Confidence climbs among small businesses Research by Sage shows that more than three quarters of SMEs expect to return to pre-pandemic levels of profitability in the next 12 months. The poll by the accounting and payroll technology provider also found that two in five smaller businesses expected to hire more people in 2022, with half of those planning to increase their workforce by more than 20%. The poll, conducted before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, saw nearly a quarter of respondents flag increasing costs and inflation as their most pressing issue, with 43% saying they expect cost pressures to increase in the next 12 months.