CEOs confident for SME business growth

UK CEOs are still optimistic about business growth over the next 12 months despite the tough challenges they will face, new research has found.

The CEO membership organisation’s latest CEO Confidence Index indicated that seven in 10 small to medium sized enterprise (SME) chief executives are expecting sales revenue to increase, whilst more than half plan to expand their workforce in the next year. 52% also hope to make their business more profitable in the short term.

But fears linger about economic conditions, with more than a third believing economic conditions have worsened over the last 12 months and 25% expecting things to get even worse over the next year.

Access to external finance for business operations is also a big worry for many (33%) as traditional funding lines such as bank overdrafts and loans become harder to access.

Chief Executive of Vistage, Steve Gilroy said of the research: "The last few years have created a new business landscape that is volatile and unpredictable. Key to success is fresh business thinking and collaboration. SMEs must share ideas and take bold actions in order to survive and succeed.”

Invoice Finance solutions

As well as being difficult to access, SMEs and small businesses may also find bank overdrafts and loans are not particularly flexible. A business could easily outgrow its finance facility as it expands its operations and issues more and more invoices.

Invoice finance is an alternative finance solution growing in popularity, which actually provides more cash as a business grows, unlocking cash tied up in unpaid invoices.

Why not explore our website to find out just how invoice finance solutions such as invoice factoring and invoice discounting could unlock your cashflow and allow your business to reach its full potential.