Just how daunted are entrepreneurs by the current global economic downturn? If WES 2009 was anything to go by, then the answer is, not at all! We ran a survey to ask what keeps delegates awake at night. Most of them were kept awake by the challenges of climate change, inequality between the richest and poorest nations in the world and new ways to solve the issues of Capitalism as we move beyond the current crisis.
100% of the entrepeneurs at the event felt that they represented the source of future sustainable growth, wealth and value for the world's economy. This compares to 50% who thought that governments were the solution!
Results of the WES 2009 survey of delegates
85% expected their business to grow over the next 12 months.
The majority of entrepreneurs were being kept awake at night by cashflow and sales challenges but only a minority were worried about debt or accessing finance.
The majority were not being kept awake by the collapse of the financial system but over 58% were concerned about the macroeconomic climate and its impact on their business.
65% said that their biggest single concern was the growing inequality between rich and poor communities in the world. Respondents saw major challenges emerging from the current crisis in developing new financial models, developing new approaches to Capitalism, tackling climate change and social inequalities
The biggest areas of opportunity were seen as the environment (71%), new information and communications technologies (72.1%) and the social and creative media sectors (72.4%).
100% thought entrepreneurs would be best placed to lead the world out of its crises. 51.2% said governments and 57% said President Obama!
Are women entrepreneurs really less growth-oriented than men?
The short answer to that question, in a report launched at WES, is NO! We had a lively discussion about why women may seem to put less money into their businesses at the outset, but delegates and speakers agreed that actually, a woman who has growth in her sights from the outset will:
- Invest as much as her male counterpart
- Grow as fast as her male counterpart
- Produce as much in the way of wealth as her male counterpart (return on investment, turnover per employee and job creation).
Click below for a copy of the report!
Steady As She Grows: Women-founded high growth businesses