Ipsos's Captains of Industry Survey 2013

Ipsos’s Captains of Industry report finds 20 year high in optimism for economy from the men and women running Britain’s largest companies. Justin King of Sainsbury’s named Britain’s most impressive businessman.

Nearly all (93%) of Britain’s Captains of Industry think the economic condition of the country will improve over the next twelve months, according to the 2013 Captains of Industry study conducted by Ipsos. This is the highest level of optimism in 20 years of this annual survey. Just 7% think the economy will remain the same. None think conditions will get worse over the next twelve months.

Just over a quarter of Captains (27%) see restoring growth in the economy as the most important issue facing Britain. Other top issues include the Government deficit (23%), investment in infrastructure (20%) and tackling unemployment (16%).

When thinking specifically about their own company only 2% of Captains think that business for their own company will get worse over the next twelve months; the majority (84%) expects to see improvement. They see the most important problems that their companies are facing as difficulty in attracting and keeping staff (18%) and government legislation/regulation (17%).

Almost two-thirds of Captains (64%) think that the level of regulation affecting business in the UK has been increasing over the last 12 months (this is a 7 point increase from 2012) and most Captains (81%) agree that the level of regulation on UK businesses is harming the UK economy. This represents little change from 2012 when 83% of Captains expressed this view. Simplifying employment legislation is the most frequently mentioned area where Captains would like to see less regulation (22% of Captains stated this).

This year Justin King (Chief Executive of J Sainsbury) heads the list of most impressive business leaders in Britain (chosen by 16% of his peers). He pushes Sir Richard Branson into second position (after two years in the top spot), who was picked by 14%, followed by Sir Charlie Mayfield (Chairman of John Lewis Partnership) chosen by 11%.

Economy and business challenges

Most business leaders’ optimism is fairly cautious with just over half (53%) estimating it will be a year or more before the UK economy grows significantly.

A substantial proportion of Captains continue to support the UK Government’s economic policies with 83% agreeing that these will improve the economy in the long term. Captains think the Government could help to restore growth in the economy by investing in infrastructure (23%), reducing taxation (18%) and reducing and simplifying regulation/bureaucracy (14%).

When making judgments about a company or organisation 90% of Captains say acting with honesty and integrity is extremely important to their decision. This is followed by the quality of products and services offered (rated as extremely important by 54%) and the quality of management (54%). These are the same top factors as last year, however the proportion of Captains that think acting with honesty and integrity is extremely important to their decisions has increased by 15 points from 75% in 2012.

Currently half of the Captains interviewed (51%) strongly agreed that in general, politicians in this country have a poor understanding of business. Just 6% disagree.

Investment outlook

Looking internationally a third of Captains (34%) select the USA as the most attractive country for investment. This is followed by China (23%), a contrast to, last year when China was the most widely selected country. The UK is mentioned by only 9% of the Captains interviewed as somewhere top of mind for investment. However when asked specifically about the UK, a majority (82%) agreed the UK is an attractive place to invest.

Technical note

Established in 1981 and conducted on an annual basis, the Ipsos Captains of Industry survey is the authoritative view of senior business opinion in Great Britain today. 105 interviews were carried out with respondents selected from the FTSE 350, and top 100 by capital employed. Respondents are Chairman, CEO, MD/COO, FD or other board directors. Interviews were carried out face to face (3 were carried out over the telephone) between 9th September and 12th December 2013.