UK small businesses are increasing their tech budget post-Brexit

With the consequences of Brexit brewing in the UK, many organizations are looking to trim the fat wherever they can to reduce cost and maintain revenue, however, this is not the case for SMEs in the UK. According to Censuswide an independent polling company, one-third of SMEs plans to pump more funds into technology amidst the period of economic uncertainty.

Nearly 32 percent of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are increasing their technology budget by 10 percent in the first three months after UK’s official departure from the European Union.

The findings were based on responses of 200 senior business decision-makers in SMEs conducted by Censuswide and commissioned by Leonne International.

A fraction of SMEs in the UK is optimistic during the first three months of post-Brexit, with 28 percent expecting a revenue bounce and 37 percent expect the UK economy to strengthen. A higher percentage can be found across the regions, with 50 percent of business owners from West Midlands agreeing, 45 percent from North West of England and 42 percent from the North East in the same frame.

Besides Brexit, up to 41 percent of business leaders are confident that a majority government will drive business growth, in particular, business owners from North East.

To prep for the new era, half of SMEs agree that government assistance such as more tax breaks should be offered. This would be an added value for the 18 percent that are planning to open a new office in 2020.

Sridhar Iyengar, MD of Zoho Europe noted that SMEs are the building blocks of the UK economy, providing jobs and driving growth. Yet, many companies lack a solid IT support system to thrive leading them to venture in multiple technology trends. As a result, companies are left distracted to juggle multiple departments (sales, marketing) with limited resources.

However, the new year marks a transition from SMEs getting stuck on managing IT processes to focusing on successful digital transformation. The increased spending on technology “will only work if businesses recognize the benefits of SaaS solutions, to cater for everything from finance, CRM to analytics. They should also understand the true power of these solutions can only be unleashed if they work together seamlessly. By harnessing a flexible approach to IT, UK SMEs can spend less time on back-office admin and more time increasing market share,” said Iyengar.

CEO of Leonne International, Michael Haston, shared the positive outlook and remarked, “as we reach the final chapter of the Brexit saga, business decision-makers will be relieved to finally have some clarity about the future of our economy, industry, and trade. Therefore, we can expect 2020 to be a great year for many SMEs.”