Johannesburg - South African business owners have accumulated enough overtime over the past year to add almost R530 billion - or around 10 percent - to the country’s economy.
This is according to a global survey by Sage, which was conducted among 2 621 business decision makers in companies with under 100 employees in 11 countries. The interviews were conducted online by Redshift Research in November 2015 using an email invitation and an online survey.
According to Trading Economics, South Africa’s economy was worth $349.82 billion in 2014, which equates to almost R5 trillion.
Globally, small and medium businesses added R115 trillion ($8.3 trillion) to the world’s economy through after-hours work. The survey by Sage, it says, highlights the “true sacrifices made by entrepreneurs around the world”. The sample included 200 small business owners in South Africa.
Costly contribution
However, the afterhours work did not come without a price, as some 51 percent of the local business owners surveyed said they work more than 40 hours a week, while 22 percent work more than 50 hours a week.
Around 44 percent of local business owners have chosen their work over their family and 26 percent have taken less than five days holiday in the last year. A quarter admit their personal relationships have been affected while making their business successful, but 29 percent of those say it was worth it.
In addition, 29 percent of the country’s business owners have cancelled a date because of work. Half of the respondents in South Africa compromise taking holidays in order to make their business successful; 45 percent compromise their social life, and 37 percent compromise their own health.
Why do they do it?
More than half (51 percent) say they are motivated by the love of their business, with 59 percent motivated by the sense of achievement, 60 percent by growing the business, and 58 percent by making money. Some 77 percent say that working outside their industry standard hours to make their business successful is worthwhile.
However, paperwork is the bane of many South African entrepreneurs’ lives.
Some 35 percent say that more efficient administrative processes would reduce the time spent working after hours.
Time management is another challenge, with 33 percent saying understanding how to use their time more efficiently would reduce the time spent working after hours. On the upside, 64 percent feel smartphone emailing reduces the time spent working after hours.
Anton van Heerden, executive VP and MD of Sage in South and Southern Africa says “small business owners in South Africa are driven by a love of what they do and the sense of achievement they get from seeing businesses succeed.
“It takes hard work and human sacrifice to turn a dream business idea into a way of life, but the rewards are immense, both for the entrepreneur and his or her community. We are proud to stand with South Africa’s entrepreneurs as they grow our economy.”
Sage will be running a series of advice sessions, from November 30 - December 4. Each will involve a number of Sage executives, including CEO Stephen Kelly, and will address the key challenges of running a small business – as identified by the research.
IOL