Businesses smothered by the nanny state

Despite the title this isn't a political rant.

Being based in West Wales and working predominently (but not exclusively) within the Welsh economy for the last 5 years and the previous 20 in middle England I have quite an insight into the differences.

Wales is a poor but improving economy in European terms. A vast amount of EU Objective One money has found its way here over the last 5 years and will probably continue to do so for another 5. Regions of Europe that are below a threshold of productivity/output per capita qualify for EU funds to try to bring them into an average range. Middle England is affluent enough not to qualify.

In Middle England businesses invest real money in consultancy and training and make sure they get the best value for money they can with a view to using their investment to boost performance. They recognise what is needed to compete and survive and spend their money to achieve this.

Welsh businesses receive a great deal of subsidised and free consultancy and training. The problem is that the advice and training tends to focus more on compliance than on raising the bar of performance. The grand plan is to make Welsh businesses compete on a world stage. But the support mechanisms are in place merely to facilitate a game of catch-up rather than leap-frog. You are never going to beat the world if you take an "as good as" approach.

There is nothing stopping Welsh businesses analysing their real needs to compete and investing in the right support but the problem is the free training skews the market and lures them away from what they need to something that is sort of what they need and is free or very low cost.

Don't get me wrong here. There are many world class Welsh businesses and there are some that do invest in exactly what they need but looking at the vast majority that make up the critical mass of Welsh business - if it's not free they simply don't want to consider it.

The economy in Wales is picking up. Steep house price rises show a level of disposable income that points to a more affluent economy. At some point within the next 3-5 years I expect the economy to pull itself out of the Objective One zone and have to stand alone. Privately some agencies are already having these discussions.

As the owner of a couple of small Welsh businesses I am actually looking forward to the withdrawal of Objective One funding. The lack of free stuff will force SME's in Wales to consider the wider picture and, as they will have to pay for whatever input they take, they will have a much, much wider choice of support and training options simply because they will have to pay for everything.

The state will continue to operate subsidised and free support but on a much smaller scale. The bulk of businesses will have to take control of their destinies rather than rely on the state to tell them (by making stuff free) what support they should be taking.

Businesses will therefore start to think what they want to do and how they can achieve it. They will spend money and have clear expectations of what they will get for their money. As they will be actually paying for stuff they are much more likely to listen, engage and act on what they learn.

There is no doubt that Objective One money has achieved some great things in Wales. But now the best thing that could happen to the principality is for nanny to cut the apron (and the purse) strings and let the spirit of free enterprise soar. Wales starts more SME's per capita than anywhere else in the UK. And a higher proportion of these survive the critical first 2 years. The people of Wales are not afraid of a bit of hard work and so I am very much looking forward to the growth in our economy over the next decade.

Business-Scene is perfectly timed as far as I am concerned. The state operated free web resources will run out of budget soon and cease to be maintained. Business-Scene will be a struggle to get going in the next year or two because it's best bits cost money (but only £60 p.a.). But once the state web resources begin to fail Business-Scene will be there, continuing to provide exceptional value for money through a wide range of services. It's a great time to be looking at the future.