Category Business Strategy & Advice
Ensuring your systems and processes are as efficient as possible to maximise the time available to focus on growing your business and creating wealth
Any business that isn’t planning for the future is planning to get left behind. While most business owners know that budgeting is a critical part of their planning, there is some confusion about which components should be included in a budget. There are three critical elements. Together, they provide the oversight you need for your
In a lot of situations, hiring a contractor to get a particular job done makes perfect sense. It may require expertise or skills none of your employees has. You may only need someone for a short timeframe to clear a backlog of work. Or maybe you just want to avoid having to go through a
“The cloud” is a phrase that means something very different these days, due to the increasing use of cloud computing. But what exactly is cloud computing? And is it a good option for small businesses? First, a quick definition. Without getting lost in ‘geekspeak’, cloud computing simply means both the software apps you use and
Thomas Edison once said that “Genius is one percent inspiration and 99 percent perspiration”. Unfortunately, going from that inspirational idea to the finished product takes a lot more than hard work. Just like Edison, you also need to invest in a lot of research and development. And R&D doesn’t come cheap. Fortunately the Federal Government
When Benjamin Franklin said that the only things certain in life were “death and taxes” most people didn’t consider that they may be closely linked. But problems with taxes can lead to the death of your small business unless you take steps to keep the taxman off your back.
Intellectual property. It’s a hot topic. Why? Because, in the globalised and ultra-connected world we live in, the intellectual property (IP) of individuals and businesses is increasingly at risk.
“Signing on the dotted line.” It wasn’t all that long ago that phrase meant signing pen-on-paper. Increasingly these days it can also mean signing on-screen with a stylus—or even with your finger tip!—or by using your computer and keyboard. So why have many businesses moved to using electronic signatures? What are the advantages over using
How highly do you value leads in your business? For any small or medium business, leads should be the most highly prized currency — to be consistently sought and converted.
As a business owner, do you or your managers spend a lot of time recruiting, conducting exit interviews, and onboarding new staff? When the ‘revolving door’ in and out of your business doesn’t stop revolving, it can impact so many parts of the business that it soon becomes a priority to address the problem.
Thinking of selling? Or just curious to know the value of your business in case you do decide to put it on the market at some point? Many business owners are well-wide of the mark when placing a value on their prized asset. They overvalue it and under-prepare for their exit, believing in a huge
There’s a saying in business, “You can go broke making a profit.” And another, “Cash is king. Profit is theory.” As you know only too well, you don’t pay rent, meet payroll or pay your bills with profit.
In order to claim superannuation contributions as a tax deduction your payment to super has to be made and cleared within the superannuation fund by 30th June 2018.
Over the years the Australian Taxation Office have continued to wise up and reduce or completely remove previously available deductions. Years ago when year end approached it was a crazy shuffle of money, cheques and paperwork. The Australian Taxation Office has sealed a lot of the old cracks, but there are still a few legitimate
“I get all my business from word-of-mouth marketing.” “I’m a referral business.” “I don’t have the budget for marketing.” “I’m just too busy to market my business!”
As much as we hate to admit it, the best business owners and executives can drop the ball on occasion. This is particularly true of the little things, which can be easily overlooked. When it comes to keeping track of business expenses, even the most attentive and mindful can fall behind. Physical receipts and invoices
Where do I start, trade wars, Trump, North Korean talks, bank royal commission, Bill Shorten and his tax reform, Facebook and Australian cricket. Despite these headlines many Australian companies had solid earnings over the March 2018 quarter. OK, I’ll start with Bill Shorten and his $59bn proposal to scrap the cash rebate when franking credits
Success in business requires a number of essential ingredients. A sound strategy. A robust business model. Effective planning. Strong financial control and bookkeeping. A good team. Great systems. Measurement. Focus. But you know what? Even all those elements are not enough without this skill: Execution.
The world has changed. Work has changed. The possibilities provided by cloud and mobile technologies are beyond what most people would even have considered possible just a decade ago. But have you adapted and updated your systems to keep up with — and take advantage of — these exciting and fast-moving changes? Or are you
The Time is fast approaching for year end. If you want to take a few simple preventative measures to minimise or defer how much tax you will pay for this Financial Year, you need to do two things:
Isn’t Twitter a waste of time? Isn’t Facebook for the kids? Not anymore.
When a prospective client asks you for a quote, it’s a powerful opportunity to make a sale. In fact, with the right response you may be able to ‘seal the deal’ almost immediately.
For many, the word ‘budget’ is about as appealing as the word ‘diet’. It seems to imply what you will go without, rather than what you will achieve.
Our chances of living longer are increasing as life expectancy continue to increase. At age 65 a person’s chance of needing aged care during their remaining lifetime is 68% for females and 48% for males. Old age can be associated with declining cognitive abilities, resulting in problems when managing personal finances.
Still using spreadsheets for rosters, timesheets, and payroll? The administrative load involved in efficiently rostering staff, preparing accurate timesheets, and ensuring that everyone is paid correctly can be a huge burden on a small business – especially if you are doing it all manually.
Disasters. They happen. In personal lives, and in business. That’s not being negative, that’s being real. Every day disasters affect families and businesses somewhere in the world, but it always seems to happen to someone else, doesn’t it?
As much as you try to share skills, knowledge and information in your company, you probably have some people who are key to your business’ success.
They say only two things are certain in life: death and taxes. For a lot of people, there’s also a third certainty in life: the pain of keeping track of every receipt when it’s time to do the taxes.
“You need to work on your business, not just in your business.” Made popular by The E-Myth Revisited author Michael Gerber, it’s advice I’m sure you’ve heard dozens of times over the years (I certainly have). But despite being told over and over again, many small business owners still don’t seem to truly understand what
With the end of financial year fast approaching it is a busy time for businesses. Below is a basic summary of important dates and year end processes to get you started. Important Dates 14th July 2017 – Payment summaries need to be provided to employees by this date 28th July 2017 – Due date for
On Tuesday 9 May, the Federal Government handed down its Budget for the 2017–18 financial year. According to Federal Treasurer Scott Morrison, this year’s Budget is founded on the principles of fairness, security and opportunity. Mr Morrison claims that the government’s proposed measures will raise almost $21 billion in revenue over the next four years,