No one has a crystal ball to the answer to this question, in fact, economists seem to be all over the map in terms of their predictions. Since the outlook is uncertain, leaders need to use their best information and insights to decide how economic conditions will impact their organizations.
Your business strategy will determine decisions you make in terms of growth in 2023, but as important is to understand how the undercurrent of this uncertainty affects your employees. Here are three key factors that are on their minds:
+ Will there be layoffs? With recession uncertainty looming and many headlines about layoffs in large tech companies, you can be certain that people are wondering about this and whether it has a rationale basis in your firm.
+ Will raises cover the increased cost of living? Whether it’s the cost of housing or gas or groceries or consumer staples, people worry about whether they will be able to keep up with expenses.
+ How will belt tightening impact employees? If you are beginning to adjust spending to proactively reduce expenses, your employees will want to know how this affects them.
Proactive leaders can thwart prospective employee concerns by keeping an open channel of communication. If everything seems status quo, great! Share this with your staff.
If things are looking less optimistic, don’t hide it. You don’t want to be a doomsayer but remember that employees expect a certain amount of transparency. One of the mistakes leaders make is to avoid or delay such communication, and doing so may backfire.
Figure out the most effective way you can respectfully and truthfully communicate with your employees on a regular basis. If the message isn’t great, they may not like the message, but they’ll appreciate that you respect them enough to keep them in the know.
Header image by Towfiqu Barbhuiya/Unsplash.
