chairman's message
In the period from September 2008 to March 2009, Cyril Sweett had a strong year of growth and development, exceeding its past performance in revenue and profitability, thereby meeting market expectations on this basis. This robust performance reflects the swift and decisive actions taken by management during the period to pro-actively manage the downturn. Trading conditions in the construction and property sector in particular have been tough and are likely to remain uncertain for some time. Given these tough conditions, I am pleased with the overall strong performance of the Group.
It has been a year of adjustment for the Group. At the beginning of the year acquisitions were completed to advance our strategy to grow the Group globally, further diversify the business and secure a greater proportion of UK public sector workload. All of the acquisitions have been successfully integrated into the Group and we are delighted that, having joined us, the excellent senior management have embraced their new roles in the enlarged organisation.
By the mid point in the year, our expectation of a toughening economic climate had been realised, and management took the difficult but necessary action to right size the cost base of the business to fit the market conditions. This responsive action, combined with our strong balance sheet and net cash position, has ensured a robust business that will be able to flex and adjust to future market conditions.
Each member of the management team has experience of dealing with recessions in the past, and the recent appointment of Chris Goscomb as Chief Financial Officer has further strengthened the Executive. All of Cyril Sweett's management and staff upheld excellent standards throughout the year by continuing to develop new business and deliver high quality advice and services to our clients. Our people are central to our success and without their diligence and spirit we would not have delivered such a good performance. On behalf of the Group board I would like to thank them sincerely for all their hard work.
We anticipate that the retail and commercial markets will remain uncertain for some time and there is likely to be some slowdown in UK public expenditure from early 2010. Overseas markets will also depend on the economic welfare of each individual country or region, and some will fare better than others. Whilst we will therefore be responsive to the short term environment and focus on our strong market positions, we will also look to develop the business in line with our 2012 Strategic plan. This will drive the extension of our offering into new sectors in the UK, the development of our position as a leader in sustainable development and the establishment of our services in a wider range of territories overseas.
With a clear focus on operational development, cash management and client delivery, we are confident that the business will emerge from the downturn stronger and leaner and will be well placed to benefit from the recovery.
Francis Ives - Chairman
