Why 2010 Will Be A Great Year For Alberta Business
“All of us should be thinking about switching from defence to offense.”
by Michael McCullough
It’s certainly been wrong before, but as a rule the stock market is a predictor of economic activity, about three quarters in advance. As I write this, North American stock market indices have increased more than 50% in value since hitting their low point last March, a pretty positive portent for the next nine months.
Not convinced? Let’s look at history. While the recovery from the last honest-to-goodness recession to hit Canada, that of the early 1990s, was protracted, this is not the norm. After shrinking 2.9% in 1982, for example, Canada’s gross domestic product grew 2.7% in 1983, 5.8% in 1984 and 4.8% in 1985, even after correcting for inflation. While I’ll be the first to point out that governments and consumers in the developed world have hideous debt loads and potential inflationary pressures to overcome for probably 10 years or more, the immediate outlook, compared to what we saw in 2009, is bright. At the same time the competition, thanks to the Darwinian nature of the free market that has picked weaker performers for extinction over the past year, is less intense.
So what are you going to do about it? In the lead-off story to our annual Fast Growth 50 package, “This is the Year,” assistant editor Stephanie Sparks put that question to some of Alberta’s fastest-growing companies. As the title suggests, they are preparing for a breakthrough in 2010. They are busy refinancing, training, enlarging their sales forces, opening new locations, investing in expanded or more efficient production capacity. The time is now.
OK, so maybe your business is not in such a blessed position. Nonetheless, all of us should be thinking about switching from defence to offence – that is, improving our product offering and putting it in front of a larger group of prospective customers instead of focusing all our energies on minimizing costs. With that in mind, we have given Action Plan, what was originally meant to be a 10-part series about coping with recession, a new lease on life. In 2010, Action Plan will highlight strategies to capitalize on the recovery and grow while your competitors are still licking their wounds.
And while we’re on the subject of resolutions for the new year, let’s remember to do good in addition to doing well. For ideas in that regard, check out our special report on Corporate Social Responsibility. As the companies featured here will tell you, financial returns on investment and community karmic returns go hand in hand.
If there’s anything good the recession will have given the survivors, it is clarity of purpose. Now get out there and fulfil it.
In the February Issue: The Money Issue
Rethinking Money: lessons from the upheaval in personal and corporate finance, plus Stockwatch, our annual ranking of best-performing local stocks
Executive Education Report: Going back to school: a cost/benefit analysis; online MBAs; plus a comprehensive directory of business education programs across Western Canada
Web Pick
Fast Growth 50
Search our interactive database for additional details on Alberta’s fast growth champions, including capital, marketing and R&D spending.
Albertaventure.com > Web Exclusives > Fast Growth 50 lists
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