Untapped Potential: C-Suite Leaders Overlook Key Enabling Functions' Full Contribution to Business Success

Key Takeaways:

• Perception Gap: While C-Suite leaders rank Customer Success (78%) and Technology (62%) as among the most significant contributors to reaching organizational objectives, crucial enabling functions such as Tax (10%), HR (11%), Procurement (16%), Legal (17%), Accounting (17%), and Trade (21%) are perceived to be much smaller contributors to overall business strategy, highlighting a strategic misalignment.
• Compliance Constraints: 68% of C-Suite leaders identify time spent on compliance as a significant barrier to effectiveness, yet only 17% recognize simplified compliance as the most important opportunity for improvement. This indicates a clear opportunity to transform many enabling functions from perceived cost centers into strategic value drivers.

TORONTO, May 28, 2025– Thomson Reuters (Nasdaq/TSX: TRI), a global content and technology company, today unveiled findings from its 2025 C-Suite Survey. The study finds that while alignment between C-Suite executives and enabling functions is crucial for business success, significant perception gaps exist regarding the strategic value of departments like Legal, Accounting, Tax, and HR.

While digital transformation, implementing AI, and improving operational efficiency are top priorities for C-Suite leaders, these leaders often undervalue the potential of certain enabling functions to contribute to overall organizational objectives. Notably, functions like Tax, HR, Procurement, Accounting, Legal, and Trade are viewed as significant contributors to overall business strategy by fewer than one-quarter of C-Suite leaders.

"Our survey findings highlight a crucial perception gap: C-suite leaders often underestimate the strategic potential of essential functions such as Tax, HR, Procurement, Accounting, Legal, and Trade," says Laura Clayton McDonnell, president of Corporates at Thomson Reuters. "Our data uncovers a stark reality: only 10% of C-suite leaders consider the Tax department to significantly contribute to their organization's overall objectives. This figure is similarly low for the HR, Procurement, Legal, Accounting, and even Trade functions.

“Furthermore, while 68% of C-Suite executives report that time-consuming compliance and reporting tasks constrain the effectiveness of these enabling functions, very few see simplifying these tasks as the big opportunity for improvement. This disconnect reveals the real potential. Successfully navigating the intersection of commerce and compliance is essential for modern businesses. When functions like Legal, Accounting, and Tax—often focused on the complexities of compliance—are equipped with advanced AI and digital tools, they can become more proactive and strategic partners who not only ensure strong compliance and effectively manage risk but also leverage these strengths into commercial advantages, driving innovation and making tangible contributions to overall business growth."

C-Suite leaders also identified their top three opportunities to enhance the effectiveness of enabling functions contributing to the business's overall objectives: simplifying compliance and reporting, leveraging technology and automation, and optimizing risk management and mitigation. C-Suite leaders also cite cross-functional initiatives as prime examples of enabling functions making significant contributions, highlighting the importance of breaking down silos between departments.

Additional Key Findings:

• AI Adoption is Transformational: 85% of C-Suite leaders view AI as having a transformational or high impact on their organizations in the next five years, and 82% of organizations are already integrating AI solutions into workflows.
• Digital Transformation Progress: Only 54% of global C-Suite leaders are "somewhat satisfied" with their organization's current level of digital transformation, with 25% citing risk management as the most significant barrier to progress.
• AI Implementation Delivers Results: Among organizations currently using AI, 78% report improved efficiency/productivity, 65% cite improved response times, and 56% note better decision-making as direct results of AI adoption.

As businesses continue to pursue aggressive digital transformation goals, the findings suggest a clear path forward: organizations that invest in AI-powered tools to empower their governance, risk, compliance, and financial functions can significantly enhance departmental efficiency. This, in turn, can transform what many C-Suite leaders currently view as operational constraints into strategic differentiators that drive overall business growth.

About Thomson Reuters

Thomson Reuters (TSX/Nasdaq: TRI) informs the way forward by bringing together the trusted content and technology that people and organizations need to make the right decisions. The company serves professionals across legal, tax, accounting, compliance, government, and media. Its products combine highly specialized software and insights to empower professionals with the data, intelligence, and solutions needed to make informed decisions and help institutions pursue justice, truth, and transparency. Reuters, part of Thomson Reuters, is a world leading provider of trusted journalism and news. For more information, visit tr.com.

Media Contact:
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To view the report, visit: https://www.thomsonreuters.com/en-us/posts/corporates/c-suite-survey-2025/