Many companies assume market conditions cause their slowest decisions. A new Coface survey suggests the real problem often sits inside the building.

Coface spoke with 1,250 business leaders across 13 countries for this research. The findings point to an internal breakdown between teams, not just external uncertainty. That breakdown is quietly costing companies growth opportunities.

Sales And Risk Teams Don't Trust Each Other

Nearly six in ten leaders, 59%, say risk team feedback feels overly cautious. Many describe it as out of touch with real market conditions. This perception creates friction between sales teams chasing opportunities and risk teams flagging concerns.

That friction doesn't just create tension. It actively slows down how fast a company can move on a deal or opportunity. When teams don't trust each other's input, decisions stall while people debate who's right.

Bad Data Makes The Problem Worse

Trust issues alone don't explain the full picture. Data problems compound the issue significantly. More than half of companies, 52%, report fragmented data across different markets they operate in.

Only 20% of companies say their data stays consistent across markets. Without a clear, unified view, teams struggle to compare situations or spot patterns early. They end up relying on gut instinct instead of solid numbers.

This creates what Coface describes as a vicious circle. Poor data pushes decision-makers toward caution. That caution then slows the whole process down even further. Over time, this cycle becomes harder to break.

Saying "No" Still Feels Safer Than Saying "Yes"

Half of executives surveyed, exactly 50%, still believe saying "no" is the safer option. This holds true even when a structured framework could support exploring the opportunity instead.

This defensive mindset stems partly from how risk has traditionally been measured. Avoiding a bad outcome often gets more praise than pursuing a good one. That imbalance keeps many companies stuck in overly cautious patterns.

But this thinking is starting to shift. Only 24% of decision-makers currently see risk teams as genuine growth partners. Yet 44% expect that role to change within the next three to five years.

Companies Want Predictive Tools, Not Just Reports

Executives increasingly want risk teams to do more than flag problems after they happen. Fifty-nine percent want risk teams to use predictive insights for scenario simulation. This would let companies test outcomes before committing to a decision.

Meanwhile, 54% want to speed up adoption of AI-driven risk analysis tools. These tools promise to cut through fragmented data and reduce reliance on gut instinct. The goal isn't removing risk entirely. It's making risk assessment faster and more reliable.

A Small Group Already Broke The Cycle

Not every company is stuck in this pattern. Coface identifies a group called Open Advantage Leaders, making up just 12.6% of those surveyed. These companies handle risk and data very differently from the rest.

They involve risk teams from the earliest stages far more often, at 70% versus a 58% average. They're also more likely to encourage internal debate and challenge, at 38% compared with 23% elsewhere. This open culture appears to reduce the mistrust fueling decision paralysis in other companies.

External Partners Are Being Asked To Step Up

Businesses now expect more from outside partners too, not just internal teams. Seventy-seven percent want predictive analytics from partners to help anticipate market shifts. Seventy-one percent want partners to give them confidence to pursue more opportunities.

Xavier Durand, CEO of Coface, summed up the shift companies now face. He said the real challenge isn't avoiding risk anymore. It's learning to turn uncertainty into decisions companies can act on with confidence.

Fixing decision paralysis, it turns out, has less to do with the market and more to do with trust, data and culture inside the business itself.
 

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