10,000 Small Businesses UK: In Adversity is Opportunity
In November, Goldman Sachs convened 300 alumni of the 10,000 Small Businesses UK program at The Resilient Business event to explore how the small business community can navigate the current period of economic uncertainty. In this article, Charlotte Keenan, head of Goldman Sachs’ Office of Corporate Engagement International, reflects on the key learnings and messages from the event.
Off the back of the global pandemic, the UK’s departure from the EU, and the ongoing war in Ukraine, the UK continues to face ever-tightening economic conditions. Increasing energy costs and high inflation rates are causing small business leaders to feel the squeeze.
Data from 10,000 Small Businesses UK graduates does not paint a bright picture: 68% said that the current situation is as bad or worse than the challenges they faced during the pandemic, and only 16% have confidence in the wider UK economy through 2023.1 Looking ahead, over a third anticipate that the rise in energy costs will restrict their ability to grow their business in the future, and 73% expect workforce challenges to restrict their growth.
These small business leaders are the engines of the UK economy – and they needed a boost. Last week, we bought together 300 graduates of the 10,000 Small Businesses UK program – who collectively represent over 12,000 UK jobs and over £1 billion in annual turnover – at the Saïd Business School, University of Oxford, for a two-day symposium. Our goal was to equip the attendees with the tools and skills to ensure their business is resilient enough to cope with the challenges ahead.
Across the two days, we heard about the different aspects that make a business resilient – leadership, purpose, talent, funding and more. Amongst the many thought-leaders and experts who shared their insights were Michelin-star winning chef Marcus Wareing, actor and comedian Sir Lenny Henry, former Vice President of the World Bank Arunma Oteh, former Shadow Chancellor Ed Balls, former Chief of the Secret Intelligence Service Sir Alex Younger.
Over the past few days, I’ve been reflecting on the powerful insights:
- Leadership: Instability is the new normal. Leaders of today – whether of small or large businesses – must continually learn, evolve, and adapt in order to be prepared for the unexpected
- Purpose: Identify and commit to your ‘north star’. In times of crisis, you will have a lighthouse to keep you motivated, determined and tenacious - and this will shine through to your team and your clients
- Data: Quality data can transform the operating costs and profits of any business, regardless of size or sector. Get to grips with the data to inform decision-making
- Talent: Your people are your superpower. Surround yourself with a support structure who not only understand your vision, but who embrace it
Times ahead are certainly going to be challenging, but we know that the UK’s entrepreneurs are uniquely positioned to identify new innovations and creative solutions when faced with new challenges. Time and time again, we have watched these leaders identify opportunity within adversity. At Goldman Sachs, we have no doubt that the small business leaders of today will be the big business leaders of tomorrow.
1This data was collected between 4th and 14th October 2022 from a survey completed by 345 small business owners who participated in the 10,000 Small Business UK program