Going into the weekend, I wanted to share some bright news I noticed this week. Evidently a team of leading economists from the National Association of Business Economists (NABE) have predicted an end of the recession to come in 2009. Yes, that’s this year!

The NABE panel does temper the enthusiasm of the report saying that the predicted recovery will be “more moderate than is typical following a severe downturn”. Still, to those of us in the sales performance industry that have consistently seen companies’ attainment versus quota numbers way down, it’s refreshing to see a (somewhat) bright forecast.

A late 2009 recovery is definitely something to keep in mind when considering your 2010 plan changes and quotas. Of course, depending on your industry and its tendency to lead or lag, your mileage may vary. Hopefully upward activity will be contagious in the same way that things snowballed on the way down.