Australian small businesses are revealing their top priorities ahead of the 2022 election

In less than a week, Australians will gather at polling stations to cast their vote this year federal electionsthe results of which will form the next chapter of the pandemic of our country.

After several troubled years, this choice became especially important – especially for small businesses. So how will this 2.4 million community use its collective electoral power on May 21?

Top electoral priorities for small business in 2022

To feel what voters think, Xero ordered a poll more than 500 small business owners from across the country to learn about their main challenges and priorities before the election.

As for voting, more than 40 percent said small business support policies are a major factor in determining which party they will vote for – and rightly so. After three years of natural disasters and pandemics, the road to recovery remains difficult. That is why our new government must take the lead on issues that are most important to the self-employed.

Helping more small businesses digitize

Since the pandemic, small businesses have been forced digital at high speed. Now, almost three years later, many realize that the transition to technology is not a quick fix; it is a continuous state of change.

Why is this distinction important? Because technology is no longer something that’s nice to have, but rather it is important for how we work in the modern world.

However, our study shows that the majority (78.6 percent) of small business owners are concerned about technology or do not consider it important for the success of their business. Moreover, 40 percent of respondents do not feel ready to switch to new technologies, for example Electronic exhibition of invoices.

This provides a huge opportunity to increase productivity for the government. Not only introduce educational initiatives to help self-employed Australians understand the benefits of digitalisation, but also capture their omnipotent technology potential.

So what does this look like in practical terms?

Entrepreneur Jamie Shostak, who develops and grows applications Breakfast, offers to draw inspiration from our world colleagues. “Digitalization often starts from the top. We see governments around the world taking some incredible initiatives – such as the Singapore Bluetooth TraceTogether tag to track the spread of COVID-19, to full-fledged digital citizenship in Estonia – all of which have a dramatic effect on small businesses, ”he says.

Along with this, the introduction of educational programs, funding and grantsas well as simplifying regulatory compliance can help more entrepreneurs introduce new technologies.

Finding stability indefinitely

While technology will continue to play an important role in helping small businesses emerge from the pandemic, challenges lie ahead. According to a Xero poll, a quarter (25.5 percent) of small businesses are concerned that they will not keep up to COVID-19 during the year, and a similar number (24.9 percent) are concerned that they will need a package to support future pandemic turbulence .

Aside from the widespread economic damage, there is no denying that the pandemic has forever changed the way we live and work. One of the results of this – “great implementation(with many overestimating when, where and how they work), leaving employers having a hard time finding new team members. More than a third (40 percent) of respondents said their small business had suffered from a lack of technical skills over the past two years, and nearly a quarter (24.7 percent) said they hoped for a new government and policies to help them hire new employees.

For small business executives such as Jamie, it is also a priority to believe that his staff is healthy and happy. He says: “As a company with a significant Australian team, we always think about how we can better take care of our people. We would like to see more investment from the government to get Australia back on track – in terms of health and the economy. “

Whatever the outcome of this year’s federal election, these findings make it clear that the needs of small businesses – all 2.4 million of them – must be central to public policies and programs. At the heart of this is addressing their concerns about technical support, digital resilience and staff development (as a starting point).

Why? Because small business is essential for the prosperity of our country, especially when we are cured of a pandemic.

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