Report: Midsize businesses show optimism for 2015
Sixty-six percent of midsize business owners said they’re optimistic the national economy will strengthen in the next six months, and they’ll likely invest in technology, operations and new staff as a result, according to The Hartford, a Connecticut-based insurance group.
The results are detailed in The Hartford’s 2014 Midsize Business Monitor, a new survey of more than 500 business owners and executives of midsize businesses headquartered in the U.S., with annual revenue of between $10 million and $1 billion.
According to the survey, 76 percent of respondents will likely invest in new products and services; 70 percent will likely expand into new customer segments and 61 percent will likely expand into new geographies.
This is good news, according to David Carter, senior vice president of Middle Market Insurance at The Hartford, as midsize businesses are responsible for fueling wider economic growth, as both customers and suppliers of smaller and larger businesses.
“The investment and expansion plans of businesses in this sector create a ripple effect of opportunity for companies of all sizes that provide the products and services they need,” Carter said.
It’s beneficial to the workforce, too. Seventy-four percent of respondents said they’ll likely add staff in 2015, though plans could be somewhat hindered by a lack of talent.
Meanwhile, the IT industry may enjoy a spillover effect as well, since a quarter of respondents said they’re using big data technology, while 42 percent said they’re likely to adopt it sometime in the next three years.
WBJ Web Partners
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