Insights

Companies outsource back-office business processes mainly to boost efficiency and reduce costs. Payroll, HR and accounting processes – the most common to be outsourced – are heavily transactional, and many companies determine that external specialists can execute these far more cost-effectively than they can themselves.

More businesses are spurred on by a ‘fear of missing out’ (known colloquially as ‘FOMO’) than by a positive desire for growth when expanding abroad, according to new research from Grant Thornton's International Business Report (IBR). Business leaders are a fifth more likely to expand when presented with a negatively framed scenario than with the exact same scenario that was framed positively.

Drawing on data and insight from the Grant Thornton International Business Report (IBR), the Grant Thornton Global Dynamism Index (GDI), the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), this short report considers the outlook for Latin America in 2015

The European Commission (EC) recently announced plans to explore creating more integrated and deeper capital markets across its 28 Member States. Targeting a 2019 launch, the Capital Markets Union (CMU) aims to streamline financial markets and allow businesses access to more diverse financing sources, regardless of geographic location within the EU. Grant Thornton recently submitted recommendations to the EC on those efforts we believe can most help mid-sized businesses (MSBs) benefit from the proposal.

The European recovery is gaining momentum according to Grant Thornton's International Business Report (IBR). However, drawing on interviews with more than 1,100 regional executives, the report uncovers a number of threats, from Greek debt negotiations to high unemployment, which continue to undermine European stability and long-term business growth prospects.

Effective management of country-by-country reporting is going to require a new way of looking at transfer pricing

Businesses across Europe have greater concern about the prospect of the UK leaving the EU than Greece leaving the eurozone, according to new research from Grant Thornton. This comes just as the UK is about to go the polls in an election where a potential EU referendum is a major policy battleground, and just ahead of Greece’s deadline to repay almost €1billion to the International Monetary Fund in May.

Almost three months on from the launch of the European Central Bank's quantitative easing programme, new research from the Grant Thornton International Business Report (IBR) reveals a jump in business optimism in the eurozone in the first quarter of 2015, with confidence moving back up towards pre-crisis levels.

Will the CMU positively impact the dynamic businesses that drive growth across the EU? The EC estimates today that the EU’s medium sized enterprises receive one fifth of the funding that their counterparts in the United States can access. Clearly the EC would like to eliminate the gap, allowing the growth engine of the EU to benefit from simpler, more ready access to capital with an intended benefit of stronger growth and jobs.

The European Commission unveil plans to combat corporate tax avoidance and tackle businesses exploiting the complexity of tax rules.

There are a number of cost and commercial reasons why a group may consider relocating, but it is also important to understand the consequences.

Companies are increasingly focused on high-quality strategic transactions, with less time spent on investigating peripheral opportunities, according to our International Business Report (IBR), a survey of 5,400+ business leaders in 35 economies.