Global Risk Manager Survey Report 2026

Converging risks driving demand for a more integrated, cross-functional approach to risk management.

Brussels, 05 October 2026 – Risk management is entering a transformational period, as organisations respond to a new reality of interconnected, fast-moving and compounding risks, according to the latest findings from the Global Risk Manager Survey 2026, produced by the Federation of European Risk Management Associations (FERMA) and PwC.

The findings point to a fundamental shift in focus, from preparing for and reacting to crises towards shaping long-term organisational resilience. As the scope and strategic importance of the role continue to expand, risk managers are increasingly helping organisations anticipate change, navigate uncertainty and build resilience for the future.

“The Survey highlights a more interconnected and complex risk landscape,” said Tadas Cilcius, FERMA Board Member and Chair of the Global Risk Manager Survey, “with risks increasingly converging across geopolitics, technology, regulation, businesses and global supply chains. This is driving demand for a more integrated, cross-functional approach to risk management, while creating opportunities for risk managers to play a greater role in building organisational resilience and creating value.”

Risk priorities are shifting

The findings reveal a clear evolution in organisational risk priorities across different time horizons.

• Short term: Geopolitical uncertainty is now the leading risk, followed by cyber-attacks and uncertain economic growth. AI use and regulation have also entered the top five, reflecting growing technological and regulatory pressures.
• Medium term: AI use becomes the number one concern, with cyber-attacks ranking third. Geopolitical uncertainty, failure to innovate and regulation also feature in the top five, highlighting the importance of adaptability and strategic foresight.
• Long term: Environmental risks continue to dominate, but AI use has entered the top five. This signals a shift from AI as an immediate operational risk to a long-term strategic and structural concern capable of reshaping organisations.

The elevated role of the risk manager

The Survey shows that risk managers are increasingly acting as strategic advisors, helping leadership teams navigate uncertainty, support decision-making and strengthen organisational resilience.

“Resilience is inherently an organisation-wide responsibility,” said Laure Laheurte, Risk Services Partner, PwC France & Maghreb. “It requires close collaboration across functions, with risk management playing a key role in connecting resilience to our broader strategy. Ultimately, it is about ensuring we can protect and strengthen our business model, while remaining agile enough to evolve as circumstances and the operating environment change.”

A significant 92% of risk managers are involved in corporate strategy, with strategic risk response the leading area of focus at 55%, followed by operational resilience. This highlights the growing importance of organisations’ ability to anticipate, withstand, adapt to and recover from disruption.

Operational resilience is driven by a broad range of factors, with no single issue dominating:

• Corporate strategy for resilience (58%), cyber-attacks and technological vulnerabilities (56%), and reputational risk and brand protection (52%) are the leading drivers.
• Other key priorities include customer expectations (47%), financial impact of disruptions (46%), regulatory requirements (46%), and supply-chain and third-party dependencies (44%).

The findings also point to a shift in risk managers’ investment priorities from immediate risk identification and response towards longer-term integration, resilience and framework maturity. Over the medium term, the emphasis moves towards embedding risk management more deeply across functions and reinforcing the governance, culture and capabilities needed to support mature and resilient organisations.

Risk managers are also investing in digital capabilities and exploring AI-enabled solutions. Technology adoption is accelerating across risk management activities, strengthening data-driven decision-making, with risk identification and assessment (99%) and risk reporting (96%) the leading technology-enabled activities.

Insurance market dynamics remain challenging

Insurance market conditions remained challenging in 2025, as broader economic trends, regulatory changes and an evolving risk landscape continued to influence the availability and cost of cover.

The most significant trends observed by respondents over the past 12 months were rising premiums and the exclusion of specific risks, while changes in policy wordings emerged as a new entrant to the top three compared with 2024.

Of those who have adapted their insurance strategies in response:

• 43% changed their insurance buying patterns, while 36% sought higher limits and 34% negotiated longer-term agreements or roll-overs.
• 31% strengthened loss prevention activities, highlighting the growing importance of risk mitigation alongside insurance purchasing.

Despite these challenges, respondents are becoming more optimistic about the future insurability of their risks. Just 37% believe that the risks associated with their business activities or locations will become “uninsurable” in the near future, down significantly from 53% in 2024.

Philippe Cotelle, President of FERMA, concluded: “The Survey findings suggest that resilience is increasingly becoming a differentiator. Those organisations able to balance the demands of managing risk today with the strategic foresight to anticipate developments across the longer-term risk horizon will be better equipped to navigate disruption and capture new opportunities in a period of increasing volatility and uncertainty.”

Produced in partnership with ALARYS, Club FrancoRisk, IFRIMA, IRMSA, PARIMA, RIMS and RMIA, the Survey is based on responses from more than 1,300 risk practitioners across 79 countries, spanning the industrial, financial, services and public sectors.

The Global Risk Manager Survey 2026 is available here.