A survey conducted by Sun Life Malaysia found that the Covid-19 pandemic is likely to weaken the competitiveness of younger businesses, as they are less prepared for unexpected business challenges and disruptions.
The survey, “Future of Family Businesses in Asia”, polled more than 250 family business owners in Malaysia, along with five other Asian markets, and found a large health and critical illness protection gap as only 61% of those businesses in Malaysia had health and accident insurance for its employees, while only 51% had key man insurance for the company.
“This clearly indicated the lack of planning, especially for family businesses that often rely on a small bench of key decision makers to run the firm, where the health and well-being of these leaders are integral to the health of the business.”
“Almost all surveyed business owners in Malaysia, about 97%, reported that if they, or their key people, suffered an incapacitating illness, it would have a serious impact on their business,” said Sun Life Malaysia CEO and president Raymond Lew.
Lew also noted that the economic uncertainties from the pandemic has created numerous challenges, such as declining sales and new standard operating procedures, that further complicates health and protection planning for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) during this period.
“With plenty of uncertainties ahead as Covid-19 continues to loom large, there is a substantial possibility for massive fluctuations in terms of business management, personnel or profit that can take a significant toll to these SMEs.”
“While the first priority for business owners is steering their businesses safely through the pandemic, we strongly encourage them not to lose sight of their longer-term plans and to take a holistic view of the range of financial solutions available to offset their risks and protect and strengthen their business and succession plans for generations to come,” said Lew in a statement. – Sep 2, 2020
