SMEs ‘optimistic but cautious’ on growth prospects

SMEs 'optimistic but cautious' on growth prospects

SMEs line up growth in 2014, but unsure about taking aggressive action to drive forward, finds Baker Tilly survey

SMALL BUSINESSES are confident about growth but are not sure where it’s going to come from, according to a survey of 750 SMEs by Baker Tilly.

Turnover will increase during 2014, according to three-quarters of respondents, with 45% ‘confident’ or ‘extremely confident’ about growth opportunities during the period.

However, only 18% are looking to take on new staff, with 16% looking to increase R&D spend. Less than one quarter will increase spend on sales and marketing.

More than eight out of ten are unwilling to take on more debt over the next 12 months, while just 23% said they would seriously consider alternative forms of finance, such as crowdfunding, leasing or invoice finance.

Nine out of ten are not planning to use any of the main tax incentives available to SMEs.
Three-quarters expect their workforce numbers to stay the same – with 8% expecting shrinkage.

Share

Subscribe to get your daily business insights

Resources & Whitepapers

Why Professional Services Firms Should Ditch Folders and Embrace Metadata

Professional Services Why Professional Services Firms Should Ditch Folders and Embrace Metadata

3y

Why Professional Services Firms Should Ditch Folde...

In the past decade, the professional services industry has transformed significantly. Digital disruptions, increased competition, and changing market ...

View resource
2 Vital keys to Remaining Competitive for Professional Services Firms

2 Vital keys to Remaining Competitive for Professional Services Firms

3y

2 Vital keys to Remaining Competitive for Professi...

In recent months, professional services firms are facing more pressure than ever to deliver value to clients. Often, clients look at the firms own inf...

View resource
Turn Accounts Payable into a value-engine

Accounting Firms Turn Accounts Payable into a value-engine

3y

Turn Accounts Payable into a value-engine

In a world of instant results and automated workloads, the potential for AP to drive insights and transform results is enormous. But, if you’re still ...

View resource
Digital Links: A guide to MTD in 2021

Making Tax Digital Digital Links: A guide to MTD in 2021

3y

Digital Links: A guide to MTD in 2021

The first phase of Making Tax Digital (MTD) saw the requirement for the digital submission of the VAT Return using compliant software. That’s now behi...

View resource