The growth of the UK’s SME economy could be stalling as business owners hold themselves back from adopting new technologies, citing cost – with 45% saying they thought upgrading technology was beyond their current spending power.
The research, conducted by the 2018 International Business Festival, found that for many entrepreneurs, old habits die hard with about as many as forty-six percent of business leaders saying they had used a filing cabinet as video conferencing systems or a hole punch as a voice-activated assistant.
The Festival will be focussing on high-growth industries which will shape the global economy of the future.
The survey of 500 SME leaders also found nearly forty percent of small and medium-sized businesses plan to achieve business growth in the next three years by investing in technology, and just over a third will do so through new product and service development. This is despite the overwhelming majority of SME leaders recognizing that their business must change to meet future market demands.
Large numbers of entrepreneurs are already looking to the future, recognizing the opportunities for business in areas like automation (42%), artificial intelligence (47%) and big data (55%) – but 42% felt that their companies would struggle to keep pace with the rapid advance of technology.
While highlighting the importance of technology, Max Steinberg, Chair of the 2018 International Business Festival, says: “It’s absolutely crucial to business growth that SME bosses embrace these innovations and the opportunities they present."
The Festival that is supported by UK government through the GREAT Britain campaign, will take place next month at Liverpool, and is aiming to give entrepreneurs an overview of how cutting-edge tech like Blockchain and autonomous vehicles could revolutionize their businesses.
0 Comments