Let's Talk

Vanity metrics still have a place but it’s all about how you use them.

What can derail a businesses’ plans to launch their offering into an overseas market?  Global expansion may be every enthusiastic business owner’s dream but is your business truly ready to expand? Cultural, political, social and logistical differences can impact on your product’s success, as well as simple mistakes, such as neglecting to check your trademark, […]

When your business has lost its competitive edge, it’s time to take a long, hard look at your product, credibility, and most importantly – what your customers think and want. Taking the first step to reflect on your business and make necessary changes can be quite confronting for some business owners, but according to Michael […]

Thinking about starting a business? Well before you take the plunge, ensure you have a plan and understand your finance options. In this week’s Let’s Talk we ask financial experts about the finance traps and pitfalls of starting a business, such as putting your home up as security, over-estimating revenue, forgoing insurance and borrowing money you […]

Since the inception of the World Wide Web in 1991, technology, business and daily life has changed significantly. Who would have thought that billions of people across the globe would conduct business from the palm of their hand? And with technology rapidly advancing and more and more people seeking flexible work arrangements, it’s no wonder […]

In this article, we look at the key take-aways from this year’s Federal Budget for Australia’s small businesses and startups. In addition, readers will discover how dozens of thought leaders responded to this week’s “Let’s Talk…” question, which asked them to weigh-in on the budget – was it a win for businesses, a missed opportunity… […]

Collaborations between startups and corporates can be a fantastic way for the former to build brand credibility and gain scale and for the latter to innovate quickly. Of course, not all collaborations are guaranteed to bear fruit. For this week’s “Let’s Talk…” feature, we asked nearly two dozen thought leaders to identify the key ingredients […]

Customer obsession and innovation are “very much on a continuum”, Russ Grandinetti – Amazon’s Senior Vice President, International Consumer – told the audience at Amazon Innovation Day in Sydney, last week. Grandinetti, who was amongst Amazon’s first 2000 hires and sits inside its top 40 employees in terms of tenure, spoke of the need for […]

A CEO landed himself in some hot water, this week, due to his participation our latest “Let’s Talk…” feature. When asked by Dynamic Business to name a bad habit startup founders need to break, he sent the following response by email… “I’m currently on holidays and upon arriving at my hotel, I asked my wife, […]

For this week’s “Let’s Talk…” feature, we asked nearly a dozen thought leaders, including startup founders, to discuss how they celebrate success in their businesses. ‘School-style’ awards, wine and cheese afternoons, a whole-of-company trip to Bali, recognition on social media, hot air ballooning and the sounding of a gong were amongst the celebratory traditions named. […]

When startup founders first get up and running, they must, of out necessity, be lean and nimble – and that keeps them sharp. As resources become less scarce, it will become more and more challenging for founders and their teams to embody these qualities. In turn, this may lead them to lose sight of what […]

Let’s play a game of word association. When I say ‘company culture’… what do you think of? Happy, entrepreneurial employees with meaningful work? Shared values and beliefs? A competitive advantage in terms of recruitment and retention? Table tennis or foosball? Transparent leadership? Perhaps the saying “all talk, no walk” comes to mind… [Related: Why business […]

Inadequate cash flow has been cited as the cause of two in five business failures in Australia *, lending credence to the age-old saying that ‘cash is king’ (an especially unmerciful one at that). For this week’s “Let’s Talk…” feature, we asked more than a dozen thought leaders to identify the common mistakes startup founders and other […]

Startup founders in search of the ‘right investor’ mustn’t let themselves be blinded by the cash placed on the table, lest they make a deal with the devil… OKAY, perhaps that’s a little melodramatic, but the underlying point is valid – money alone is no guarantee of a long, fruitful founder/investor relationship.   This week, […]

Industries left, right and centre are being infiltrated by tech-driven startups willing to address prevailing inefficiencies and achieve a superior customer experience. Against this backdrop, many incumbents are realising that unless they ride the wave of disruption, they’ll by swept away with the status quo. This week, for our exclusive “Let’s Talk…” feature examining disruption, […]

As consumers increasingly opt for online shopping experiences over in-store, businesses of all sizes can ill afford having a lacklustre ecommerce presence – or worse, none at all. In the Amazon era, that means obscurity, even oblivion. But how can small businesses with limited resources go about establishing an effective ecommerce presence that captivates new […]

“Some first-time startup founders buy into the myth that they will have more time, more freedom and more money… it couldn’t be further from the truth.” For our “Let’s Talk…” feature, this week, we asked 18 thought leaders to discuss the personal sacrifices that first-time founders generally overlook when they’re bitten by the startup bug. An oft-overlooked […]

Hiring people with entrepreneurial spirit. Supporting the open flow of ideas. Celebrating wins in creative ways. Encouraging experimentation while tolerating failure. Promoting competition within teams. Making every employee the ‘CEO’ of something and giving them ‘skin the game’. Role modelling entrepreneurial characteristics and leading with zeal. These are some of the ways in which business […]

Blockchain, cryptocurrencies and e-wallets. Wearables such as Google Glass and fitness trackers. Sharing economy platforms. ConstructionTech. Machine learning and artificial intelligence. Bots, smart home devices and self-driving cars. Virtual and augmented reality. Big Data. Internet-connected fridges and other IoT gadgets. Depending on who you ask, some of these technologies are either ‘hot properties’ or ‘hot […]

Last year, the Weinstein scandal shone a light on the pervasiveness of sexual harassment in Hollywood, with members of the Boys Club brought to task in its wake. More recently, the producers of ‘All the Money in the World’ drew heavy criticism after Mark Wahlberg earned 1500 times more than his co-star Michelle Williams for […]