This graph summarizes the consumer pressures that are likely to dampen the U.S. economy long after the credit crisis and Wall Street gridlock is behind us. As the graph shows, median household income has been flat for years despite rising household spending and skyrocketing household debt.
In five earlier posts, I reviewed the evidence of economic [...]
Continue reading about Gauging Economic Climate Change: Wrap Up
In this final post of the series, I want to build the connection between the large-scale economic impacts we’re going through and the five basic recession strategies available to your enterprise. It is easiest for me to think of the implications of this crisis in ecological terms. A mild recession is like a short drought: [...]
Continue reading about Gauging economic climate change, Pt. 5: Adaptation and opportunity
In my previous posts in this series, I’ve examined recent recessions, jobs and income, and consumer spending and debt to make the case that small businesses must adapt to long-term economic climate change even once the credit crisis eases.
I haven’t mentioned Wall Street, monetary and fiscal policy, or globalization. So here’s where I stand aside [...]
Continue reading about Gauging economic climate change, Pt. 4: Non-consumer factors
In my previous two posts in this series, I looked first at past recessions and then at the glacial rate growth in jobs and household income even before the current crisis. To meet rising household expenses, Americans worked longer hours and reduced savings from 10% of income in the 1970s to nearly 0% today.
They also [...]
Continue reading about Gauging economic climate change, Pt. 3: Consumer spending and debt
In my previous post, I reviewed the past five recessions to provide one backdrop for business strategy. In this post, I’ll discuss jobs and household income: two of the underlying issues that make our current crisis unlike past recessions.
We’re still in the storm, but we can already see some of the likely contours of the [...]
Continue reading about Gauging economic climate change, Pt. 2: Jobs and income
