When I look at everything that’s going on in the world these days: authoritarians returning to power, starting with Trump in the U.S. with his protectionist trade policies (a term that no Economics student had heard of since the 1990s), Putin in Russia, invading neighboring countries in Europe (and getting away with it), an impending “Cold War Revival”, armed conflict in full swing in the Middle East, the return of inflation around the globe, interest rates back to the levels of 20 years ago, the U.S. backing out of helping its allies in Europe, the return of populist and right wing governments (Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Hungary, Poland, India, Turkey, and probably soon to join: France and Germany, to name a few), not to mention global warming, and a general backlash in globalization, liberalization, democratization and the rule of law, I can’t help but feeling like I’m Marty McFly looking to get back to the future in Doc Brown’s Delorean.
The world has changed much more in the 5 years following the Pandemic, than in the previous 35-40 years. We are facing the collapse of capitalism as we knew it, and for all its flaws (of which the most important is its failure find a way to reduce income inequality), I cannot imagine that the cocktail we are facing can be better. These changes have broken up an era of progress that lasted more than three decades and will unfortunately create a more volatile and complex business and social environment for which companies have to be prepared.
Reducing and hedging operating risks by diversifying products, customers and sourcing, having more efficient production and delivery, being well capitalized, incentivizing and taking care of your teams, are more important in this new world than ever. The flip side of the increased complexity business owners are exposed to in our current environment, is that the rapid changes have also brought about innovation and staying power.
So, unless you can get your parents to fall in love again, in order to generate the 1.21 gigawatts of electricity needed to power the flux capacitor and take you back in time, as a business owner you need to start thinking about how you will adapt to the new circumstances and turn them into the benefit of your firms, teams and communities. Embrace the challenges and opportunities that come with this new era. Innovate, diversify, and support your teams. The future is uncertain, but with resilience and creativity, we can navigate these turbulent times and build a brighter, more sustainable future for all.
By: Gilberto Escobedo A
March 24, 2025
