‘Ulster Bank has €50 million available to help SMEs and mid-corporates invest and innovate in their businesses’

Olaf Fitzsimmons, head of SME banking (East) with Ulster Bank Ireland DAC, talks to Graham Clifford about the key challenges facing SMEs and why Ulster Bank is Key Event Partner for this year’s SFA conference

Olaf Fitzsimmons, head of SME banking (East) with Ulster Bank Ireland DAC

What are the key challenges facing SMEs at the moment?

While the economic backdrop is positive, that doesn’t mean running a business has become any easier and as we work with our customers to support them in their day-to-day businesses, the key challenges they tell us they are facing are staffing, the potential impact of Brexit, managing growth and, finally, knowing if they are really making money or not.

On the staffing front ...