News
As a friend, family member or business colleague you can make an important contribution to someone’s recovery from mental ill-health. Working in small business can sometimes be isolating and when people experience challenges with their mental health, they can be tempted to isolate themselves further. The practical, emotional and social support that a small business […]
Aiming to not just outperform meat but replace it, Australian cultured meat company, Vow, has banked US$6 million of fresh funding. In 2019, Vow became the world’s first company to make a food product from the cells of an undomesticated animal, instead of the animal itself. The company has since grown its library to 11 […]
Data released from the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority shows that loan deferrals have decreased, as exits from deferrals outweigh new entries for five straight months leading up to November 2020. A total of $60 billion of loans – around 2.3 per cent of total loans outstanding – were on temporary repayment deferrals as at 30 […]
Democrats will control the US Senate under Joe Biden’s presidency, advancing the Biden administration’s ability to pursue their legislative agenda in both houses. Democrats Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff respectively defeated Republican incumbents Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue in the Georgia Senate runoffs on Wednesday. Mr Warnock used his victory speech to acknowledge the social […]
Australia’s electricity supply security is the “most critical [energy] issue at present”, the 2020 Health of the National Electricity Market report reveals. On Tuesday, the Energy Security Board (ESB) published the Health of the National Electricity Market (NEM) report. It found that Australia is at risk of major supply interruptions, making the security of electricity […]
2020 was an unhinged year for businesses on many levels, particularly in the cyber department. CrowdStrike observed an increase in eCrime activity up over 330 per cent in the first half of 2020 alone, compared to all of 2019. The onslaught of criminal activity has been exacerbated in particular by remote working, increasing attack surfaces and […]
2020 was a year of unprecedented challenge for business owners. Almost overnight, businesses of all sizes were scrambling to find new customers and devise innovative ways to sell to existing customers. Uncertainty and fear abounded, but so too did resilience and ingenuity. At both a state and federal level, the Australian government acted quickly and […]
It is common for people working in business to be concerned with or stressed about their business finances at some point. Unpredictable income, cash flow and delayed payments are common experiences for people working in small business and these can put you at increased risk of poor mental and physical health and family conflict. It […]
The customer is always right is an adage that has been driving the way we do business for years. While the concept of customer experience (CX) has evolved, business processes have not. Today, the smartest organisations are creating competitive advantage by placing customer wants first and managing their customer experience from start to finish. In the […]
As COVID-19 wreaked havoc nationally and demand for safety equipment grew, Victoria’s regional medical device manufacturer Care Essentials pivoted its focus to produce a range of PPE products, surgical face masks and N95 respirators. “Our decision to explore making PPE masks came because we kept receiving calls from hospitals, federal and state departments asking if […]
The recent Netflix documentary, The Social Dilemma, looks at some of the devastating impacts that technology and artificial intelligence (AI) are having on many of us. Through an AI lens, it examines the causes of the recent polarisation of society; why, how, and who controls our information; and the effects of social media on mental health […]
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has announced a further tightening of COVID-19 restrictions for NYE as 18 new community transmissions are detected overnight. Greater Sydney, Wollongong, Central Coast and Blue Mountains households will now only be allowed to have 5 visitors (including children) and outdoor gatherings will be limited to 30 people. The southern section of […]
Data from cryptocurrency trading simulator Crypto Parrot has found that cryptocurrency traders on Bitfinex and BitMEX lost $US13.47 billion in 2020. The data found that $US9.26 billion of long positions and $US4.21 billion of short positions were liquidated over 2020. Crypto shorting is a bet that the price of a certain crypto asset will fall, […]
The US House of Representatives has approved increasing COVID-19 stimulus checks from $US600 to $US2,000, however it is still uncertain whether these changes will pass a Republican-controlled Senate. The bill passed the House with a sweeping majority of 275-134, with 44 Republicans joining Democrats. However Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has refused to say how […]
Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson has professed that the recently secured Brexit trade deal falls short for financial services. In an interview with the Sunday Telegraph, Mr Johnson admitted that the Brexit trade deal “perhaps does not go as far as we would like” in determining Britain’s market access to the EU after 1 January […]
Premier Gladys Berejiklian has confirmed that there will be no gatherings in Sydney Harbour on New Year’s Eve and current restrictions will continue beyond 30 December. “You cannot come to the CBD on New Year’s Eve unless you have a booking from a hospitality venue. But even if you have a booking, you have to […]
Let’s be frank—passwords are still the bane of our online existence. They’re living fossils, throwbacks to a time when a secret string of characters was the only thing available to secure accounts. Thankfully, there are now secure and easy to use authentication options which let organisations relegate passwords to computing’s Jurassic era. We’ve all been there. Staring […]
Restrictions across NSW will remain, except children under 12 will now be excluded from the 10 person rule in Greater Sydney, Central Coast, Wollongong, Nepean Blue Mountains and south Northern Beaches households during 24 – 26 December. This does not allow for different groups of 10 per day. “Can I stress, you cannot have different […]
While 2020 packed a punch that not many people were expecting, impending vaccines and a rebounding economy offer a glimmer of optimism for business in 2021. However improved economic conditions also mean a reduction in government safety nets like JobKeeper and cash flow boost. Properly managing cash flow in 2021 will be a precarious and […]
Many small business owners work long hours and can often be on their own. Having people around them to check in on how they are doing can make all the difference. Have you noticed changes in someone’s behaviour recently? Has a business owner you know been doing it tough financially, been impacted by a weather […]
