Survey finds 69% of business founders overwhelmed by the legal and accountancy challenges involved in starting up a business.
Almost seven in ten business owners said that they found the legal and accountancy elements involved in setting up to be overwhelming, in a survey conducted in May by Accountant Online, Ireland’s largest online chartered accountancy firm.
95% of new business founders surveyed had prior business career experience, yet 64% of respondents said lack of confidence in their financial knowledge and awareness caused them to struggle when liaising with their accountant and understanding legal documentation and other requirements.
“With the possibility of a recession looming, it will be important for business owners to feel confident that they can ask the right questions and get the support they need in keeping their business compliant”
75% of start-ups fail within a few years of launch, with around 15,000 Irish businesses failing annually.
Just one-in-three companies survive past 10 years in business.
One of the major factors in business success is good control of finances.
Launch, grow and thrive
Established in 2015, Accountant Online helps ambitious start-ups to launch, grow and thrive by putting financial expertise at their fingertips, and surveyed 595 people as they set out to discover barriers to success for Irish business owners.
“With the possibility of a recession looming, it will be important for business owners to feel confident that they can ask the right questions and get the support they need in keeping their business compliant,” said Accountant Online founder and CEO Larissa Feeney.
“Most new business owners are non–financial managers and need support to navigate this hugely important and vital area of the business with a little more ease and understanding, even if they have been in business before.
“Our survey findings mirror a recent SFA (Small Firms Association) survey in 2019 which showed that 51% of business owners do not read their monthly accounts on a monthly basis. Here at Accountant Online, our objective is to give founders their focus back, allowing them to scale securely with ease, and helping them navigate the otherwise choppy waters of managing their business finances and obligations.”
- Accountant Online hosts free webinars to help upskill new business owners in basic financial management and online bookkeeping. To learn more, go to: https://accountantonline.ie/events/
