Small businesses are at the backbone of the global economy, despite the number of challenges they face. Learn how SMBs are tackling five major hurdles in 2025.
Blaise Radley
Editorial Strategist
Workday
The organizations most likely to receive the lion’s share of global media attention are inevitably multinational enterprises. Despite this, Statista shows that 90% of companies globally are small businesses, accounting for 70% of the world’s gross domestic product (GDP).
Succeeding in such a fast-paced and competitive environment requires smaller companies to function in an increasingly similar fashion to their larger peers. More often than not, they compete with lower cash flow, more limited resources, and reduced market recognition. Understanding the challenges they face ahead of time is often critical.
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Gaining a competitive advantage requires small business leaders to think strategically, adapt quickly, and utilize industry-leading solutions to support operations at every level of the organization.
Here are five of the most common challenges small businesses are facing today:
The bottom line for any business, regardless of size, will always be the balance sheet. However, smaller organizations have to contend with a growing list of costs without the financial safety net afforded to large enterprises. With scarce resources and increased risks, small businesses often spend more time putting out fires rather than focusing on growth and development. Organizations that don’t innovate, however, will encounter diminishing returns.
Addressing rising costs and progressively more complicated business operations requires companies to leverage automation. By automating inefficient, manual processes, employees are freed up to focus on the bigger picture. Here are three ways Workday helps small businesses tackle these challenges head-on:
“95% of Workday deployments are delivered on time and on budget.”
The shift to digitization and automation has created a status quo where a company’s data is its most important asset (aside from its people, of course). With large enterprises processing data from millions of prospects and customers every day, it’s critical that small businesses leverage their own data efficiently and effectively. Without a consolidated view of internal and external data streams, charting the right path forward can prove impossible.
Over 76% of senior finance executives say that data inaccuracy and data inconsistency top their list of pain points. As it stands, many small businesses take too long to analyze their data, which results in stale, inaccurate insights and a host of missed opportunities. Here’s how Workday ensures business leaders have a full overview of their organization:
“Over 76% of senior finance executives say that data inaccuracy and data inconsistency top their list of pain points.”
As an organization continues to expand, the same talent strategy won’t work forever. Scaling from a company where everyone shares the same office space to one with multiple locations requires a major shift in mentality. That applies to how you retain foundational talent, and to how you attract the right employees to address emerging skills gaps.
The success of your talent strategy hinges on the HR processes you have in place. Relying on outdated manual systems typically results in an overworked HR administration team, increased turnover risk from frustrated employees, and inefficient hiring practices. Here’s how Workday empowers your business to scale effectively without losing sight of what makes it unique:
AI is essential for smaller organizations aiming to compete effectively and achieve sustainable growth in today's dynamic market. But, while 60% of SMBs today are researching or piloting AI—just 7% are scaling AI or at maturity, compared to 27% of large enterprises.
So, for many, there’s still lots of ground to cover in terms of mastering AI and using it to elevate their business relative to the competition. Here’s how Workday can help smaller organizations leverage AI’s transformative potential and secure their future.
“Having the right people in the right roles at the right time is critical, especially when budgets are tight.”
Macroeconomic uncertainty—be it tariffs, inflation, or recession, real or threatened—and the unpredictable operating environment it creates represent a significant challenge for small businesses. Unlike larger corporations with more extensive resources and broader market diversification, smaller organizations are often more vulnerable to sudden shifts in the economic, political, or regulatory environment. Here’s how Workday can help them maintain steady operations, plan for the future, and safeguard their financial health.
At Workday, we care about our customers. That’s why we have a 95%+ customer satisfaction rating—a rating that we’ve surpassed consistently for 10+ years. In that time, we’ve learned how organizations of every size and function work best, and now we can pass that expertise on to you.
As Brett Ungashick, CEO and founder of HRIS software advisor OutSail, recently cited, “Workday GO brings enterprise-grade HR and finance software to small businesses—offering fixed pricing, rapid deployment, and Fortune 500 best practices.”
With over 75% of our 10,000+ customers employing fewer than 3,500 people, Workday is constantly helping to level the playing field for growing businesses. Thanks to Workday GO, our exclusive SMB packaging and pricing that gets you started with essential functionality and then lets you easily add on additional capabilities as you scale, Workday can meet your HR and finance needs today, while also setting you up for the future with a platform you won’t ever outgrow.
To learn more about how Workday supports small businesses, see our dedicated SMB page.
This article has been updated since it was first published in May 2024.
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