UK Private Company Ownership going public – threat or opportunity?

Britain is pressing ahead with plans to have a publicly-accessible, central register of the individuals who ultimately own, and control, UK companies. Will this move to transparency increase trust in UK business as the government hopes or have investors running for cover?

Background

In 2013, while holding presidency of the G8, the UK government pressed for a publicly-accessible register of people with significant control of companies (PSC Register) to be adopted by all G8 members. While other G8 members would not, at the time, go as far as this they did to agree to publish plans to ensure companies know who owns them. Meanwhile the UK was undeterred in not getting agreement and has pressed ahead with its plans to construct its own public PSC Register. It is their stated belief that transparency and accountability are essential for trust and that businesses, investors and society will have greater confidence in the UK, and in doing business in the UK, if the company register and, in particular, the details of the ultimate beneficial owners of companies, are accessible to the public.

UK position and other European initiatives

Having initially consulted on this the UK is now working the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Bill 2014-15 through parliament including fundamental changes to the manner in which company data is maintained and accessible to the public. As the Bill presently stands all companies will have to identify and disclose details of the ultimate beneficial ownership of any shareholder who holds, or exercises control of, more than 25% of the shares in issue of a company or anyone who exercises undue influence on the board to the Company Registry. A consultation document is currently in existence outlining the proposals for the secondary legislation that sets out how it will operate (and crucially exemptions to the rule) which runs until 9 December. That consultation document can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/367578/bis-14-1145-the-register-of-people-with-significant-control-psc-register-register-final-1.pdf

The stated aims are to minimise illicit activities whether they be money laundering, tax evasion, corruption or terrorist financing. All are, of course, highly laudable proposals, aims and concepts. However the question remains that, with the UK running well ahead of other countries, will the UK public register achieve those aims and to what extent will it create a burden or hindrance to business?

The Nine Characteristics of Successful Business Leaders and Entrepreneurs

The 9 characteristics that I believe are the key drivers in being successful:

1. Self-esteem
2. The need or an overwhelming
3. desire to achieve
4. Screening for opportunity
5. Locus of control
6. Goal orientation
7. Continued optimism
8. Courage to see it through to the end
9. Tolerance to ambiguity
10. Strong Internal Motivation

The good news is that many of these leadership characteristics are learnable. For example, one can train the mind to recognize opportunity, optimism is a controllable state of mind and even the need for achievement can be increased. The bad news is it’s not easy to do so. After all, one can’t make a house strong with a good foundation and one can’t be successful in business unless one possesses certain personal characteristics. What qualities set those that are successful, apart from the rest of the crowd?

1. Wanting others around you to succeed, rather than hoping they fail – When you are in an organisation with a group of people, in order for it to thrive, you all should have a common goal – “to be as successful as you can be”. We should naturally want to see your company pros- per and your co-workers grow.

2. Accept responsibility for your failures, rather than looking to pint the finger at someone else – Where there are ups, there will be on occasion, likely to be downs. If the latter happens, the sign of a true leader is one that accepts responsi- bility for these failures. In the eyes of co- workers it will also show someone who leads from the front, who is willing to accept failure, and “take it on the chin”. Blaming others solves nothing and can potentially create an aura of mistrust with fellow colleagues.

3. Exude joy rather than showing anger – In business and in life, it’s always better to be happy and show this joy to others. It becomes contagious and will encourage others to behave in the same way. It’s a fact that when people are happier they tend to be more focused and successful. If a person exudes anger, it can have a negative impact on everyone around them, and be very de-motivating.

4. Embrace change, rather than fear it – Change is good. Embracing change is one of the hardest things a person can do. With the world moving so fast and constantly changing and technology ac- celerating faster than ever, we need to embrace what’s coming and adapt. To be successful in business, you must run towards change, rather than fearing it, or denying it.

5. Concentrate your energies on discussing new and exciting ideas, rather than on office politics – Successful people like to engage with others around them to talk about ideas. This creates a much more positive and inclusive atmosphere in the pursuit of a common goal, rather than waste energy being drawn into the inevitable office politics.

6. Get goals and plan ahead, rather than leaving everything to chance – To become successful you need to know where you are going in life. Whether it’s compiling a daily goal list, annual strate- gic plan, 3 year forecast or a 10 year plan – all are useful tools of the mega-successful.

7. Give credit to others for their hard work, rather than trying to take it all for yourself – Teamwork is key to success. When working with others, always acknowledge the great work they have done. Letting others have their own vic- tories and moments to shine will motivate them to perform at a much higher standard. In the long term, this could earn you a great reputation as a manager of people.

8. The sharing of information and data, rather than keeping it all to your-self – In business and in life, sharing knowledge is the key to being successful. When you share your information and data with others, you can reveal insights and allow you to create a vision for your company to achieve greater suc- cesses. Keeping information to yourself is counter-productive and is only likely to achieve small short-term gains. It’s about being pro-active, rather than re- active.

So, what are you waiting for, get your vision and goals down on paper now! Alan offered a workshop at the recent GGI regional European conference in Scotland where extracts from the above presentation formed one of the key discussions.