Remaining
resilien
ti
n
ch
alleng
ing
ti
me
s.
..
The
past
decade
has
had
an
impact
upon
the
shape
of
the
We
st
Midla
nds
8211s
ometimes
for
the
better
,s
ometimes
not.
What
is
evident,
however
,i
st
hat
we
have
managed
to
face
up
to
these
challenges
and
come
out
ready
to
face
the
next.
By
working
together
,s
uch
as
the
collec-
tive
ef
fort
around
the
demise
of
MG
Rover
,
or
individually
,t
he
region
is
strong
and
de-
termined
to
remain
on
the
global
stage.
Adapting
to
the
pressures
of
the
global
business
arena
and
facing
up
to
ongoing
competiti
ve
challenges,
remains
high
on
the
agenda
for
both
public
and
private
sector
or
-
ganisations.
Indeed,
looking
back
over
the
ten
years
of
the
We
st
Midla
nds
Company
Guide,i
ti
s
clear
to
see
that
our
local
industries
have
changed
in
prominence.
Automotive,
manufacturing
and
engineer
-
ing
remain
at
the
heart
of
the
region,
but
new
industries
are
growing
in
significance
in-
cluding
ICT
,b
iosciences
and
media.
Through
innovati
on
and
respons
iveness
to
changes,
the
region
has
been
able
to
create
ad
iversity
that
has
resulted
in
resilience.
We
are
no
longer
reliant
upon
any
one
sector
for
our
economic
prosperity
and
some
of
the
new
industries
are
less
vulnerable
to
global
economic
conditions.
As
ar
esult,
the
peaks
and
troughs
of
our
economic
cycle
are
less
pronounced
than
in
previous
decades,
potentially
creating
a
more
stable
business
environment.
This
has
been
demonstrated
recentl
yf
ol-
lowing
the
impact
upon
the
global
markets
of
the
US
sub-prime
crisis.
While
no
one
would
say
we
are
entirely
immune
to
the
consequences
of
the
changing
environment,
the
region
has
so
far
held
up
well,
but
there
are
indications
that
this
could
change.
Confidence
among
the
region8217
sb
usinesses
currently
remains
at
good
levels.
However
,w
ea
re
already
seeing
confi-
dence
levels
dropping
across
the
EU,
and
ac-
cording
to
our
latest
KPMG
Business
Out-
look
Survey,w
hich
surveys
around
2,800
service
sector
firms
across
the
EU,
af
urther
deterioration
in
confidence
among
UK
serv-
ice
providers
is
on
the
cards.
Expectations
regarding
activity
,r
evenues,
new
orders
and
profits
were
also
well
down
since
the
previous
survey
(October
2007),
as
were
forecasts
for
employment
and
capital
spending.
When
you
take
into
consideration
the
slowing
levels
of
growth
in
the
UK
economy
,
and
the
fact
that
there
is
unlikely
to
be
any
let
up
in
cost
pressur
es,
it
is
important
busi-
nesses
continue
to
modify
their
strategies
to
ensure
their
business
remains
resilient.
Ta
king
ah
olistic
view
of
their
business,
and
the
market
in
which
it
operates,
manag-
ers
need
to
identify
all
the
issues
on
the
hori-
zon.
This
in
turn
will
help
identify
where
cost
savings
can
be
made.
In
addition,
areas
where
growth
can
still
be
achieved
8211s
uch
as
new
markets,
includ
-
ing
the
emer
ging
nations
8211n
eed
to
be
inves-
tigated
and
exploited
where
appropriate.
There
really
is
no
need
for
local
busi-
nesses
to
stand
still
while
we
weather
the
challenges
ahead.
Instead,
they
need
to
adapt
their
strategies
and
move
forward
in
the
best
way
.
Wi
thin
this
edition
of
the
guide,
we
look
at
some
of
those
key
topics,
and
highlight
some
areas
where
growth
and
busines
si
m-
provement
can
be
made.
It
is
important
to
remember
that
the
fun-
damentals
of
busines
sw
ill
be
crucial
and
elements
such
as
managing
people,
taxes
and
governance
will
play
an
important
role.
Creating
solid
foundation
sw
ill
contribute
significan
tly
to
ab
usiness8217
ability
to
remain
resilient.
Ih
ave
no
doubt
that
the
region8217
sf
ounda-
tions
are
firmly
in
place
for
the
challenges
ahead
and
that
the
management
skills
and
tenacity
of
those
at
the
helm
of
local
busi-
nesses
will
ensure
that
the
We
st
Midla
nds
has
every
chanc
eo
fr
emaining
resilient.
Th
er
ei
sn
on
eed
fo
rl
oca
lb
usinesses
to
stand
still
as
we
fac
ec
hallenges
ahead
,
ac
co
rd
ing
to
Mel
Eg
glen
to
n,
senior
par
tner
of
KP
MG
in
Bir
minghamWEST
MIDL
ANDS
CO
MP
AN
YG
UIDE5Th
eW
est
Mi
dlands
has
been
faced
with
sig
ni64257cant
challenges
ov
er
the
past
decade
8211y
et
we
re
main
a
major
global
centr
ef
or
business
.
Mel
Eg
glen
to
n
,
senior
par
tner
of
KP
MG
in
Bir
mingham,
looks
at
the
re
silience
sho
wn
by
the
re
gi
on
and
suggests
di64259cult
times
ahead
could
te
st
this
fur
ther8220
Cr
eating
solid
fo
undations
will
contr
ibut
es
ig
ni64257cantly
to
ab
usiness
8217a
bilit
yt
o
re
main
re
silient
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