What are the some critical issues facing management in 2010?

Businesses that export to Europe are looking at declining demand, the result of austerity measures put in place to deal with their debt problems. Unlike countries that control their own money supply, countries in the Euro-Zone cannot print more money and inflate their way out of the debt problem. To balance their books, they have to cut expenses and increase taxes, both taking money out of their economy, reducing their purchases of imported goods.

The problem is further complicated by the fact that the people controlling the money supply in Europe don't have the political authority to make the needed changes. That authority is still in the hands of the individual governments. How that will play out in the long run is creating considerable heartburn for managers dealing in those markets.

The critical issue for businesses depending on local economies world-wide is jobs. With high unemployment, there's less product demand. That increases competition for what's there. As the risk of the unemployment problem dragging out over a longer period than expected increases, financial institutions will tighten credit, making the squeeze play on management even tighter.

In both these scenarios it's critical for management to control cost. The businesses that do that successfully will be in a stronger position once these problems are resolved. Those that try to borrow their way through it may not make it to the other side.