Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are crucially important to societies and  economies around the world. Across the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and  Development (OECD) countries, SMEs account for 99% of all businesses and threequarters of all jobs in those sectors most affected by the COVID-19 crisis (eg tourism,  retail and professional services, and construction and transportation).

COVID-19, the war in the Ukraine, and the ensuing  economic crises have hit SMEs hard. Surging inflation,  heightened supply chain issues, the energy crisis, and  barriers in access to finance, make this an extremely  stressful time for SME owners. With usually small cash  buffers to withstand unexpected economic shocks, SMEs  across the world struggle to survive. In February 2022, the  Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)  and The Corporate Finance Network (The CFN) SME  Recovery Tracker revealed that, in the UK, one in four SMEs  were struggling to meet payroll costs in 2022 (ACCA 2022).

In light of these challenges, the Deakin Integrated  Reporting Centre (DIRC) has published a white paper with  the support of the ACCA and the Chartered Accountants  Australia and New Zealand (CA ANZ), exploring how SMEs’  transition from traditional business thinking to adopting  an integrated approach can help them survive. The white  paper draws on expert views and evidence presented at  an international roundtable comprising leading global  thinkers and practitioners in accountancy and business,