It was yesterday announced that British companies that sell their products or services mostly online have seen revenues grow 50 times faster than GDP growth in the last three years. Gooch explained: “Internet companies and British tech start ups are fuelling the economy, with great potential for expansion being driven by SMEs.
“British tech companies are one of the few groups of firms that are key to growing the economy and support needs to be given to ensure that this growth continues to encourage the economy back on to its feet,” she said.
Gooch continued: “There are some fantastic initiatives out there, including Google’s Campus concept for fostering tech startups in London, which yesterday announced that it had exceeded all expectations in its first year. However, what these initiatives and government programmes are failing to acknowledge, is that only 23 per cent of British tech companies are based in London, but tech companies are experiencing growth country-wide.
“There are so many resources, funds and support programmes being pumped into companies based in London, yet the majority are based elsewhere in Britain.
“Large organisations, providing support and funding for the British tech industry and the UK Government both need to realise the potential outside of the south east. Staffordshire, where eg solutions was established, is a fantastic example of another tech hub within the country, but on the whole, the talent in this area and beyond the walls of London is not being nurtured, and it is not receiving the support it deserves. eg’s partnership with DORISCENTRAL helps us to source exceptional graduate level IT talent to tackle the ongoing UK IT skills shortage and contribute to the industry’s duty to create a new generation of experts. We have seen huge interest in this scheme, and the overwhelming number of applicants demonstrates that young talent is crying out for support in kick-starting their careers, and further contributing to the growth of the economy.”
Gooch concluded: “More emphasis needs to be placed on British talent as a whole, because it’s something as a nation we should be pretty damn proud of.”