Business News Round Up (06/10/2020)
Home working here to stay, study of businesses suggests
Covid-19 has changed the dynamic of workplaces in the UK for good, a new report by the Institute of Directors has revealed. A survey of 958 company directors by the IoD found that 74% intend to continue with increased home-working post-coronavirus. More than half said their organisation intended to reduce their long-term use of workplaces. A smaller survey of bosses whose firms had already cut workplace use suggested 44% of them thought working from home was proving “more effective”. The study follows a BBC survey in August which suggested that 50 of the biggest UK employers had no plans to return all staff to the office full-time in the near future.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-54413214
Small business struggling to fund digital adoption, report finds
Small to medium-sized businesses (SMEs) are struggling with the transition to digital technologies due to a lack of skills and technical knowledge amongst their workforce, according to a new report by MakeUK. The broad move towards digitisation has been accelerated in 2020 due to the pressure exerted by the coronavirus pandemic to shift employees to home working. Make UK said that finance “scarcity” – exacerbated by the pandemic – is becoming a significant block in preventing companies from boosting their digital credentials.
UK leaders upbeat on economic sentiment and M&A outlook
New research reveals that optimism in the UK investment environment is holding up well, despite the uncertainties of the pandemic and Brexit. While short-term confidence in the market continued to sink to a net of -70%, long-term economic sentiment among investors has reached a net positive of 58%. CIL Management Consultants has polled 231 investment professionals in Britain to measure confidence in the UK economy and investment environment. The annual Investment 360 Index measures investor and business confidence over time, and over the chaotic four years it has run – during which a deadlocked Brexit process, inconclusive elections and a pandemic have all hit the economy – it has provided an interesting snapshot of Britain’s future prosperity.
https://www.consultancy.uk/news/25742/uk-leaders-upbeat-on-economic-sentiment-and-ma-outlook
Construction industry sets out its Covid-19 recovery plans
The Construction Leadership Forum (CLF) has outlined its plans to help the sector recover from Covid-19. The plans, which were created in consultation, focus on the joint action needed between the industry and the public sector. The plans will work on maximising support for employers and employees, while establishing new ways of working to manage infection control, health and safety and shared learning opportunities. Short and medium term initiatives include work to help apprentices into trades and preparing the industry to deliver a net-zero built environment.
https://www.insider.co.uk/news/construction-industry-sets-out-covid-22798915