If you want a perspective on the nature of a specific market – we have a range of publicly available Market Reports in the following areas (please click on the adjacent tabs):

• Employment Law Services
• Health & Safety Services
• HR & Payroll Software
• Legal Information Services
• Regulatory Consultancies

While each report is updated continually and the report is reviewed and republished annually – ARK undertakes to ensure that in any given calendar year any client will receive the most up to date version as soon as it is published.  If, for example, you buy the HR & Payroll report in February and it is updated the following June, you will receive both a copy on purchase and the updated version.

The list below illustrates some of the areas where we have completed bespoke detailed analyses:

• Contractor and Specialist SME Tax Solution Providers
• Credit Information Solutions
• Financial Services and Insurance Compliance Suppliers
• Institutional Suppliers of Compliance Services
• Payroll & HR solutions for SMEs
• Property Services Suppliers
• Tax & Accountancy Solutions for Accountants
• Training Suppliers in Professional Markets

Clients typically use our services as follows:

Blue Chips – manage their limited budgets well and like to benchmark their divisional and product line level assumptions on competitor behaviour on a regular basis as part of their business planning processes;

Business Development/Sales & Marketing Directors – need an independent view on which they can set and challenge performance benchmarks – from sales growth to sales per employee ratios ARK reports supply this, with much more detail on competitors than is typically available internally.

CEOs and CFOs – like to see the long term perspectives on market behaviour; use the benchmarks for strategic planning purposes. They like to have a source of detailed market behaviour which is independent from sales teams and internal sources. ARK reports are based on exactly the sort of divisional benchmarking analyses undertaken by global billion dollar enterprises.

Entrepreneurs – know the value of information and like having the ability to rely on FTSE level intelligence without having to build a FTSE level business intelligence team.  Owner managers also like to get a straightforward view on their potential enterprise value in layman’s terms.

Government departments – rely heavily on submissions from interest groups such as major companies, institutes, trades unions, or lobbyists, but also use ARK reports as a reliable independent source of empirical data.

Institutions and trade associations – need to know how the market their members operate in is working and they use ARK to establish market size benchmarks and trends, as well as informing their submissions on Competition Authority referrals when required.

Investment Banks – like to deal in facts, and they use ARK analyses to establish long term strategic benchmarks and the fundamentals of market attractiveness.  In reviewing business plans, mbo assumptions, and M&A potential, ARK reports are used by corporate finance teams extensively.

Professional Lawyers and Accountants - use ARK reports typically as part of either a due diligence exercise or in building a case for submission or defense with the OFT and Competition Authorities. They will typically also use the reports as a basis for advice to their clients on value.

VCs and bankers - like to hedge their bets on a market sector and gain exceptional insights into both market structure and potential prospects.  Increasingly the early bird gets the worm and ARK reports are very cost effective in minimizing pre bid costs while delivering research which would otherwise cost over £20k typically.