ABBB
KANSAS – The certified public accounting firm of Adams, Brown, Beran & Ball, Chartered (ABBB) has jointly released the results from the 2019 ABBB/Leading Edge Alliance National Manufacturing Outlook Survey. The survey asked about manufacturing companies’ performance in 2018, managers’ expectations for 2019, and the strategies that high-performing manufacturers find most effective.
“This report helps us to prepare solutions that will lead to growth for our own manufacturing clients,” said Julie Wondra, CPA, Partner & Manufacturing Industry Leader. “With this great insight and data, we are able to position our clients for success in the coming year.”
Eight out of ten U.S. manufacturers expect to grow sales this year, buoyed by their optimism about the strength of regional, national and global economies, according to the 2019 National Manufacturing Survey Report prepared by Leading Edge Alliance (LEA), a global association of 220 accounting and consulting firms.
“Across the board, manufacturers are optimistic about the regional economy, sector growth, and increasing revenue expectations in 2019,” the report states. “Looking ahead, manufacturers expect raw materials, labor costs, lack of available talent and competition to be significant hurdles in 2019. The tariffs implemented by President Trump provide productivity issues; however, an increase in spending on Big Data and business intelligence are delivering innovative technology for minimizing productivity concerns.”
More than 350 manufacturing executives participated in the survey, which includes respondents who produce industrial/machining, transportation/automotive, construction, food and beverage, and other products.
2019 Survey Highlights
Growth: 81% of manufacturers expect their revenue to increase in 2019, and 61% expect their overall sector to expand in 2019.
Economy: Optimism for the regional, national and global economies has increased by more than 12 percentage points over the last two years.
Priorities: Manufacturers’ top three priorities are growing sales, improving profitability and addressing the workforce shortage.
Challenges: Most manufacturers (52%) cited labor/talent as their greatest barrier to growth, followed by competition (34%) and profitability (25%).
The survey identified three key growth strategies manufacturers will use to keep their companies on a growth track: Technology, mergers and acquisitions, and talent management.
Technology: Manufacturers plan to leverage technology as key to solving productivity concerns; 76% said that they will investigate/prioritize cybersecurity in 2019, and 43% said they will prioritize Big Data/ERP/IoT.
M&A: More manufacturers are considering a merger/sale or acquisition in 2019; 21% expect to acquire another business in 2019 and 16% are in the pre-planning stage of a merger or acquisition.
Talent: Faced with a growing labor shortage, manufacturers have turned to a range of tools to improve hiring and retention with 62% increasing compensation, 39% implementing retention strategies and 35% using internal training programs.
To view the full National Manufacturing Outlook and Insights report, visit www.abbb.com/resources.
Adams, Brown, Beran & Ball, Chartered provides a wide range of traditional and non-traditional CPA and consulting services to clients throughout Kansas, including agriculture organizations, construction companies, feed yards, financial institutions, governmental and not-for-profit organizations, manufacturers, medical practices, oil and gas companies, professional service firms, real estate companies and small businesses. Founded in 1945, today the firm maintains 13 office locations throughout the state. For more information about Adams, Brown, Beran & Ball, please visit www.abbb.com.
About LEA
Founded in 1999, LEA Global/The Leading Edge Alliance is the second-largest international association in the world. It is a high-quality alliance of 220 independently owned accounting and consulting firms focused on accounting, financial and business advisory services. LEA Global firms operate from 620 offices in 110 countries, giving clients of LEA Global firms access to the knowledge, skills and experience of 2,313 partners and 21,355 staff members. For more information, visit www.leaglobal.com.