smallbusiness.co.uk: Helping your business think big

More than four fifths of small businesses will continue an employment freeze for the remainder of the year, research finds.  
 
According to research of 1,000 small companies by business software company Sage, just 19 per cent of firms plan to ramp up hiring during the year.

The news indicates competition for jobs among graduates will remain fierce this summer, says the organisation.

A degree may not be as consequential for graduates as in previous years, with just 45 per cent of business owners believing formal education offers the skills needed for working life, and 13 per cent rating formal education as providing either ‘poor’ or ‘very poor’ preparation for the working world.
 
However, despite signs of what could be a tough summer ahead for graduates, Brendan Flattery, CEO of Sage UK and Ireland, says, ‘While our Omnibus figures show that only one in five SMEs plans to expand their workforce, I have been consistently encouraged by the number of enquiries we are now receiving from young people who have started a business at school or university and need an accountancy package to help them run it.
 
Flattery points to the growth in the number of digital and e-commerce start ups, with web-savvy graduates and young people at the helm, as giving ‘great cause for optimism’. ‘It’s exciting to see such a thriving entrepreneurial generation coming through,’ he adds.
 

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