So what does 2008 hold in store? (From Wiltshire Business Online)

So what does 2008 hold in store?

4:53pm Tuesday 5th February 2008

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The Christmas decorations are packed away, the diet is in place and gym memberships are soaring.

Once again, for the business owner, the focus returns to work. So what does 2008 hold in store for us?

Mervyn King, Governor of the Bank of England, in his address to a group of businesspeople in Bristol in January, admitted that the immediate economic environment is going to pose a challenge.

The state of the US economy is a cause for concern, with the impact felt globally. The threat of a US recession, coupled with cripplingly high oil prices, will inevitably have a significant impact on the UK.

The firm hand on the tiller that Mervyn King promises should see the UK economy come through the short-term difficulties in a healthy state, but 2008 will be hard.

What does this mean for owners and the local economy?

The hard truth is this year will be a story of the survival of the fittest. Unless protected in a particularly small specialist niche area - which few are - a business that is weak in the key areas of finance, sales, management and business processes will be at a much increased risk of failure this year.

Conversely, the business that is well-structured, controlled and running efficiently will survive - and can indeed even prosper as weaker competitors fade away.

As a business owner, now is time for you to take a critical review of how your business is running.

Do you know how many enquiries you're getting, and how many you're converting to quotes, orders, invoices and cash?

Do you know why quotes aren't being taken up? Are you delivering the right level of service to keep your customers happy, and with the increased growth in internet sales, are you positioned to compete and maximise your share?

Irrespective of the size of business, these golden rules apply.

If your response is "My systems can't give me that" or "I'm too busy" or "I can't afford that type of structure", you may be right, but you may also not be in business in December.

So talk to your business advisor or give me a call. At the very least you owe it to your employees and yourself to find out more.

• Contact Rob Harman at Morris Owen on 01793 603900

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