As the United States heads into the 4^th of July holiday weekend, the storm clouds of recession and inflation are dancing on the horizon tantalizing business leaders with a strong need to respond as they plan for the second half of 2022 and beyond.

For the first time in more than a decade, rampant inflation has become a critical business issue and something every level of manager is facing directly or indirectly.

It is impossible to predict how long this cycle will last but a majority of the experts believe it will last for several years. One indicator of the length of this cycle can be found in the meeting notes of the Federal Reserve where they continue to raise interest rates in an effort to cool off the inflation. From their actions, it doesn’t look like this is a short-term thing.

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If you have started to get reacclimated to what you thought was the “normal world” before the COVID pandemic, you are in for many surprises. The new normal is not the old normal. Things are very different and many of the things you took for granted, like basic customer service, are mere ghosts of themselves.

One of the first places you will find things very different is airports. During the past several weeks, as I’ve been flying again to visit with clients and to deliver the live portions of our blended business simulation-centric learning solutions, the lack of customer service in the ticket lines, the restrooms, and the restaurants is astounding. This week alone I tried to eat dinner at a higher-end (not fast food) airport restaurant only to find it impossible. The first time I had to wait almost 40 minutes and my meal never came. The second time it took more than 45 minutes and I had to have my salad packed as a to-go meal.

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Its earnings call time again! One of my favorite times of a new quarter where executives share the results of their previous quarter and talk about the business outlooks for the rest of the year and beyond.

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Economists, business leaders, individual contributors, and consumers are once again starting to worry about the potentially devastating impacts of inflation. As many businesses focus on building Business Acumen skills as a core competency to help them grow, Advantexe has developed this blog post for business professionals to understand the impending implications of inflation and some of the things they should be thinking and doing about it in this volatile business environment.

What is the root cause of inflation?

Unfortunately, there is no easy answer to that question as this, like many other economic factors, has become too politicized. The simplest answer that I can provide is that inflation results from an increase in production costs or an increase in demand for products and services. The situation we find ourselves in today is a result of both these things happening simultaneously. Throw in the threat of World War III and at the very least the economic uncertainties of the global economy, you have a recipe for potentially devastating inflation.

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This past weekend gave us a unique opportunity to watch some of the most elite athletes in the world perform in their primes in both the Super Bowl and the Winter Olympics.

These sporting events have been phenomenal, and it is such a pleasure watching these amazing athletes perform on the world’s stage under unfathomable pressure.

If there is one consistent theme that comes from these high-level performances is the absolute belief that every one of these athletes has reached their pinnacle of performance through practice, training, and coaching. Over and over, you hear them talking about getting in their “reps” (short for repetitions) and how many times they practiced their performances.

So, if the best athletes in the world can get better by practicing, we can’t business people?

In 2022 and beyond they can and more importantly they should!

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