With rising expectations for growth on the horizon, 38% of small business owners are planning to hire in the next year to manage their expanding workload, results of a recent poll show.

The quarterly American Express Small Business Monitor, conducted by Angus Reid Public Opinion, found that the vast majority of the 509 businesses polled expect improving conditions this year.

Although nearly one in four small businesses let people go over the last two years due to the recession and half are seeing a downturn in their business, 81% of Canadian small business owners foresee taking on more business in the coming year and 59% expect to expand the scope of their business.

Of business owners who plan to hire, more than half are looking for full-time, permanent employees. Better yet, 84% of new positions will pay at least as much as they did last year.

Nearly one-fifth of small business owners who plan to hire in the next year say they have already seen a significant increase in business and thus need more staff.

More than half of business owners are hopeful their business’s future financial position will improve.

“Small businesses are a key contributor to job creation in this country,” said Howard Grosfield, vice president and general manager of small business services at American Express Canada and International. “So when the effects of the downturn begin to ease, the impact of these hiring plans will be felt across Canada.”

Expectations of a better year are also pushing small business owners to make other ambitious plans, such as investing in new equipment or other capital expenditures, upgrading their IT and expanding their business’s physical space.

Confidence also appears to influence owners’ comfort in taking on risk. Those willing to accept above average or significant risk have jumped to 25% of respondents from 14% in March 2009.

“While it is very encouraging to see that the general outlook is bright, we cannot dismiss the fact that this recession is still quite real,” Grosfield said. “The fact that half of respondents are still experiencing a downturn and a small number report that bankruptcy is a real possibility means we have not turned the corner yet. That being said, for most small business owners, confidence is high.”

IE