Why keeping your accounts up to date could mean all the difference between running a successful business, limping along, or failing. Would you fly a plane while wearing a blindfold? I ask new clients ‘Would you fly a plane while wearing a blindfold?’. They look at me confused, and always reply ‘No, of course not!’. At this point they are probably wondering why they hired me. Stupid question, right? Wrong! Here’s why: A significant proportion of my clients proffer similar responses when I start to investigate their bookkeeping and accounting methodology. They invariably tell me that they hand over receipts to their bookkeeper and once a year the accounts are resolved and sent to HMRC, usually at the last minute. Many then look confused again when I don’t look happy with their response. Why am I not happy? Because their accounts are typically 17 months out of date or worse. They have been led to believe that the accounts are for tax purposes, rather than as a managerial tool. This … [Read more...]
Boost your exports – Tips for SMEs
One of the biggest assets to grow your exports is free - THE U.K. FLAG – are you making the most of it? 500 years ago, if a ship arrived offshore, would you run for the hills or fire up a feast? It's pretty likely you'd make a snap judgement based upon the flag you saw flying - and how fast you could run. A similar scenario still plays out if your product or brand is unknown when it reaches an export market for the first time. A customer will look for your flag. If your brand is relatively unknown and the perception of the U.K. as the 'Country of Origin' is positive in your target market, then leverage it. Not just a 'MADE IN THE U.K....' (or DESIGNED IN THE U.K.) on pack, but print the U.K. flag on packaging, build it into presentations and leverage iconic images from the U.K. on social. Landscapes, buildings, celebrities, you name it. It works. I’ve seen the boost it can make to a company’s sales many times. ‘MADE IN THE U.K.' not only plays an important role in first … [Read more...]
6 Good Reasons Why You Should Consider Exporting In Your Next Strategic Review
Quarter 4, planning the office party, trying to bring in orders before the second week of December. Oh…..and BREXIT and a General Election. Right now, thinking about a strategic review and thinking about growing your business through exporting maybe about as much a priority as a choice between parsnips or sprouts. You feel like you’ve got enough on your plate. But imagine selling your product or service to a whole new audience, imagine adding 10%, 20% to your bottom-line, imagine how it would feel to have a global brand. When businesses go global not only can revenues rise, but there are a host of benefits that can accelerate your growth that you may not be aware of, not forgetting the impact upon potential exit values. So is it really a good time to add ‘start exporting’ to your 2020 ‘wish-list?’ BBC News reported recently that despite US v CHINA and JAPAN v SOUTH KOREA trade disputes (and in the UK, the ‘B-word’) - global trade has grown at 3% this year. It's a really good … [Read more...]
Communication – the key to unlocking growth and success
At the heart of every business one factor continuously calls for our attention – improving communication with a view to unlocking business growth and success. Over the years many a consultant has advised and implemented varying communication scenarios for their clients; the Total Quality Management (TQM) business management approach enjoyed widespread attention during the late 1980s and early 1990s before being overshadowed by the standards specification of ISO 9000 and the improvement methodologies of Lean manufacturing, and Six Sigma. The common thread of all these procedures is communication. How do these approaches differ? TMQ consists of organization-wide efforts to install and make a permanent climate where employees continuously improve their ability to provide on demand products and services that customers will find of particular value. The ISO 9000 family of quality management systems standards is designed to help organizations ensure that they meet the … [Read more...]
Financial information you need to run your business effectively
In order to manage your business effectively you need to be sure that it has enough cash to keep trading and that it is running profitably. To ensure this happens, I recommend you review your financial status at the start of each and every business week. You will have financial records, probably in one of the most popular accounting software packages such as Sage, QuickBooks or Xero. Either your own staff or your accountants will use these to prepare VAT returns and the other legal requirements such as the annual accounts required by Companies House. These accounting systems can also produce many of the essential figures you need to review on a weekly basis. Additionally, you need to forecast which clients are likely to pay their invoices this week. This is often not the same as those who should pay this week. Accurately forecasting your weekly cashflow is a skill every business needs to master. Not all of the figures in the list below will apply to all businesses. You … [Read more...]
How to continuously sharpen your company’s competitive edge
The use of the word ‘continuously’ is purposefully placed in the title of this blog article. Why? Because I fully believe that if a company does not continuously sharpen its competitive edge, it won’t be long before they do not have one in today’s ever-increasing pace. I’m sure we can all think of examples of companies who have been market leaders and no longer exist or have had to sell assets and/or shrink in size to survive. Eastman Kodak is a prime example. Kodak began to struggle financially in the 1990s when digital camera technology hit the retail market. Only recently they have emerged from bankruptcy, after selling many of its patents to current giants including Google, Apple, Samsung, Microsoft. Woolworths is another case in point. It used to be one of my favourite stores for spending my pocket-money. A few pence went a long way in Woolworths – a child’s paradise. Several months before they closed their retail outlets in the UK, I recall walking in and out of Woolworths, … [Read more...]
Excel automation
Not more spreadsheets to analyse and chart… Always a regular cry in the office. Reports produced on a regular basis need to be embellished, with charts that involve some fairly complicated calculations – cross-reference look-ups, previous month comparisons, and all that sort of thing. Probably, now this is done largely by hand. The data sits in several spreadsheets and/or databases, and is extracted, filtered, pivoted and everything else that was necessary to get it ready, before feeding into a chart. When the chart was ready, it is pasted into the report. Wouldn’t it be great with the data is all in one place, and with a single front-end, the necessary criteria set from drop-downs. Once these selections have been made (locations, benchmarks, which dataset to use, and so on) you click a button and go and make coffee. Actually, you haven’t really got time to make coffee as the process takes just a couple of minutes – if that. In this instance, any number of queries can be … [Read more...]
Data Protection
Under the Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA) you must: use personal information fairly and lawfully; collect only the information necessary for a specific purpose(s); ensure it is relevant, accurate and up to date; only hold as much as you need, and only for as long as you need it; allow the subject of the information to see it on request; and keep it secure. Good information handling makes good business sense, and it provides a range of benefits. You'll enhance your business' reputation, increase customer and employee confidence, and by ensuring that personal information is accurate, relevant and safe, save both time and money. Your business has established an appropriate Data Protection Policy? A policy will help you to address data protection in a consistent manner. This can be a standalone policy statement or part of a general staff policy. The policy should clearly set out your business's approach to data protection together with responsibilities … [Read more...]
Power up your business with a Virtual Non-Executive Director
The benefits of Non-Executive Directors are well understood by many successful business owners. They bring an independent view and additional experience that enable better decisions to be made by the management board. Our Home Counties and London Group Business Advisors have developed a Virtual Non-Executive Director (VNED) service that offers Managing Directors and business owners the same independent view and advice without the complexity of shareholdings, appointing legal directors and director’s service agreements. Every company is different and yet there are many similar and transferable aspects from other industries and markets. Our experts are able to utilise their broad business experience and extensive network of contacts to support companies to achieve their strategic objectives. An independent view that challenges existing or new strategies can substantially enhance the robustness of a company’s direction. Sometimes difficult decisions are required to deal with business … [Read more...]
Are you worried about Pension Auto-Enrolment?
The law on workplace pensions has changed. Every employer with at least one member of staff has new duties - enrolling those who are eligible into a workplace pension and to contribute towards it. This is called Auto Enrolment. Auto Enrolment has been introduced by the government so people save for a pension that will eventually top up the state pension. In the past many employees missed out on a valuable pension because their employer didn't offer them a pension, or they didn't apply to join the company pension scheme. Auto Enrolment changes this. It makes it compulsory for employers to automatically enrol their eligible employees into a pension scheme. The employer must also contribute. This also means that employees will be offered a benefit that will hopefully translate to increased employee commitment/motivation and lower staff turnover. Hefty fines apply to those who fail to comply with auto enrolment. Employers with more than 50 employees should already be up and … [Read more...]
