James Cardwell-Moore: Businesses must be bold in uncertain times

Political change and economic uncertainty almost always breeds cautiousness, and with the current lay of the land '“ Brexit negotiations, a minority UK Government and the ever-present debate surrounding Scotland's constitutional future '“ businesses could be forgiven for playing it safe in 2017.

Scotland is home to the worlds first competitive water market

However, it is also a well-established fact that adopting a bold approach – taking calculated risks, entering new markets and delivering innovative services – is vital for any business to grow. But what does being bold in business actually mean?

Whilst some would argue that in the face of growing political and economic uncertainty it is necessary to be risk averse, I would argue there is an even stronger case for businesses to be bold. Uncertainty inevitably breeds cautiousness. However, the reality is that businesses still need to deliver for their customers; evolve their products and services; compete in often very saturated markets; and plan for the future – and to do this successfully, businesses cannot always afford to sit back and wait.

Boldness and utilities aren’t an obvious partnership. However, in our case it’s become part of our ethos and has helped us play an important role in delivering the world’s first competitive water market here in Scotland. As a strong advocate for legislative reform in England we also played a key role in supporting the opening of the competitive market in April this year. To gain a foothold in that new market, we acquired Southern Water’s non-household customer base, doubling the size of our business and positioning ourselves as one of the largest water retailers in the UK.

These significant developments within our industry created the catalyst for us to adapt and evolve our business to ensure we’re well positioned to deal with market pressures. This hasn’t always been easy and we have faced challenges; but by being bold and not standing still we are now a major player in our market.

Our intentions to champion boldness in business were cemented when we chose to commission two separate reports, the second in partnership with the British Chamber of Commerce, to explore the concept further. The objective behind this exercise was not only to better understand for ourselves how it could drive us as a business; but to motivate others to engender a sense of ambition, vision and positivity.

The findings in both reports clearly show that businesses link bold attributes with success. What is clear is that the majority of businesses have ambitions to grow – over 90 per cent of the 400 business leaders questioned in the second report said they were looking to expand their business in the coming year. However, what is perhaps lacking is the planning and attitude to achieve this – as only 40 per cent claimed to have written a growth strategy. An ambitious growth strategy – injected with the bold attributes outlined above – we believe, helps to deliver results.

We would challenge businesses – regardless of their size, sector or location – to consider how being bold could help deliver results. It is an attitude and approach that has helped us evolve and grow and, we hope, will help others too.

James Cardwell-Moore is Commercial Director, Business Stream