In welcoming Trevor Folsom to the SMEA Board Craig West said, “I have been very fortunate to work with Trevor previously and he is exactly the kind of energetic advocate small business owners need.  Trevor’s experience in owning, starting, selling, buying and running SMEs will be invaluable to our members and Board”.

Trevor Folsom has an extensive business background and experience and he is acknowledged for his ability to engage, invest and advise growth companies, particularly in the technology sector.  He is a successful entrepreneur in his own right, developing Blueprint Management with $10K start-up capital, which grew to over 950 staff, with more than 10 subsidiaries and sold 10 years later successfully to a private equity firm.

Most recently, he is a Director of Elevation Capital, formed by a group of successful entrepreneurs who have co-invested in order to pool together their capital and experience.

In addition, Trevor has been the Chairman of the Salvation Army Red Shield Appeal for the past six years, a charity he is very passionate about.

“The SMEA continues to evolve with the times and the new Board is a dynamic strong team with clear objectives and a strong commitment to the Australian SME sector”, concluded Craig West.

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Craig West

SME Association of Australia (SMEA) Chairman Craig West yesterday released the findings of an extensive survey conducted by the Association.  The report confirmed that although SMEs are generally upbeat about future prospects they still have concerns regarding many economic and bureaucratic ‘anchors’ that are holding back both the sector and economy.

The McNair Ingenuity Research and Stable Research survey was a high level priority of the Association’s Board that was restructured in February with West appointed as Chairman.

Commenting on the survey West said, “The majority of SMEs surveyed expect both the Australian economy and prospects for revenue growth to improve over the next year.

A positive for the country is that over a quarter of the respondents expect to employ more people in the coming 12 months.

West continued, “An interesting observation is that the majority of this employment growth will be from businesses that were established post GFC when global economic uncertainty prevailed”.

“Only 12% of SMEs said they would employ fewer people in the year ahead”.

Although optimistic about Australia’s economic outlook and prospects for employment growth SMEs considered the main issues making business difficult are:

• General economic conditions 71%
• Compliance & bureaucratic issues 62%
• Cash flow 53%

When reflecting on the past 12 months, three quarters of respondents pointed to their utility costs having an impact on their business activities with 37% saying they had increased significantly.

Other noticeable increases were:

• Insurance and workers compensation costs (55% had increased)
• Technology costs (53% had increased)
• Employee wages (51% had increased)

In contrast, 63% of SMEs said the high Australian dollar had no or little impact on their businesses.  5% said it actually made their situations better.  But for 31% of SMEs the high Australian dollar continued to make their lives difficult.

The survey also identified globalisation as the key emerging trend that will impact on the Australian marketplace in the next five years:

• Globalisation 18%
• Offshore manufacturing 17%
• Competitiveness of business through technology 14%
• Growth in online & e-commerce 13%

Another emerging trend is the intention of small business to invest in technology–

• Technology hardware (57%)
• Software (51%)

SMEs that have been in business for longer (6 or more years) are more likely to invest in technology than those that have been operating less than 5 years.

More than half the respondents (51%) had recently invested in mobile devices including tablets for their businesses.

The survey also confirmed that the majority of SMEs use their own savings to start their businesses and additional funds that are required to underpin growth and development will be sourced from their savings (46%) or a bank (43%).

West concluded, “As the main driver of Australia’s economic growth and prosperity, the SME sector has endured the worst effects of the GFC and looks to the future with cautious optimism”.

“In addition, the SMEA survey has confirmed that the Australian SMEs if anything are resilient and have an eye on the future utilising the latest advances in technology to position their enterprises for future long term financial success”.

“However, if the economic benefits that will be generated by the SME sector are to be realised, especially employment growth, and the capacity for Australian business owners to compete internationally, then government at all levels needs to cut loose the ‘anchors’ of bureaucracy, red tape and related costs/charges”.

“As the peak body committed to being the leading voice of Australia’s SMEs with over 18,500 members, the Association will continue its vital role representing the sector.  Most importantly, the findings of this survey will provide a comprehensive roadmap for the Association’s future programs, initiatives and activities”.

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Craig West

SME Association of Australia (SMEA) Chairman Craig West met with the Federal Minister for Small Business the Hon Bruce Billson MP at Parliament House Canberra last week to provide him with a personal insight into the results of a soon to be released survey conducted by the Association into the small business sector.

West also presented a detailed overview of the SMEA’s future aspirations to expand its services and facilities that will assist SMEs improve their operational efficiency and capitalize on commercial opportunities in local and overseas marketplaces.

The McNair Ingenuity Research and Stable Research survey was a high level priority of the Association’s Board that was restructured in February with West appointed as Chairman.

The extensive survey was conducted online to ascertain the SMEs business outlook for the future, areas that could improve efficiencies and productivity and to identify primary concerns, issues and ideas to be relayed to government.

Although optimistic about the future and revenue performance, SMEs considered the main issues making business difficult are –

1. General economic conditions 71%
2. Compliance & bureaucratic issues 62%
3. Cash flow 53%

The survey also identified globalisation as the key emerging trend that will impact on the Australian marketplace in the next five years:

1. Globalisation 18%
2. Offshore manufacturing 17%
3. Competitiveness of business through technology 14%
4. Growth in online & e-commerce 13%

West confirmed that the results of the McNair Ingenuity Research and Stable Research Small & Medium Enterprises Research survey would be released next week.

Commenting on the SMEA’s survey, Minister Billson said it provided a useful insight into the current and future needs of the engine-room of the Australian economy.

“The research shows a need for a renaissance in enterprise if we are to grow our economy and to provide more jobs into the future,” the Minister added.

West confirmed that he will continue to meet regularly with the Minister and work together in partnership to advance the SME sector as it is the primary driver of Australia’s economic growth and prosperity.

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Commenting further on the CEO appointment, Craig West said that Greg Kay brings substantial experience and leadership insight to the role gained through more than 25 years of executive management in the professional services sector.

During his professional career, Greg has also successfully worked in partnership with many SME businesses (which have spanned a wide range of industries), to introduce specific / customised and sustainable business improvement plans together with the development and implementation of growth strategies for businesses.

“The board was particularly impressed with Greg’s executive leadership abilities, reputation as a sought after key strategic adviser and for his hands on experience in assisting SME owners to position their businesses for growth,” added Craig West.

“Furthermore, Greg also has expertise in undertaking various change management roles, is acknowledged for addressing challenging projects with passion and for being a positive influence through the development of excellent personal relationships with business owners.

The SMEA board was pleased that the Association’s founding CEO Dr Caroline Hong had accepted the invitation remain with the organisation in a newly created role of International Ambassador.

An Asia-Australia SME expert, Caroline Hong is recognized as an entrepreneur, business owner, international business authority, Asian Century engagement consultant and as an ambassador and advocate for SMEs.

Commenting on the role, Craig West said that it reflected SMEA’s commitment to building and maintaining linkages internationally, in particular with the rapidly growing economies of ASEAN.

Since its restructure and confirmation of Craig West as Chairman in February, the new look board has quickly set about implementing a number of key strategic initiatives and programs that will position SMEA as the peak body and leading voice of SMEs in Australia.

Earlier this week, the SMEA announced award winning business owner, broadcaster and City of Sydney Councillor Ms Angela Vithoulkas had joined the Association’s board as a director.

The addition of Angela Vithoulkas was seen as an important achievement as the board sought to ensure that it was comprised of small business owners with personal experience and understanding of the real life issues and challenges addressed everyday by Australia’s SME sector

“The appointment of the CEO was a further crucial objective for the board and we look forward to working closely with Greg as he leads SMEA into an exciting new phase and builds value for our members in the coming years,” concluded Craig West.

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Craig West

In late February, SME Association of Australia (SMEAA) Founder and Executive Chairman Matthew Johnson announced his intention to step down as Executive Chairman of the SMEAA due to growing business commitments.

The SMEAA was established in late 2011 and as the Founder of the SMEAA Johnson has been a very strong, vocal advocate of the association and will continue as a Director on the board.  Johnson looks forward to an ongoing contribution to the SME community in Australia, a move supported by incoming Chairman Craig West.

West is the CEO of Succession Plus, a long-term advocate and supporter of the SMEAA.

In taking over as SMEAA Chairman, West thanked Johnson for his vision, contribution, efforts and commitment to establishing the SME Association of Australia.

“The Australian SME community should be very grateful that people like Matt had the vision, commitment and energy to establish an organisation to represent the vast number of SMEs throughout the country,” West said. “The vision and founding principles introduced by Matt will be strongly followed and supported going forward.

“I’m extremely grateful that Matt has been able to accept my invitation to stay on as a board member – I hope to continue to rely on Matt for support and guidance, as he has done an excellent job building the organisation into a strong and viable association of business owners to represent the needs of the SME community to government, large businesses and the Australian public.”

West also confirmed that the board had a number of immediate priorities the first being the appointment of a CEO for SMEAA and he expected to make that announcement before the end of this month.

Another will be the expansion of the board with the addition of new directors with a diverse and dynamic blend of business skills, backgrounds and expertise at the helm to lead the Association.

West is confident that the appointment of the first new director will be made in a matter of weeks.

In addition, over the next quarter, the SMEAA board will be meeting with State and Federal governments and several of the Small Business Commissioners throughout the country.

Craig West concluded, “As the peak body dedicated to being the leading voice of Australia’s SME business owners with over 18,500 members, SMEAA is committed to continuing its vital role representing Australia’s SMEs as this sector is the most important driver of this nation’s long term economic viability and prosperity.”

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