The economic challenges facing UK business
- Understand the views of business leaders on the current economic environment;
- Establish the impact that developments in the economy since late summer have had on business prospects and strategy;
- Determine what measures the Government can take in order to improve the outlook for British business.
Key findings
Of the 122 business leaders who took part, seventy per cent said their level of confidence in the economic outlook had fallen since the beginning of August. Interestingly, only 30% of business leaders believe their company's prospects have deteriorated, with a majority (57%) saying they've stayed the same, and around one-in-ten (11%) saying they've improved. However, six out-of-ten (59%) are likely to revise their business strategy: 38% are changing workforce plans; 33% are reviewing investment plans; 30% are revising expansion plans; and 28% are altering their financial plans. Nearly two-fifths (39%) are not making changes, but some are planning to 'wait and see' before reaching decisions.
The survey in figures
Research Design
Potential respondents were drawn from a mix of CBI members and a database of senior executives. CEOs of eligible companies were sent a letter by John Cridland, Director General of the CBI, on 3rd October to request their or a board level colleague's cooperation with the survey.A total of 122 executives were interviewed by telephone, using CATI technology, between 6th October and 4th November 2011.
