Tampa Companies Face Post-Covid Reality
05 Jan 2021
The title may be slightly misleading. Perhaps it should read, Tampa Companies Will Hopefully Soon Face a Post-Covid Reality.
Across the United States, there were nearly 8,000 Covid related deaths in just the last two days – and over 3,500 within Florida over the last 30 days.
Most companies are still working through establishing policies related to how they’re currently operating, much less how they may operate moving forward in a Post-Covid world.
Some insight however can be found online for those companies looking for guidance. Our friends over at Tampa Bay Business and Wealth magazine, in their latest article by guest columnist Chris Taylor entitled Preparing for a New Reality for Business Owners and Their Plans offers some insight that may be of greater interest to local Tampa Bay companies.
From the article…
“About a year ago, we were breaking the record for the longest-lasting economic expansion in U.S. history, with seemingly no end in sight. But all of this changed, in mere weeks, as the shutdown of the global economy turned record-low unemployment into record-high unemployment and threatened the viability of previously flourishing businesses.
As we hope to begin the re-opening process, it is becoming clear that the disruption will leave a lasting impression and that business owners, and businesses alike, will need to make changes to their pre-crisis plans if they are going to survive one of the most challenging environments in history and thrive in the new post-COVID reality.
Adjusting the plan
When assessing which resources need to be redirected to adapt to the new environment, we recommend using the Liquidity. Longevity. Legacy. (3L) framework, which is designed to help investors earmark their resources to meet specific goals and invest them appropriately. Today, many business owners may find that they can no longer meet goals within the original time frame and that some of their resources will need to be redirected to get the business back on track.
A new reality
Business owners have already had to make drastic changes to their operations and they will need to continue to adapt to a new reality in the still-uncertain post-COVID environment. The good news for entrepreneurs is that these moments of challenge often bring opportunity for the well-prepared.
More debt = higher taxes
Governments around the globe have implemented massive spending packages to “bridge the gap” during the economic shutdown. While some spending cuts are possible, there is little doubt that higher taxes are also on the menu.
Lower interest rates
In addition to higher taxes, we also expect governments to rely on “financial repression” to manage their higher debt levels. By keeping interest rates low for a long time, central banks will implement a type of tax on conservative savers, and investors, who become less able to safely earn an above-inflation investment return.
Higher inflation, more localization
Another consequence of financial repression is that central banks are likely to tolerate a modestly higher rate of inflation, allowing the economy to run a little “hot” before they raise interest rates. Inflation rates have been low and falling for decades, so many of today’s businesses have not had any experience with rising inflation. Business owners should proactively consider ways to more effectively pass rising costs on to customers and investigate strategies for avoiding cost inflation on their inputs.
More digital
Another consequence of the COVID-19 crisis is the rise of remote work. Working from home has been a necessity due to the nature of the pandemic, but it has proven its value for many businesses that had been afraid to take a risk. In the post-COVID world, many companies will likely offer remote work as a benefit to attract, and retain, talent.”
Read the entire article at Tampa Bay Business and Wealth: Preparing for a New Reality for Business Owners and Their Plans
Is moving office space part of your 2021 planning?
Many companies in Tampa Bay will be moving in 1Q 2021. If that’s your company, we’d be happy to provide those commercial moving services to you and your organization.
Please contact Office Movers of Florida at 813-304-2273.
