Almost nine-in-ten executives believe calculate business risks are essential to winning market share. According to new research from Elixirr, risk taking behaviours come easy to business leaders, with fewer than a fifth saying they found it a challenge to roll the proverbial dice.

Stephen Newton, founder and CEO of Elixirr, commented, “Our research has shown that these industry giants are going against the grain, taking risks to ensure they are the front runners when the economy becomes more favourable. We need to ensure that we are celebrating high performance and, most importantly, encouraging the willingness to take risks to deliver returns.”

The research surveyed over 500 enterprise leaders across the IT, retail, construction, manufacturing, finance and professional services sectors in the UK. It found that 86% believed that taking calculated business risks to outpace their competitors makes them a better leader. At the same time, 22% added that they had pivoted their business models to make the most of new revenue opportunities in the last 12 months. Only 17% of board members saw this mode of operation as a challenge.

According to the respondents, the results also speak for themselves – and failure to do so often leaves them with significant regrets. A 33% portion of enterprises said that cutting back on tech investment was the biggest mistake during past periods of economic uncertainty. This was followed by cutting back spending on marketing and advertising (25%) and waiting too long to seek external investment (24%). 

The news follows a turbulent four years for businesses, which have seen massive spikes in inflation, rising borrowing rates, and hikes in corporation tax – as well as four Prime Ministers. As the latest of those sets about his policy goals, Elixirr notes that businesses have already shown the best way to adapt to change is not to be risk averse – and encourages the government not to compromise that.

Newton added, “Ahead of the UK’s upcoming autumn budget, it’s clear that the UK still has a way to go when it comes to raising this confidence and rewarding more ambitious business leaders. With a quarter of business leaders calling on the new Labour government to make the UK more attractive for investment, cutting government red tape, especially around proposed inheritance tax reforms, and taking a more holistic approach to tax cuts, will be crucial. Creating an environment that encourages success and returns is absolutely necessary to boost investment and grow thriving businesses.”

Reinforcing that, Elixirr found that for companies to innovate through technology, they said they needed greater private investment opportunities. Around 25% of business leaders therefore suggested that making the UK a more attractive proposition for private investors should be the top business priority. Although, if that doesn’t happen, they will surely be innovative to survive, after all, in business, every crisis is also an opportunity.