Friday, January 9. 2009

Signs of the Economy: A Barber Shop, A Shoe Store, and a Geospatial Company

This past week, I had my hand on the pulse of the economy...or so I think. I went to the barber shop, a running shoe store, and visited with a geospatial technology consulting company.

What are the signs of whatever this economy "is" or "will be" as we proceed into 2009?

First, I went to a local running shoe store to buy some new training shoes. The place was teeming. I don't know if it was the after Christmas sales or the fact that everyone wanted to drop a few pounds by buying some new running togs first. This is not a low-budget store. It's an upscale, major chain retailer that sells top of the line clothes. I walked out because every sales person was busy.

Next it was off the barber shop. Now, everyone needs a haircut but you could argue that you could get your spouse to do it, that is if you didn't care what it looks like. My barber is just that...a barber...not a high-priced "stylist." I get buzzed anyway but it still needs to look decent. Again, the place is hopping. I wait 45 minutes to get in with my favorite barber; fortunately I took my Blackberry to get some work done. More people stream into the shop and with three chairs busy at the same time, the wait is getting longer.

Lastly, I visit with a company that does geospatial software development and other IT consulting. [I'd prefer not to reveal the name of the company for privacy.] They tell me things are basically "OK" but they've had a few contracts fall through at the last minute. These were contracts close to being signed but late last year some were put on the shelf and the contracts never signed.

Knee jerk reaction or really bad sign? Take it for face value but I believe many companies are in this same situation. Companies may be pulling back just as a reaction to the plethora of negative news. Is it really that bad? How many layoffs have we seen at the major geospatial technology companies? During Jack Dangermond's keynote address at our Rocket City Geospatial Conference last November, he told the audience there were over 200 jobs to be filled at ESRI. However, Pitney Bowes MapInfo recently announced the layoff of 128 people. So, there are indications of problems in the geospatial technology sector.

But job loses are a trailing economic indicator. We will likely continue to see job losses for the next six months during which time you should see the rate of job losses decline. Though bad, December's job figures from the Department of Labor that were reported today, were less than anticipated.

I don't want to paint an overly rosey picture but not all the signs are doom and gloom. The best advice is no different than the old advice: work hard, work smart.

COGO Sends Letter to Pelosi, Reid to Establish Geospatial Oversight Committee

In a press release issued today, the Coalition of Geospatial Organizations (COGO) sent a letter to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid asking them "to establish subcommittees in the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate with jurisdiction over Federal geospatial activities."

COGO is comprised of 15 professional geospatial organizations and the letter was signed by Cy Smith, chairman, from NSGIC and the statewide GIS coordinator for the state of Oregon. The rationale for establishing congressional oversight is that activities are currently spread among 30 different subcommittees and geospatial technology is in use in over 40 federal agencies and COGO feels that there is a need for "effective structure for oversight and legislation over the increasing federal government activity in geospatial technologies," according to Smith.

The letter recommends that a subcommittee of the House Committee on Natural Resources and Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources "would be appropriate."

It seems like there may be other issues here at work...we'll look to find more information soon about other reasons for this letter. But, my perception is that someone or some organization had serious concerns about the distribution of federal funds for geospatial technology.