ActionCOACH –the leading business coaching firm in Ireland today strongly disputed the claim made by Patricia Callan of the Small Firms Association this week, that the Minimum National Wage in Ireland should be reduced in order to regain the lost competitiveness of Irish Small Businesses.

 

Paul Fagan, Managing Director of ActionCOACH in Ireland says that although it could be argued that reducing the minimum wage will make the difference – taking this approach is extremely blinkered and a hugh mistake as it is missing the bigger picture. Small businesses need to stand back and take a new approach in appraising the profitability of their businesses. Simply cutting wages will not solve the problems but could potentially create more problems as companies will stand to loose valuable staff, who simply cannot afford to work for lower than the current minimum national wage. We need to protect our valued resources and employees are a very key element in any operation. Businesses need to look at every area of their operation and particularly at their Sales and Marketing Strategies, Customer Service offerings and the Financial Management of their Businesses i.e. cash-flow, break-even, profitability etc.

 

Paul Fagan has observed that the main reasons Businesses fail are as follows:

· Failure to effectively manage company Cash-flow

· Lack of Skills and Knowledge within the organisation

· Reluctance on behalf of the business owners to seek outside help in a timely manner

· Stress leading to business breakdown

According to pre-recession banking statistics – between 50-66% of new Business start-ups will fail in the first 5 years. Unless we start addressing all of the above causes in unison – these worrying statistics could potentially spiral out of control.

 

‘In our experience in this changing climate’ says Paul Fagan ‘we have found that companies who panic and blindly implement single strategies such as ‘wage reductions’ – will fail because their approach is tunnel-visioned’. The best piece of advice that we can give to any company who is struggling to survive in these difficult times – is that they should not be afraid to ask for help. A ‘Business Coach’ should no longer be considered a luxury but a necessity for survival in this current climate.

 

In order to regain the competitiveness of Irish Small Businesses – companies need to realise that they cannot do it alone. A properly qualified Business Coach can prove to be a very worth while investment for any company and this is what small businesses should be crying out for at this time.

END.

 

For Further information, please contact:

 

Paul Fagan, Managing Director, ActionCOACH Business Coaching

Telephone: 01-8320213 or 087 987 8686

E-mail: paulfagan@actioncoach.com

Website: www.paulfagan.actioncoach.com

 

Olive Fitzsimons, Marketing Manager, ActionCOACH Business Coaching

Telephone: 01-8320213 or 087 2936499