New research from American Express and Small Business Saturday UK reveals that Britain’s small business owners are spending almost twice as much time on admin as they are on growing their businesses, highlighting the time pressures facing busy entrepreneurs who are juggling multiple roles.
The annual Small to Medium Enterprises (SME) Business Barometer research, which surveyed 1,000 owners of UK micro, small and medium-sized businesses, found respondents estimated they spend an average of 11 hours per week on admin or finance-related tasks - the equivalent of approximately six working days per month.
In comparison, they report spending just over half that time (3.6 days a month) on sales and business development activity.
The research shows entrepreneurs are struggling to find the time for growth-related activity. More than half (54%) say paperwork gets in the way of running their business, while over a third (36%) identify their own lack of capacity as the single biggest barrier to growing it. The hours bear this out, as one in five business owners (20%) say they work 60 hours or more a week.
Faced with this time-squeeze, small business owners are increasingly looking to technology to reclaim time and focus on growth. Many see Artificial Intelligence (AI) as a practical way to offload routine tasks - among those who want to delegate work, a third (33%) say they would use Generative AI tools for general administration, and almost a quarter (23%) for finance and accounting tasks. One fifth (21%) of small business owners say AI is like having another member of staff.
Ruchi Sharma, vice president for UK commercial at American Express, said: “Small business owners are some of the most resilient people you’ll meet - but as they run their business through challenging operating conditions, this can mean even less time to focus on growth.
“While AI will never replace the passion and expertise that entrepreneurs bring, it’s another example of how technology can help ambitious businesses make the most of every hour.”
Michelle Ovens, director of Small Business Saturday UK, added: “Running a small business means wearing many different hats, with administrative tasks often taking valuable time away from growth. That’s why AI presents such a significant opportunity to boost productivity, but we must ensure the UK’s 5.7m small business owners have the practical support they need to make the most of it.”
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