General
New Tax Tools
Three new tools have been released by the Australian Tax Office to help businesses owners understand and meet their tax and super obligations. Available free from the Tax Office website (www.ato.gov.au) the tools are designed to take less than 15 minutes, guiding users through a series of questions, and delivering an online report at the […]
Launching Your Business
If you're thinking about starting your own business, think again. Better still, have professionals do the thinking for you. According to ABS figures released in February 007, there are almost 320 000 trading businesses started per year in Australia. But … a staggering 300 000 businesses closed. The question, then, is this: How do you […]
Training For Life
In our rapidly changing world, training that meets specific requirements and takes in global trends is more crucial than ever – Mel McGoldrick looks at training programs designed for the present with an eye on the future. Lifelong learning, from cradle to grave, should be relevant to all of us, and it should apply to all […]
No more red tape for non-profits
Proposals to require smaller public unlisted companies such as not-for-profit organisations to prepare financial reports according to the proposed AASB standard for SMEs would send compliance costs soaring for no clear public benefit, says Chartered Secretaries Australia (CSA), the national body representing governance professionals. CSA has argued that the Department of Treasury's review of Financial […]
No longer Nudie
Renowned Australian entrepreneur, Tim Pethick has been appointed Australian Managing Director of ?What If!, the world's largest independent innovation company. With the huge success of Nudie Juices behind him, Tim was a natural choice for the ?What If! global board having demonstrated his brand creation and innovative lateral thinking processes. "Tim has an uncanny ability […]
Eating ethically
Apparently we are what we eat. But do we really know what we're eating? And what effect do our increasingly informed choices have on Australia's food industries? With ethical consumerism on the rise, business needs to examine the economics of ethical eating. We might think we're doing the right thing for our health and the […]
Small Business & the Kath and Kim Effect
Small is still beautiful…when it comes to exporting, that is – That's the word from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, who estimate that almost 90 per cent of Australian exporters are either small or medium sized enterprises. This confirms previous research by the Bureau which showed SMEs to be the 'engine room' of the Australian […]
Austrade video targets net-savvy students
Net-savvy business students can now view some key points on how to secure export success on Austrade's website where thirty video clips, covering a wide range of international business issues and market information are now available. Leigh Derigo, Manager of Austrade's Education Programs Unit said students like to access video clips for their assignments because […]
Join The Club
Austrade's successful Business Club Australia initiative is turning its attention towards next year's Beijing Olympics. Endorsed by the Australian Olympic Committee as Australia's official international business program, organisers of Business Club Australia will run business networking events in and around the games in both Australia and Beijing, as well as one-on-one meetings for Australian companies […]
Baby boomers selling their business for less
Global serial entrepreneur and one of Australia's entrepreneurship educators, Dr Tom McKaskill, says Baby Boomers are not adequately preparing to sell their businesses at a profit and retire comfortably. Data reveals that a third of private businesses in Australia are in the baby boomer group, and that many business operators looking to sell out simply believe […]
We’re looking for money & new career paths
The top two motivating factors for Australians planning to buy a franchise before 2010 are the potential to earn and the enhanced lifestyle offered by the change of career path, a recent survey found. In the national independent online survey commissioned by Mortgage Choice, of people in the 25 to 55 year age group earning […]
Placing employees on garden leave
Employers commonly use one of two options when terminating an employee – The first is termination by notice, where the employee serves out their notice period, while the second is paying the employee in lieu of notice – An alternative to these methods is to place the employee on garden leave. An employee who is put […]