The survey summarizes the findings of a 2011 study of British business leaders known as Captains of Industry. 100 business leaders were interviewed between September and December 2011. Key findings include: 1) Most business leaders see the Eurozone sovereign debt crisis and government deficit/debt as the most important issues facing Britain. 2) A majority of 56% believe the general economic condition in Britain will get

1. 1
Survey of Britain’s
Captains of Industry 2011
6th January 2012
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2. Methodology and sample
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3. Methodology
This report presents the findings of the 2011 study of Captains of Industry, widely
acknowledged as the authoritative source of opinion on Britain's business elite
Respondents are executive board-level directors only.
Companies are from:
– FTSE 350;
– top 500 industrials by turnover; and
– top 100 financial companies by capital employed
A total of 100 respondents took part
Fieldwork: 12 September – 21 December 2011
– 94 interviews were conducted face-to-face and 6 by telephone
Where results do not sum to 100%, this may be due to computer rounding, multiple
responses or the exclusion of don't know categories
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4. Composition of the sample
Change Employees 2011 Change
Industry Sector 2011
‘10 – ‘11 ‘10- ‘11
Financial/ Banking 17 -4 Below 500 40 +22
Services/ retailing 23 +4 500-4,999 36 -14
Technology/ media/ telecoms 12 -3
5000-24,999 17 -8
Mining/ Minerals/ Natural
10 +2 25,000 + 6 -3
Resources
Manufacturing 14 +1
Utilities 5 -1 Job title 2011 Change
Construction 9 -2 ‘10- ‘11
Transport/ distribution 3 +2 Chairman 34 0
Property/Real Estate 1 -2 Chief Executive 33 +3
Other 6
Finance Director/ CFO 16 0
Managing Director 1 -4
FTSE Index 2011 Change
‘10-‘11 Other 16 -1
FTSE 100 19 -5
Head office Location 2011 Change
FTSE 250 36 +8
‘10- ‘11
Other listed and Private 45 -5
London 52 +3
Figures shown are actual values
Base: British Captains of Industry 2011 (100), interviewed Sep-Dec 2011 Outside London 48 -5
Base: British Captains of Industry 2010 (102), interviewed Sep-Dec 2010
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5. Background findings
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6. Economic optimism
Do you think that the general economic condition of the country will
improve, stay the same or get worse over the next 12 months?
General General General General
election election election election
Improve
Get worse
Get
worse
56%
Improve
Stay the 9%
same
Year
Base: British Captains of Industry (100), interviewed Sep-Dec 2011
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7. Issues facing Britain
What do you see as the most important issues facing Britain today?
Top Mentions
The Eurozone
Government deficit/debt
Lack of economic growth
Consumer confidence/confidence
Unemployment
Youth unemployment
Societal dysfunction/social issues
Availability of finance/bank lending
Financial crisis/instability
Base: British Captains of Industry (100), interviewed Sep-Dec 2011
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8. Potential for growth
In which of the 1 or 2 following sector do you see the greatest and least
potential for growth in the UK over the next 12 months and which do you
consider the UK to have a competitive advantage?
Base: British Captains of Industry (100), interviewed Sep-Dec 2011
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9. The UK
To what extent do you agree or disagree with each of the following statements?
Base: British Captains of Industry (100), interviewed Sep-Dec 2011
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10. The Euro
To what extent do you agree or disagree with each of the following
statements?
Net percentage
points
The Euro currency
will survive the
current European +22pp
Sovereign debt
crisis
Net= % Agree-% Disagree
Base: British Captains of Industry (100), interviewed Sep-Dec 2011
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11. The UK
To what extent do you agree or disagree with each of the following
statements?
Net percentage
points
The UK is currently
an attractive place to +19pp
invest
Net= % Agree-% Disagree
Base: British Captains of Industry (100), interviewed Sep-Dec 2011
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12. Best environment for business
In the current climate, which of the following countries do you believe
offers the best environment for business?
%
USA
China
UK
Australia
Brazil
Germany
Canada
India
France
Italy
Japan
Mexico
Russia
Spain
Other
Base: British Captains of Industry (100), interviewed Sep-Dec 2011
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13. Most attractive for investment
Which of the following countries do you believe is the most attractive
for investment?
%
Brazil
China
USA
India
UK
Australia
Germany
Russia
Canada
France
Italy
Japan
Mexico
Spain
Other
Base: British Captains of Industry (100), interviewed Sep-Dec 2011
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14. Company optimism
Do you think that business for your own company will improve, stay
the same or get worse over the next 12 months?
Don’t know General General General General
Get worse election election election election
Improve
56%
Stay the Get
same worse
15%
Improve
Year
Base: British Captains of Industry (100), interviewed Sep-Dec 2011
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15. Issues facing companies
What do you see as the most important issues facing your company
today?
Top Mentions
Global economic uncertainty
Lack of (consumer) demand
Over-regulation/inefficient regulatory
system/regulatory change
Availability of finance
Lack of confidence
Eurozone crisis
Lack of industrial/economic
growth/investment
Recruitment needs/attracting and keeping
staff
Base: British Captains of Industry (100), interviewed Sep-Dec 2011
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16. Government involvement
Do you think the government has too little involvement in business
and industry at the moment, too much involvement or about the right
amount?
Too much About right Too little Don’t know
Base: British Captains of Industry (100), interviewed Sep-Dec 2011
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17. Regulation
Do you feel that the level of regulation affecting business in the UK
overall has been increasing or decreasing over the last 12 months or
has there been no change?
Decreasing
No
change Increasing
Base: British Captains of Industry (100), interviewed Sep-Dec 2011
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18. Regulation
To what extent do you agree or disagree with each of the following
statement...‘the level of regulation in the UK is harming the British
economy?’
% Strongly agree % Tend to agree % Neither % Tend to disagree % Strongly disagree
Net percentage
points
+85pp
2011
2010 +82pp
Base: British Captains of Industry 2011 (100), interviewed Sep-Dec 2011 Net= % Agree-% Disagree
Base: British Captains of Industry 2010 (102), interviewed Sep-Dec 2010
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19. Immigration
To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following
statement... ‘restrictions on immigration will harm the competitiveness
of the UK economy?’
% Strongly agree % Tend to agree % Neither % Tend to disagree % Strongly disagree
Net percentage
points
2011 +30pp
+25pp
2010
Base: British Captains of Industry 2011 (100), interviewed Sep-Dec 2011 Net= % Agree-% Disagree
Base: British Captains of Industry 2010 (102), interviewed Sep-Dec 2010

20. Public Sector Cuts
How much of an impact will public sector cuts have on your business
over the next 12 months?
Net percentage
points
2011 -47pp
2010 -47pp
Net = % Great deal/Fair amount -
Base: British Captains of Industry 2011 (100), interviewed Sep-Dec 2011 % Just a little/None at all
Base: British Captains of Industry 2010 (102), interviewed Sep-Dec 2010

21. The recession and product/service offerings
To what extent do you agree or disagree … ‘the recession has forced
us to change our products and/or service offering?’
% Strongly agree % Tend to agree % Neither % Tend to disagree % Strongly disagree
Net percentage
points
2011 -18pp
-1pp
2010
Base: British Captains of Industry 2011 (100), interviewed Sep-Dec 2011 Net= % Agree-% Disagree
Base: British Captains of Industry 2010 (102), interviewed Sep-Dec 2010

22. Change of product/service offering
How have you changed your product and/or service offering as a result
of the recession? How, if at all, do you plan to change your product
and/or service offering over the next 12 months?
% Changed as a result of the recession % Will change over the next 12 months
Top Mentions Top Mentions
Reduced price/lower cost
alternatives No plans to change
Increased consumer focus New Product/new product
development
Streamlined to decrease
costs/more attention on cost Increased consumer focus
Focused on areas of Expand into emerging
potential markets
Diversifying Improve existing products
products/services
Base: British Captains of Industry , Changed as a result of the recession (37), Will change over the next 12 months (100),
interviewed Sep-Dec 2011

23. Most Impressive Business Person
Who do you think is the most impressive business person in Britain at
the moment? Who else?
Sir Richard
Branson, Virgin Sir Martin
(12%) Sorrell, WPP
Sir John Rose, Charlie (10%)
Rolls Royce Mayfield, John
(9%) Lewis (9%)
=3 =3
5 6 7 8 =9 =9
Bob Diamond Sir James Sir Terry Sir John Lord Wolfson Sir Philip
(8%) Dyson (7%) Leahy (6%) Parker (5%) (4%) Green (4%)
Base: British Captains of Industry (100), interviewed Sep-Dec 2011
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24. Most Impressive Business Person
Who do you think is the most impressive business person in Britain
at the moment? Who else? (*asked as industrialist up to 1999, as
business leader in 2000)
Lord Hanson
Lord
Weinstock
Sir Colin
Marshall Sir John
Sir John Rose
Sir Terry
Harvey-
Jones Leahy Lord
Sir Richard Browne
Lord Hanson Sykes Sir Terry
Richard Leahy
Branson
Lord Lord
Weinstock Browne
Sir
David
Simon
Base: British Captains of Industry, 1981-2011
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25. Appendices
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26. Statistical reliability
Only a sample of the ‘population’ has been interviewed so we cannot be certain
that the figures obtained are exactly those we would have found, had everybody
been interviewed (the ‘true’ values).
For any percentage given, however, we can estimate ‘confidence intervals’
within which the true values are likely to fall. For example, if 19% of Captains
say their business will improve in the next 12 months we can be 95% sure that
the ‘true’ value for the population would be between 11 and 27, i.e. a margin of 8
percentage points on each side.
Similar margins for other percentages and sub-groups of the respondents are
given in the following tables. It should be remembered that, in any case, the
‘true’ finding is much more likely to be towards the centre of the possible range
of responses than towards the margins.
For similar reasons, apparent differences in results relating to sub groups may,
if small, not necessarily reflect genuine attitudinal differences. We can be 95%
sure that differences exceeding those in the second table are genuine, or
‘significant’ differences.
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27. Examples of statistical reliability
95% Confidence Interval
Sample size 10% or 90% 20% or 80% 30% or 70% 40% or 60% 50%
± ± ± ± ±
c.100 (all Captains) 6 8 9 10 10
c.80 (example subgroup) 7 9 10 11 11
c.50 (example subgroup) 8 11 13 14 14
Approximate percentage to which margin relates
Sample sizes being compared (sub-groups or trends)
10% or 90% 20% or 80% 30% or 70% 40% or 60% 50%
± ± ± ± ±
100 v 100 8 11 13 14 14
(e.g. all 2010 v all 2009)
50 v 50 12 16 18 19 20
(example subgroups)
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28. CONTACTS
Study Director: Matthew Chatterton
Telephone: 020 7347 3112, email: matthew.chatterton@ipsos.com
Study Manager: Kirk Darby
Telephone: 020 7347 3064, email: kirk.darby@ipsos.com
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