The last month or so has seen a series of measures indicate that the recovery of the UK economy remains sluggish, and several highly-respected observers have reduced their forecasts for UK growth this year and next.  The recovery certainly seems to be slower than the Government predicted only a couple of months ago leading to a risk that its deficit reduction targets will not be met.

At the same time, the Government is repeatedly reminding us all that smaller businesses will be the engines of growth and job creation in the recovery.  So, what’s the Government doing to help smaller businesses drive the growth that we all need?

“Precious little” would be the answer from many owners of smaller businesses.

In a recent survey of owner managers of smaller businesses with ambitions to grow, factors which the government could influence – public sector support, Government policy, and interest rates – were ranked the least important in terms of their impact on owner managers’ ability to grow their businesses.  Factors which are under the control of the owner managers themselves are considered to be far more important in the short term.

The survey was undertaken by Your Business Your Future, the UK’s leading specialist provider of development programmes for ambitious owner managers.  Gerard Burke, founder and MD of Your Business Your Future, and leading business growth specialist, says “83.5% of the ambitious owner managers agreed that they and their businesses would be the main drivers of economic growth.  So, at least they agree with the Government on that one!  At the same time, owner managers know that it is they themselves who will drive that growth with an overwhelming 97.8% citing their own leadership and management capabilities as the most important factor in them achieving future growth.”

Gerard adds: “This endorses what we know from having worked with hundreds of owner managers for many years, including the owner managers of some of the UK’s fastest growing businesses: that the primary driver for growth in these businesses is the individual owner manager themselves – their personal ambition, their personal drive, and their personal leadership ability.”

Fortunately, Your Business Your Future and the Forum of Private Business have taken matters in to their own hands and launched a partnership to help small business owners grow their businesses, create jobs and drive economic recovery.  The partnership will provide Scholarships for Forum members to participate in the highly distinctive development programmes delivered by Your Business Your Future, in partnership with Cass Business School.

In the last six years, over 600 of the UK’s most successful owner managers have participated in programmes run by the Your Business Your Future team.  Most have gone on to expand their businesses and subsequently create thousands of jobs including such high profile business owners as Angus Thirlwell of Hotel Chocolat (the UK’s fastest growing independently owned business according the Sunday Times FastTrack 100 2008), Lyn Cecil of Secretaries Plus (featured in “The Secret Millionaire” on Channel 4) and Jeff Coghlan of Matmi New Media (winner of the inaugural British Business Boost).

Tristram Mayhew of Forum member GoApe (Small to Medium Sized Business of the Year at the National Business Awards 2009 and in the FastTrack 100 for three consecutive years) says, “Participating in a programme, run by Gerard and his team in 2006, was the key turning point in driving profitable growth for GoApe. It led to us trebling our profit to £1.4M in three years. I believe any ambitious owner-led business would benefit from going through this exercise.”

Phil Orford, CEO of the Forum says, “Businesses which participate in Your Business Your Future programmes tend to grow their sales and profits faster than the average smaller business, and more quickly after the programme than they did before.  So, we’re very keen to encourage Forum members to take up the Scholarships, participate in these programmes, grow their businesses and, ultimately, drive economic growth.”

The programmes have been designed specifically to help ambitious owner managers build better businesses, develop their leadership capability and achieve their ambitions.  They are highly practical and based entirely in the real world of the owner manager’s business. During the programmes, each participant works on their own specific opportunities and challenges, developing a growth strategy for their own business and a plan to implement that strategy.

Participants are supported through a wide range of resources, including an experienced business coach who works with them on a one-on-one basis and in small groups with other ambitious owner managers.  The overall aim is that every participant achieves a significant return on their investment by making improvements in their business and by actually bringing about a different and better future.

• The Better Business Programme is a sophisticated development programme for owner managers of established businesses, with turnovers between £0.5million and £20million who want to take their business to the next level.
• Foundations for Growth is for owner managers of businesses with turnovers of less than £0.5million, who want to put in place firm foundations to enable their business to grow

Gerard Burke adds: “Fortunately, for the government, and indeed for every one of us in this country, we have many thousands of heroic owner managers, who, through their inventiveness and their vision, their strength and their courage, their gritty determination and their fierce resolve, build great businesses, create jobs which provide incomes for families, contribute hugely to their local communities and, ultimately, drive the whole UK economy.  At Your Business Your Future, we're passionate about helping ambitious owner managers do precisely that.  So, we’re absolutely delighted to partner with the Forum to offer Scholarships to Forum members which will enable us to help even more owner managers achieve their ambitions.  Together, we'll achieve something very special and vitally important."

Phil Orford concludes, “These exciting programmes are being launched at a critical time of opportunity for the UK small business sector.  We’re delighted to be working with the Your Business Your Future team, at this time, to help our members grow their businesses and ultimately, to help the whole economy.”

To find out more about the programmes, owner managers can come along to one of a series of free Better Business Briefing Events taking place as follows

• 9 June, 8.30am, Lane End Conference Centre, High Wycombe
• 15 June, 6.30pm, Marriott Hotel, Manchester Airport
• 22 June, 6.30pm, Cass Business School, central London
• 28 June, 8.30am, Milton Keynes

Places at these events can be booked at www.yourbusinessyourfuture.co.uk/briefings