Twenty-seven general elections have fallen in 2024. At the time of writing, twenty have taken place, but one of the most impactful and momentous polling days – the US Presidential Election – is still to come.
No year has ever had such potential for peaceful and democratic regime change, and for those with an international outlook or a cross-border business, the 2020s may have continued as they began – full of stress, uncertainty, and economic strife. New leaders will all have their own remedies for inflation, employment crises, and economic stagnation, and their mandates and mechanisms to administer them will vary in strength.
At the same time, change represents an opportunity for those prepared to take it. The initiatives of incoming governments mean new conditions to adapt to and to thrive in, while market stress factors can mean more businesses ready for acquisition and more opportunities to let necessity drive innovation.
AI remains an exciting, if mysterious, prospect for businesses. It is full of promise for efficiency, cost-savings, customer experience, and productivity, but often the specifics of how to apply it are difficult to pin down. It is also sometimes a source of anxiety in areas like compliance, security, data, privacy, and public relations. Businesses may have to contend with regulations that industry bodies choose to impose, existing national and international laws that are relevant to AI's operations, and the EU's new AI act, which threatens those who contravene its rules with fines of €35m or 7% of turnover (whichever is greater).
For some, the cultural gap between generations in the workplace seems as pronounced as ever, if not more so. Social media-driven younger generations are increasingly drawing thicker boundaries between work and 'life', and to some, the professional is the political. In the wider employment market, some industries still find themselves with vacancies that they cannot fill, while others cannot handle the volume of applications they receive.
Some things, as ever, remain the same. War continues on European soil as the Russia-Ukraine conflict rages on – the same conflict that began in 2022 as a fresh crisis to replace the waning pandemic. In the Middle East, the sustained violence between Israel and Hamas shows no signs of abating, but returning to the topic of elections, the next US president will have the power to heavily influence the character and the outcome of the hostilities.
We may wonder whether instability is the new standard, and businesses must be comfortable with being uncomfortable. Even if that is the case they can at least rely on highly qualified and experienced advisers to offer guidance and strategy in all conditions. In the following chapters, IR Global members offer their invaluable perspectives from this year of elections for the years ahead.
The Visionaries publications showcase the valuable expertise and insights of IR Global members, offering thought leadership on current and important topics.
Our latest Visionaries publication features 24 members from 18 jurisdictions. Dive into four insightful chapters addressing global business challenges in a year of elections, with this edition covering Technology, Transgressive Behaviour, Geopolitical Climate, and Intervention & Regulation.
Read the full publication here.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
