National Business Survey

1
National Business Survey

• What is it?
• What does it cover?
• Applications
• Business Snapshot Survey
• Accessing the Results

2
What is it?

• A little bit of history
• 4-page six-monthly Business Sentiment Survey
• Focus on current business sentiment
• Around 1,500 responses per survey across YH
• Representative of industry and size structure
• 2000 onwards with Experian / CBI
• Not all RDAs
• OJEU in autumn 2007

• The current survey
• Similar to before..every six months, 4-page
  survey
• All RDAs Invest Northern Ireland
• 6,000 responses nationally, 1,500 in YH
• Managed by Ipsos-Mori
• Postal and on-line
• Random, representative of industry size and
  structure
• Weighted back to IDBR

3
What does it cover? Core Questions

• Expectations previous 12 months and next 12
  months
• Domestic/export orders
• Employment
• Business environment
• Prices charged
• Profits
• Output capacity
• Energy, transport, materials, property costs
• Investment levels

• Filling staff vacancies
• Skills that need improving
• Training provided to staff
• Importance and levels of satisfaction with
  workforce skills and external factors e.g.
  regulations
• Locations of sales and purchases
• RD and innovation activities
• Views about current location
• Turnover, employment, sector

4
What does it cover? Policy Specific Questions

• Current
• Improving environmental performance
• Reducing CO2 emissions
• Gender and ethnicity of business owner(s)

• Historical (some examples from 05, 06, 07)
• Application of new ideas
• Effect of road pricing policies
• Adoption of Corporate Social Responsibility
• Awareness and use of business / workforce
  development advice
• Support / impact of specific events e.g. Olympics
  bid, Ascot in York

5
Applications

• General
• Time-series analysis
• Sectoral and size-band analysis (regional level
  only)
• Local level results
• Issue specific analysis
• Regularity every six months
• One business survey - many applications (avoids
  duplication)
• National and regional comparisons
• Monitoring frameworks and evaluation

• Current Specific Priorities (e.g.)
• Monthly economic briefings to DBERR, Treasury,
  Regional Minister, Economic Delivery Group on
• Current business sentiment
• Employment intentions
• Domestic and export orders
• Profit and price squeezes
• Ethnicity of business owners Ethnic Minority
  Business National Task Force

6
Business Snapshot Survey
Business climate and link to current economic
downturn Cost pressures Access to
finance Investment intentions
4 regions - YH, NW, EM, SE Business sentiment
telephone survey 400 per region Driven by DBERR
reporting requirements
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Full NBS Results Wave 2 Field-work Field-work Results Wave 3 Field-work Field-work Results Wave 4
Snap-shot Survey Field-work Results Field-work Results
7
Accessing the Results

• Full regional and national report
• Web-portal (password access can be provided to
  partners on request)
• See http//www.yorkshire-forward.com/our-wonderful
  -region/our-economy
• Thank you
• Any questions?