Looking back with pleasure

(Tomka)

For consulting companies as PLPG it is important to be close to the developments in society and economy. Our intuition works obviously well when looking back at our forecasts at the beginning of 2023.

The first three months of 2023 were hectic in so many ways. However, there were some main threads that were moving this period and will move it in the next months and years as well. Digital transformation was one. Energy was the next topic. And the financial developments including inflation and the banking system were a third.

Digitality

In our forecast we mentioned AI as one of the first trends of this year. And what do you say – it was a huge topic. Remember ChatGPT which was hyped worldwide. Almost each and every channel was covering the topic. And Google stroke back – with its new AI-tool, Bard. However, Bard is not available yet in all countries. So, you can expect that the trend keeps on trending.

Cybersecurity is a big topic as well. Even insurance companies found it a huge threat for enterprises and created a special product for these cases. However, cybersecurity is a huge unsolved problem in many European countries.

If there is one growth sector so far then we have to talk about eCommerce. Although the goldrush times of the pandemic are over and growth is slightly decreasing, the peak is not yet reached. So, it still makes sense to go to eCommerce. The altitude might oscillate higher or lower – however, as long as it swings it will rise up again. Just wait for this. If there was anybody predicting the end of eCommerce – we are predicting him wrong.

Remote teams are part of digitality. Why? Because it just can be realized with the right connection offers. Video-conferences and email-exchange is a crucial part in leading and guiding remote teams. And we were talking about it. We know that remote is here to stay. But we also know that the future will be a sort of hybrid model because there are so many things a corporate culture needs to work fully than just virtual meetings and written messages.

Besides – digital business models will be on the rise. And it will be a matter of mindset. But business models have to involve and include methods of scaling. We described scaling as an increase of the capabilities of a given system. Like a business model. Therefore, consider well how to set up your company.

Energy

We covered the topic hydrogen in our forecast. Its realization is brought on the way by the European Union. But of course, hydrogen is not the only topic in the energy-sector. Although it is not talked about yet, electricity will remain a big thing. Especially its availability.

For us at PLPG it is a pleasure looking back at these three months. Not because we were right. But because we made a lot out of being right. And we are looking forward to proof this to you in the months to come.