The Top 12 Business Trends of 2023
1. Customer experience is king.
A growing number of organizations are hiring CXOs to lead operations and execution to deliver high-quality customer/user experience. Blended experiences in both digital and live habitats connect customers to the culture and character of your brand.
2. With downward pressure on resources, scaling isn't a slam dunk.
With increasing caution from post-pandemic economic swings, deep investments in staff, technologies, services, marketing, and other scaling fundamentals will not be a given.
3. The cost of regulation from new rule-making rises.
As the pace of regulation including ESG accelerates, so does the cost of reporting and compliance. Potential regulatory actions will likely reach social media platforms, e-commerce, cryptocurrency, and other fundamentals.
4. Global socioeconomic drives continued uncertainty.
Risks and exposure to global instability, recession, inflation, and a weak supply chain remain. Big growth opportunities exist in both digital and brick-and-mortar habitats but will carry clear ROI expectations.
5. AI expands to elevate customer service on social.
With wilting customer satisfaction in e-commerce channels, AI will emerge as a key contributor and marketing will play a greater role in elevating the customer service experience.
6. Store business grows as the social marketplace trust gap widens.
Social platforms face credibility hurdles fueled by consumer concerns about transparency, regulatory intervention, and commerce marketplace challenges. Commerce shopping features like reviews, ratings, return/refunds, and order tracking will become standards.
7. Investing in people isn’t just important, it’s the priority.
An organization only exists with people. A great organization only exists with the right people. Beyond recruitment, executing effective onboarding, personalized development journeys, and mentoring ensure higher retention.
8. Culture lives in the balance between values and reality.
Culture in business has been largely based on guiding values. Looking forward it will be viewed through the lens of performance, real-world business demands, and capacities while holding true to mission.
9. The justification for spending is ROI.
The ROI for giving is happiness. For teams, investments must show a contribution to the financial joy and sustainability of the business. The days of endless MVPs and slush funds with no connection to strategic results are over.
10. Find the best talent, not the best talent that will relocate.
Would you ask Santa to move to LA? Hiring is highly competitive and you’ll be contending with other businesses for experienced talent. Reimagine new or hybrid work habitats beyond the physical walls of your business. Prioritize skills and experience, not locale.
11. If there’s no time for wellness, the cost will be time for illness!
Wellness is the new healthcare and is seen as a benefit. With retention being critical to future growth, creating a workplace focused on the well-being of people, work-life balance and safety will lessen the exposure to reduced productivity from downtime.
12. Enhanced training and development are needed to fill skills gaps.
Regardless of the experience level or knowledge that new hires bring to your business, all workplaces and protocols are unique. Each requires a personalized training plan. How many times are the profiles we use to hire, part of the team member's development journey?
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