7th February 2022: When thinking about the future of their business, a quarter of business leaders in the financial services sector want to become listed and go through an IPO, according to ECI Partners’ latest Growth Characteristics research. Whereas, nearly a third (30%) want to sell a stake in their business to an investor, such as private equity, and 19% want to continue running the business indefinitely.
ECI, the growth-focused private equity firm, surveyed over 500 fast-growth SME business leaders as part of its Growth Characteristics report to understand what makes a successful CEO, and to discover their current challenges and growth plans.
Despite clarity over the ultimate goal for their business, many CEOs’ leadership plans are not necessarily set in stone. Nearly two-thirds (62%) of financial services business leaders don’t currently have a succession plan in place.
Michael Butler, Partner at ECI Partners comments on the findings:
“Regardless of the businesses’ end goal, creating a business roadmap which includes a succession plan, is essential. Effective succession planning gives the business direction beyond the CEO, encourages fresh ideas and the progression of other staff in the business.”
Future outlook
When thinking about the future, over three quarters (76%) of business leaders are more optimistic about the future than they were this time last year.
Additionally, CEOs are also aware of the changing business climate and how the pandemic has placed greater focus on doing the right thing, with 86% stating that social purpose now informs at least part of their business strategy.
Michael continues:
“The last couple of years have been turbulent for the financial services sector, and as the dust settles, it’s important that their business plans and strategy are aligned to the world we now operate in. Beyond social purpose, the pandemic has also shone a light on people’s working practices and placed greater importance on businesses culture, as such it’s essential that plans are made with this in mind, and people are placed at the core of their proposition.”
