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The report 'Ones to Watch' by business intelligence providers Index B, identifies and predicts commercial trends and the latest report lists one-man companies as one of the six 'major trends shaping business and companies that embody the innovation that is driving them.
The report says: "In years gone by one-man businesses were derided for not being serious ventures. Yet there are now more entrepreneurs with multiple businesses, and technology is helping them cast far longer shadows to extend their reach and influence. As a result the tools they use become more sophisticated..... that helps individuals manage their professional relationships more adroitly than many corporations. At the same time, technology is becoming easier than ever to deploy."
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Its 'Ones to Watch' report highlights 25 companies that embody six powerful emerging trends, including the 'one-man empire' that are shaping the major economies and will continue to do so over the next decade.
Companies highlighted in the report are of all shapes and sizes from around the globe which collectively represent the commercial landscape of the future, but SMEs predominate as the leaders of innovation.
John Owrid, CEO of Index B and co-author of the report, said: “Whilst it is fashionable to characterise the year ahead as one laden with unpredictability, this view is still quite selective and too hasty. In fact the future is more predictable than often realised.
“While most commentators focus on short-term macro-economic forces, the business world is being reshaped by long-term trends, and the companies that reflect these trends are increasingly important for economic growth – and worth watching.
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The report also pointed out that the importance of the small firm is sometimes as odds with Government policies which have focused on subsidies and incentives to the big corporates
Roger Trapp, the report’s co-author and a leading commentator and author on small business issues, said: “Overall smaller companies are now the forerunners of behavioural change, and it is good news that British companies feature heavily in the report – the UK is definitely at the head of the curve in terms of having a good share of innovative smaller businesses that will shape the future. London’s Silicon Roundabout gets a lot of publicity, but it embodies the spirit of tech-savvy entrepreneur and will prove a huge asset for the UK economy.
“It also presents a major challenge to government policy, which has previously relied on handing billions in grants and subsidies to large companies to create jobs and skill-creation. This has always had disappointing results, and as a viable approach now looks hopelessly dated in a decade when innovation and employment comes from the self-employed and smaller businesses.”
Trends
The report summarises the major trends shaping business and companies that embody the innovation that is driving them:
- The internet - The transition in use of the internet from serving communication and entertainment needs to now tackling more functional, less sexy areas.
- Mobile Commerce - The Smartphone is set to become the most iconic device of the 2nd decade of the 21st Century, and mobile commerce will become ubiquitous.
- Sustainability – Even though debt and currency crises stalk the globe, the ideas and economics of sustainability are more entrenched than they once were.
- New capitalism - Rethinking the way money flows is becoming a bigger industry in its own right.
- One-man empires – In years gone by one-man businesses were derided for not being serious ventures. Yet technology is helping them cast far longer shadows to extend their reach and influence.
- Community models - Whilst the over use of the word community' has become a trend in its own right the business models which exemplify online communities are planting deeper roots.
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Susie Hughes © Shout99 2012
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