Threat of Tariffs Forces 65% of CFOs Into Supplier Showdowns

Ongoing global trade battles have caught America’s mid-sized companies in their crossfire.

Unlike multinational giants with deep pockets, and small businesses able to pivot quickly, mid-sized firms can frequently find themselves in an awkward middle ground, big enough to feel the financial strain but not nimble enough to dodge the blows.

With tariffs soaring and uncertainty clouding global supply chains, chief financial officers (CFOs) are scrambling to keep their firms afloat in an economic environment that seems designed to sink them.

The problem? A volatile mix of escalating duties, geopolitical tension and supply chain disruptions that threaten profitability.

Higher tariffs on Chinese imports, retaliatory measures from trading partners and the ever-changing policy landscape are making procurement a nightmare. Supply chains are snarled, materials are more expensive and customers are feeling the price hikes.

For finance chiefs, this is where rubber meets road.

The solution? The March edition of The 2025 Certainty Project found that mid-market firms have a range of ways to attempt to buffer the impact of tariffs.

See also: CFOs Say Tariffs Spark New Uncertainties as They Scramble to Reconfigure Supply Chains

Planning Amid Uncertainty

Middle-market CFOs broadly agree that tariffs will exacerbate key challenges facing their businesses. Six in 10 expect tariffs to add to economic uncertainty and planning challenges, and for high-uncertainty firms, this rate jumps to 77%.

The uncertainty factor touches on critical business issues. Nearly 7 in 10 CFOs foresee shortages of supplies or delays in getting products, with a similar share anticipating new costs to restructure their supply chains. Most CFOs also predict increased raw material costs and worry that retaliatory tariffs will complicate their exports.

While uncertainty reigns, one thing may remain clear: the firms that survive could be the ones willing to evolve. CFOs today need to be part economist, part strategist, and part fortune teller, able to anticipate policy shifts while managing immediate operational challenges.

According to PYMNTS Intelligence, proactive solutions favored by forward-thinking CFOs can include slashing costs wherever possible, renegotiating supplier contracts, and hedging against currency fluctuations.

The 2025 Certainty Project found that the most common response is to negotiate with suppliers, an option named by 65% of CFOs. Other levers that many firms indicate a willingness to reach for include increasing prices and diversifying suppliers.

Read more: Only a Tiny Minority of SMBs Think Tariffs Will Have a Positive Impact on Operations

The Uncertainty Divide

Many companies are also pushing forward with digital transformation — leveraging automation, artificial intelligence (AI)-driven forecasting and other advanced technologies to improve efficiency and mitigate risks.

These next-generation platforms can offer advantages relative to legacy methods, such as automated supplier matching and real-time contract management. However, the shift to digital also heightens the need for robust know your business (KYB) protocols to verify supplier legitimacy and mitigate fraud risks.

The 2025 Certainty Project divides firms into three groupings based on their reported levels of uncertainty. In the March 2025 edition, CFO respondents reported currently feeling a lack of predictability about the business environment at the following levels:

High uncertainty: 22% of firms

Medium uncertainty: 42% of firms​

Low uncertainty: 37% of firms

High-uncertainty firms stand out as potentially especially underprepared for the current realities of today’s environment.

The PYMNTS Intelligence data reveals that just 8% have put contingency plans into place, while 46% have not started planning at all. In contrast, more than 90% of medium- and low-uncertainty firms have at least begun to assess their potential risks.

Still, a majority of businesses (55%) report believing that uncertainty across workflows and operations will improve in the next 12 months. Just 3% of CFOs hold that the situation is set to only get worse.