The ranking by resources and effort allocated introduces a relevant nuance: although artificial intelligence leads in stated importance, corporate communication remains, for yet another year, the area to which organisations devote the most resources and efforts. Al defines the new context of transformation, but communication continues to act as a key operational capability to activate intangibles, build a corporate narrative and strengthen the relationship with stakeholders.

Corporate communication ranks first for resources and effort allocated, at 48.3%, followed very closely by artificial intelligence (47%). Talent management and work models take third place (42.3%), confirming that technological transformation and organisational transformation go hand in hand. Organisations are not only incorporating technology, they are also adapting capabilities, ways of working and internal dynamics to respond to that change.

Corporate brand ranks fourth, with 40%, surpassing reputation and responsible leadership in terms of dedicated work. This figure is particularly significant because brand, together with public affairs, is one of the trends with the lowest declared importance in the Ibero-American ranking. However, its greater operational activation suggests that it continues to play a relevant role in areas such as positioning, experience, differentiation and the relationship with stakeholders.

In contrast, responsible leadership and public affairs rank lowest for resources and effort allocated. The case of responsible leadership is particularly relevant: 48.6% of organisations consider it important, but only 35.1% work actively in this area. At 13.5 percentage points, responsible leadership shows the largest gap between stated importance and active management in Approaching the Future 2026, showing that it remains a recognised priority, but still insufficiently translated into systems, resources and management capabilities.

2026 RANKING BY RESOURCES AND EFFORT ALLOCATED