2024 Midyear Business Leaders Outlook: Seeking growth, despite economic challenges

As we reach the midpoint of 2024, the sentiment among business leaders across the United States is one of cautious optimism. According to the Chase 2024 Midyear Business Leaders Outlook survey, business leaders are expressing a growing confidence in their ability to navigate economic uncertainties. What’s more, this self-reliance is increasingly independent of signals from Wall Street or Washington.

Conducted in May 2024, the pulse survey represents decision-makers from 510 businesses with annual revenues under $20 million. Twice a year, we reach out to a similar base of business leaders to see how they’re handling a range of operational challenges, including market disruption, tightening credit and a challenging labor market. While optimism and resilience have been on the rise, the most recent results suggest that now business leaders are ready for growth.

Growth, fueled by self-confidence

One of the standout findings from the survey is a renewed focus on customers and growth, with 67% of respondents planning to invest more in growing their sales this year. Driving this shift is a proactive approach to seizing revenue opportunities rather than fear of negative economic impacts. To fuel sales growth 37% of respondents plan to use more paid advertising, and 33% plan to employ price promotions.

Moreover, an impressive 75% of respondents expressed confidence in their ability to weather any storm, underscoring a strong sense of self-reliance. This sentiment is bolstered by their trust in their financial health and the resilience of their teams.

Main Street ready to lead

The survey reveals a growing belief that small businesses are capable of leading a new wave of economic growth in the U.S.

63% of respondents agreed with the statement “Looking at the future, I believe small businesses will be the drivers of growth in the economy.”

This self-reliance marks a departure from reliance on external factors or policies. Instead, business leaders are focusing on their own strengths and capabilities.

Key findings indicate:

Black-owned businesses especially optimistic

In recent years, Black-owned businesses have shown remarkable growth and resilience in the U.S. According to a recent study from the Pew Research Center, the number of Black-owned businesses has increased significantly, reflecting a positive trend in entrepreneurship in the Black community. This growth is accompanied by a strong sense of optimism about the future — not just for their businesses, but for the economy as a whole.

The Chase 2024 Midyear Business Leaders Outlook reveals that 78% of respondents from Black-owned businesses believe that small businesses will be the primary drivers of economic growth in the U.S., compared with the previously cited 63% of the broader survey population. This confidence extends to their own companies, with about 70% of Black-owned business leaders feeling more optimistic about their company’s future than they have in the past five years, surpassing the 59% optimism rate among all surveyed businesses.

And despite facing similar economic challenges, such as inflation and rising operational costs, Black-owned businesses are more inclined to “hit the accelerator” on growth initiatives. Half of these business leaders plan to keep growing, despite inflation, compared with 36% of total respondents. This proactive approach positions Black-owned businesses as vital contributors of growth in the future U.S. economic landscape.

Tackling challenges head-on

Despite overall optimism, business leaders are not blind to the challenges. Inflation remains a top concern for survey respondents, prompting them to adopt various strategies to mitigate its impact. These strategies include cutting nonessential expenses, raising prices on products and services, and investing in technology to streamline operations.

And though about 50% of businesses plan to increase compensation and 48% aim to hire more full-time employees, the rising cost of new hires and the challenge of finding talent with the right skill sets remain significant barriers. To address these issues, many businesses are increasing wages (44%), offering flexible hours (38%), increasing benefits (31%) and allowing remote work (35%). Notably, 71% of respondents report offering health insurance to their employees, reflecting their commitment to attracting and retaining talent.

Additional concerns that surfaced in the survey include:

• Uncertain economic conditions — 20%
• Rising taxes — 17%

Embracing digital and enabling data-driven decisions

The adoption of digital tools is on the rise among survey respondents. Digital invoicing is the most popular billing approach respondents identified because of increased payment speed. Two-thirds plan to use this form of payment more often in 2024.

Data-driven decision-making is also increasing, with 72% of respondents reporting the use of data to inform their business decisions. This growing trend is prominently seen in operations, finance and marketing strategies, where data insights play a crucial role.

Most businesses obtain their data from banks or financial institutions, with over two-thirds (68%) of respondents indicating this source. However, there is a significant preference for integrated solutions, with 66% of respondents expressing a desire for a single app that can provide comprehensive data insights. This preference highlights the importance of tech advancements that offer unified, real-time data analysis to drive business efficiency and growth.

In this space, the rise of artificial intelligence presents both opportunities and threats. Nearly half (47%) of the respondents are very or somewhat concerned about AI’s impact, yet slightly more (48%) plan to incorporate the technology into their operations within the coming year. This dual perspective highlights the cautious yet opportunistic approach business leaders are taking toward technological advancements.

Health care strategy amid rising costs

Health care benefits have become a focal point for business leaders, both as a way to attract and retain talent and as a growing cost center they must manage. Over the past five years, the rising cost of health care has forced business leaders to make difficult decisions.

As a result of increasing health care costs, 43% of businesses have increased employee contributions to health care costs, 39% have passed costs to consumers by increasing the prices for goods or services , and 36% have had to cut other expenses from their business. Notably, 30% have changed their hiring plans — meaning some employers may be choosing to not create new jobs at all.

The quality of health care benefits can also be a pivotal part of employee recruitment and retention strategies. With 71% of small businesses offering health care benefits today, those that do not may be losing out on talent. As businesses seek to find a balance between maintaining competitive benefits and managing financial realities, the survey highlights that affordability remains a top priority for employees, as noted by 58% of the respondents, followed closely by pharmacy coverage (37%) and provider or network quality (36%).

Where did we come from?

Explore the Chase 2024 Business Leaders Outlook survey to see how business leaders’ expectations have changed since the beginning of the year.

About the Chase 2024 Midyear Business Leaders Outlook survey

This survey was conducted by Chase Insights in May 2024. It features data from 510 business leaders across the professional services, retail, technology, health care and other key industries. The results of this online survey are within statistical parameters for validity, and the error rate is plus or minus 4.3% for the findings at a 95% confidence level.