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Despite highly publicized handwringing over geopolitical uncertainty, corporate misbehavior, and the job-killing potential of artificial intelligence, the 21st CEO Survey reveals surprising faith and optimism among chief executives in the economic and business environment worldwide. Ironically, it is the CEOs who have been in office longer—11 to 25 years—who are rosiest in their assessment of the global economy and their own organization’s prospects. They’ve weathered the previous storms and can see the opportunities ahead.

When it comes to preparing their people for the future, U.S. CEOs know there’s work to do. They’re increasingly concerned about finding the right skills for growth.

Until recently, many families filled key governance roles associated with their trust and estate planning with trusted friends, colleagues, or advisors who were flattered to be asked and honored to serve.

In 2017, investors experienced the best of all possible worlds—uncommon synchronized global growth, strong acceleration in corporate earnings and continuing unprecedented monetary support—that fueled capital market appreciation across the globe. However, investors face a looming milestone in 2018, as they approach Peak Central Bank. The U.S. is well into its monetary normalization phase and other countries will begin to follow. Will the impact of shrinking central bank balance sheets remove the support investors have enjoyed for nearly a decade?

Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policies are becoming more and more popular, and with good reason. As the capabilities of tablets and smartphones continue to rapidly expand, the mobility revolution has been a boon for businesses and employees alike, enabling greater productivity and more flexibility. BYOD amplifies those efficiency gains, reducing administrative headaches for the business and encouraging employee participation. The key is to find an appropriate balance that protects the business while allowing employees to take advantage of the technology.

Countless hours are spent training employees to provide excellent service, and it is this helpful nature that con artists use to get privileged information through deception. This tactic is called Social Engineering and can be attempted via any of the ways that people communicate with each other. It is a highly effective weapon in the hacker's arsenal, but there are ways to thwart it.

From news out of Washington, to improving global growth and strong corporate profits, a number of factors could shape the markets in 2018, including the impact of the recent Tax Reform Bill may have on your portfolio. Christopher Hyzy, Chief Investment Officer for Bank of America Global Wealth & Investment Management, provides important insights into opportunities and risks in the coming year—and what it could all mean for you.

The number and scope of women-owned businesses have risen at an unprecedented rate. In an era of new opportunities, this paper profiles eight courageous and resilient women who share their personal stories and the lessons they learned building successful businesses. One theme that emerged from these women’s stories was the critical role of mentorship; another key factor was access to capital.

When looking beyond the short-term demand factors, there are several long-term secular themes that are positive for specialty assets. Most notably among them, growing populations, increasing spending power of the emerging market middle class, and rising urbanization.

The set of factors and circumstances which together produced 2017's robust investment returns might be described as a "Goldilocks" scenario, one in which the positive forces pressing on the global economy and financial markets were warming noticeably, but not so hot already as to prompt dramatic cooling efforts from central bankers.