Some of the UKs leading business leaders and opinion formers share their insight and ideas for growth
At some point in the recent past – was it when the utilities began treating complaints as a benchmark for consumer satisfaction? – the word sorry was entirely cut adrift from meaningful action. It became one of those vague expressions of regret, the emotion you experience when you tread on someone’s toe in a crowded lift, not quite unmeant but not actually meaning anything either.
Late payment has remained high on the SME agenda over the past 12 months. Against a backdrop of the European credit crisis, the banks still resolutely refusing to lend to business, and the economy contracting in the first two quarters of the year, the issue has remained firmly on the front burner.
Supply chain finance was announced with some fanfare by David Cameron last month. The latest in a long line of Government initiatives to put money in the hands of cash starved small businesses.
Right now, as we finally seem to be emerging from recession, we are perhaps more reliant on entrepreneurs than any time in recent history.
Have you ever given any thought to the fact that reciprocal agreement between employee and employer is not simply a case of trading hours or even performance for salary?
As Elton John’s iconic song goes, ‘sorry seems to be the hardest word’- and the higher you get up the company ladder the brighter the spotlight on you, not just from colleagues and clients but shareholders, the press and an increasingly global audience.
In just 30 years, the UK’s manufacturing sector has all but capitulated in the one of the largest de-industrialisations of any major economy. While the economy is now focused on the service sector, digital and research and development, UK-based manufacturing has shrunk to just a third of what it was in 1970’s and therein lays a massive opportunity for Britain’s SMEs, whilst at the same time providing a boost to the stagnating economy.
The Business section of every bookshop is awash with “How-I-Became-Successful” books written by well-known Entrepreneurs. If you read these books you will realise that behind many of the success story’s there was an initial ‘risk’ funding event that kick-started the journey and we need to urgently address this.
Any entrepreneur will tell you that starting up your own business can be as scary and lonely as it is exhilarating and rewarding. So for many would-be entrepreneurs the thought of having your best friend by your side as your business partner can be a tempting proposition. But is there room for two at the top?
It is now more important than ever that small business owners find alternatives to cash to enable them attract talent – top talent that can turn their businesses around.
Social collaboration is not only about social media. This is only a small part of collaboration. A collaborative organisation promotes a culture based on transparency and accountability.
The FSA has announced that Venture Capital Trusts (VCTs) and the Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) are to be within their forthcoming guidance on unregulated collective investments (UCIS).
New research from the Forum of Private Business shows that business costs are rising at a rate above inflation – and the situation could soon become worse.
Outsourcing business processes abroad remains popular, with the promise of huge cost savings still attracting many advocates. With the Government recently stating that rather than restricting outsourcing, it is to encourage service providers to set up delivery centres in the UK, perhaps now the scales are beginning to tip the UK’s way. Solicitor Maxine Park, Director and co-founder of UK-based transcription service provider DictateNow explains the advantages of outsourcing within the UK.
The unemployment figures are in, but before we start celebrating, we need to address youth unemployment by getting back to basics and instil a work ethic that makes them effective contributors to their employers’ business and the UK economy.
