As companies continue to transform their businesses to succeed in a global environment, they remain concerned about growing external market risks that can derail their strategic priorities, according to the new PwC US Risk in Review report entitled, “Global risk in the transformation age.”

These changes in business direction are adding further complexity to the global risk landscape, and well-positioned businesses are taking decisive steps to bolster their risk management techniques to focus around four strategic response categories: resilience, people, technology and next-generation risk analytics, the survey finds.

Based on a survey of more than 800 executives and risk managers in businesses worldwide, PwC’s report notes that more than two-thirds of companies have undergone a major transformation in the past 18 months, and another 10% plan to do so over the next 18 to 24 months. To respond to global market shifts, corporations are building new business models, tapping into digital channels and expanding into new geographic markets, all while rethinking how their supply chains and the location of their facilities fit into their globalization strategies.

“Continued recessionary pressures, global financial shocks, increased taxation and excessive government austerity are top-of-mind risks for board members and executives because of the serious impact they can have on businesses,” said Dean Simone, leader of PwC’s US Risk Assurance practice. “Changes in business direction have also exposed companies to new risks, and the interplay of market and business transformation is creating complex risk linkages that can be fragile and difficult to predict. This complexity requires businesses to rethink their approach by taking a holistic, multifunctional view of managing risk.”

To download a full copy of the Risk in Review report click here.