With less than a month to go before the government sets out its economic predictions in its first spring budget, new research points to a 30 percent increase in people planning to start a business or register as self-employed this year. With 1.4 million new limited company or self-employed registrations in 2019, 2020 could see that rise to as many as 1.8 million new registrations, Intuit QuickBooks, which commissioned the research, claims. More →

The inherent preference employers have for candidates with natural leadership ability could have a negative effect on their organisation, according to new research by Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University (RSM). The study, On Leading and Managing: Synonyms or Separate (and Unequal)? published in the Academy of Management journal suggests that firms tend to choose leaders over managers regardless of their culture and needs. More →

UK GDP will be £37bn lower by the end 2022 if there is no trade deal with the EU by the end of this year than if trade talks continue beyond the government’s deadline, a report has claimed. The research by Oxford Economics (registration required) also predicts that financial markets would react negatively to a ‘no trade deal Brexit’, with sterling depreciating by 5 percent against the dollar in late 2020. It would drop around 3.5 percent against the euro, as the eurozone would also face reduced growth in this situation. More →

Eastern European businesses have benefited overall from EU membership but, for local firms, the promise of joining does not always live up to expectation or improve productivity, a report has warned. On the plus side, EU membership results in a significant increase in foreign investment, the report from IZA World of Labor suggests. More →

Senior employees being too confident about the value of their ideas could be one reason businesses are failing, according to research by the University of Cologne. The study, conducted by Professor Fabian Sting and a team of interdisciplinary co-authors, highlights how choosing the wrong ideas to pursue can lead businesses to make unwise investments and miss out on opportunities, which could threaten their survival. A large part of the problem, it says, is that the person who comes up with the idea overestimates how successful their innovation will be and views their skill or performance as better than it actually is. More →

Many companies are moving away from long-term overseas placements in favour of short-term transfers, a report has suggested. To reduce costs and meet changing business and worker needs, firms are shifting from typical transfers of one to three years to moves of around three to 12 months, KPMG International‘s latest Global Assignment Policies and Practices (GAPP) survey says. Although this shift allows organisations more flexibility, they must implement the necessary processes to remain compliant with immigration and tax rules, the report warns. More →

Younger decision makers are increasingly relying on technology such as emails, video conferencing and WhatsApp in negotiations with suppliers, rather than speaking to them face-to-face, new research from Barclaycard Payments has claimed. Despite supplier negotiation being regarded as an ‘art’ by seven in 10, many said it will increasingly be conducted digitally over the next five years (68 percent). More →

More than one-third of HR chiefs are struggling to develop effective senior leaders and only half of 2,800 surveyed leaders believe they are well-equipped to provide the leadership to guide their company in the future, according to a survey by Gartner, Inc. Efforts to tackle the emerging issues of the 2020s and beyond – including public pressure for business transparency, the rise of automation and the creation of never-before-seen jobs – will be fruitless unless HR managers find ways to nurture and retain capable future leaders, the research and advisory company concludes. More →

Morality has its limitations in the business domain, according to a new analysis of available research by Dr Hannes Leroy from Rotterdam School of Management (RSM) Erasmus University and his co-authors. This is despite the fact that there is a widespread belief that morality and business ethics matter in the way organisations act, although there is also a concomitant belief that there is a general lack of attention to morality in the world of leadership. This appears to be true regardless of industry, firm size, or the status and level of a leader in a company. More →

In what might be interpreted as a sign of increasing globalisation, a new study from Intertrust amongst the firm’s corporate clients suggests that almost three quarters (72 percent) of business leaders expect to see more companies setting up overseas operations between now and 2024 compared to just 5 percent who believe it will fall. The conclusion is based on a survey of 100 companies ranging from start-ups to mature multinationals about their expansion plans. Over half (56 percent) of respondents said they plan to expand into up to three markets in the next two years with a further 14 percent aiming to break into four to six new countries. More →

Against a backdrop of Brexit, political turmoil and a global talent war, retaining the best staff to deliver a competitive advantage has become a crucial priority for many UK business leaders – however few know how to create and deliver the best worker experience, according to new research from Kincentric. More →