Definition ‘A creative climate is a safe nurturing environment for people to work in and one that encourages innovation and creativity.’ Why a Creative Climate? In today’s world, with globalisation, the advances of IT and ever more government intervention, everything is moving so fast that companies cannot afford to stand still. Increasing competition means that […]
How is Business Finance DOWN when GDP and House prices are UP
Business Finance still falling The Bank of England’s latest Trends in Lending survey released last week shows that business funding fell by some £4.3bn in the three months to November 2013. Whilst the decline was less than in the corresponding three months in 2012 – it was still a significant drop in net lending, and […]
How Empowering your people gives better employee engagement
Employee Empowerment has become an increasingly popular way of working for many organisations in direct contrast to the control and command strategies of the past. Jan Carlzon, the ex CEO of SAS, famously said: ‘That to free an employee from traditional business controls, was to unleash a whole range of resources previously unknown to the […]
Experienced Sales Directors for better Business Management Solutions
Should you Hire experienced Sales People or Ambitious Rookies? A good sales strategy is key to any successful business but hiring experienced sales people in your sector is not always the best option. Sometimes hiring the inexperienced yet ambitious can be a solution to dwindling sales. To illustrate this point, I met up with a […]
2014 Looking good but more SME business finance needed
In this first article of the year we review the drivers that are making 2014 look more promising for the economy and business growth generally. It seems that the majority view among UK businesses is that we are past the worst and looking forward to a better year. Nb Notwithstanding this new found confidence, […]
SME business finance – where is it?
Whilst the UK economy continues on its growth path, and is at least firing on some cylinders (if not all), business finance for the SME sector remains patchy. The Stats Bank of England figures – released on 29 November – showed that net lending to the SME sector had fallen by some £206m in October. […]
What are Directors’ duties and the personal risks relating to insolvency?
In the current climate, where asset values have diminished and directors’ decisions are increasingly under the microscope, it is in a director’s personal interests to be fully aware of what planning should be implemented within their company generally (regardless of how well it may be doing), and the necessary steps to take in advance of or […]
End of Funding for Lending – What effect on SME business finance?
It seems the Bank of England has spotted the issues regarding the potential bubble in the housing market as referred to in our article. Ironically, as I mentioned in this recent post, I think the froth in the market was starting to soften anyway. There is further evidence of this in the latest release from MasterCard […]
7 steps to find the right business support when you need it
When you start a new business it’s a very exciting time; when you have finally put your plans into place and taken that last bold step into the unknown. You knew your trade very well with lots of good connections, and you probably had a business plan giving you a well sign-posted route forward. The […]
UK turnaround warning – decline in consumer financial wellbeing
As we have mentioned in previous blogs, the UK economy is in large part driven by consumer spending. Hence, you and I make up around 60% of our £1.4 trillion economy. And, as we are all aware, things have been going a bit better recently in terms of the UK turnaround and recovery, with us […]