Expense Reduction Analysts (ERA) is launching a report as part of its ‘Smarter spending for business’ campaign, calling on UK businesses to implement smarter spending strategies to aid their chances of success or survival in 2013.
Rob Allison, managing director, ERA, said: ‘Organisations must start thinking long term instead of short term. Cutting costs may keep businesses afloat temporarily, but it won’t enable them to compete long-term. A smarter spending strategy, combining effective cost control aligned with development for innovation and investment is the only way businesses will be able to successfully ride this storm.’
The report – based on a survey of 100 financial directors (FDs) from companies with revenues between £10million and £500million in UK and Ireland – suggests businesses are struggling to master the delicate balance between cutting and managing costs to survive today, and investing to grow tomorrow.
The report has uncovered a series of barriers, blocking FDs from implementing effective smarter spending strategies including short term spending habits; a lack of smarter spending understanding at board level and of a specialist person or team to oversee business spending; resistance to smarter spending schemes from internal departments.
