A Healthy Sign

A bit of interesting news crossed my desk the other day. Three-quarters of the CEOs of fast-growth companies see the recent economic upturn lasting for another two to three years, according to a survey from PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC).

While that’s good news, most of the 392 executives who responded to the survey are proceeding with caution, managing with a planning cycle of one year or less. “Although most have a hopeful outlook, they continue to plan using a cautious, short-term approach,” noted David VanEgmond of PWC.

Given the volatility of the last few years, I’ll gladly take the “cautious optimism” results as a healthy sign, wouldn’t you?

The surveyed CEOs also identified risks on which they’re keeping a sharp eye. These include hiring more permanent, full-time employees — further evidence of American managers’ trepidation about adding to their payrolls — and investing in greater amounts of training for those new employees.

For more on the Trendsetter Barometer report (released July 21), log onto www.barometersurveys.com.

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