Of all the gripping exploits from Pyeongchang, nothing captures the risk-reward dynamic better than bobsleigh teams bombing down a mile-long course at 135kph. The teamwork, the minute calibrations as they shift their combined weight around those bends, every individual working together for the best possible outcome: it’s tempting to ask whether there isn’t a lesson here as we navigate our response to Brexit? [Quick disclaimer: I’m not about to embark on a stream of quips about spinning out of control. But that notion of business being all on the same side is one I find very compelling, with the UK’s exit now just 13 months away]. As I write, the prime minister and her cabinet are at Chequers working to secure common ground on what kind of trading relationship we want with the EU. That sense of a clear way forward is what businesses – and everyone else – have been calling for with growing urgency. But it’s not just the politicians who need to reach consensus. Those of us in business also have a similar role to play. ‘Business’ as a collective noun tends to imply that we all speak, act, think as one, as I said in a previous Column. Yet just as a bobsleigh team will have very different objectives to an ice dancer, or a ski jumper versus a speed skater, so different sectors will have completely different concerns that alter their desired outcomes. A high street food retailer will be primarily concerned with the robustness of their supply chains or the impact of exchange rates on consumer prices. A financial services firm won’t be worried about trade tariffs, but acutely alert to the question of equivalence or the possible need to set up an EU subsidiary. Clients are sharing those concerns with us all the time, including at a recent event KPMG jointly hosted with the FT for business leaders across a wide cohort of industries. One guest stressed that, even within sectors there can be a divergence of priorities – investment banks need different assurances to asset managers, for example. But that spectrum of priorities can lead to intransigence and the imposition of red lines. Within politics – and to some extent within business – there are currently three schools of thought on Brexit. Remain in the EU; leave; or aim for a soft Brexit, maintaining close alignment with the EU. The longer this level of disagreement prevails and more the intellectual firepower is segmented, the greater risk of a worse outcome for the UK.
A united front and a positive attitude will help UK businesses tackle Brexit challenges, according to KPMG Brexit head James Stewart. He says there is no “silver-bullet” solution that will please all sides in the debate and that it will be easier for firms to point out potential problems if they are unified. Businesses need a clear indication of what kind of trading links the UK will have with the EU, he said, and suggested the private and public sectors investigate what may be possible after Brexit, look at new solutions to boost growth, and at the contribution of technology.