West Midlands small businesses in call for more funding help to improve digital skills

And over two thirds (67%) of small to medium-sized manufacturers (SMEs) in the West Midlands would like to see more Government funding to help them train up their staff with digital skills, according to a new report produced by small business support firm Oxford Innovation Advice.

The firm's research shows the biggest hurdles to up-skilling employees faced by small and medium sized firms are cost and a lack of in-house knowledge

“41% of manufacturers in the West Midlands are predicting growth in the next six months and this is great news," said Jane Galsworthy, Managing Director of Oxford Innovation Advice.

"However, as the report clearly shows, how many more could be increasing sales and creating jobs if they had more help to improve their digital skills?

“The digital revolution is no longer the preserve of the larger companies, it’s here and needs to be embedded on the shop floors, in the design hubs and in the offices of our smaller manufacturers.

“What is clear is that SMEs need more Government funding to help make this happen, with two thirds admitting they would accelerate their journey if the right specialist support was in place."

Based on responses from the survey, the company says it has developed a five-point policy action plan that it plans to submit to Government to build on successful programmes, such as Made Smarter Digital Adoption.

The recommendations focus on providing basic level training and advice to manufacturing SMEs to convert critical analogue data capture processes into digital ones, which gives small firms the ability to analyse their processes and identify efficiency improvements.

They are also urging Government to involve companies in the design of businesses support, whilst also ensuring that programmes are available nationally and connect SMEs to their peers to sustain their digital journey. 

“70% also said they want to upskill their staff, so the appetite is there – we just need to create the right business support environment to make it happen using a combination of more financial grants and practical assistance that ensures firms can embrace digital technologies," added Ms Galsworthy.

“Made Smarter Digital Adoption is a fantastic programme for helping SMEs who have already made headway in developing their digital capabilities. However, we feel that there is still a significant number of companies who need support to develop lower-level processes before they can start to apply Industry 4.0 technologies.”

“We’ll be taking this report to Whitehall to ensure West Midlands SME manufacturers can get access to the digitalisation support they require to drive up productivity and growth.”