CEO News, May 2023 Hello and Welcome to the May Edition of CEO News. Have you heard the expression “a plan without action is really just a wish”? It reinforces the critical importance of not just the planning process, but also the commitment to executing a plan. Each year, the ProVision Leadership Team collaborates with ProVision Directors to discuss and agree on a forward strategy, with the underlying goal of executing initiatives that have the biggest positive impact on practice improvement. This year is a combination of building on previous initiatives and launching new ones, including a focus on practice staff recruitment, big data, enhancing the patient experience and strengthening our education offer (to name a few). These focus areas are a direct result of last year’s Member Survey feedback, so we appreciate your input. We have a clear strategy and a concise execution plan, and we look forward to delivering on things that you’ve identified as important to you.
Member Update – Webinar Recording A strategic update webinar was held for all Members back in late March. Content included a performance update, insights into recently commissioned consumer research, feedback from Member surveys conducted late last year, and an overview of key initiatives that ProVision will be focused on in the coming year to help practices grow and prosper in the year ahead. For those that were unable to attend, a recording of the webinar can be found here >
Macro-Economic Outlook Consumer confidence saw a decline in May after a bounce in April that was mainly attributed to the RBA pausing their cycle of interest rate hikes. The fall this month, however, was due to the RBA surprising the market with a 25bp hike and the handing down of the FY24 Federal Budget. i The fall in consumer confidence was noted across both renters and mortgage holders, but the two-lane economy (as noted by Morgan Stanley) continues to be evident, with 24% of the population happy to continue spending. This still leaves a large majority who will be more discerning about how and where they spend their money. One saving grace is that essential services continue to be impacted less than discretionary spending, which bodes well for health providers. Unemployment is expected to increase in the period ahead, but despite this, the level remains below the long-term average which adds some confidence to the labour market. A wages correction is also starting to be felt across many sectors as a direct result of the employment rate decline. ii KPMG's ongoing forecast is for Australia to experience a slowing of economic activity. There are positive signs emerging that the inflation rise is starting to ease, with commodity and freight prices retreating and supply chains returning to pre-pandemic operations. CBA economists forecast that the RBA has completed its tightening cycle and that no further hikes will be delivered. If this is the case, consumer sentiment may have some support in the short term. However, the fixed rate roll-off and anticipated