What’s Your Business Prediction?

The start of a new year is usually met with excitement, and business owners are keen to succeed with their new year’s resolutions, so workers need to know that the next decade will not be business as usual . To lead by example, company owners and operators will commence the year on the front foot to propel the company forward so it thrives. But why wait for the start of a new year? Be the creator of change in your organization all the time – not just at the beginning of every new year.

Looking back over the years, there have been events that have changed how we operate our businesses.

External Events

Before the pandemic, the focus for staff was to expect more communication with management and more monitoring of productivity levels and access to networks and sharing of data for security reasons.

There will always be external events that will keep businesses on their toes. For example, any major shift in the financial markets will concern any business, particularly if they’re financing their operations. Predictions of recessions can close wallets resulting in lower sales and economic performance.

Finance

Do you remember the talk of rising interest rates? The Business Insider article reports Saxo, a Danish investment bank’s predictions for 2020, including the European Central Bank raising interest rates in 2020. With a new chief, Christine Lagarde, keen on getting EU members to move away from adverse deposit interest, it will lead by example by raising its interest rate early in the new year.

Plus, Asia will make a play to have its own new reserve currency and thus end its dependency on the US dollar. Called the ADR, it is set to become the most significant currency, and it will be a game-changer for everything from trade to politics. A lot did happen, but it was interest rate drops, not increases. With rising inflation however interest rates are also increasing, and businesses need to know their strategy for dealing with inflation.

EU Politics

Brexit certainty under Boris Johnson’s unwavering determination to ‘get Brexit done’ did throw up more hurdles before it could provide opportunities for UK companies. There was a lot of ‘pain before gain’, and the next decade will be interesting for the United Kingdom, with the Scottish probably keen on another referendum to leave the U.K.

The push for independence and that it should be ‘Scotland’s choice‘ whether to remain with the UK or go it alone and probably rejoin the EU, has been squashed by UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

However, watch this space as a lot can change in politics. The same can be said of the call for Ireland’s reunification of the north, which is currently British, and the south will remain in the European Union.

Another prediction in 2020 was another country set to leave the EU, though probably not by choice – Hungry. A failure to follow the EU’s lead on everything from freedom of press, academics, judges, and the list goes on, the EU has issued Article 7 proceedings, so divorce was likely in 2020, but it never happened.

US Politics

Driven by consumers, companies will need to invest more time and resources to make their climate change policy a working document and ensure greater transparency of their green initiatives and successes. These same consumers, primarily millennials,

Generation Zers will also take Governments to the task, and they’ll be out in force voting in elections to make their vote count. The same bank that predicts interest rate hikes at the ECB also says the US election is there for the Democrats to lose. In other words, with young voters, now more motivated than ever before by the injustices of the current presidency, the more green-friendly and equal rights Dems should romp home with the victory in the US Election 2020. Yes, the Dems got in with Biden as President; however, holding power come the next election will be challenging.

Productivity & Customer Data & Security

So back to how companies will kick start the new year. Worker Productivity levels need to rise, so there will be more surveillance. With pressure to compete and grow the revenue, more investment in AI and systems will provide a more significant analysis of personalized customer data. Cyberattack threats are omnipresent and no business large or small can ignore them.

Focussing on what you can control with your business and getting support from experts on the company’s future direction will put it in a stronger position than if you, as the leader, stick your head in the sand and insist everything will be okay.