Recruiting and maintaining staff can be one of the most expensive costs for your business. It isn’t just the wages that you need to consider when hiring staff. Making the wrong hiring decision can be disastrous. Therefore, it is important that you consider the hidden or forgotten costs of employing new staff. It is especially […]
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While the UK government is still consulting with experts on how late payment penalties should be enforced, there is a real danger that small and medium enterprises (or “SMEs”) could face financial trouble from slow payers and bad debtors. Research has found that UK SME businesses are owed £30.2bn and 85% of companies experienced significant […]
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In the summer of 2013, the Governor of the Bank of England, Mark Carney, stated that the Monetary Policy Committee would not consider increasing interest rates until unemployment was at 7%. At the time unemployment was at 7.8% and it was projected to take a couple of years to get down to the 7% target. […]
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I can safely say that a couple of my clients think I’m a pretty good guy; and for an accountant, that can be a slightly unusual place to be! The reason is embarrassingly simple. They are both CEOs of young businesses that have been going full steam for a year or so with the business […]
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A sale is not a sale until you have received the cash. Agreed? “Cash is King”. Not Shakespeare, I grant you, but probably quoted just as often. Profitability is one thing but it is a lack of cash in the bank that is the most common form of business failure – even for some highly […]
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“If you are thinking of buying or selling a business … here is a combined personal and professional perspective!” So – how do you value a business? Any accountant who has sat professional exams will remember this as a study topic loved by examiners probably due to the rich source of complex calculations on some […]
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“What does an outstanding FD look like and do you need one?” All too often Finance Directors (FD or CFO), particularly in SME businesses, act more like “heavy” bookkeepers or management accountants rather than being a true member of the senior management team providing input to strategy and driving the business plan through in partnership […]
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What do good contract terms and conditions look like? “And did you read the contract terms before you accepted them?” “No, m’Lud, they looked very long and very boring and life felt too short.” This defence might meet with some sympathy in a dispute over an on-line retail purchase; but in the commercial world, business […]
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“The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” However, if you don’t know your starting position, the journey may be considerably longer. For a business, this means knowing your most vital operating information. As your time is limited and information is not free, you need to identify the minimum facts about your […]
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Most lawyers are great at being lawyers; but developing the skills and finding the time to effectively manage a business is not necessarily what they signed-up for. It’s unlikely there are many lawyers out there who secretly yearn to become accountants; but focusing on three key accounting things within your business will go a long […]
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