What’s Ahead for Victoria Businesses?

PREDICTING THE FUTURE has always been a dice roll, so in this issue we turn to experts in a number of sectors and ask them to look ahead to 2024.

First, let’s look at what I call macro trends that will affect the economy — and most businesses — over the next year: the changing nature of work, especially in the wake of the pandemic; the aging of the population and Canada’s increasing dependence on immigration; mounting sustainability challenges in a time of climate change; and shifting market dynamics, including intensified foreign competition.

One of the biggest surprises over the past year has been the resilience of the economy in the face of aggressive monetary tightening. Next year, we expect the economy to continue to limp along in the face of high household debt, high interest rates and stubbornly persistent inflation.

As a share of GDP, Canadians are the most leveraged across the G7 countries. As a result, any increases in the Bank of Canada’s policy rate are sure to act as a drag on consumer spending. The good news is that the Bank of Canada is expected to end its tightening campaign and even begin reversing some of its recent hikes next spring.

Other trends and predictions for the year ahead:

AI will be everywhere. The Boston Consulting Group asserts that “to be an industry leader in five years, you need a clear and compelling generative AI strategy today.”

Sustainability continues to show that consumers prefer companies with a solid commitment to reducing their environmental footprint.

The customer is king (or queen). While traditionally a company might build a business model around superior quality or value, in 2024 the impetus will be to ensure that every single interaction makes the customer smile.

Remote and hybrid work is the new normal. It ’s no longer about surviving the pandemic, it ’s about offering flexible working conditions and harnessing a global workforce.

Resilience. Is your business protected from whatever threat is around the corner? That could mean cyberattacks, economic downturns, environmental events, global pandemics or the emergence of a disruptive new competitor.

There are many more business trends just around the corner. In this issue we’ll predict many of them, from real estate to technology, how to price your product or service to the fine art of branding it.

— Ken Winchester, Editor