Canadian business owners are optimistic, and strongly believe that the economy will make a well-needed rebound in 2022. Attitudes are shifting towards greater investment in the business as owners anticipate higher sales projections into the new year.
Although the outlook for 2022 is looking bright, there are still persistent labour shortages and supply chain disruptions that are creating quite a stir.
As a business owner myself, I know the fears of uncertainty, and the power of resilience in difficult times. While it seems that the economy is in a state of flux, and contradiction, that does not mean you cannot plan and invest for the future of your business.
In this article, I will highlight the investment outlook for 2022, and ways you can invest smarter for your own business success.
Investing Is Back on the Agenda
The BDC has indicated in their most recent report that businesses are prepared to loosen their purse strings for the first time since the pandemic. Nearly 84 percent of respondents said they planned to keep investing or invest more in their companies in the next year as they anticipate growth in sales.
And what industries are taking this huge plunge? The majority are accommodation and food service businesses.
Thanks to vaccinations, fears of new lockdowns are slowly fading, leading to more optimism coming into the new year.
And this optimism is not misplaced, while economic growth slowed in the fall, the report from the BDC shows that the Canadian economy is projected to return to pre-pandemic levels in early 2022.
Recruiting Talent Will Be a Challenge
Locating talent has always been a challenge for small businesses, due to the number of resources and time it takes to post jobs, sort through resumes, and interview candidates. The service industry is feeling this the hardest, as when employees were laid off, they sought opportunities in different industries.
With more than half of the businesses surveyed by the BDC indicating they encountered problems finding qualified workers, this is an economy-wide labour shortage that is leading to not only stagnant growth but even supply chain disruptions.
With the shortage of workers, businesses are increasingly focusing on investing in efficiency and automation to keep up with demand.
The Focus Will Be On Efficiency
In terms of investment goals, businesses are prioritizing strategies to improve efficiency over increasing sales and introducing new products.
Businesses should strive to improve efficiency more than ever to remain competitive. Sometimes the most tedious tasks are the biggest reasons businesses are inefficient. Ultimately, profits decrease if stagnation or even regression is ignored.
Business efficiency can be improved in a variety of ways. Your first step should be to identify the issue and then to find and apply solutions. It is important to emphasize that finding these holes is a continuous process. The sooner you patch these holes, the better.
Ways to Improve Efficiency in Your Business
Implement self-pay kiosks
If your brick-and-mortar business makes B2C sales, you should install self-pay kiosks to improve efficiency. Because of the pandemic, more and more people prefer serving themselves than going to a cashier.
Adopt the OKR methodology
Utilizing the OKR (Objectives and Key Results) methodology can improve business efficiency. This integrated approach to goals facilitates transparency, visibility, and aligns your organization.
Structure the problem-solving process
To achieve big goals more quickly, sometimes you need to slow down to make sure you are solving the right problems.
Seek expert advice
The foundation of any business is passion. After that, it grows and becomes an operation. It is at this phase that business owners lose touch and their businesses can become less efficient.
As an entrepreneur, having your sights set on expanding your business is the first step to real growth. While it’s not easy, it’s important. If you’d like to learn more about building your business, visit my website. I also offer corporate training workshops on a variety of topics that impact today’s workplace, including diversity + inclusion, corporate communications, and employee engagement. Let me help you expand your business and grow a better Canada.
