Ninety-one percent of C-suite leaders report that economic uncertainty is negatively impacting their businesses, according to the 2026 Forbes CxO Growth Survey.

The uncertainty leaders describe extends beyond economic conditions and is creating tangible business challenges, including shifting regulatory demands, inflation, geopolitical tensions, and supply chain disruptions.

“Leaders are trying to exert more control to offset some of that uncertainty around broader global economic issues,” says Jeff Cole, assistant vice president of national accounts at Sentry® Insurance, a mutual commercial insurance company.

Yet most leaders say they aren’t as ready as they’d like to be. Sentry’s 2026 C-Suite Stress Index shows that fewer than one in five large business executives are completely confident that their organization’s current insurance coverage is adequate, and 98% plan to reevaluate their policies this year.

Cole notes that firms can work with an experienced insurer to build a strong safety culture — which he defines as “authentic ongoing communication, leadership accountability, guidelines for the organization about safety practice and policies, and ongoing training.”

Ahead, discover more key findings and learn how the right insurance partner can help organizations create a culture of safety that manages risk, supports staff and protects the bottom line.

“Many C-suite leaders in large companies are betting on themselves and their organization’s culture of safety.”

Why Leaders Are Stressed In Today’s Business Landscape

Forbes data may provide insight into why business pressures have intensified this year. Leaders are facing a range of barriers to growth in 2026, including cybersecurity threats (58%), regulations and corporate tax rates (43%), inflation (42%), geopolitical instability (40%), and supply chain issues (35%).

Moreover, the same survey shows that 46% of HR leaders regard employee safety and engagement as a top challenge, while 39% cite avoiding burnout. One-quarter of executives say labor shortages, strikes or workforce disputes are actively preventing growth.

“Leaders in large businesses remain optimistic about survival and even growth, but say they’re under greater strain,” Cole says.

How The Right Partners Help Absorb Pressures

A strategic insurer can help mitigate some of these competing challenges, says Cole, functioning as a “pressure valve” that enables executive teams to move from a reactive to a proactive state. Cole, who’s worked in commercial insurance for 40 years, says the ideal insurance conversation starts with a client’s business goals and priorities.

“The broker and insurer need to understand where the organization wants to go, to anticipate their clients’ needs so they can help create an environment where their employees are safer,” he says.

Leaders recognize the value of cultivating resilience from the inside, but building that culture isn’t a one-time initiative. It’s a long-term strategy sustained through ongoing conversations across the organization and with insurance partners, Cole says. He points to insurers and brokers using claims data to uncover the root causes of accidents and build targeted reduction plans. This data-driven relationship fuels continuous improvement, helping organizations actively learn from past incidents to prevent future ones.

“Access to information that helps identify and reduce risks — and therefore costs — is one of the key benefits of a strong insurance partnership,” he says. “It’s smart business.”

Why “Nuclear Verdicts” Are A Growing Concern

Cole says nuclear verdicts — jury awards defined as at least $10 million that are often tied to serious injury or wrongful death claims — aren’t new, but they remain an emerging risk for many organizations.

“We’ve got a situation of growing general public distrust of corporations [and] we’ve got increased aggressiveness by plaintiffs’ attorneys,” he says.

Cole also points to the erosion of tort reform and the rise of third-party litigation funding as contributors to this trend. In fact, Sentry’s data shows that more than three-quarters of large business executives view recent increases in litigation and multimillion-dollar verdicts as a problem in their industry, with 77% citing third-party funding as a growing issue. In these arrangements, outside investors finance lawsuits in exchange for a share of the potential payout, adding another layer of complexity to an already challenging risk landscape.

The impact of these types of judgments is significant. Sentry’s data shows that 56% of large business executives report higher legal costs; 45% say litigation has diverted managerial focus; and 40% have had to hire additional staff just to handle the caseload.

How Insurers Can Alleviate Costly Judgments

The most effective business strategy against high-dollar cases starts well before any claim is filed, Cole says. It’s in building a safety-focused work environment that shapes how employees think and act. Consider an automobile fleet. When employees feel supported through proper training, clear protocols and well-defined risk-reporting processes, they might make safer decisions on the road, where curbing accident frequency may also help reduce litigation exposure, says Cole.

“If you instill that safety culture, maybe they aren’t speeding, maybe they aren’t tailgating, because they understand their employer values them,” Cole says.

By working with a strategic, trusted insurance partner, Cole says organizations can identify the best standards and practices to prevent accidents. These efforts help curtail risk exposure and demonstrate a company’s commitment to safety and risk management when claims do occur, he adds.

Why Companies Are Prioritizing Safety

As the risk landscape shifts, businesses are rethinking how their insurance strategies hold up. Sentry’s report shows that 49% of executives want to lower risks — such as injuries — further by adding coverage, even as 39% say their current coverage costs too much.

The goal isn’t just protection. By investing in worker safety, 54% of executives hope to increase operational output; 46% seek to curb workers’ compensation incidents; and 41% want to reduce lost work hours, according to Sentry’s data.

Investing In People Improves Business Performance

In Cole’s experience, when firms center their workers’ safety, they see business-wide benefits. The obvious wins come first: fewer workplace injuries and claims. But the ripple effects include reduced litigation and incident costs, minimized downtime and lower absenteeism, he adds.

“The companies that are investing consistently in that workforce safety and engaging with their employees are seeing stronger operational stability,” Cole says.

Especially in a period of economic uncertainty, that stability can mean the difference between weathering a bad year and being knocked off course. With this in mind, Cole advises businesses to lead, not follow, industry peers.

“[Safety] is becoming more and more of a competitive advantage,” he says. “If everyone else is taking a step forward in the safety programs, and you don’t improve yours, you will be the one taking a step backwards.”