The 2014 Business and Industry Economic Outlook Survey, released early September 2014 by the AICPA, expressed the highest optimism for the U.S. economy since 2007.
Measuring 9 areas of sentiment, respondents provided both reasons for their optimism for the next 12 months, and challenges needed to be addressed. All nine components have increased in the past year, with planned spending for training and development experiencing the highest increase.
On the other hand, survey respondents cited their top challenges, which in order were: 1) regulatory requirements, 2) domestic economic challenges, 3) availability of skilled personnel, and 4) employee and benefit costs.
For more information on this survey, please visit this article from the AICPA or contact Timothy Arter at (231) 726-5820.