The Future of Small Business

Intuit (the folks who bring you Quicken and QuickBooks) have joined with The Institute For The Future (wow!) to bring you The Intuit Future of Small Business Report.

A blog posting is not the right medium for an in-depth explanation of a document this weighty. So let me just touch on a couple of highlights and let you decide for yourself whether you want to download and read the 20-page first installment of this report.

1. The Social Transformation of the 1960s and 70s have combined with the Technological Transformation of the 1980s and 90s to foment an Economic Transformation which is already underway and will continue into the foreseeable future.

2. Small Businesses play a key role in the Economic Transformation because of their ability to leverage the societal and technological changes quickly, nimbly and creatively.

3. The Face of Small Business is changing rapidly to include people at either end of the age spectrum as well as an increasing number of women and formerly dispossessed members of society from around the world.

4. Many more “solopreneurships” (one business owner with no employees) are arisinig, fueling an upswing in the use of contract and virtual employees.

5. Entrepreneurial Education is being adopted by - and in some cases outpacing - more traditional formal education resources like universities and technical schools.

This is fascinating stuff. I can hardly wait to read the second installment!

I know you’re busy, but if you are serious about growing your business into the future, this is one document you should not only read, but study. I thank and congratulate the folks at Intuit for putting their resources behind its creation.

Post a comment after you read the report and tell us all what YOU think about The Future of Small Business.