Olympic Games beneficial to Captains of Industry

A quarter of Captains of Industry (25%) think the Olympic Games will benefit their business, with less than one in ten (8%) saying the Games will have a detrimental effect. Of those who say the games will prove to be a benefit, over half (52%) think there will be an increase in consumer demand/ spending and one in five (20%) think they will raise the morale of the British people.

Captains with company Headquarters in London are even more positive, with just under a third (31%) saying the Games will be beneficial compared to 19% with HQs based outside of London. However, three quarters (75%) of those with HQs outside of London think the Games will have no effect, compared to just over half (58%) with HQs in London.

Deputy Chief Executive of Ipsos, Simon Atkinson, said:

“Captains of industry are taking a “realistic” view as to what they think the practical impact of the games will be on their own businesses. Whatever their view on the benefits the Olympics will bring to UK plc, the general view is that it will make no difference to their own plc. Where they have a view, however, it tends to be positive – particularly among those headquartered in the capital.” 

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. 100 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 (6 were carried out over the telephone) between 12th September and 21st December 2011.