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KPMG Private Enterprise | Insights for privately owned businesses | November 2021

With COP26 recently held in Glasgow, our world leaders have made significant progress in pledging climate co-operation. For business leaders, now is the time to take action to realise a sustainable and responsible future.

The complex challenges of the climate emergency require collaboration and systemic action across geographies, sectors, and generations. Our recent UK-wide Leaders Circle highlighted the urgency with which companies must take action as investors, customers and employees look for decisive progress. Now is the time to collaborate with the next generation of leaders to turn plans into actions. To help you build your plans, and answer key questions around your company’s exposure to climate change, we have a host of materials from our Climate IQ assessment tool and Greenovate for a better economy report, in partnership with Cambridge University. Now is the time for your business to unleash the positive in net zero

Our Q3 UK Tech Monitor shows that despite a challenging environment facing cost increases, recruitment challenges and raw material shortages, the sector remains upbeat thanks to greater corporate budgets for technology investment and new export opportunities.

We also react to the Chancellor’s 2021 Autumn Budget in our Budget on a page guide, covering the key measures and through our Autumn Budget 2021 insights page which breaks down implications on employers, individuals, private businesses and different sectors.

And finally, this month we congratulate Krilltech, the winner of our 2021 Global Tech Innovator competition. Beating 16 fast-growth companies form around the globe, Krilltech are a tech innovator of today and a titan of tomorrow.

I hope you find this edition interesting. As always, please reach out to me or my colleagues to discuss any of the challenges you are facing.

In this edition:

  • Unleashing the positive in net zero
  • Greenovate for a better economy
  • Reflections from COP26
  • UK Tech Monitor, Q3 2021
  • Autumn Budget 2021 – commentary and reactions
  • Digital Fuel report
  • Krilltech – the 2021 Global Tech Innovator winner
  • Launching soon: Private Equity Value Creation levers report
  • Dealmakers Talk - Diversity at the heart of strategy | 12:00 Wed 01 Dec

Unleashing the positive in net zero

In order to overcome the complex problems of the climate emergency, collaboration and systemic action across geographies, sectors and generations is needed. We are ready to help you tackle them to realise a sustainable and responsible future, together.

Our Hindsight is 2050 vision report, in partnership with SSE, shares the lessons learned from the UK’s efforts to decarbonise the energy market. There’s also Climate IQ, a multi-industry risk management tool that can run multiple scenarios to address the questions you have around your company’s exposure to climate change.

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Greenovate for a better economy

Businesses are under pressure to produce time-sensitive plans to reduce carbon emissions and in light of COP26, our report, prepared for us by the University of Cambridge as part of our ESG agenda, investigates how innovation on green-related activities can contribute to the prosperity of the future economy.

Now is the time for plans to become reality – UK business leaders reflections from COP26

On Friday 19 November, our Leaders Circles network of clients from across the UK gathered for an important discussion on just what COP26 meant for businesses.

Simon Virley, Vice Chair and Head of Energy & Natural Resources, KPMG in the UK, noted the prominence of business at this year’s event compared to previous conferences – a clear sign of the crucial role businesses must play, regardless of sector or scale, in driving the commitments made into tangible progress. In constantly evolving conditions, it is clear that although with the support of Government, it is businesses that must lead the charge into change. A sentiment echoed by Lucelia Rodrigues, Professor of Sustainable and Resilient Cities, University of Nottingham.

Considering the impact of real estate became a key topic throughout the discussion as the built environment contributes c.50% of carbon emissions. This leaves the remaining 50% to be addressed which must come from a collective of small steps which contribute to a larger impact. Finally, John McCalla-Leacy, Head of ESG, KPMG in the UK, expanded on the need for education on what businesses should be doing to address change, prompting that deeper engagement and collaboration with the next generation of leaders is critical.

In summary, our business leaders must turn plans into decisive action to help reach net zero targets and make their mark to protect the future for generations to come.

UK Tech Monitor, Q3 2021

UK tech companies signalled a further increase in output during Q3 2021, as most pandemic-related restrictions ended and economic activity continued to recover. Though solid, the rate of expansion was not as sharp as that seen during Q2, as the initial bounceback in activity petered out. Looser pandemic restrictions, greater corporate budgets for technology investment, new export opportunities and stronger global economic conditions were all expected to support growth in 2022, but rising costs remain dark clouds on the horizon

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Autumn Budget 2021 – Commentary and reactions from our experts

The Chancellor of the Exchequer stated that his 2021 Budget would start the work of preparing for the post COVID-19 economy post. With a focus on departmental spending increases and investments in infrastructure, many of which were pre-announced, what are the main tax impacts for business and individuals?

Read our Budget on a page for a quick overview of the key measures or visit our Autumn Budget 2021 insights page for a detailed breakdown of implications on employers, individuals, private businesses, multinationals and different sectors including social housing, education, transport, healthcare and local government.

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Digital Fuel

When COVID-19 reared its head, it was sudden and dramatic, forcing revenues to plummet across many industries. Almost overnight, companies of all sizes had to adjust to new ways of keeping their people, customers and suppliers safe and connected remotely.

KPMG commissioned Forrester Consulting to explore the impact of COVID-19 on organisations' digital transformation strategies and found that organisations are focusing on four key elements which we explore in this report.

Krilltech crowned the 2021 Global Tech Innovator winner

Krilltech has been developing nanobiotech solutions to increase crop productivity and quality in an economical and environmentally sustainable manner since 2015. Fast forward to today and they were crowned as the KPMG Private Enterprise Global Tech Innovator 2021. Congratulations to the Krilltech team!

Registration to compete in next year’s competition is now open.  

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Launching soon: Private Equity Value Creation levers report

How much value are Private Equity (PE) firms leaving on the table? Be among the first to read our new report and find out what leading PE and portfolio firms are prioritising.

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Dealmakers Talk – Diversity at the heart of strategy | 12:00 Wed 01 Dec

Join us at 12:00pm on Wednesday 1 December where we’ll be discussing why diversity should be at the heart of business strategy and why it’s important in creating deal value. We’ll be joined by Ebele Okobi, Public Policy Director, Africa at Facebook (now called Meta), and Simon Braham, Sustainable Growth Funds Partner at Bridges Fund Management.

Dealmakers Talk – Diversity at the heart of strategy | 12:00 Wed 01 Dec

Join us at 12:00pm on Wednesday 1 December where we’ll be discussing why diversity should be at the heart of business strategy and why it’s important in creating deal value. We’ll be joined by Ebele Okobi, Public Policy Director, Africa at Facebook (now called Meta), and Simon Braham, Sustainable Growth Funds Partner at Bridges Fund Management.

KPMG Private Enterprise: From early stage funding advice to planning an exit, KPMG Private Enterprise (KPE) teams support privately owned businesses with their growth agendas. Our latest business insights can be found here.

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