Almost half (45%) of Future Fit businesses say they have achieved significant growth over the past 12 months.
From sustainability and supply chains to technology and talent, getting fit for the future could help drive performance, manage disruption, seize opportunities and attract skills.
During a period of unprecedented economic and geopolitical challenge, survival has been the priority of many businesses. But resilience requires more than just a dogged determination to get through tough times. Our new research outlines how the most successful businesses today have shown vision and agility throughout this period of volatility.
Not only have these businesses overcome headwinds such as the cost-of-living crisis, supply chain disruption, the impacts of international conflict and more. They have delivered on objectives such as business growth, increased innovation, and enhanced sustainability.
Future Fit businesses are doing these things to outrun their competitors:
- Measuring and verifying sustainability strategy (68% say all investments in sustainability are tied to long-term commercial objectives)
- Committed to data-driven decision-making (92% make all or most decisions this way)
- Determined to work more closely with value-chain partners (53% always involve suppliers in key decisions)
- Passionate about their workforce (48% have mapped the skills they need for the future and planned for how to acquire them)
What is a high-flyer?
Our research, based on a survey of 1,000 UK businesses operating across 10 sectors, identifies a series of shared characteristics. Our findings reveal that just a third of UK businesses (34%) are currently Future Fit, but their example provides a beacon for peers that aspire to perform in this way.
No business should feel future fitness is out of reach. The research identifies leaders in each of the 10 sectors across the UK. Nor is size a limiting factor – larger companies, with revenues of more than £150m a year, are a little more likely to be Future Fit, but plenty of smaller businesses also make the grade.