Small Businesses Shift Focus To Growth

Small business focus has moved from survival to growth for the first time since 2006, according to the American Express Open Small Business Monitor.

Six months ago, the Open Small Business Monitor indicated small businesses were doing better, due in part to streamlining operations and cutting costs over the course of the recession. Now it appears they are taking advantage of growth opportunities, looking to hire and make investments in their businesses.

While uncertainty over the economy still presents a challenge to growth, concerns of economic uncertainty are starting to recede (27% vs. 35% in the fall). Many expect to grow (37%) and are willing to take a financial risk to do so (56%), although most (65%) entrepreneurs believe growth will be slow and steady, while a minority (16%) is planning for aggressive growth; eighteen percent say they are still in survival mode.

“Over the ten-year history of the Monitor, we have witnessed the true resiliency of small business owners,” said Susan Sobbott, president, American Express Open.

“They streamlined operations, shifted priorities and made tough staffing choices during the recession, but they have come out the other side stronger than ever. They are taking calculated risks, hiring at pre-recession levels, and the mindset has shifted from ‘maintaining’ to ‘growing’.”

Thirty-five percent of businesses plan to hire full and/or part-time staff, up seven percentage points from last spring and nine percentage points from last fall. Among those with hiring plans, one-third plan to hire one (35%) or two employees (33%), less than one-in-ten (8%) plan to hire three, and one-in-five (20%) plan to hire four or more over the next six months.

In an open-ended question, when asked which person would most help their business, more than one-in-ten (14%) said they would hire an accountant/bookkeeper, nearly one-in-ten (9%) said a social media expert, and six percent said either a marketing /advertising person or a sales representative.