Survey to help businesses drive the local economy forward
Published on 09 May 2018
Survey to help businesses drive the local economy forward
Businesses in the Colac Otway Shire are being asked to help identify issues and opportunities that can drive the local economy forward over the next four years.
A survey is being conducted to help shape Council’s Economic Development and Tourism Strategy 2018-2022.
Mayor Joe McCracken said the online survey was designed to capture important information about current business activity in the Shire and to assess the attitudes of local businesses to the future of the local economy.
“This is a really important survey and I’d urge people in business in the Shire to spend five minutes completing the survey so that we can get an accurate snapshot of their views,” he said.
“We want to know if their staff numbers are up or down, if their turnover is up or down, are they confident about their profitability moving forward and whether they have challenges such as recruiting suitable staff.
“There are questions about whether they are likely to expand over the next few years and whether they perceive there are barriers we need to address to encourage more business investment in the Shire.”
Cr McCracken said the survey was one part of the Council’s consultation with the community to ensure the 2018-2022 strategy was as beneficial and practical as it could be.
“Council has also been conducting workshops to gather information from agriculture, manufacturing, tourism, retail, health, food, fibre and services businesses to feed into the strategy,” he said.
“It’s very important that we are able to gather as much feedback as possible because our local business people are best placed to identify gaps and opportunities in our current market place.
“The survey also seeks responses on initiatives that can drive more business, like events. We want to know people’s views on what type of events pose opportunities and where they should be held.”
Cr McCracken said the economies of towns in the Shire were constantly changing and the survey sought to better understand those trends and maximise opportunities where they were identified.
“We urge businesses to take the time to complete the survey and assist us in the development of this important strategy for the Colac Otway Shire community,” he said.
The survey closes on May 31 and can be found at www.surveymonkey.com/r/EDStrategy2018