Reportedly, Irish business leaders are increasingly focused on people-related pressures, for example rising costs and digital insecurity, placing less emphasis on more traditional threats.
Gallagher, an Illinois-based multinational, insurance, risk management, HR and benefit consultancy firm, has published the inaugural Gallagher Business Risk Index for Ireland report, highlighting the areas of most concern to the region’s entrepreneurial leaders.
The nationwide survey collected information from 200 professionals in leadership roles across a range of small, medium and large businesses, discovering that the 2025 commercial risk environment is being dictated not by traditional fears, but rather by more modern challenges, for example, a rapidly evolving workforce and cyber threats.
According to the report the main concern for businesses operating within Ireland is currently staff retention, as almost 30pc of responding leaders cited this as a serious issue. This figure rose dramatically to 40pc among employers in companies with more than 150 team members.
Unsurprisingly the current cost-of-living crisis was shown to be of significant concern, as 27pc of participating companies viewed it as a threat. Additionally, this sentiment was found to be felt to a higher degree (34pc) by organisations with 10-50 people in their employ.
Cybercrime also ranked highly as a common problem within Ireland’s business sector. 21pc of responding leaders shared their fears regarding growing cyber vulnerability. Furthermore, 35pc of larger firms, that is companies with more than 150 personnel, were of the opinion that cybercrime is a serious threat to their operations.
More specifically 15pc of small businesses and 23pc of larger organisations fear a data breach, while one in five larger companies are also particularly wary of threats to their reputation, compared to just 7pc of smaller firms.
Commenting on the report, Ronan Foley, the CEO of Gallagher in Ireland said, “People-related risks are now clearly at the heart of the Irish business risk landscape. From talent retention to a lack of skilled talent and the pressure of living costs on employees, organisations are feeling the weight of workforce dynamics more than ever.
“These issues, combined with the continued rise of cyber threats, represent the new risk landscape for Irish businesses and give us a clear indication of what organisations of all sizes perceive as most urgent.”
Hiring platform Greenhouse also recently published the 2025 Workforce and hiring report, highlighting the issues facing professionals and jobseekers as they navigate Ireland’s changing working landscape.
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