It probably does not come as a surprise that London, Frankfurt, and Paris are considered the best cities for doing business, as indicated in the Harris Research Center survey commissioned by Healey & Baker. Amsterdam and Brussels follow in places 4 and 5.
While London continues to be perceived as the future financial capital of Europe, the majority of people interviewed for the survey believe London’s position will be harmed if the UK does not enter the monetary union. Who would take London’s place if the UK does not adopt the Euro? Look to Frankfurt (ECB) or Paris (EuroNext). Frankfurt is rated best city for staff productivity and second best for air links. Paris has the best transport options by road and rail (TGV/Thalys) and is considered second best for easy market access for hiring qualified staff.
Brussels is clearly perceived as the European political capital, and the Internet is considered having decisive impact on future business in all countries, except France and Italy.
Factors considered when deciding on location are communication skills and availability of qualified staff. Quality of life is seen as least significant factor. Barcelona topped all other cities for value for money for its offices and quality of life for its work force, but to move to the top three, Barcelona and other southern cities lack good communication skills and better qualified staff.
It appears that the future center for European business is the geographical area stretching from Paris through Brussels, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Munich, Milan, to Barcelona and Madrid, indicating a shift toward the southeast. The area from Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam, and Frankfurt to Geneva might be the preferred region for the near future because of the linguistic skills available.
Because the report also clearly shows an increase in the preference for smaller cities as business locations, this could be interpreted that the importance of the location itself is becoming less significant. The relative low cost of staff in smaller cities might even push this development to a new trend.
The report suggests that Great Britain might lose its position as leading business location of the coming years. The comfortable intermediary position between the US and continental Europe will probably change into an island scenario. The European Center of economic activity will move southeast, which is why the development of FM in countries like Germany, France, and Italy will prove important to the companies of the future. For further information on the survey and its results, email efmfred@akro.nl.
Based on a report from EFMe Newsletter
