Business Trends To Look Out For in 2024

Business Trends To Look Out For in 2024

73% of regional employers expect improving sales/revenue in 2024 according to the
EAA 2023 National Business Trends Survey

KING OF PRUSSIA, PA (November 30, 2023) — Business leaders are showing more confidence in their economic outlook going into 2024 according to the results from the National Business Trends Survey from the Employer Associations of America (EAA). 67% of organizations say the economy will improve or stay the same, as compared to 49% from the 2023 survey.

In the Mid-Atlantic region served by the MidAtlantic Employers’ Association, 73% are expecting an increase in sales/revenue for 2024, (15% expecting a significant increase and 58% a slight increase) which is an increase from last year’s Survey which expected 60% going into 2023. From a hiring perspective, 58% expect to increase staff levels while 35% expect to maintain staffing levels.

“Leaders seem more confident on both economic and business forecasts going into 2024 than they did in 2023. They also do not appear to be contracting the workforce unless they are in a significant business downturn,” said Kevin Robins, CEO of MidAtlantic Employers’ Association (MEA).

In the Mid-Atlantic region, executives identified these as their top business challenges:

  1. Talent Acquisition
  2. Talent Retention
  3. Competition
  4. Cost of Materials

Nationally, executives identified the following as the “serious” challenges for their business
(short-term = within the next year and long-term = within the next five years):

Short-Term %
of Responses
Long-Term %
of Responses
Talent Acquisition49%42%
Talent Retention44%42%
Cybersecurity41%47%
Developing Future Leaders40%41%
Ability to Pay Competitive Wages/Salaries37%37%

This past year, 46% percent of executives reported that professional staff (non-manager) positions were the most challenging when it comes to recruitment with skilled production closely behind at 43%. To address recruitment challenges, the top strategies survey respondents indicated that they have implemented are increasing starting salaries (73%), adjusting pay ranges upward (56%), starting/using social media for recruiting (46%) and filling jobs with existing staff that lack job skills but have the potential to learn (44%).

Executives were asked what they thought are the most important factors prospective employees are looking for. The top responses in the 2024 survey are:

  • Competitive pay (82%)
  • Good work/life balance (74%)
  • Flexibility in work hours (61%)
  • Recognition and reward for good performance (33%)
  • Strong organizational culture (33%)
  • Competitive/robust health benefits (31%)
  • Vacation/paid time off (29%)

Another important factor is remote and hybrid work. 26% of the leaders responded that all or most staff work on a hybrid schedule while 45% indicated that some staff work on a hybrid schedule. The most popular hybrid schedule (65%) was 2-3 days per week, with 46% leaving the days to employee discretion and 18% using pre-set days in the office.\

The survey also asked what the top measures are that executives have been or are planning to continue to implement in 2023 and 2024 to strengthen business results. The top five are listed below (by top 2024 responses):

2023 % of Responses2024 % of Responses
Invest in New Technology44%50%
Invest in Equipment42%44%
Increase Recruiting Emphasis29%28%
Implement Training Budget 19%27%
Implement Formal Employee Engagement Programs21%31%

On a regional level, 49% of executives said it has become more difficult to hire employees within their industries, down from 72% last year. The primary reasons continue to be a lack of qualified candidates (79%), market demand (64%) and candidates seeking more pay than they can offer (57%). Kevin Robins commented, “Given the continued lack of qualified candidates, employers more than ever are focused on retention of key employees.” The key retention strategies identified were adjusting pay ranges up (69%), focusing on existing staff receiving additional training/development (62%), focusing on existing staff retention in jobs where recruitment is difficult (56%), and filling jobs with existing staff that lack job skills but have the potential to learn/grow (51%).

With the emergence of ChatGPT and A.I., the EAA National Business Trends also ranked the top A.I. uses organizations are considering. Regionally, the top uses being considered are marketing content production (26%), website content production (20%), recruiting and talent sourcing (16%), and cybersecurity/fraud management (16%).

The EAA, a nonprofit national employer association, provides the National Business Trends as an annual survey to share information on what 1,049 organizations and executives did in 2023 and what they are planning to do for 2024 regarding the changing business climate and workplace trends. The report covers economic, business, and HR topics.

For a copy of the full report, please email mea@meainfo.org. MEA Members may download a copy of the report in the Member Portal: www.meainfo.org/member-portal.

About Employer Associations of America (EAA)

EAA consists of 24 regional employer associations serving 35,000 companies and more than six million employees. Regional employer associations are dedicated to serving their members as trusted partners that help members maximize the performance of their employees and their organization through business expertise in compliance, recruitment, retention, surveys, safety, training, and organization development. EAA’s mission is to advance a national presence and to promote local success among members through unparalleled collaboration, excellence, and efficiency. To learn more about the EAA,
visit www.eaahub.org.

About MidAtlantic Employers’ Association (MEA)

After supporting employers for 120 years, MEA knows that people are at the heart of every growing organization. As a non-profit membership organization, MEA supports more than 600 of the region’s leading employers with HR driven business solutions, including compliance and employment law, outsourcing, training, leadership development, talent acquisition and HR services. MEA is a certified partner for the Predictive Index. Learn more at www.meainfo.org.

Media Contact
MidAtlantic Employers’ Association
Ben Hoover
Communications & Project Coordinator
bhoover@meainfo.org
800-662-6238

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