The Economy and the Post-COVID Labor Market The U.S. economy is forecasted to grow at a slow rate of one-half to 1% in 2023, as shown by real 1 GDP, according to JP Morgan . Where some like JP Morgan are predicting a mild recession starting in late 2023, others are predicting there won’t be a recession at all. In terms of tech spending, the outlook is reasonably good as companies focus IT investments on initiatives that boost efficiency. According to Gartner, worldwide IT spending is projected to total $4.6 trillion in 2023, an increase of 5.1% from 20222. Drilling down into the communications services category, Gartner is forecasting 2.4% growth over 2022 levels. Analysys Mason predicts that small- and medium-sized businesses’ spending on IT solutions and services will return to pre-pandemic levels. The firm’s forecast is for an increase of 6.3% annually 3 in 2023, reaching $1.466 trillion in spending . Businesses have traditionally relied upon Trusted Advisors, and that relationship will continue to evolve. “The relationship between SMBs and their channel partners is evolving as SMBs seek support beyond IT purchases. SMBs are expected to prefer channel partners that can provide strategic guidance on how IT can help them to grow their businesses and increase revenue,” Analysys Mason said. At the same time, the tech industry is experiencing layoffs, with big companies like Microsoft, Salesforce, Amazon, HP, Cisco, Meta and more announcing cuts. Yet, there are areas of the economy where there is a shortage of workers, contact centers being one example. There’s a shortage of employees [in contact centers]. Existing employees are overworked. There’s a lot going on; call volumes went up significantly, “especially during COVID. - Aqeel Shahid, Vice President of Global Strategic Partners at Vonage A survey by Censuswide in 20224 revealed that: • Contact volumes are spiraling beyond the capacity to handle them (66% of respondents). • Two-thirds of respondents say dealing with frustrated customers has impacted employees’ mental health. An uncertain labor market will aid hiring for contact centers to a degree, but the days of staffing hundreds of employees in a central office building are receding. Retaining employees is an ongoing issue in the industry, too. These are significant challenges, but the flexibility of CCaaS systems that inherently consider the “anywhere” agent promise to give employers the tools to offer excellent customer and employee experiences. Copyright © 2023 AVANT Communications, Inc. CCaaS 6-12 Report | 5