According to McKinsey & Company, “2021 will be the year of transition”. Businesses are able to look forward to reshaping their futures post-pandemic. The pandemic has brought many challenges, and business trends have developed to solve these challenges. This article will explore some of the trends that will shape the next normal for businesses, especially when an entrepreneur is considering to start an LLC.
Remote working
Due to the pandemic, remote working has been at the forefront of business trends since early 2020. Although remote working has proven to be effective, it is not completely successful as of yet. According to Techcrunch, leading investors do not believe that current services and tools solve remote working completely. Security, over Zoom, has been a concern, as well as front-of-office collaboration and personal remote process automation. Many businesses have started tackling these issues and there is huge expected growth in 2021.
Sustainability
Green energy has become a very attractive investment, seeing China, some of the Gulf States, and India invest in it. The US he began transitioning away from coal to green technologies such as batteries, carbon-capture methods and electric vehicles. Growth opportunities in the green economy seem to be substantial, especially across the energy, mobility and agriculture sectors. According to BlackRock, a global investment company, “contrary to past consensus,” they expect that the shift to sustainability will “help enhance returns” and that “the tectonic shift towards sustainable investing is accelerating.”
The future is robots
Due to the pandemic, businesses have had to find ways to safely deliver products to their customers. Robotic delivery has been the answer by minimizing human contact. Large corporations such as Amazon, Google and FedEx currently use delivery robots. Businesses are able to latch on to this trend to reach more clients and become more efficient and safe.
5G
The need for higher speed internet and well-connected homes has been the driving force behind the advancement of 5G, regardless of the conspiracies around it and its ‘connections’ to COVID-19. Companies like Verizon have announced the expansion of their 5G network in late 2021 and Ericsson, in China, has been rapidly deploying 5G. The expansion of 5G has been an opportunity for businesses to use it within their services.
Higher value-added activities
Developing and emerging economies are seeing to be focusing on higher value-added activities in the global supply chain. Expanding service industries contributes to higher incomes which allows consumers to spend more money on goods and services which are considered to be non-essential. Examples of these industries are retailing, finance, education and hospitality. Seeing that e-commerce has become a popular way of doing business, businesses have latched onto this trend to reach more customers. An example of this is the partnership between Starbucks and Alibaba. The partnership allows Starbucks to expand its delivery services to 2,000 stores in 30 cities across China.
Sustainable finance
This type of finance considers environmental and social factors when investing. There has been a sharp growth in sustainable debt with the market reaching $1.7 trillion at the end of 2020. Sustainable finance, a growing trend, will most probably have business owners include net-positive social and ecological effects when pitching to investors.
Virtual health care
Telehealth practices have been offered by healthcare institutions to lower the exposure of COVID-19 to their staff and patients. Although it is a common perception that primary care physicians and providers need to physically see their patients, studies have shown that 80% of these primary care services are able to be provided virtually. Since the start of the pandemic, telehealth visits have increased by 50%. This growth in telehealth care has provided an opportunity for businesses to advance and compete against other corporations in their industry.
AI incorporation
It has been shown that Artificial Intelligence (AI) has become the focus for almost 50% of startup applications. Recent trends show that AI is advancing to become part of household technology and many other products, services and offerings. According to MassChallenge, AI will drive the meaningful next wave of disruption similar to software. This advancement has offered businesses the opportunity to improve on current technology and solve issues in the sector to compete with competitors.
The Takeaway
Many of these mentioned trends have grown throughout 2021 and will continue to do so in the future to safeguard businesses from another catastrophe. For many businesses, worldwide, these trends offer a huge opportunity to launch themselves into success. Many entrepreneurs may choose to take advantage of these trends on American soil, should they meet state requirements. For this reason, choosing Florida LLC formation services may well be preferred, as pointed out by The Really Useful Information Company (TRUiC).