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According to the Committee for Economic Development of Australia, ‘disruption is the new normal‘. While this phrase may seem to be a contradiction, it does highlight the pervasiveness of disruption as a strategic method for organisations wanting to gain a competitive edge. The term ‘disruptive innovation’ appeared in a 1995 Harvard Business Review article ‘Disruptive […]
The traditional work landscape is shifting, and more and more workers are trying to break away from sterile cubicles and rigid 9 to 5 schedules. We are witnessing new dynamic work environments where everyone is empowered through greater control and flexibility regarding workflow. Gone are the pushy bosses and policies, once set in stone. In their […]
Business planning tends to be done in cycles. A cycle may be a week, a month, a quarter or a year. At the end of every cycle, you have the opportunity to compare your business plan to your actual results. The insights you gain from this are used to plan for the next cycle. Smart […]
Let me start by saying that effective marketing is the lifeblood of any successful business, big or small. Having said that, smaller start-up businesses often don’t have a lot of excess cash to splash around so I hate to see their money go to waste on marketing strategies that are unnecessary. Based on what I’ve seen […]
Despite federal election promises of greater support for SMEs, businesses owners remain pessimistic about the Australian economy, with two in five expecting it to worsen in the coming year, the latest MYOB Business Monitor revealed. The bi-annual national survey of over 1,000 SME operators found that 42% believe the economy will decline over the […]
The e-commerce industry has been making headlines this month with household brands, including Myer, David Jones and Harvey Norman, all coming out with innovative plans for improving their online experience. This will come as no surprise, with e-commerce firmly on the rise here in Australia. According to the latest NAB retail sales index, online sales […]
The Asia Pacific finalists for this year’s Talent Unleashed Awards, which celebrate startups, SMEs and entrepreneurs disrupting their field with innovative technology solutions, have been announced. The global technology awards program was launched in 2013 by IT recruitment agency, Talent International. This year, the Asia Pacific finalists were selected by a high-profile, international judging panel […]
Finding your brand voice and direction is the most important part of establishing a successful business. Iconic branding that has the power to stay always has a few things in common; simplicity, relatability and personality. There are many brands, businesses and even countries we admire for doing this so well; see Nike, Converse, Coca Cola […]
The end of a financial year is just a date in a calendar. We use this date to draw a line in the sand and say to ourselves – this is how my business has performed. We then report that data to the relevant stakeholders and measure our performance, pay our tax, meet our banking covenants […]
An efficient employee referral program can save on recruitment fees and time spent hiring new staff. This can have a significant impact on a business’s bottom line. It can cost up to $20,000 in fees and take hours to hire one staff member through a recruitment firm versus hiring someone via employee referral programs.[1] Employee […]
Intellectual property, such as patents and copyrights can represent a significant portion of a company’s assets – particularly for highly innovative start-ups. Currently, intangible assets are subject to a legislative “effective life” period which is used to calculate their rate of depreciation. However, these existing provisions which mandate their life span are inflexible and often […]
“It’s not the employer who pays the wages. Employers only handle money. It’s the customer who pays the wages.” – Henry Ford You might have established a business under your name, but even if you’re the person with the most authority, you still have another boss to please: the client. The purpose of your sales […]
Business Email Compromise (BEC), also known as CEO Fraud, is the malicious scheme costing the business world billions of dollars. While the perpetrators tend to target large organisations, small to medium businesses caught out by the scheme have the most to lose, a cybersecurity expert warned. Tim Bentley, Country Manager, Australia and New Zealand at […]
The end of the financial year can be a stressful time for small businesses, especially if your finances aren’t completely in order. Unfortunately, that’s an all-too-common situation. A recent Xero survey found that three-quarters of Australian small businesses still store their receipts in shoeboxes. With the average Australian business churning through 100 receipts and invoices […]
Marketers have been hearing about big data and the value it brings in terms of customer engagement for several years. If you work in the business-to-consumer (B2C) sector, or more specifically retail and e-commerce, you are likely already harnessing big data in some shape or form. This year, the focus of digital marketers will shift […]
How do you take $10,000 and turn it into $10 million turnover? Best ask Emily McWaters, the tenacious law school dropout who got her hands dirty, shrugged off the naysayers and – with a helping hand from her sisters – became one of Australia’s most successful e-commerce professionals. In 2003, Emily, then 20-years-old, quit […]
With the increasing number of debt financing alternatives available to small and medium sized businesses, should businesses be bypassing the major banks and going to straight to these alternative lenders and platforms? For some businesses the answer will be yes though there are a number of considerations that must be weighed up in deciding who […]
Everybody who launches a small to mid-size business of their own these days hopes to hit the bull’s eye as soon as possible. The problem is there are literally millions of other people aiming at the same target. This produces competition of millions, meaning the risk of failing to stand out is high. Here are […]
We celebrate the start-ups that grow their businesses to great success, and we recognise the visionary business owners who inspire us with their dream and do things differently. But what about the business owners who did not start the business and are running with a vision set by someone else? I’m talking about the franchise […]
Startups that fail to exercise resource parsimony or understand the job their customers want to get done will not survive against larger companies and risk falling afoul of investors, a prominent strategy expert has warned. In Sydney last month to participate in the World Business Forum (25 to 26 May), Rita McGrath, a professor at […]
