No recovery until at least mid-2010, predict these Financial Executives.

• Author: Heffes, Ellen M.
• Position: ECONOMY - Survey - Statistical data

Seventy-four percent of financial executives said they expect the recovery to take at least until mid-2010. Due to the increasing uncertainty in the market, three times as many companies (34 percent) replanned or reforecast more than twice in Q3 versus Q2 of 2009.

These findings come from an online poll in October of more than 140 financial executives in more than 20 industries ranging in size from under $10 million to more than $1 billion in revenues. This survey, the fourth quarterly poll of its type, was conducted by Adaptive Planning and the Business Performance Forum. The poll will continue to be conducted quarterly in efforts to spot trends in overall economic conditions and planning practices.

Other findings of the Q3 Business Volatility and Variables Survey revealed that 46 percent predict a "W-shape" recession with two big economic drops, suggesting that the worst is not yet over. Fifty-seven percent are still facing high or very high levels of uncertainty in their businesses.

"What we're seeing is financial departments and individuals that are under more pressure than every in their careers to plan and predict business conditions better and more often," said William A. Soward, chief executive officer of Adaptive Planning.

On the positive side, more respondents (25 percent) said conditions are better than they were six months ago, compared with 15 percent who said so last quarter, and fewer (42 percent) said things are worse...