Too Many Hats, Too Little Time: Key Challenge for Small Business

What’s the biggest challenge facing many small business owners today?  Performing multiple roles within the organization,
according to a new survey conducted by eVoice, a virtual phone number service that enables small business professionals to work more efficiently when managing multiple tasks and roles. 

Not having enough time in the day to get things done came in as a close second –  outweighing making a profit, staying ahead of competition and managing employees, eVoice says.

The survey results underscore the need for a successful entrepreneur to use the right tools and master the art of multitasking and wearing multiple hats, eVoice says. This includes acting in demanding roles such as office receptionist and sales manager, in addition to business owner and visionary – all in the same day. 

Other findings from the survey include:
* Approximately two in five (38 percent) of small business owners say that their time is the most valuable asset for their business. Their computer was the second most valuable asset (36 percent).
* One in four small business owners will pay more than $500 for one extra hour in their work day.
* “Keep up with technology changes” (30 percent) is the most challenging IT issue facing respondents, beating out “No IT support” (16 percent) and “Being more mobile” (15 percent).
* Almost half of respondents (45 percent) plan to move more business services to the cloud in 2012 with online backup and data storage (59 percent), email marketing (35 percent), CRM (28 percent), and customer service (26 percent) being the most likely business functions making the move.
* Nearly three-quarters of respondents (71 percent) say they have become more mobile over the past two years.

An eVoice virtual phone number enables small business professionals to work efficiently anytime and anywhere, without the costs and necessity of an administrative staff or on-premises phone system, eVoice says.

The survey was open to current eVoice customers and visitors to eVoice’s website in all 50 states, from March 12, 2012 – March 16, 2012. 400 random participants responded via online and email invitation. Survey participants were not compensated.

eVoice is a brand service and trademark of j2 Global, a leading virtual phone service.  Visit www.evoice.com or www.j2global.com.