But if they are slow to pull the trigger on expansion, are they quick to react to slower growth?
This quarter we asked executives whether they had accelerated
cost-cutting and efficiency efforts in the last six months. Forty-six
percent said they had; 11% said they had increased cost-cutting
significantly. (A nearly equal number, 47%, said their cost-consciousness
was unchanged, and 7% loosened the reins.) Those
efforts appear to include trying to hold the line on salary increases,
despite a shortage of talent: Six months ago 46% of executives said
they planned to raise pay to keep people and that number is down
to 42%. Along with a projected decrease in hiring and increases in
healthcare costs, this suggests that bosses may be more Scrooge
than Santa when merit increase time rolls around.
