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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 […]
Hearing directly from those who have succeeded – and keep succeeding – in an increasingly competitive and rapidly changing business environment is an invaluable learning experience for small businesses, says Sharon Williams, CEO of Taurus Marketing. “There are many skills needed to run a business, and advisers, mentors, industry events and management events are a […]
If you’re a small business, here’s an interesting question for you… what does your gut tell you about your business performance? For many Australian SMEs, the answer would likely be: not much. According to research by the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, almost 62 per cent of SMBs lack any form of reliable data strategy, preferring […]
A lot of start-up founders I’ve met believe that if they can raise money from professional early-stage investors such as The Sharks from Channel 10’s Shark Tank or a Venture Capital (VC) fund, then they’re guaranteed success, a large exit, and early retirement. But this is dangerous thinking. These investors are almost always only investing […]
Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman, Kate Carnell, has encouraged business owners to urgently contact her office if they have experienced “heavy handed tactics” by the Australian Taxation Office. The Ombudsman, together with the inspector-General of Taxation Ali Noroozi, has been directed by the Treasury to examine cases of unfair conduct the ATO. The investigation, […]
Security Colony was one of six cybersecurity companies selected by Austrade & AustCyber to take part in the Federal Government’s Landing Pad program in San Francisco. In this exclusive series for Dynamic Business, Nick Ellsmore, co-founder of Security Colony shares his journey as he builds his second business (the first sold to BAE Systems) and introduces an Australian-built cybersecurity solution […]
Over the last 10 years, my company Business Blueprint has achieved more than 4,000 percent business growth. During this time, I’ve also travelled for three to four months a year, sometimes for business but mostly to visit incredible locations with my family. Many of my clients and peers ask me how I’m able to spend […]
In my recent article, How to work out what price to charge, I discussed how pricing is one of the most crucial decisions business owners and managers must make, while touching on the eight rules for pricing effectively… But what happens when you get pricing wrong and how do you recover from pricing mistakes? In this […]
The workplace is rapidly changing, with data-based workers taking the place of knowledge-based workers. While many companies continue to rely on employees who work traditional 9-5, Monday through Friday weeks, but that’s changing too, with many businesses encouraging greater flexibility in terms of work times and locations. So long as there’s access to essential data, […]
We know that small businesses employ around 40% of Australia’s workforce, but they also play more than their fair share of taking on interns for work experience. Most interns that I speak to are getting their work experience at a small business, usually a place with fewer than 10 employees. With an increasing number of […]
Kelley Sheenan, the Brisbanite behind Peppermint – an independent fashion and lifestyle magazine with a focus on sustainability – recently returned from London where she participated in StepUp, a mini-accelerator program run by Richard Branson’s Virgin StartUp (VSU). [Related: Winning Creative3 Pitch helped Darren Tonkin’s photo sharing app ‘cut through all the noise‘ and “If you can […]
Having recently closed a US$3.8m Series A round led by Allectus Capital, Switch Automation is now – in the words of co-founder and CEO Deb Noller – seeking to help a greater number of companies worldwide transform their buildings from “leaky buckets” into smart assets. [Related: Success you can see: nine female entrepreneurs on the attitudes […]
Fresh from partnering with VC firm Hatcher+ to produce 240 early-stage startups over three years, tech accelerator BlueChilli has teamed with Coca-Cola Amatil to help budding entrepreneurs launch scalable, global tech companies. [Related: Investors in BlueChilli startups automatically qualify for tax deduction after ATO ruling and Why the startup ecosystem needs more non-technical entrepreneurs, not stereotypes] Up […]
A parliamentary committee chaired by ex-Deputy PM Barnaby Joyce has made six recommendations to the Federal Government to help small businesses compete against overseas, internet-based firms marketing to Australian consumers. In its report into the impact of global, internet-based competition on local businesses, the Innovation, Industry, Science and Resources Committee recommended the creation of a […]
Startups, scaleups and digital disruptors – both within and beyond Australia – are being invited by Qantas Group to apply for its second AVRO Accelerator program, following on from the first last year. Run in partnership with Slingshot, the program will provide entrepreneurs with funding and mentoring as well as access to Qantas’ domain expertise, […]
Homegrown, US-based property tech startup HappyCo has completed a US$10.8 million Series A round led by Sydney’s Alium Capital Management. Australian VC firms Tempus Partners and PieLab Venture Partners also participated in the round along with HappyCo’s existing investors Larsen Ventures and Sandalphon Capital. Founded in Adelaide in 2011, before relocating to San Francisco the following year, […]
I met with the head of innovation at a large manufacturing company last week. She had requested a meeting to get some help with her company’s innovation program. I began by asking the innovation head about her company’s current approach. She excitedly told me about how her team had recently put in place an online […]
As an entrepreneur with a very niche business, a specific target market and narrowly defined purpose, Sarah Riegelhuth knows all too well how easy it can be to get bored doing the same things each day – particularly once the exciting startup phase is over. Here she looks at how you can grow your business […]
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, […]
Financial management for small businesses is even more critical than with larger corporations. The sad reality is that smaller companies have less access to lending to provide a rescue plan when the finances aren’t managed properly. This puts smaller operations at greater risk because a few wrong moves in the financial management arena and the […]
