By Susan Bloom
The unprecedented public health crisis and economic upheaval that rocked the nation (and the world) in 2020 have created a business environment which is experiencing change like nothing we’ve ever seen before. Under these dynamic conditions, credible and up-to-the-minute information and data remain a company’s best defense and decision-making tool.
That’s where the NAED’s quarterly new Economic and Industry Sector Outlook and Construction Index can shine. Launched in October 2020 and specially tailored to the electric distribution industry, the report consists of three parts:
- An Economic Outlook, which provides a view of the whole economy using such key economic indicators as copper prices, unemployment, GDP, and more
- An Industry Sector Report, which analyzes revenue trends, potential capital spend, and other key indicators to identify market growth opportunities within 11 distribution-focused segments, including data centers, education, healthcare facilities, oil and gas, pharmaceutical manufacturing, supermarkets, airlines, automobile and light duty manufacturing, multi and single-family housing, sewage treatment, and electrical wholesaling
- A Construction Index, which combines current trends and future modeling using population data to forecast which markets are poised for growth, stability, or decline across 102 different Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) where distributors do business
Prepared quarterly by NAED’s Research and Data Analyst Erin Prinster, a seasoned professional with nearly two decades of market research and reporting experience, and based on in-depth analysis of NAED’s range of robust data sources, the NAED’s new Economic and Industry Sector Outlook and Construction Index provides the comprehensive information distributors need to make the most updated and informed business decisions — all centralized in one place and shared in a user-friendly format.
“Succinct, Aggregated, and Specific Data”
“At a time when forecasting is incredibly difficult, it’s hard to know where to turn for credible information on how the economy and the various segments we participate in are going to perform,” shared Wes Smith, president of Birmingham, AL-based Mayer, which subscribed to the NAED’s first quarterly issue in October. “The NAED’s new tool for economic forecasting provides succinct, aggregated, and specific data for our businesses, giving us an overview of the economy as a starting point and then drilling down into new construction and industrial sector data as well as information on such key sectors as oil and gas, commercial buildings, wastewater, healthcare, and many others,” Smith said. “Having used it in the last few weeks, I’ve found the report to be an incredibly helpful tool that creates a good deal of efficiency for our planning function.”
Fellow report subscriber Dan Dungan, executive chairman of Springfield Electric in Springfield, IL, agreed. “For a long time, our company has had to retrieve economic information from multiple sources to form our analysis of the various markets we serve,” Dungan said. “We’ve often commented that this is something that NAED should provide, so when NAED announced such a service, we jumped right on it. We see it as a cost-saving offering that helps us consolidate the several services we use, and as NAED’s service continues to build out, we’re hoping that it can eventually meet all of our forecasting needs over time.”
“So far,” Dungan added, “the first report is impressive and we like what we see.”
“In today’s dynamic world, we need to keep our business plans fresh and up-to-date,” Smith concluded. “Things are changing every day and planning is no longer a once-a-year event. I haven’t found a better, more succinct tool than the NAED’s new Economic and Industry Sector Outlook and Construction Index,” he confirmed. “I encourage all distributors to give it a trial run and see if it’s as helpful to them as it is to us.”
NAED just announced that the new Economic and Industry Sector Outlook and Construction Index is now priced at $850 for the annual subscription. For that price, you will receive a report that focuses on our supply chain every quarter. Or, you can buy individual reports for $250 each. For more information on purchasing the quarterly report, contact the NAED Member Engagement Team at memberengagement@naed.org, click this link for more information on the NAED website, or simply order it here.
Bloom is a 25-year veteran of the lighting and electrical products industry. Reach her at susan.bloom.chester@gmail.com.
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After this year, many of you might be of the mindset that you cannot wait until 2020 is over. But if all we do is change our calendars from December 31, 2020 to January 1, 2021, we are going to have similar situations as we experienced this year. Nobody wants that.
NAED and tED magazine have created a number of blog posts, podcasts, videos, and stories to help you move into a better situation in 2021. We have gathered the best people in the country to create these for you, motivating you to take your own action and press that reset button.
Whether it is about recognizing that you or someone you work with is a future leader, that you need to make sure all of your employees have the proper training, figuring out if you have all the tools you need to make the best decisions, or changing your mindset to prepare yourself to make changes, tED magazine and NAED have provided much of the information you need.
Make sure you keep an eye on www.tedmag.com, “lightED” at www.lightedmag.com, and www.naed.org to learn about what is available to you, and how you can push that reset button to make 2021 a better year.
Tagged with Economic Outlook, NAED, Reset 2021