PEOPLE HELPING PEOPLE

As I write this column for a PEO Insider ® issue related to external influences, I’m struck by the confluence of a few things:

• Parts of our country and our industry have been heavily impacted by natural disasters.
• We are approaching the most contentious election in our nation’s history.
• We all have the ability to positively influence the lives of people around us.

Natural Disasters

By any definition, the impacts of Hurricanes Helene and Milton have been devastating. The images from Ashville, Sarasota, Tampa and other communities are heartbreaking. So, too, are the stories I’ve heard from PEOs about their clients, some of whom they fear may not be able to recover.

I can’t imagine the uphill climb these businesses face to clean up, recover and rebound from something so unpredictable. After all, you can prepare, but as the great American poet Mike Tyson famously said, “everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face.” Fortunately, many of the impacted small businesses’ plans included the support of a PEO, so they aren’t alone. As an industry, we can do more now to be prepared to help when the next natural disaster disrupts our clients and our communities, and NAPEO will be looking for ways to do just that. In the meantime, there are a number of resources available to support businesses impacted by these devastating events which we’d be happy to connect you with.

U.S. Elections

At the time of writing, we’re less than three weeks from consequential elections with control of the White House, House of Representatives and U.S. Senate up for grabs. All of them are too close to call. In fact, the one thing we can predict is that it’s unlikely that we have a clear answer on election day, which used to be the norm. It also wasn’t that long ago that non-peaceful transfer of power wasn’t in our lexicon, and that change elections, while infrequent, were just a temporary shift in national priority, not identity.

Now that nearly every election (10 of the last 12) results in change of control in one form or another, it can be hard to get our footing before the dynamic shifts again. There’s a lot at stake for the business community in this election, with all eyes on the expiring tax cuts and required policy-making from a Congress that candidly hasn’t been great at legislating (82 pieces of legislation in this Congress, 362 in the previous Congress). With predictability hard to come by, NAPEO has been hard at work this year building relationships that span the political spectrum so we can ensure a seat at the table regardless of who holds the majority.

People Helping People

My former boss, mentor and friend Tom Donohue passed away this week. Tom was a Washington legend, leading the powerhouse U.S. Chamber of Commerce back to prominence. The tributes to Tom’s impact on the global business community and, most importantly, on thousands of us privileged enough to be part of his life have been overwhelming. He gave generously of his time, experience and counsel, cared deeply about people, meeting us right where and when we needed it most, and left the world far better than he found it. “If you can, you must” was his mantra, and a small example of how he sought opportunities to contribute meaningfully to his communities and to everyone around him. We would all benefit from there being more Tom Donohues, and being more like him, too.