CEOs in most industries gained confidence between April and June. The same cannot be said for healthcare's top leaders, according to a recent small-scale survey.
The periodic survey from Marcum, a national advising and accounting firm, and Hofstra University's business school based in Hempstead, N.Y., surveyed 250 C-level executives in the month of June, 8.4 percent of whom worked for healthcare companies.
In June, 12.4 percent of CEOs surveyed rated their outlook as "very positive" (a score of 10/10), up from 9.8 percent of CEOs in April. Furthermore, 39.6 percent rated their outlook at a score of 8/10 or 9/10, up from 37.6 percent in April.
However, the healthcare leaders' responses told a different story when singled out. In April, 38 percent of leaders ranked their outlook between 8 and 10. In June, that number dipped to 29 percent.
Nineteen percent of healthcare leaders ranked their outlook at the lowest tier, between 1 and 4; financial services was the only industry with more low outlooks, at 24 percent.
Healthcare and retail were the only sectors that saw CEO confidence drop between April and June, according to the report. Meanwhile, construction, professional services and technology saw the highest gains.
The report also provided insight into potential reasons for healthcare CEOs' waning confidence. When asked about influences on their business planning, 67.7 percent ranked economic concerns in the top three. More than half ranked availability of talent as a top-three concern, while one-third listed the regulatory environment as a high priority.