Business News

Company boards will play a big role in national recovery

Filed under: Business Finance — Alan @ 2:56 am

When Britain’s economy recovers, it will likely be thanks to the capability of company boards. These boards will need to offer strong direction within the commercial sector for those with enterprising talent. This is according to Dr Neville Bain, the Chairman of the Institute of Directors.

This statement comes after recent comments made by the Bank of England which warned that the economy’s recovery will likely be slowing down. Bain, and many other experts, have suggested that strong leadership from businesses in the U.K. will be the key to a speedy and sustainable recovery.

The IoD has released new guidelines in The Effective Board which take into account some of the things that have been learned throughout the recession. Rather than focusing on legislation and regulation, the guidance focuses on how successful boards can help with the economic recovery. Bain has stated that a board must “do better” no matter how well it is currently doing. He has also stated that smart risk-taking is extremely important, with the best boards neither “risk-averse” nor “reckless” when making decisions.
The Effective Board details some of the characteristics of the best and most successful boards. Having good people, a good strategy, and the right skills is essential when forming a good board. Both values and leadership are also important, with “good governance” being one of the biggest ways to have a successful board.

Bain has also said that “balance”, “annual meetings”, and an efficient system that takes into account “risk management” are three things that will help build boards that can help the economy.

Manchester SME’s see better opportunity’s on the horizon

Filed under: Small business — Alan @ 10:26 am

The past 18 months has resulted in Manchester and North West companies reaching their highest level of confidence, even though falling sales are still one of the predominant issues facing boardrooms, according to a new quarterly business confidence survey by KPMG.

The survey questioned senior executives about whether they had seen signs of economic recovery out of which 57% answered yes, with another 48% reporting they had seen good signs, firsthand, in their own markets.

A fifth of the executives surveyed reported that they felt UK SME possibilities over the next year were ‘good’ or ‘very good; which was much higher than the ten percent who answered the same last quarter.

At the same time, the amount of executives with a negative view of the future year decreased with 24.5% answering that prospects were ‘very bad’ or ‘bad’ compared to 55% last quarter.

Additionally, only 21% of those surveyed predicted that a ‘double-dip’ scenario is possible, which means the economy will experience a period of growth, only then to sink back into a recession.

Office senior partner for the Manchester KPMG, Jonathon Hurst, said that although the statistics are encouraging, it is important to remember that opinions are still harshly divided.