The Stagnitisis is official

For Manpower CEO, ‘New Normal’ Takes Hold

For ManpowerGroup Chairman and Chief Executive Jeffrey A. Joerres, 2013 was the year that a post-recession caution took hold among American businesses. This “new normal” mindset — favoring a slow and steady approach rather than swinging for the fences — stems from the 2007-2009 downturn, five years of lackluster recovery and continued uncertainty over fiscal policy in Washington. Those three factors have CEOs and senior leadership at businesses across America believing “this is the way it’s going to be,” Mr. Joerres said this week. “Companies are very much in the mode of: There is no reward for taking any risk.”

So, the Thought Police can no longer restrict us from looking at the long term decline.