Exchanging Thoughts

First results from Barclays ‘Have Your Say’ scheme

A few months ago one of my colleagues wrote about the Barclays ‘Have Your Say’ scheme, which was developed to bring help and support to small businesses across the UK.

Now halfway through the scheme, Times Online have reported that over 3600 business owners have taken part.

One of the most interesting findings is that many businesses have not been disheartened by the financial crisis. Instead, “many appear to be preparing to grow when the economy rebounds.” In addition, over 51 percent of business owners believe that they can expand in the next year.

However, not all the findings were positive. The survey showed that only 35 percent of business owners felt that their business had a positive effect on their lives. Furthermore, 42 percent revealed that running their own business was very hard work and sacrifices had to be made in their personal lives.

The ‘Have Your Say’ scheme is continuing into October and Times Online promise they will continue to feedback all the results.

It will be interesting to see how more business owners respond to this scheme and more importantly, what can be done to alleviate some of the problems and concerns identified in the future.

Technorati Tags: small business advice, business advice, barclays, have your say scheme

Are women better suited to not-for-profit organisations?

A recent article on Times Online suggests that women are far better suited to working within not-for-profit organisations than their male counterparts.

This claim comes from the fact that well over half of the entries to the recent Social Entrepreneur Awards were from the fairer sex. But, is this enough to make sweeping claims that women are in fact dominating the sector?

Times Online may have exaggerated a little but it seems that many others share the view that women are indeed excelling over men in these kind of organisations.

Carly Chynoweth suggested reasons why there would have been far more female entries. She writes that, “both genders desire autonomy, but that many women are also determined to give something back.”

Penny Newman, former chief executive of the Fairtrade coffee business Cafedirect, is head of the Fifteen Foundation,which trains disadvantaged young people to become chefs. She suggests that women do have the edge when it comes to developing and working in social enterprise because they have a stronger ability to balance the financial and social demands of such an organisation.

However. she tends to disagree that this is something which derives from the fact women are naturally more nurturing and instead puts it down to “a question of individual motivation.”

So, although women may be genetically more compassionate, it does not necessarily mean that they will excel in this area. Regardless of which sex features the most, it will be interesting to see which of the many entries will win the Social Entrepreneur Awards and take away the prize of £5 million funding for their organisation.

Government tells Sir Alan – You’re hired

One of the UK’s most well known business personalities, Sir Alan Sugar, was appointed as the government’s ‘enterprise tsar’ by Gordon Brown earlier this week.

The role will involve working alongside other government officials to decide how growing businesses can be helped and then ensuring these SMEs make effective use of the aid and advice provided.

It seems like an ideal position for the rebellious tycoon. After all, he was once a budding young entrepreneur and knows the ins and outs of businesses, meaning he is extremely switched on to the concerns and needs of entrepreneurs starting out. This also puts him in an ideal position to voice the concerns of those in small business to the people in power.

But, is this really a good move from the government?

A recent article in the Telegraph stated that many believe if he takes up the position there is a conflict of interest and many have expressed their concerns:

“More business leaders have spoken out against Sir Alan's appointment, with the micro-blogging site Twitter being a popular place for some well known entrepreneurs to vent their disapproval.”

The decision can be seen as a publicity stunt for government initiatives. However, I’m sure everyone will agree that it will be interesting to see how Sir Alan works in this new role and whether his decisions will have a positive impact on SMEs in the UK.

Barclays encourages small businesses to ‘Have Your Say’

I came across an interesting article on Times Online - admittedly dubbed an ‘Advertisement Feature’ – which contained some interesting news for small businesses.

The article highlights the new ‘Have Your Say’ scheme, devised by Barclays, which aims to provide help and support to small businesses during tough times.

The article states:

“Barclays now wants to understand what it’s like to own a small business in 2009 so it can help by providing extra support with the issues of the day.”

To start this programme, Barclays will be issuing a nationwide questionnaire to gauge opinions of those working in small businesses across the UK. The key questions Barclays want answered are

“What is it like to be a small business in 2009? What are the main things on business owners’ minds? What opportunities are there? And what skill gaps do businesses feel they have?”

Although filled with some rather obvious advertising slogans which make me question the credibility of this ‘article’,  the programme does appear to be useful and helpful for any small businesses feeling the strain during the current financial troubles.

As the article states, the programme aims to “tap into the mindset of the small business sector”. I feel this is what makes it stand out against other schemes and programmes which didn’t work so well in the past. Barclays want to create two way conversation in order to fully understand and get into the heads of those working in small businesses, which means messages and advice can be personally tailored to specific problems and therefore much more effective. 

Technorati Tags: banking, business advice, barclays, have your say

Nothing newsworthy in the budget

The budget plans last week certainly caused a stir in the media, but how are small businesses reacting to the news?

Many have been critical of the plans highlighted in the budget and it’s been labelled as far too optimistic. Real Business’ finance and banking section explored the implications the news has on individuals and businesses.

FC Exchange Managing Director Nick Fullerton writes:

"While some of these measures will benefit low-carbon companies and new technology start-ups, they will do little to restore business and consumer confidence and stimulate economic activity.

"Although the long-term unemployed will benefit from investment in job creation and training from 2010, nothing has been done to help businesses retain their existing skilled workforce, which continues to be decimated as a result of the recession.

"While welcoming changes to capital allowances and loss relief, the reality is that these will have only provide limited benefit to smaller businesses.”

Real Business also quote RKP Tax Partner Paul Webb. “It’s disappointing – there’s nothing tangible in there for small businesses but what did we expect?”

However, as part of these new plans came news that will benefit SMEs, as a scheme to help small businesses has been extended to November 2010. Times Online reported that the Loss Carry Back Scheme aims to give small businesses the opportunity to claim back tax paid on previous years’ profit:

“The Treasury said the carry-back scheme would help an expected 140,000 businesses, which will claim an average £4,000. The scheme allows companies to reclaim taxes on profits made in the past three years by “carrying back” losses of up to £50,000.

Small companies will apply through the Government’s Payment Support Service to receive rebates paid in profitable years.”

The feedback to this news has been very positive and will certainly help with smaller business cash flow. However, David Frost, director-general of the British Chambers of Commerce, commented that

"The Chancellor could have considered increasing the £50,000 carry-back limit to really make a difference.”

The truth is, only a magician could have created a budget which stimulated growth and made inroads to clawing back some of our national debt.

I hope Darling’s optimistic view becomes apparent, but I have a feeling we will be seeing tax increases very soon.

Technorati Tags: business advice, small business advice, financial, budget

Pitch your ideas to Richard Branson and Virgin’s Business Class

I’ve written a post before about Dragon’s Den style pitching online, but now Richard Branson has jazzed up this phenomenon Virgin style and is giving budding entrepreneurs the chance to gain good exposure for their business ideas.

To hail Virgin’s 25th anniversary celebrations, entrepreneurs in search of both business and exposure are invited to submit short video pitches to the Virgin team. After a vote from its online community, the favourite pitches will be placed on PitchTV, which is a channel aired onboard Virgin flights and available online.

This seems like a great idea and opportunity to get your own ideas heard by some of the top business professionals who travel with Virgin. And, if any of the passengers are interested, they can personally get in touch to offer any form of help or advice.

Richard Branson writes in a recent blog post:

When I was starting out, I wish I could have had the chance to pitch my business ideas directly to people who could help make my ambitions a reality. We can now make that happen for you.

If you’re interested in this idea then simply film yourself delivering the pitch for no longer than two minutes and upload your video here.

With an increasing amount of people communicating online and sharing their ideas, why not make use of to get ahead in the business world?

I think this is another very clever idea from Mr Branson because if there is a truly brilliant idea shared on this platform, I have no doubt his team will be in direct contact pretty quickly.

Technorati Tags: Virgin, Richard Branson, Business Advice

Eight ways to keep your team engaged

With the current economic situation, and companies struggling to survive, many are looking to make staff redundant as a way of cutting costs. I was interested to read an article in Management Today, that highlights ways in which to keep staff engaged and motivated. With the view to improve staff morale and productivity, and in a bid to keep staff onside within the business.

The article outlined eight ways to keep staff engaged:

1. Show that you have a plan – A way of showing people that you are confident and are prepared to show leadership through the difficult period. By emphasising the things that you can do, and not dwelling on negative aspects.
2. Be open but be realistic –You need to tell staff what is happening and how you plan to resolve any issues that arise. But don’t give them false hope, as this will only lead to disappointment in the end.
3. Do it in person – Communicating to staff face-to-face, will build employee confidence in your ability to survive the situation. Use management that work with the staff on a daily basis, because there tends to be greater trust and confidence in them, rather than more senior managers that are rarely seen.
4. Involve your people – In difficult times, staff like to feel like what they are doing has some meaningful contribution, and that they are actually making a difference to the company.
5. Show your compassion – If the need arises for you to make people redundant, you need to show that you have looked to other alternatives before redundancy, this will also improve the confidence of the remaining staff.
6. Redefine success – Don’t allow staff to be blamed for situations and outcomes that are out of their control. By setting achievable targets and goals, it can lead to greater success for staff.
7. Offer recognition – Show staff that you appreciate the work that they are doing. Whether this is through employee of the month schemes or simply telling an employee that they have done well.
8. Keep on celebrating – Congratulate all success, whether it is a case of gaining new business or a team member winning an award. Staff will perform better if they feel that their achievements are recognised.

The article also highlights things to say and not say to staff, when you are trying to engage and motivate them.

“Do say: 'We will be honest and open with our people, and show them the way forward, but we will also be realistic about our prospects during this downturn.'

Don't say: 'We're all doomed.'”

The suggestions that are made are in regard to the current economic climate, but they can easily be applied to everyday business situations, as a way of keeping employees engaged and motivated, whilst at work.

A further article in Management Today that may be of interest, when addressing the issue of engaging staff is; The Next Steps: Engagement - Views on engagement.

Technorati Tags: Management Today,Staff motivation,engaging staff.

The Nectar Small Business Awards are open

I thought this might be of interest to you if you fancy making a noise about your business. Basically, the Nectar Small Business Awards are officially open. If you are a UK based small-medium sized company you can enter now.

The aim of the awards is to acknowledge great ideas, achievements and the best practise within companies. There are three categories for the awards:

• Small Business of the Year
• Start Up Business of the Year
• Entrepreneur of the Year

The awards will be judged by a panel of business experts, including Karen Hanton, founder and CEO of www.toptable.co.uk.

Winners of each award will win a £2,000 cash prize and 50,000 Nectar points. The winners will get recognition and the opportunity to strengthen their relationships with potential clients.

If you fancy it all you have to do is check the criteria for the awards @ the Nectar website. The deadline for entries is 18th May 2009. 

For anymore business related award opportunities, visit the National Business Awards website. It has regional and national categories – so could be worth giving them a go too.

Top Twitter applications

Twitter has taken the world by storm, being used for personal but also business use across the globe. From all the media hype, it seems like everyone has jumped on the bandwagon but no matter what your personal opinion is, if you’re not on Twitter you’re missing out.

A recent post on Small Business CEO compiled a list of the best 27 twitter applications for those using Twitter for marketing purposes.

I thought I’d have a look through and pick out some of my favourites.

1. The Twitter Toolbar is useful, as it’s always there at the top of your browser, giving you instant access to Twitter. And, it can work in both IE and Firefox.

2. A Twit This button can be added to your website or blog so people can easily share or give their own opinion of what you’ve posted.

3. CoTweet is great for companies in which more than one person wants to Tweet, as each person can tweet separately and maintain their own identity as they do it.

4. Twimailer is an application which means that more detailed information is given to you when someone starts to follow you, like stats and most recent tweets.

5. This is one not covered on Small Business CEO and yet it’s one of my favourite Twitter applications. Tweetdeck is a realtime viewer which enables you to view Twitter in different columns depending on what you want to see. It’s great if you’re following a lot of people but only want to monitor certain groups or keywords.

While I’m discussing Twitter I thought I’d also point you towards some great Twitterers who you should really be following, along with their bios so you can get a feel for what they tweet about:

Marketing Donut – Free marketing resources for small businesses.

SMEacademy – Helping business owners and entrepreneurs win new business and get more from their staff.

Small Biz Tweets – A Twitter whirlpool of useful tweets for startups, small business and entrepreneurs created by Alex Bellinger of SmallBizPod.

Small Biz Answers – Providing the best small business related stories from across the web. Tons of topics…. profiles, sales, marketing, employees, finance, legal, social, etc.

These applications and tips are useful for those already on Twitter but also provide a good way for complete beginners to get up and running.

Business Moneyfacts Awards 2009

Last night I attended the Business Moneyfacts Awards dinner and presentation in London, an annual event that recognises the great and the good of the world of business finance.

It was lovely – best frocks, champagne, three course dinner, Sandi Toksvig as speaker and a fake casino afterwards.

4X Dealer™ was shortlisted for Most Innovative Product but didn’t win, losing out to Bank of Scotland’s Interest First account, which pays businesses their annual interest upfront so they can spend it.

Good idea and a worthy winner. Pity that presumably no-one can take advantage of it now interest rates are close to zero…

Anyway, that’s not the point. Although recent news about financial companies has concentrated on the disasters of the big players, the variety of attendees at the awards highlighted that there are clearly some very sound and innovative gems hidden away at the smaller end of the industry.

Small independent building societies and brokers, for example, are quietly battling away trying to keep viable but cash-strapped companies going, when often the banks have simply turned their backs as they have no money to lend.

I was on a table made up of rather a raggle-taggle bunch of these characters - ones and twos from a number of more modest enterprises for whom £300 a ticket was a reasonably significant spend, and an award would have meant a lot. Between us, we were finalists in four of the 28 categories.

The interesting thing was that, of the other thirty-some tables, I calculate at least half were taken by the banks. Not just an odd seat or two, but entire tables, going for £3,000 a pop. Some had multiple tables. Altogether, the banks probably paid somewhere in the region of £50,000 to attend last night. Good to know they have the cash for some things.