Survey Says: Small Business Hasn't Recovered Yet | Two surveys reveal a tepid outlook on the economy
Small business owners are cautiously optimistic about the current state of the economy – or at least they don’t think it’s an unmitigated disaster. That’s the conclusion of two new surveys of U.S. small business owners.
The Business Confidence Survey conducted by HR services firm Administaff early this month found that 39 percent of small business owners expect a recovery this year, while 44 percent think 2011 will be the year for a rebound.
Meanwhile, a separate survey from Citibank found that 77 percent of owners see current business conditions as only fair or poor, and 43 percent say their own business is worse off than it was a year ago. Less than half said they expect business conditions to improve in the next 12 months.
Hiring Outlook
Small businesses are often credited with driving job creation, and the survey results won’t give much comfort to anyone hoping for a quick upsurge in employment. The Administaff poll found that 60 percent of respondents said they’re maintaining their current staffing levels. The percent of businesses adding new positions stood at 31 percent, up from 23 percent nine months previous. The number saying they were laying employees off dropped to 9 percent from 16 percent in July.
In the Citibank survey, which found only 17 percent of small businesses expecting to add full-time employees in the next 12 months, the most cited reasons for not hiring were uncertainty about the economy in general and a belief that current staffing levels are adequate for current business volume.
Even with its relatively pessimistic results, the Citibank survey found that small business owners are pleased with their career choice.
Seventy-one percent said they would start their business again, knowing what they do now, and 58 percent said they would recommend running a small business as a career for their children.
The Citibank survey also looked at age in relation to outlook. It found that respondents aged 18 to 44 were more optimistic than those aged 45 or older. Other age related findings include:
• 55 percent of younger respondents say the recession has “forever changed” the way they run their business, compared to 69 percent aged 45 or older.
• 33 percent of those aged 18-44 say business conditions are currently somewhat or much worse, compared to 46 percent aged 45 or older.
• 23 percent of respondents 45 or older say they would not start their business again knowing what they now know about the challenges they would face, while only 9 percent of those aged 18-44 say they wouldn’t start their business again.
WBJ Web Partners
Most Recent
Most Recent
0 Comments