Publisher’s Note: Now is a great time to seek trusted advice

SBJ file

Marty Goodnight, Publisher, Springfield Business Journal

If 83% of businesses say the cost of doing business has worsened, then we can stop debating whether it’s happening – it is. The pressures are everywhere: employee wages and benefits, rising material costs, technology investments, rent and insurance. You don’t have to be an economist to recognize the squeeze – you just have to be running a business right now.

But the question isn’t whether it’s hard. It’s what you’re going to do about it.

The data from this year’s Economic Growth Survey shows that business owners are  responding – not just reacting. More than half have taken active steps to reduce operational expenses. That doesn’t have to mean layoffs. It could mean process improvements, technology consolidation, smarter vendor relationships or reducing redundancies across teams and tools.

Roughly a quarter are investing in automation – not just to cut costs, but to free up capacity for the work that actually moves the needle. And yes, 56% have raised prices. That’s a hard call. But for many, it’s also a necessary one. Value doesn’t disappear in an inflationary market, but how you communicate that value becomes more important than ever.

If this feels like a lot to navigate, it is. That’s why now is the time to ask for help.

We have trusted advisers in this community – business coaches, HR professionals, operational consultants, accountants and AI educators – who can help you work on the business, not just in it. Many of the challenges revealed in this year’s survey aren’t new, but solving them requires a new level of thinking. As Einstein reportedly put it, “The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them.”

That’s where data becomes more than a chart – it becomes a conversation-starter. A reason to gather your leadership team, call your CPA, attend that next seminar or pick up the phone and talk with someone who sees your blind spots clearly.

I don’t have all the answers, but I believe in the power of collaboration and perspective. If you’re willing to ask better questions and have braver conversations, there’s real opportunity here. Even in a tough report like this one.