2024 in Review: Lessons Learned and Predictions for 2025

Reflections on 2024, Lessons and … Predictions

Well, it’s that time of year…

Everyone is in a rush to get things done before Christmas. Workplaces are busy getting ready to close out the year and take a break, and retail shops seem to be the busiest I’ve seen in a long time.

When you include New Year, this time is a time for reflection and pondering the future. So here are a few of my reflections on 2024 and high-level predictions for 2025.

Reflections

• More people went to the polls in 2024 than ever before, with more than 2 billion people casting a vote. Elections inherently introduce economic uncertainty as businesses and investors anticipate potential policy shifts. This uncertainty can lead to delayed investments and hiring decisions. For instance, a study by the Reserve Bank of Australia noted that economic uncertainty tends to increase around federal elections, which can weigh on economic activity. Our experience has been a good number of organisations are having discussions with us about supply chain improvement and technology replacement projects. However, only a small percentage of those have decided to proceed with those projects.

• Service continues to decline in a broad range of industries:

1. I draw on my personal experiences at cafés, restaurants, and retail stores, as well as my business background with technology companies and service providers. Many cafés and restaurants struggle with basic aspects of service, such as recognising regular customers, cleaning tables between patrons, and noticing when a customer is trying to get their attention to make a request.
2. I know many technology companies have either forgotten or never knew of Naisbitt’s saying in his book Megatrends – The higher the tech, the higher the personal touch is needed. The more technology companies sell tech, the more self-service support seems normal. Manuals are online, and you must Google solutions to issues. Talking to a real support person has been relegated to chatting with a chatbot. The result here is that many companies fail to leverage that tech’s actual capability and power.

• Many companies facing financial pressures are reducing spending on the critical support aspects of technology projects, which is detrimental to their success. Additionally, many need a structured approach to acquiring technology.

• There is generational change afoot. As I walk and drive around neighbourhoods and industrial estates, I notice a distinct change in the behaviour of many younger people. Behaviours like walking while reading their phones and not watching where they are going, dropping courtesies such as allowing someone to merge on the road or highway and a general move to being more self-absorbed. This behaviour must leech into their business behaviour. Add to this the fact that any person from Gen Z or later has never, in their working life, experienced a severe financial downturn. This means the ability to manage in difficult times is reduced just at a time when these generations are in mid-management now and, in some cases, senior managerial roles, making significant decisions.

• As I have mentioned in previous newsletters, productivity is currently at generational lows. There seems to be a prevailing attitude, particularly in the media, that the government is responsible for solving all our problems. Australia has significantly diminished its capacity for self-reliance. I am hopeful that Australia will refocus on and address this issue after the election in 2025, one of the last of the big surge of elections. It’s a serious problem, and we need to address it.

Lessons

• Re-examine the basics in your business and get those disciplines tightened up. It may be inventory control, tightening up manual processes or maximising your usage of the technology you have invested in.

• Enhance your service quality now. Standing out from the competition is easier than ever when so many fall short. Seize this opportunity to distinguish yourself and attract loyal customers!

• Support your technology projects with the right level of resourcing. Build this into your budget from the start. While that number may be more than you are comfortable with as you start, it’s better to know now rather than be forced into it later when you are unprepared or cannot afford it.

Predictions

• 2025 will be a year where executives are more confident in their decision making and many will commence new projects to improve productivity.

• My prediction last year that significant technology projects, especially ERP system implementations, will continue to disappoint – remains. My experience and information from the industry over the previous twelve months tell me many companies still need to invest in the areas required to make these projects successful. Many fail to allocate a full-time team to these projects. They continue trying to get by with people balancing their day jobs with project work. To put this simply – it does not work. So many steering committees and executives acknowledge the logic but fail to act. All the while, their project is failing to meet deadlines or milestones, their people are exhausted from working so hard, and the extension in time required to deliver the outcome is costing them much more than budgeted. Software vendors acquiesce to clients’ questions about how to balance the workload simply because if they were firm with what they know is best practice – they may have the project cancelled on them. Industry must learn this lesson before the outcome will change.

• The generational shift will significantly impact organisational operations. What worked before may not work in the future.

• My prediction from a few years ago that industrial unrest would significantly affect businesses is still unfolding. This unrest will influence your supply chain and may weaken your resilience. As a result, the inventory policy settings in your system are most likely outdated and will not be effective.

As the calendar year ends, I wish you and your families all the best for Christmas and hope for a prosperous 2025.

See you next year !!!!

© David Ogilvie