Accounting Technicians Business Sentiment Survey (2011)
Accounting Technicians report marked rise in costs of doing business, fall in redundancies and business debt levels
2nd October, 2011 - There has been a noticeable rise in the costs of doing business in Ireland according to the members of Accounting Technicians Ireland, with 44%, almost twice as many as 2010, reporting an increase in the Institute's 2011 Business Sentiment Survey. Respondents also reported falls in redundancy levels within their companies and in the levels of bad debt and overdue payments among Irish businesses.
The survey was completed nationwide by 665 members of the Accounting Technicians Ireland professional body to determine their opinion about front-line business conditions and the broader economy.
52% of respondents in the survey work in companies of up to 50 employees, with the remainder working for businesses employing over 50 people. 8% are individually employed. The survey polled respondents across all industry sectors with a quarter of these representing the financial services area. This is Accounting Technicians Ireland's second annual business sentiment survey.
Business Costs
There was a large increase in the numbers of respondents who said that the cost of doing business in Ireland was rising, up significantly from 25% in 2010 to 44% in 2011. The number of respondents who said that the cost of doing business in Ireland has fallen over the past twelve months decreased from 25% last year to 14% this year. Of the people who said costs had risen, almost two-thirds (61%) reported cost increases of between 6% and 20%. In the 2010 survey, only 52% of respondents had experienced this same increase.
Business Levels
Expectations for business activity levels remain broadly similar to those in 2010, with almost 55% of respondents saying they expect business at their place of employment will either remain steady at current levels or will grow over the next twelve months. 30% said they were unsure as to how business will fare, while 14% said they expect business levels will fall.
Bad Debt
Bad debt levels appear to be falling. 47% of respondents reported that bad debt levels and overdue payments are higher than twelve months ago falling from 55% in 2010. Close to half of all respondents who said bad debt was higher in their business stated this had increased by anything between 10% and 30%, indicating possible cashflow pressure for these businesses. Just over 53% of respondents said there had been no increase in bad debt, rising from 40% in 2010.
Job Levels
On actual job levels, only 38% of respondents said that the businesses where they work had let a number of people go in the past twelve months. This figure has fallen from a level of 50% last year. 70% said they do not anticipate any increase in employment numbers at their location over the coming twelve months, a slight fall from the 2010 figure of 74%. 16% were uncertain and 14% believed employment would actually rise.
Job Security
Nearly half of all respondents felt that their job was secure in the immediate future. A quarter of the survey believed their job was not secure and a further quarter said they were uncertain either way.
Pay & Remuneration
Respondents were slightly more optimistic about pay increases, with 13% anticipating a possible increase.
There was a slight rise in the number of respondents who said salaries had increased in their workplace, up from 21% in 2010 to 23% in 2011 - the overwhelming majority (88%) of these respondents said their pay had increased by up to 5%. A smaller proportion had enjoyed higher increases ranging from 6% to over 20% in some instances.
Of particular note is the fall in the number of respondents who reported a reduction in salaries at their company in the past twelve months, down from 47% in 2010 to 37% in 2011. Of these, two-thirds had experienced pay cuts of up to 10%, with the remainder experiencing cuts of up to 20% or higher.
Economic Conditions
Six out of ten respondents (63%) said they believe overall economic conditions are worsening, a similar figure to 2010. However 30% said conditions are stable and 7% said they are improving.
Banking Credit
On the banking credit front, members reported that conditions were broadly similar to 2010. Where businesses had tried to access new or revised credit facilities, 64% of respondents said this had been difficult, up from 60% in 2010; 18% said it was impossible but 18% had found it 'easy enough'. Just under 70% of respondents said that this issue was not applicable to their business, indicating they had either not looked for or considered new or revised credit facilities in the past twelve months.
Gay Sheehan, Chief Executive, Accounting Technicians Ireland, said: "With many Accounting Technicians managing key finance functions, our members are ideally positioned to gauge the business environment. Of concern is the fact that our 2011 business sentiment survey clearly shows that costs for business are starting to rise again. This is in spite of the fact that the majority of our members expect that business levels will remain steady at current levels for the coming year."
"On the positive side, demand remains strong for our graduates, with over 95% of our members currently in employment in all areas of Irish enterprise. They are expertly placed to help their employer control costs, monitor cashflow and manage their general finance functions. Their contribution to an organisation's sustainability and growth can be enormous and it is on this basis that demand is being sustained. Almost 1,800 new students are also registering for our course each year which is important for Irish industry as new skills and professional qualifications will be a contributor to economic recovery in the future."