A New Business Model
The new(ish) UK government has been taking steps of late to try to convince the world that Britain is ‘open for business’ whatever that may mean. As the new budget approaches, many insiders are saying that the main issues will be how that budget goes about encouraging growth across the UK.
So far, plans for growth have been rather limited, although the government has been keen to point out that there is one. A lot has surrounded the plan to improve Britain’s broadband connection to being the best in Europe by the end of the current parliament.
By focussing on technology the government may just be onto a winner. The UK may not be home to the likes of Google and Facebook, but it is home to some incredibly successful technology companies like ARM, for example, the company that produces some 90% of the world’s smartphone processor chips.
One of the major problems that the UK faces is that concentration of jobs in London, and the internet may be able to resolve that. Running a business in London is expensive, but it’s often thought of as necessary because it’s at the centre of things, with good broadband connections it’s possible to run a business from anywhere in the country and still be at the centre of things, whether that be in terms of dealing with orders, or of communicating face to face (with videoconferencing).
The advantages of good internet connections don’t end there, many countries around the world are benefiting from having businesses in the ‘developed world’ hiring staff halfway across the globe. These staff don’t need to travel to the UK, they just need to be on the end of the Skype connection or whichever medium of communication they use. With wages being lower in many countries outside of the UK and yet technology being at the same level, outsourcing, or hiring foreign staff in their own countries is a great way for start ups to get going, and to make big profits quickly.
Of course, it’s all very well talking about having one of the best broadband networks in the world, but it’s another thing to actually achieve it. Companies like Sky (visit the Sky.com shop) already offer great value broadband, but with uptake so high, the government could do more to ensure the roll out of high speed broadband goes ahead on schedule, check Sky.com for any further updates on UK internet, business broadband, and breaking news on the budget.
