The Shift Index

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The Center for the Edge has unveiled its most significant report to date: "The Shift Index" which suggests the current recession is masking long-term competitive challenges for U.S. businesses. Among the key findings, U.S. companies’ return on assets (ROA) have progressively dropped 75 percent from their 1965 level despite rising labor productivity. Even the highest-performing companies are struggling to maintain their ROA rates and increasingly losing market leadership positions.

The index is the result of a nearly year-long effort applying a combination of established and original analytical approaches to four decades of data, some of it pre-existing and some created for the first time. More than a dozen data sources were engaged, four surveys were developed and deployed, and five proprietary methodologies were created to compile 26 metrics into three indices representing 15 industries.

Deloitte’s Shift Index pushes beyond cyclical measurement and looks at the long-term rate of change and its impact on economic performance. The Shift Index is focused on three sets of main indicators:

• Foundations, which set the stage for major change
• Flows of resources, such as knowledge, which allows businesses to enhance productivity
• Impacts, which help gauge progress at an economy-wide level

We invite you to learn more about the Shift Index and the implications for U.S. executives.

• Executive Summary
• Methodology 
• Structure 
• Implications for Executives 

In the News

Apple's network helps prevent a fall
Financial Times Article | June 24, 2009
One conclusion of the Deloitte “shift index” is that few companies have adjusted as adeptly as Apple to how technology has altered the terms of competition.

Don't Blame the Recession: Despite Productivity Gains, U.S. Businesses Return-on-Assets have Plummeted 75 percent since 1965
Press Release | June 23, 2009
New Deloitte shift index measures impact of digital infrastructure on economic performance.

The Big Shift
HBR Article | June 19, 2009
Deloitte's Center for the Edge leaders discuss metrics executives can use to gauge the long-term forces shaping the business environment and improve their firms’ overall performance.

The Shift Index
CNBC Video | June 19, 2009
The real problem facing business executives is the use of "old" ideas when it comes to adopting new technology.

Tech Payoff for Companies Remains Elusive, Study Finds
New York Times Article | June 19, 2009
A new economic index paints a disheartening picture for technophiles — at least the ones inside corporate America.

Contact Us

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For media inquiries, please contact:

Jonathan Gandal, Deloitte
+1 203 708 4115
jgandal@deloitte.com

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