the need for companies to embrace and accelerate change and transformation.

“Most CEOs who responded to the survey did realize that they needed to move into new markets, and almost 32 per cent of Irish CEOs have already made a foray into other sectors and expanded their product and service offerings,” according to Ball.

“However, many of them have said that they’re concerned about the availability of key skills to match and meet that demand with 91 per cent citing concerns about lower availability of key skills.”

Ball emphasises the urgency of the talent agenda – “It is coming up in every conversation we are having with organisations right now,” she says, arguing that the availability of key staff is crucial to implementing real change.

“AI, and GenAI, in particular, has created a lot of uncertainty, albeit undeniable opportunities. Organizations need to think about implementing AI in a careful manner,” Ball says.

Transformation isn’t the responsibility of a select few at the executive level. “Innovation is a cultural experience, as opposed to one or two people at the side of their desk discussing changes to the organization and the operating model,” Ball says. “That culture of innovation has to permeate across all levels.”

Encouraging a culture where innovation is rewarded is critical, according to Ball.

“In many cases, it’s the next generation, the more junior people who have bright ideas, who are digital natives, who understand the role of technology in enabling business transformation,” she says.

“But the other part is that when innovation happens, it has to be promoted and rewarded within an organization and that people who challenge the status quo have to be recognized as change leaders and change champions.”

The role of AI in business reinvention

AI, particularly GenAI, is already reshaping business operations, but its full impact is yet to be realised. The PwC survey found that 44 per cent of Irish CEOs have reported efficiency gains from AI. Some 31 per cent have seen revenue increases, while 24 per cent have experienced improved profitability.

For Ball, the most striking aspect of those numbers was how quickly they have increased in recent years.

“In the last year, about 24 per cent of CEOs felt that GenAI was having a positive impact on profitability in their business. Now we’re hearing that at least half of CEOs expect profitability increases in the year ahead. And there’s an appreciation that employees want to engage with GenAI. They want to use the tooling, and they will use it, irrespective of whether it’s officially deployed in the company or not,” Ball says.

She adds that companies are moving from isolated AI use cases to a more holistic, portfolio-driven approach. “If you think about tools like CoPilot or ChatGPT, the productivity gains are measurable and actually proven through use cases in particular functional areas, particularly in customer service and agentic AI,” she says.

While some forecasts have argued that AI will lead to a decline in headcount, Ball says the survey did not point to any reduction in employment levels. Indeed, some 87 per cent of Irish CEOs said that they experienced an increase or no net change in headcount in the last 12 months as a result of GenAI, up from 73 per cent last year.

“The research says that AI and GenAI can complement your job and enhance personal impact,”  says Ball.  

Sustainability: A long-term investment with immediate benefits

Sustainability is another priority reshaping business strategy. Nearly a third of Irish participants in the CEO survey reported that climate change investments in their company resulted in increased revenues in the last five years, with just 3 per cent saying it had reduced revenues.

Globally, the report suggests a clear connection between climate actions and stronger financial performance, while it also highlights a clear commitment to the carbon transition.

However, Ball and PwC believe more action is needed as 29 per cent of Irish business leaders admitted to not having made climate-friendly investments in the last 12 months.

“More than 30 per cent of Irish business leaders will accept a lower rate of return on climate-friendly investments. However, the stats would show that 31 per cent are already seeing revenue increases, and 10 per cent are seeing cost reductions as a result of the climate measures that they’re taking within their organization,” Ball says.

Risk, regulation, and market expansion

While the survey found that almost 30 per cent believe their business might not be viable in ten years if they continue running on the same path, it also revealed that a significant majority of business leaders are already taking action to reinvent their businesses.

Some 84 per cent of Irish business leaders have taken at least one significant action to change how their company creates, delivers and captures value in the last five years. This includes developing innovative products/services, targeting a new customer base or implementing new pricing models.

Despite the momentum, one-third of Irish businesses have yet to expand into new markets. “If you think about Ireland, we’re a small, open economy, very reliant on foreign direct investment. Yet we’re highly creative, highly innovative, highly respected for our talent, and we’ve come through a lot. We’ve lived through many downturns,” Ball explains. “Covid promoted a confidence amongst organisations that they can be resilient and be optimistic.

“One of the key areas of focus now for leaders in organizations is ensuring that they keep up with the pace of change. That means taking risks, taking informed decisions to progress the agenda. This could be cutting certain products and services, making tough decisions in certain areas of the business and reallocating resources from one side of the business to the other.”

Ball argues that Irish workers are willing to adopt technology and embrace change, highlighting the fact that many companies were comfortable engaging with GenAI, but cite concerns around data and regulation.

“They’re far more advanced than we appreciate, and I think as a result, Irish companies are very well positioned to take advantage of the laggards and other economic areas,” she says.

Overall, while regulation remains a challenge, Ball sees it as an opportunity.

“I think regulation is a massive challenge for many organizations, as is the complexity of the business environment that they’re working in. It’s still impressive to see that our CEOs are not too far behind their global counterparts in terms of addressing the challenges that business leaders are facing. We would hope to see some better results again in 12 months time,” she says.

Managing change: Optimism meets action

Given the varied concerns and the constantly changing economic conditions, I ask Ball how companies can successfully manage transformation projects.

She says that the survey is a great starting point for the conversation. “It’s research-based evidence, and it isn’t just a local survey. It reflects the views of global leaders, and many of our business leaders are very clued in as to what is happening out in the economic domain. They’re not exactly shy about admitting that there’s room for improvement,” she says.

However, Ball accepts that the real challenge for most leaders she meets is reorienting their people and reallocating resources effectively: “How can they shift their focus—whether it’s money, whether it’s people? They appreciate that capability and investment in capability are of primary importance to them, but they’re often unsure where to start. Where to begin?” she says.

Ball suggests that leaders take a step back and ask fundamental questions. “In the context of many CEOs being concerned about the viability of their business, stripping that back to say, ‘Okay, what do you want your business to look like in ten years? For that to be true, what needs to happen?’ What does that mean from a people, process, and technology perspective? If we look at where we are today, where are the gaps to that vision? What interventions would help? How can we help from a technology transformation perspective?”

According to Ball, there has been a shift in leadership focus. In the past, business leaders focused on the cost side. Now this has pivoted to growth, finding new sources of revenue – “optimizing for revenue in certain markets, expanding into new markets, new products, and new offerings. And that’s hard, particularly if they don’t have a culture of innovation,” she says.

Ball concludes that culture is at the heart of business reinvention: “That’s where it comes back to culture being the lifeblood of an organization. Bringing people with you, getting people to buy into this new future. Businesses that embrace a culture of innovation, leverage technology for business outcomes, and enable their people will thrive and will be here in ten years’ time.”

The Tech Agenda with Ian Kehoe podcast series is sponsored by PwC.