British SMEs looking to new markets for growth

More than half of the UK’s small and medium-sized companies (SMEs) are looking at new markets both locally and overseas for further growth, while also expressing a very high level of optimism regarding the year ahead, research by the BSI reveals.

SMEs believe that the biggest challenges they could come up against include the sustainability of the economic recovery (34%), external regulations hindering productivity (25%) and lack of support from banks/government (24%), the paper suggests.

56 percent of the UK’s small and medium firms expect increased domestic sales to help boost their balance sheets, anticipating heightened demand from both existing and new customers, while a further fifth (20%) are looking to access overseas markets for the first time and a similar proportion (18%) intends to grow their existing overseas markets.

SMEs report that hopes of trading internationally are pinned back by a lack of contacts, knowledge and talent.

Howard Kerr, Chief Executive of BSI, said: “Confidence in an improving economy is being felt ever more strongly across British enterprise, but this needs to be matched with a confidence in capability.

“Chasing growth means making tough choices on whether the benefits of expansion outweigh the risks. Small firms must ask themselves whether they possess the confidence to chase excellence rather than settling for mediocrity.”

Confident SMEs planning to invest in their future development should review the opportunity of implementing a workforce management solution designed specifically to help them grow in a very solid, sustainable manner. This is specifically where Tensor’s market leading experience in the field can be put to very good use.

WinTA.NET is a web enabled, mobile / wireless technology based Time & Attendance system designed for those companies employing 20 people to 10,000+. The solution provides total control over the creation of working rules, Access Control, Job Costing and System Security and has specifically been designed for multiple companies, each managing multiple sites.

A complete smart card time and attendance system including European Working Time Regulations checking and reporting, ensuring that your company remains compliant with both regional and national legislation.

If you’d like to find out more about the extensive range of features provided by the Tensor WinTA.NET solution and just how it can save you much more time and money, just contact our dedicated team or Book a Demo, we’ll be more than happy to answer any questions and queries you might have.