UN Global Compact-Accenture study finds 99% of CEOs maintaining sustainability commitments

**The UN Global Compact-Accenture 2025 CEO Study surveyed nearly 2,000 CEOs across 128 countries and found 99 percent intend to maintain or expand climate and social commitments. Indian executives face the same pressure to convert private sustainability action into measurable performance amid demands for stronger government policy. **

The United Nations Global Compact-Accenture 2025 CEO Study gathered insights from nearly 2,000 chief executives across 128 countries, finding corporate sustainability had entered an era of pragmatism. The study reported 88 percent of CEOs believed the business case for sustainability was stronger than five years earlier, and 99 percent intended to maintain or expand climate, environmental and social commitments. This came as 2024 became the first calendar year to exceed the Paris Agreement's 1.5 degree Celsius threshold, while only 35 percent of Sustainable Development Goal targets remained on track.

Large corporations and their leadership globally are the subject of the findings, which revealed a pragmatism paradox where private action increased even as public sustainability statements were scaled back amid political and public scrutiny. Fewer than 14 percent of CEOs felt well-prepared for top challenges such as climate change and inflation, and 92 percent called on the public sector to step up with stronger governance and policy alignment. Indian companies and executives navigating similar pressures can benchmark their strategies against these global mindset shifts.

Indian business leaders should review the study's Five Keys for the Next Era of Sustainable Leadership, namely collaborating on regulation, harnessing consumer demand, expanding technology access, upskilling for the future, and leading with credibility and purpose. Given that innovation was ranked critical by 96 percent but a top-three priority by only 26 percent, companies should reassess technology investment in renewables and Generative AI. Executives should align business fundamentals with sustainable leadership and advocate for stronger policy alignment to drive coordinated acceleration.

Key figure — CEOs intending to maintain or expand sustainability commitments: 99 percent