Does Worker Scarcity Spur Investment, Automation and Productivity? Evidence from Earnings Calls

Textual analysis of earnings calls is turning out to be a useful analytical tool in understanding what is happening inside businesses, especially if that data is then correlated with other publicly available information. This case reviews the correlation between mentions of wage inflation and increase rate of automation - no surprise that there was a strong connection. Cost of living crisis is a cost of business crisis, and so long as these conditions persist, the pressure to reduce costs will be inexorable, and that means offshoring or automating or both.