Key findings Personal impact 30% of SME business leaders say they have a poor work-life balance 34% Of UK SME business leaders surveyed feel they have a poor work-life balance 30% Of UK SME business leaders surveyed say they spend 13+ hours a day working or thinking about their business. 35 Azets SME Barometer Report Summer 2021 While employee wellbeing has moved up the list of priorities for SMEs over this past year, what about the wellbeing of business leaders? Not so easy. Well over a quarter of SME business leaders we surveyed (30%) feel they have poor work-life balance and, in the UK, that figure rises to 34%: a full third of all SME business leaders. And no wonder, when 30% of UK SME business leaders surveyed say they spend 13+ hours a day working or thinking about their business. SME business leaders in Finland, Sweden and Norway seem to be finding a better balance: fewer of them consider their work-life balance poor and, in Sweden in particular, they spend fewer hours per day preoccupied by the business. Leaders of SMEs in manufacturing and construction and in hospitality, leisure and transport tend to spend the most time on their business (12 on average), while those in retail and in financial services spend less (10). Contents Contents Contents Contents download report download report Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets Foreword Summary of findings About the study Key findings Economic outlook Business outlook UK levelling up Opportunities and threats Priorities ahead Investment and borrowing Government support International trade and Brexit Personal impact About Azets