Tag: MYOB Business Monitor

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27
Feb

MYOB Business Monitor: Recession Recovery

Written by Rebecca Huang

When MYOB recently commissioned the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research (NZIER) to analyse 3 years’ of our Business Monitor data, we uncovered some common keys to success amongst the country’s small and medium business owners.

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29
Aug

Why lobbying is important

Written by Julian Smith

Here at MYOB everything we do serves our goal of “making business life easier.” If you own a small or medium sized business, we see it as our job to help make running that business simpler, less stressful, and more profitable. It’s not just about software and systems, it’s about providing support, advocacy and using our access to promote good outcomes for all New Zealand businesses. We work with over 170,000 small businesses right throughout New Zealand, giving us a comprehensive overview of the day to day pressures and challenges faced by this key group. This gives us some key insights into what business owners need and what will help them add value to their business. One of the things we do with our knowledge is advise and advocate to the Government about the areas where legislation or regulation could better serve our New Zealand businesses.

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18
Jul

MYOB Business Monitor shows growth in Auckland

Written by Julian Smith

The results of our latest MYOB Business Monitor are out and the findings point to a “two-speed” economy. Auckland has begun to show signs of sustained growth, while the rest of New Zealand struggles amidst poor performance from major sectors and a stalled recovery outside the main centres. In Auckland, the results were very encouraging, as the region recorded back-to-back quarters of net positive revenue growth for the first time since the recession began. A net 11% of Auckland businesses reported an increase in revenue over the last 12 months – up from 7% in March and a definite improvement on a net 7% fall in revenue in September 2011. What is especially positive about these results is the big role that sole traders have played in the region’s growth. Sole traders, who make up the bulk of Auckland’s businesses, reported a net 15% increase in revenue over the last 12 months. With sole traders also being the majority of businesses right throughout the country, these results suggest they will be a key part of a long-term recovery. To see our major trading hub performing so well is very good news. Auckland has long been the quiet performer in these surveys, and a return to growth for our largest city would normally be a real sign of a wider economic recovery. Across the rest of the country the results were less positive. Economic activity in Christchurch is still showing the effects of the earthquakes and a slow start to the rebuild, while the rest of New Zealand struggled to find many bright spots in a sluggish regional recovery. However, the cities will be providing more encouraging news in the year ahead. Auckland will continue its trend back to growth, with a net 36% of Auckland businesses expecting their earnings to increase in the next 12 months. In Christchurch, businesses are predicting the massive rebuild investment will start to have a more significant impact on the local economy, with a net 33% of businesses expecting revenues to improve. And while Wellington won’t have as stellar a quarter as the previous one, a net 25% of businesses in the Capital are still expecting growth. The regions are predicting more modest growth, with a net 8% of businesses outside the main centres expecting to earn more in the coming year – downgraded from a net 25% expecting annual revenue growth in the April MYOB Business Monitor. With 46% of all businesses being based in the regions, the key challenge for the economy will be to ensure the positive momentum building in the cities can lead to more economic stimulus for businesses right across the country. Julian Smith | General Manager | MYOB

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21
May

Government Budget on the right track

Written by Julian Smith

The conventional wisdom has it that Governments hate giving a zero budget. The budget is normally a time for Governments to announce popular big ticket items or the sort of big spending on heath or education that usually wins votes, so if there’s no money in the till, meeting expectations can be difficult. However this year the Government is rolling out its second zero budget in a row and, according to the MYOB Business Monitor, the approach is going down surprisingly well. 68% of New Zealand businesses support “an increased focus on cutting Government expenditure to ensure the New Zealand Budget returns to surplus faster.” Given the ongoing crisis in the Eurozone, driven by unsustainably large levels of debt, it’s perhaps not surprising that New Zealanders are feeling good about the Government’s emphasis on thrift. We’ve seen what happens overseas when countries like Greece embrace “Visanomics” and we don’t want the same thing to happen here.

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09
May

Local Government Must Listen To Ratepayers

Written by Julian Smith

The results of the latest MYOB Business Monitor are a worrying read for ratepayers, as they show that businesses all over the country are unhappy with the performance of the local councils and regional authorities. What is so frustrating about these results is that high levels of dissatisfaction with local government is nothing new, but not only is the problem not being solved, it is actually getting worse. Nationwide, 44% of New Zealand’s business owners are “dissatisfied” with the performance of their local council or authority when it came to helping their business. The biggest source of frustration was delays in dealing with councils, with 64% supporting more stringent response times for local Government.

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17
Apr

On Confidence

Written by Julian Smith

In the latest MYOB business monitor, some of the most surprising numbers were around the large drop in confidence about the prospects of a short term economic recovery. Only 21% of businesses said they expected the economy to recover in the next 12 months, which is less than half the number that expected a recovery within that time frame in March of 2010. At first glance, these numbers would to spell a bit of doom and gloom, but when you look at how businesses owners expect their own operations to do, the story is a lot more positive.

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