Steel Products

Gene Marks Sets the Stage for 2022 SMU Steel Summit

Written by Laura Miller

August 23, 2022

Gene Marks opened Steel Market Update’s 2022 Steel Summit conference with a keynote zeroing in on the major issues that are impacting business leaders today and in the coming years. The CPA, author, columnist, and journalist explored strategies to help businesses navigate inflation, recessionary pressures, and hiring challenges.

With many economic indicators pointing towards a recession—including two consecutive quarters of falling GDP—there are still indicators that it’s not all bad news either: Travel levels are almost back to pre-Covid levels, household net worth is at historic highs, and unemployment is at record lows.

You’re allowed to be confused, Marks noted. Yes, we are in a slowdown, but with the US such a large country, the better question to ask is not if we’re in a recession, but which parts of the US are in a recession? The construction and tech industries, for example, are in a recession, and manufacturing growth is declining across the country. But in good news: this is not another Great Recession.

Inflation will continue to impact the economy for at least another year, he warned, but the government and supply chains will eventually catch up.

Marks shared some strategies to help companies navigate through 2023, among them: revisiting pricing; leveraging data; doubling down on communication; buying property, equipment, and inventory; and investing in technology. He highly recommended that all companies forecast, even if it’s just 90 days into the future.

“After 20 years, I’ve figured out the secret sauce,” Marks noted early in his presentation. “Most successful people are always looking ahead. They’re always looking to the future.”

Marks also discussed ways that businesses will be impacted by the Inflation Reduction Act. And with a more expansive regulatory environment when it comes to labor and benefits, he explored ways companies can offer hot benefits to attract and retain top talent.

The SMU Steel Summit continues through Wednesday, with an agenda chock full of top speakers and presentations on the state of the steel industry.

By Laura Miller, Laura@SteelMarketUpdate.com

Laura Miller

Laura Miller is a reporter and editor for Steel Market Update. Since 2007, she has held various editorial and marketing positions with steel industry publications, associations, and mills. In 2021, after a five-year hiatus working across other industries, she returned to steel trade journalism, joining SMU in 2022. She is a member of the Association of Women in the Metal Industries and a past-president of the AWMI Pittsburgh Chapter. She holds a BA in Latin American Studies from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania. She can be reached at laura@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-759-7869.

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