Small-Business Execs Are 'Content but Cautious'
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Guarded Optimism Prevails
52% described the health of small businesses as "not well, but not bad." Yet only a small percentage said small businesses were faring poorly or very poorly. -
Lackluster Feelings About Growth
Small-business owners ranked growth in the next 12 months at 56 on a 0-to-100 scale, with contributing factors including the likelihood to increase capital spending, meet growth objectives and increase sales revenue. -
Economy Not So Hot, Hot, Hot
Falling at the low end of the scale came sentiment about the U.S. economy, which received an overall rating of 39 on a scale of 0 to 100. -
Looking Ahead
In the coming year, six in 10 small-business owners and managers see a high likelihood their companies would grow by a significant margin. These results are similar to those of last year's study. -
Working With Current Workforce
A majority of small businesses said they do not intend to increase hiring in the next 12 months. Those polled rated the likelihood of upping their headcounts at only 32 out of 100. -
Life Satisfaction
On a scale of 0 to 100, with 0 being less favorable and 100 being more favorable, small-business owners gave life satisfaction one of the highest rankings, at 71. This included factors, such as work/life balance, personal fulfillment and the ability to manage stress. -
Women Positive About Work-Life Balance
Female respondents outscored their male counterparts 80 to 77 regarding their lives as small-business owners and 64 to 60 concerning work-life balance. -
That Dreaded Word: Taxes
34% characterize their tax environment as unfavorable, while 26% describe it as neither unfavorable nor favorable and 18% indicate it is somewhat favorable. Only 4% describe their tax environment as very favorable to small business. -
Health Care Costs Risky Across Multiple Industries
On a scale of 0 to 100, with 0 indicating the greatest perceived risk, health care costs received an overall score of 38, with a 42 specifically from the services industry. -
Some Risks Not as Pressing
Employment theft or embezzlement, patent or intellectual property issues, and lawsuits were perceived by small-business owners as less risky, receiving rankings of 78, 75 and 65, respectively.
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Why Metrics Matter to the Channel "Content but cautious" sums up the sentiment expressed in the "Small Business Forecast 2014," released by Bank of America and the CFI Group. Small-business owners and managers report both job satisfaction and business risk, according to the study, which is based on 990 phone survey responses taken from July 11 to August 15, 2014. "The survey results suggest that small-business owners and managers are feeling good about the state of their businesses, but are still waiting to see what happens with the economy, health care and other factors before they make further investments in new staff and capital," said Rodger Park, director of customer analytics for CFI Group. "They expect their revenues to grow in the near term but appear to be looking to take on new business with the resources they have in hand." Respondents saw health care costs as a top risk to small businesses; other risks causing concerns included the strength of the U.S. dollar, taxes and consumer spending.