The Federation of Small Businesses has announced talks to assess the growth potential in the North of England. The FSB is calling for greater efforts to rebalance the economy to ensure the vision of a prosperous Northern Powerhouse becomes a reality. A series of policy events are being organised by the FSB to find out…
As pointed out in an earlier post, it is worth thinking twice before scheduling a meeting and preferable to first consider whether the meeting is really necessary. When you do arrange a meeting, make sure it is as productive as possible. 1. Be clear about what you want to achieve. This could be one of…
Integrated cloud-based IT systems can help solve one of the biggest problems for small businesses: How to find the right information technology experts. Recruiting the right IT staff seems to be problematic for almost half of all SMEs across the UK, according to a recent report published by IT hosting company Node4. This problem might…
For many people the fear of speaking in public is second only to the fear of dying. Don’t let this put you off: Giving presentations, speeches and talks is an effective and valuable undertaking to promote your business and generate leads. It raises your professional profile, too, and can help you become an expert in…
This week, Ofcom has called for joint action between the regulator, industry and government to improve broadband services for smaller businesses. Wile 85 per cent of UK SMEs feel their business needs are well catered for by the communications market, a significant number expressed concerns about speeds, availability, quality of service, and choosing between providers.…
Focussing exclusively on cost-savings is no longer sufficient when evaluating the benefits of cloud computing. Although there can be substantial cost savings, it is increasingly important that cloud services support businesses as a whole. This will allow companies to streamline business processes and react swiftly to market changes. The concept of cloud computing is actually…
Getting new prospects is the first step in getting new clients and orders. Even then it is not certain you will get any new business. Over the years I have learned one thing, customer referrals are by a long way the best way to get new customers. Simply put, clients who talk about you do…
Do you really need to have a meeting? I would suggest not! Meetings cost time – which means money. Often meetings achieve very little and are not really necessary. But should you need to discuss – person to person – any issues, there are other ways to hold a meeting too. Here to help you…
When you talk to people about how their business is doing, they will often say something like: ‘OK – average, I guess.’ What does that even mean, I do not know and more to the point the people who said it don’t know either. I’m much more for the way Australians use the word ‘average’!…
White collar crime does pay, doesn’t it?
My favourite group of people, the bankers, are in the news again. This time it is not mainly about fraud, but about £16.5m extra bonuses paid by Barclays Bank to its executives. While the rest of us has to live with cuts to our welfare state, these guys are paying themselves more and more money,…
Comments · Email this · Share on Facebook · Tweet · Permalink