Regardless of one’s political leanings, the results of December’s General Election offer much-needed clarity for the future of the UK economy. Having endured years of uncertainty, there is a sense of relief among tech leaders that the UK can move onto the next phase of Brexit.
After securing a decisive majority in the House of Commons, the Conservative Party now faces fewer barriers as it attempts to lead the UK out of the European Union by 31st January. What this means is that business leaders can now make plans with a clearer idea of how political events will unfold over the coming months.
That said, it remains to be seen what form this transition will take, and whether there will be a deal in place before the deadline. UK start-ups and corporates alike must therefore set in motion their ‘Brexit-proofing’ strategies if they want to remain competitive in the months and years ahead.
Despite living under a cloud of uncertainty since the 2016 EU referendum, the country’s tech businesses have remained resilient. According to Studio Graphene’s recent research, 73% of tech start-ups in the UK are confident of their growth prospects over the coming 12 months.
However, securing the right talent was a key concern for many – around 66% of leaders cited access to skilled workers as a potential obstacle to growth. In an effort to tackle this problem head-on, however, 79% of young tech companies said they intended to increase staff numbers in the coming months.
This bullish entrepreneurial optimism and drive has continued to attract huge levels of investment into the UK tech sector. In the first seven months of 2019, and at the height of Brexit uncertainty, the sector smashed previous records. It attracted an average of $1 billion a month in investment – one and a half times the amount raised during the same period the year before.
Not only is this something to celebrate and embrace, but it is also something we must protect in the aftermath of Brexit to ensure that early stage businesses in particular receive the support they need to expand. We cannot ignore the impact Brexit will have on entrepreneurs across the country, and specifically the threat of a no-deal. So, it is up to the government to take steps to reassure the tech sector that its growth, and indeed protection, remains high up on its agenda.
Perhaps inevitably, many businesses are keen to drive decisive action of their own and have taken pre-emptive action to protect their interests in case of any potential fallout from Brexit. This will mean different things for different organisations – businesses naturally have different priorities and strategies. However, on the whole, it has seen companies making operational changes to ensure that they can continue to meet the evolving needs of their clients and consumers.
Expanding your horizons
For us at Studio Graphene, international presence is central to our business plan, even as the UK withdraws from the single market. That’s why we’re excited to be opening a brand new office in Lisbon, Portugal. With offices already in the UK, India and Switzerland, this latest expansion means we’re now able to take on more projects in continental Europe.
The new office will serve as a front-end engineering hub and work closely with our global team of engineers, designers and marketers to deliver high quality tech products including mobile apps, websites, IoT software and augmented reality products.
As Brexit unfolds, the Lisbon office will also ensure the company has a presence in the European Union. This expansion is partly a move to ‘Brexit-proof’ the business so that we can continue to have access to the EU market.
International expansion is a trend that we’re seeing replicated across the sector as it works to protect its globally-renowned reputation. Companies will be doubling their efforts to signal that they are open for business, and to new opportunities. It’s likely that we will also see increased emphasis placed on attracting skilled workers, upskilling employees, and ensuring that businesses can continue to scale regardless of any hurdles that may be on the horizon. But given the proven resilience of the UK tech sector, I have no doubt that businesses will continue to flourish in the coming months and years.
Ritam Gandhi is chief executive and founder at Studio Graphene
