With my days tightly packed, like a well organised filing cabinet, I do enjoy kicking back with colleagues, carving out some time to “chew the fat”….pondering life, business, family, community...and maybe even the fishing boat I would love to have one day. On doing so this Tuesday just gone, with a fellow Byfields director, I stumbled on a story that all too often goes untold.
Country born and bred, I’ve often heard chatter over the years from locals around town when a local business exits, either folding, or following the perceived procession of those businesses centralising activities back to the “big smoke” of Perth.
There is much sorrow for those small businesses finding it financially challenging in the bush and great empathy for those jobs that go by the wayside as a result. We as humans are frustratingly “hard wired” to pay more attention to these negative events, and these thoughts linger, like a frost on a cold morning.
So, in the pursuit of burning away the negative bias, discussion with my colleague ventured into...
Shouldn't we be celebrating new start ups and retention of existing businesses in the region…especially those employing staff?
It had me thinking. How many businesses are operating in Narrogin? What are the trends of the area? Like every diligent accountant, I reached for the excel spreadsheet and charted some ABS statistics.
An average of 45% of businesses in Narrogin are employing staff. There has been in the past 4 year a 6% decline overall in the number of local businesses,
However what is happening to the bigger end of town. Those businesses responsible for maintaining swags of local jobs? It is relieving to see this.
Each year, over the last 4 years, an average of 43 new businesses enter Narrogin.
Diving deeper, I found that on average, 35% of these new business entrants employed staff. The exits on a four year average, is about13 businesses employing staff.
You may conclude that circumstances are not as bad as we all probably think, especially considering the trends for those businesses employing. However, as an employer this expanded my thoughts and discussions with my colleague…how can we improve?
Maintaining a regional business presence goes beyond just filling a footy team’s side with one of our staff. Employing a local has enormous economic and social impacts which are difficult to measure, sometimes challenging to maintain, but very rewarding.
The key to improvement is the attitude of the business owners. Contributing to our success, Byfields decided long ago that it holds community front of mind as one of its core values. Also recognised is, that to do the best for your community, the practice must employ quality staff. Employing quality goes some way to attracting future talent itself.
We are always seeking out quality people by thinking outside of the box. However, sometimes the obvious is missed.
So here is our message.
As leaders in our community, Lea Williams and I wish it to be abundantly clear, that if a son, daughter, family member, or friend, wants a stable, yet challenging career as a business advisor, our practice is here for you and, most importantly, the community it resides in.
We look forward to catching up with you at the upcoming Wagin Woolorama.
Next Step
To discuss this article further, we encourage you to contact Dale Woodruff or Lea Williams on (08) 9853 9300.
Disclaimer: This content provides general information only, current at the time of production. Any advice in it has been prepared without taking into account your personal circumstances. You should seek professional advice before acting on any material.