How's business in your neck of the woods?

[count_schemula]

I work at home running my own company. 12 computers in the house will generate some heat, but the M Coupe is spared a daily commute, and if I get bored or stressed, the car is always nearby.

So far, I've been faring well enough, but things seems to be edging worse and worse. Sure money was easy 2-4 years ago, but now things are clearly tighter.

I have been doing what I do for about 5-6 years now soley based on word of mouth. I do corporate presentations, CD-ROM and DVD authoring, video, 2d/3d animation, inter/intranet stuff using w2k, SuSE Linux and OSX. Basically a multimedia computer nerd.

No doubt the easy jobs are less frequent this summer, so for the first time ever, I am about to market, approach executives and other such clients blah blah. I bet I'm not the only one doing this and I don't want my marketing to get lost with all the other cold callers out there pounding pavement. This is alien territory for me.

Anyhow, anybody else got a growing fear about the world political/economic environment? What are you doing about it?

Rook, you may get your M Coupe yet!

[Preppy]

Hell, things are going crazy over here with Worldcom and whatnot across the river :

But not to worry, hopefully things will get better....hopefully

[mpbmw318is]

Well, things arent too bad in Sacramento. . . except NO ONE IS F#$%ING HIRING.

So if you're not a poor college student looking for work, you're prolly alright.

[umnitza]

no one is hiring ANYWHERE in CA Unless you want to get a job with Nissan (I can hook you up, but you have to do the rest)

[mpbmw318is]

Oh really? Hrm. . . Where would this job with Nissan be located?

If its fairly close you have one very interested party.

[UD///M]

Things are slow everywhere. But the sad part about it is that it will continue this way for at least another year. Things will start to pick up about mid to late 2003. It will be a slow gain but it will start. Don't expect to see double digit growth for a while.

mpbmw318, I love you sig line. It is so true.

[mpbmw318is]

Why thank you, it is quite appropo to the times. . .

[count_schemula]

double digit growth? I thought 7% or so was considered pretty stellar?

[SilverStreak]

I hear you, count. I own a small executive search firm. My partner runs the operations side of the business over in our HQ in PA and I work from home most days, like you.

Executive search was booming since I got into it back in 93. I went solo in early 2000, right before the economy slowed down. We had a stellar first year. 2000 was without a doubt my best year ever in Search.

2001 and 2002 have definitely slowed down. But we're small enough (and we specialize in Pharmaceuticals/Biotech- an industry that has not been hit "too" hard in these times when compared to IT and so on) with only 3 full timers and 2 part timers where we haven't had to resort to layoffs or anything.

But most search firms, especially the large ones like Korn Ferry, have had 3-4 rounds of layoffs over the last 2 years.

5 yrs ago, finding clients with jobs to work on was easy, finding qualified "best in class" candidates was tough. Now it's swung the other way, candidates are plentiful, but the work is scarce.

Many clients are laying off, not hiring, or experience hiring freezes, not hiring, or cutting off the use of outside vendors, etc-- and that makes it tough for us. With less clients using executive search services, and the downsizing going on in the consulting services industry, it makes for more competition, low ball pricing, and less profit.

These #'s are only examples, but say in the past, it only took 100 phone calls to drum up 1 new client. It's more like 300 phones for that 1 new client.

I went from working 50 hrs a week in 2000 earning X, to working 80 hrs a week in 2002 to earn "half of X".

Luckily, "half of X" still pays the bills quite nicely...

[Ollie]

For a Canadian perspective it seems that business generally is slow in North America. I've been with a computer systems firm for just about 10 years and since we are diverse in our offerings we've been able to weather the storm so to speak without having to do any layoffs. While collectively we're all not making the same dough as a few years back I firmly believe the worse is over. We're beginning to see an increase in large deals again and actually just completed our single largest deal ever, and in the financial market no less. Grit our teeth and by mid 2003 things should be far smoother however I doubt we'll see the momentum we saw in the later 90's. In essence, my growing fear that I'd fostered after 9/11 has diminished into a small shimmer of hope.

[umnitza]

the position is in Torrance Nowhere near Sac

[mpbmw318is]

Damn. . . ah well. . .
Back to hitting up the restraunts. . .

[SilverE30]

Well at my office our manager just got fired w/o a replacement and we seem to be training employees from the NC office everyweek. Looks like our department will move and we get laid off. I'm estimating within 8 months.

mpbmw318is- Is that Spike Spiegel as your avitar?

[Rel44 M3]

Our company is doing pretty well. Most of my friends' companies have been laying off people. My cousin's company is in the middle of going through bankruptcy proceedings. The fact that my company deals with medical equipment may be the reason we are not really affected. People are still getting sick. We'll always have business.

[LuxoM3]

Hmmmm....is it safe to say we are doing better than Dell or Gateway right now? [laughing]

Funny thing happened this week.... My Dad works for UNited (which basically went from decent in the 80's to suck now). He is a jet engine mechanic who went from union $33hour to $19hour (employee buyout back then) and now to $25....

He walks into a Mercedes dealer in SF. Asked for a mechanics job. Got it for $35 an hour. Nice benefits and CAR DISCOUNT!!!!!!!

At 57 years old getting a United Pension, partial social security and a job that pays $35 and hour to turn a wrench for Mercedes.

Not bad for dad.

[Ryan325i]

I'm in M&A working on publishing acquisitions. Things are still very active.

[Dark Helmet]

Things are very slow for me, but I am lucky enough to have a lot of built-in business that keeps some cash coming in. things will get better soon, I am sure of it... getting out there, getting networked.

I do have a few business owners to get ahold of, one owns 60 shares of berkshire A... and the other has one of the fastest growing Cellular sales companies in the Midwest.

[dakarm]

Made it through 4 lays off now in the past year. Not sure what the next 6 months will bring. I'd say the business is stable but this quarter wont be so good.

Only way for me to move up is to move to FL and I'm not about to do that anytime soon.

umnitza: which city in the East bay do you live in? I'm in Danville.