ASIC has launched an online survey to improve its communication with small businesses.
Small businesses are ASIC’s largest customer base. They account for 96% of all registered businesses and collectively employ half the Australian workforce.
ASIC routinely interacts with small businesses as part of its legislative responsibilities for registration and licensing. ASIC also works with small businesses in their capacity as investors, financial consumers and users of financial markets regulated by ASIC.
To help small businesses understand and comply with their legal obligations, ASIC is seeking to identify the best way to provide information to small businesses in the most effective, efficient, cost effective way.
The survey will:
- give ASIC a better understanding of what small businesses know and do not know about their compliance obligations;
- assess if small businesses know where to find information about their compliance obligations; and
- provide feedback from small businesses about how ASIC can make compliance easier.
Examples of questions asked in the survey include:
- How would you rate ASIC’s engagement with small business?
- For your business, how can ASIC improve how we engage with you to provide information on your obligations?
Further, the survey will seek information from small businesses on the type of information they obtain from ASIC, how often they use this information, and how useful it is.
ASIC Commissioner Greg Tanzer said the survey gives small businesses the opportunity to provide insight into ways ASIC can more effectively help them.
‘A key strategic priority for ASIC is to ensure we have an efficient registry and licensing business that focuses on small business.
‘Our ultimate aim is to reduce the red tape that regulation imposes on small businesses which, in turn, will save them time and money that can be better spent on growing the business,’ Mr Tanzer said.
The survey can be found on the ASIC website and will take approximately five minutes to complete.
The survey will be available from 8 October to 21 December 2012.
There is no requirement for small businesses to identify themselves to complete the survey.
Background
Approximately 1.6 million businesses with a registered business name are likely to be small businesses, and many of the 1.8 million registered companies with ASIC may be defined as small businesses depending on how they self report.