A new study suggests that poor time management is the biggest barrier to business growth, with company owners and decision makers failing to set aside enough time to focus purely on their business.
The research, which was carried out by online printing firm Instantprint, found that more than half of small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) decision makers felt that their administrative responsibilities were eating away at their time.
A further third (33 per cent) of respondents added that they would benefit from a helping hand when it came to managing their finances – suggesting that many would benefit from seeking the advice of a specialist accountant in order to streamline their time-keeping.
According to the research, one in ten SME owners or decision makers spend less than an hour a week pursuing activities dedicated to business growth.
Meanwhile, a further eight per cent told the study that they struggle to find any time at all to dedicate purely to their business in the average working week.
James Kinsella, Co-founder of Instantprint, said: “We all know how it feels to fight the clock. There are only so many hours in the day to get everything done and SMEs are feeling the squeeze.
“It is interesting to see from the research that, while factors such as admin and staff management have an impact on productivity, it is the management of our hours, minutes and seconds that have the biggest effect on the running of a successful enterprise.”
