When the Collins Dictionary revealed that ‘permacrisis’ was its word of the year for 2022, many business leaders may have allowed themselves a wry smile of agreement.
It’s hard to remember when there has not been some form of upheaval in the economy for businesses to deal with, the financial crash of 2008-9 having been followed by the Brexit referendum, the pandemic and now the cost-of-living crisis. This year has seen the UK have three Prime Ministers, four Chancellors and three Business Secretaries – hardly a recipe for stable conditions in which to do business.
The cost-of-living crisis is also a cost-of-doing-business crisis, and that issue will be very much on most business leaders’ minds as 2022 turns into 2023. Soaring inflation means a toxic mix of rising costs and lower customer spending for many companies; the fact that energy bills, unavoidable as they are, have been a major component of those costs, only adds to those worries.
