Why aren’t businesses taking risks?
One third of UK SMEs say a fear of failure is impacting their ability to take risks and innovate, according to a new study.
The research by Hitachi Consulting, which draws on responses from over 200 C-level executives from small and medium businesses from across the UK, also found that 52 per cent think their organisation is not ready to respond to disruption from new markets, while over half are divided in their opinion of digital technology. One third say this divide has a negative impact on business.
These findings come at a time when, ahead of the EU referendum, the business landscape is fraught with uncertainty – 51 per cent say their business is not ready for new regulation. Paradoxically, 55 per cent of respondents claim that the main quality of a good digital leader is demonstrating innovation.
David Brindle, senior vice president, technology solutions, Hitachi Consulting EMEA, asid: “We work with large, corporate enterprises, and from our experience, big businesses – which often have access to big budgets and big time resourcers – are capable of innovation on an astonishing scale, as long as they have the right processes and programmes in place to support it.
“This research highlights that all business – no matter what their size or setup – experience common challenges when it comes to embracing risk and digital disruption. In the digital age, the old metaphor of David versus Goliath has become redundant – all businesses are on a much more level playing field and the balance of power can shift in a matter of days.”
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