Deloitte chief calls for regional boost

SHARON Fraser, recently promoted as managing partner of Deloitte’s 17 offices outside London, believes more could be done to boost economies in the regions.

To improve confidence and job creation Ms Fraser favours investment in major infrastructure projects, which would in turn help the beleaguered consumer sector.

She is unsure too whether Quantitative Easing has yet had the desired effect on the real economy, stating: “Money doesn’t seem to be filtering through to loans for businesses, which is where it needs to be.”

Since her appointment in the summer, Ms Fraser, who is combining her national role with that of a senior audit partner in Deloitte’s North West practice, has travelled around the country meeting her colleagues in other offices.

Describing the economic conditions as “the worst I’ve seen” Fraser says the further north she travelled, the more challenging the environment is.

The uncertainty over the Eurozone has sapped business confidence, and will continue to erode positive sentiment until it is resolved, she says.

Assessing the regional picture she says: “Scotland, for example, is having the toughest time, whereas in London, in terms of transactional activity is a lot frothier. There’s a reasonable amount in the North West, but not at the same level.

“It’ll be interesting to see what happens in the next few months, as lot of things have been delayed already. We’re now starting to see people saying ‘We know we offered X for the business but we want to reduce the price by 10%’  So it’ll be interesting to see if sellers sell or hang on.”

She said the corporate mindset is increasingly one of caution with cost cutting firmly on the agenda. It’s not all bad news, though – she  is keen to point out, that in tough times there are inevitably winners as well as losers.

“Yes there are challenges  – some people say they can’t see things getting much better for five years – but there are opportunities too, because businesses who can get it right will be successful. There are many with cash, and good management who can go out and pick up some good deals.”

2011 is, with the exception of a year’s stint in industry, her 25th year with Deloitte, which she joined as a graduate after studying at Oxford.

She describes her role as “fantastic and a privilege”, though admits there is always a pressure on her diary.

“I work with a fantastic team of people at Deloitte and I have relationships with some outstanding clients such as The Co-operative Group.”