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Risk Management: 4 easy steps P Paaggee 1144
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WORKING FOR YOU
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Chamber Directors
Mark Your Calendar Business After Hours Wed., November 16, 2011 Location: Stonehurst B&B Address: 265 St. David St. S., Fergus Host/Owner: Deb & Rich Schlieker
Networking Breakfast
Michael Weinstein
Janet Harrop
President
1st Vice President
Nardo Kuitert
nd
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Vice President
Wed., November 30, 2011 Topic: Branding Speaker: Brent Barr, Falcon Innovation Group Location: Gorge Country Kitchen
Chamber Christmas Party
Paul Walker
Garth Green
Barney Tracy
Secretary Treasurer
Past President
Director
Aileen Hawkins
Lynne Bard
Don Cubbidge
Director
Director
Director
Sat., December 3, 2011 Location: New St. Joseph‟s Catholic Church Hall (Fergus) Time: 6:00 pm – midnight
Business After Hours Wed., January 18, 2012 Location: Noecker Travel; Uptown Café Address: 123 Metcalfe St., Elora Co-Hosts: Debbie Bath & Noreen Winter
Mayor‟s Breakfast
Chamber Staff
Wed., January 25, 2012 Speaker: Joanne Ross-Zuj Location: Grand River Raceway Time: 7:30 – 9:00 am
Roberta Scarrow
Heather Andrews
General Manager
Membership & Administration
The Focus Autumn 2011 |3
CONTENTS CWCC Board of Directors and Staff ...................................... 3 President‟s Piece ................................................................... 5 Member Article: GROWING AGAIN? .................................... 6 Welcomes and Renewals ...................................................... 7 Member Profile ...................................................................... 9 Member Article: HOW MUCH HOMEOWNER‟S INSURANCE DO I NEED? ......................... 10 Pictures of Chamber Events................................................... 11 Member Article: 7 WAYS TO GIVE YOUR BUSINESS A PROFESSIONAL LOOK ............................. 12 Business News ...................................................................... 13 Member Article: RISK MANAGEMENT................................... 14 Member Discounts ................................................................ 16 Member-to-Member Program ................................................ 16 Member Article: USING BUSINESS ASSETS TO SUPPORT RETIREMENT INCOME............................... 17
DESIGN AND PRODUCTION:
Michael Black, Heather Andrews PHOTOGRAPHY:
Bill Longshaw, Heather Andrews, Roberta Scarrow ADVERTISING AND SALES:
Nardo Kuitert, Chair of Communications Committee 519-787-7612 | Advertising@cwchamber.ca CONTRIBUTING WRITERS:
Michael Weinstein, Nardo Kuitert CONTRIBUTORS:
Ontario Chamber of Commerce, Canadian Chamber of Commerce, Garth Green, Steve Lund, Michelle Huestis, Jeremy Woods, Uptown Cafe SUBSCRIPTION AND BACK ISSUE INQUIRIES:
Roberta Scarrow - TheFocus@cwchamber.ca SUBMISSION POLICY:
Proposals and articles are accepted via mail or email c/o Editor – The Focus. Please do not send originals. Contributors are welcome to include a head shot and a 40 word author‟s bio. If not received, we will use author‟s name, business name and contact information as a credit line. FOR PERMISSION AND REPRINT REQUESTS
Heather Andrews – TheFocus@cwchamber.ca PUBLICATION OF:
Centre Wellington Chamber of Commerce 400 Tower Street South Fergus, Ontario N1M 2P7
MISSION STATEMENT The Centre Wellington Chamber of Commerce is a memberdriven organization that:
The Focus is a periodical membership benefit publication of the Centre Wellington Chamber of Commerce. Advertising content and the views expressed herein are those of the contributors and do not constitute endorsement by the Chamber. Copies are available through the Publisher. The Chamber cannot be held responsible for any errors or omissions that may occur and has the right to edit material submitted. The Chamber will not accept advertising with competitor comparison claims and has the right to refuse advertising that is deemed to be false, misleading, or inappropriate.
Serves as a catalyst for business growth through networking and educational opportunities. Acts as an information resource for local business. Promotes local business, the community and the Chamber. We are a volunteer organization supported by over 350 local business and professional people such as yourself. Your participation in the Chamber helps make Centre Wellington a more rewarding place to live, work and play.
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PG. 13 – PICTURES OF CHAMBER EVENTS in order from left to right:
Business After Hours Fireworks Sales Awards of Excellence 2nd Annual Local Biz Night at Grand River Raceway Ribbon Cutting Table Top Trade Show CWCC Golf Day Networking Breakfast All Candidates Meeting Christmas Parade Float CWCC Christmas Party
PRESIDENT'S PIECE Welcome to the Centre Wellington Chamber of Commerce new, electronic magazine!
Michael Weinstein - CWCC President
The Chamber continues to explore avenues to reach out to our membership and increase the value of a chamber membership. Our goal is for this new publication to provide more space than our current “Blink” provides, and with that, we will strive to provide more information. This is not to say that we won‟t continue with the “Blink” for more time sensitive issues but it is our hope that this format will help answer the “why should I join the chamber?” questions. WHY? There is value in education and this magazine format will offer greater capacity to deliver educational content.
Membership in the Chamber is not a social club. It is not a sales club. It is certainly not a proverbial “old boys club”. The purpose of the Chamber is to act as a catalyst for business. The purpose of the chamber is to be a resource for business information and a voice of the business community. Through advocacy at the local, provincial and national level, the Chamber works to further the interests of business. Membership in the Centre Wellington Chamber of Commerce automatically provides local businesses a voice with both the Ontario and Canadian Chambers of Commerce. It is interesting to note that each chamber, at the provincial and national level, has one vote acting on advocacy and policy decisions. This means that our „small‟ chamber has the same weight as a Toronto or Vancouver chamber! This being said, we still depend on our membership to challenge and inspire us. We conduct Ribbon Cuttings to celebrate new business openings or similar achievements. Most recently we worked with the township on the Sign Bylaw. This was an interesting exercise. We worked on behalf of all businesses to ensure that the sign bylaw being proposed by the Building Department kept the needs of the business community on the table. While the bylaw is not perfect, we do have agreement from council that it can be revisited and modified as necessary. It was an opportunity to work WITH council rather than as a dissenting voice. We strongly encourage all businesses to join the chamber. Our membership fees are reasonable – based on the size of each business. Some of our members choose to join and become actively involved with various committees; others join and support the chamber through attendance at various special events. Some companies join for the training and educational opportunities. We are continuing to develop and present more “business related” seminars – at a reasonable cost and with valuable information content. Some companies join and we never see them – and that is fine. They join the chamber because they believe “it is the right thing to do”. They value the work of the chamber to improve the overall business climate in the township. We hope that you enjoy this new publication and find it valuable. It is environmentally friendly – no paper – so print what you want and feel free to forward, electronically, to your staff and colleagues. If you have comments or suggestions, or wish to share your knowledge on a particular subject by writing an article, please contact us – we‟re listening. We‟re doing our best to make sure YOUR chamber provides you with membership value for YOUR business! Michael Weinstein President Centre Wellington Chamber of Commerce
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GROWING AGAIN? Save Time and Energy By Creating Effective Job Advertisements “Here we grow again” has become a common phrase found in many job advertisements. Although it‟s a catchy line, employers may still find themselves inundated with applicants who do not meet their expectations. If you have found yourself in this situation, try increasing your odds of attracting qualified applicants by using a well written job advertisement that includes very specific details of your business needs. For example, consider stating the applicant must have proficiency in Microsoft Office vs. applicant must have computer skills. Such detail will allow applicants to determine if their skill level matches your expectations before they even consider applying. Providing additional company specifics, such as not on a bus route, will
also discourage applicants without transportation from applying. Creating a job advertisement that provides more detail will minimize the time and energy spent on applicants that are not genuinely interested or truly qualified for the position advertised. Watch your investment pay off as your pool of quality applicants increase and you can then continue to “grow your business” with new employees! Submitted by: 2nd Chance Employment Counselling For more information or help to create a job advertisement contact a 2nd Chance Job Developer @ 519-823-2440 or 519843-5513.
MEMBER TESTIMONIAL “I am proud to be a member of the Centre Wellington Chamber of Commerce. Community is important to me and I appreciate the values in this realm that the Chamber holds dear to them. The CWCC is a breath of fresh air compared to other business associations. Thank you for the support” Lynne Bard, President of Beyond Rewards Inc.
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THANK YOU RENEWING MEMBERS The Achievement Centre – Excel Almost Anything Wood The Bar Store Canada Inc. Big Brothers Big Sisters of Centre Wellington C.S. MacGregor Ltd. Centre Wellington Dental Cork Restaurant Inc. Cox Creek Cellars Inc. Elora BIA Fergus Pools Fifth Avenue Collection Jewellery Grand River Physiotherapy Impact Physiotherapy & Performance Junior Achievement Guelph-Wellington Liberty Tax Service Log Cabin Heaven Loney & Associates Lopers Electric Northern Lights Canada The Ostic Group – Fergus Pryde Truck Service Ltd. Reid's Heritage Homes Ltd. Sew Fancy Inc. Sew Original Custom Drapery & Design Shield Security St. David Street Dentistry St. George Bed & Breakfast Sterling Promotions Inc. Thistlebrae B&B True-Centre Muffler & Brake The Wellington Advertiser
WELCOME NEW MEMBERS EPIX Elizabeth 'Pix' Martin, Owner1441 King Street, Box 541 St. Jacobs N0B 2N0 (519) 664-9956 epixfashion@gmail.com Pix Martin, Fibre Artist - One of a kind quilts offering creative hand guided machine quilting and clothing alterations.
JOSEPH GILBEY Joseph Gilbey, Author 1 Gilbey Lane, R.R. #2 Hillsburgh ON N0B 1Z0 (519) 855-6126 jogilbey@grafspee.com www.grafspee.com Author and publisher of books.
MICHAEL CRESSMAN SALON Michael Cressman, Owner 23 Moir Street Elora N0B 1S0 (519) 846-5735 A personalized experience for your hair! Cuts, colours, updos, treatments, as well as a full selection of Matrix/Biolage and Morrocan Oil products. Ask about 100% human hair extensions.
RICHARDSON GMP There are varying levels of experience and expertise amongst Investment Advisors. The best advisors offer a combination of experience and education. It is important to have the right credentials and to have the experience to know how to apply that information to the benefit of investors. You may be able to gauge how long an advisor has been in the industry by the credentials they carry. Phillips Fortress Solutions – Non-Negotiable Integrity offers comprehensive wealth planning solutions and customized portfolio design that we believe exceeds what you‟ll find anywhere else. CONTACT Matthew Phillips, Portfolio Manager 18 Macdonell Street, 1st Floor Guelph ON N1H 2Z3 (519) 782-4171 matthew.phillips@richardsongmp.com www.phillipsfortress.ca
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WELCOME NEW MEMBERS
CRAZY CAROLE’S FRESH BURGER Crazy Carole's is locally owned and operated using only the best local products to provide a memorable dining experience for you and your family. Crazy Carole's offers a variety of unique, fresh, mouth-watering burgers that are sure to satisfy. Whether you‟re looking for a classic burger, wanting to try something new, or even something a little crazy, we have the burger for you. CONTACT Dean Darrah, Owner 6488 Wellington Road 7 Elora ON N0B 1S0 Phone 226-384-2799 info@crazycaroles.com www.crazycaroles.com
KOOIMAN INDUSTRIES LTD. Products built using patented aluminum framework systems, combined with plastic accessory channels, glass and wood panels and the very best in hardware components. Finished products have excellent "fit and finish" and systems ensure long life, extreme durability and efficient production costs. CONTACT Jerry Kooiman, President 630 Glengarry Cres.-P.O. Box 39 Fergus ON N1M 2W7 (519) 787-9910 jerry@kooiman.ca www.kooimanindustrieslimited.com
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DESJARDINS FINANCIAL SECURITIES INDEPENDENT NETWORK AND DFS INVESTMENTS INC.
As a representative of DFSIN and DFS Investments Inc., I can offer a wide range of products and services that meet my clients‟ expectations. My status as an independent representative gives me access to the products offered by the major Canadian insurers and by more than 100 mutual fund companies. CONTACT Trevor Wright, Investment Funds Advisor & Life and Health Insurance Advisor 5457 Wellington Road 39-R.R.#5 Guelph ON N1H 6J2 (519) 265-5126 trevor.wright@dfsin.ca www.dfsinvestmentinsurance.ca
MILL STREET BAKERY & BISTRO With a perfect view of the Grand River, the 28seat Bistro serves tasty homemade goodness. French cuisine figures into the menu, with such items as coq au vin, beef bourguignon and cassoulet. There are other selections, like a Mexican Shepherd's Pie and white chili with chicken. Catering for family reunions available in beautiful park setting aside this historic building. CONTACT Fran Weima, Owner 15 Mill Street East, Elora ON N0B 1S0 (226) 384-2277 fweima@sympatico.ca
MEMBER PROFILE UPTOWN CAFE Merv and Noreen Winter are what you call “serial entrepreneurs”, and have been in the food business for their entire adult life. They actually met as teenagers, at a food college in England. They both completed a Hotel Management course and worked in Hotels in London before moving to a Pub and B&B called the Brace of Pheasants in the heart of Dorset. Merv ran the kitchen while Noreen served the food and helped her father behind the bar. After moving to Canada they purchased The Golden Beaver Restaurant, which was located on Highway 6 south of Fergus, in Ennotville, and successfully operated the restaurant for 6 years. Since then the Winters have operated a variety of small restaurants, including the Elora Bistro, the River‟s Edge Café in the Fergus Market as well as a Catering Business. After selling the Catering Business they were hoping to retire (at least Noreen was) but after 6 months of retirement they realized they had to go back to work so two years ago they bought the breakfast restaurant Kringles, which had just moved across the street in downtown Elora. Merv and Noreen decided to change the name of the restaurant and asked customers to give them some ideas. A local family suggested the name Uptown Café! Popular menu items at the Uptown Café include a choice of homemade soups made with fresh local ingredients, customized Panini sandwiches, Quiche, Salads, Meat Pies and Pasta. Noreen recently added a British Afternoon Tea to the menu, with scones and other yummie food. As the Winters are sensitive to what their customers say they now also offer things like vegetarian and vegan options as well as gluten-free bread, wraps and desserts. “We adapt the menu to the demand”, Merv says with a smile. The formula seems to work as they have many loyal customers, some of whom have followed Merv and Noreen whenever they started up a new adventure. “75% of our customers are regulars”, Noreen says. But a lot of their regulars just like to sit down early in the morning for “a coffee and a chat” enjoying the company of host Noreen and her staff. “Customers appreciate it when the owner is there”, Merv says. The flipside is of course, that the owners work long hours – especially since the Uptown Café is open 7 days a week. Noreen and Merv do all the shopping themselves, buying local products as much as they can. They do have to go shopping a lot, though, as their small kitchen does not allow for a lot of storage space. They managed to turn this challenge into a positive though - often combining the shopping with things like family visits. The Focus Autumn 2011|9
“One of the biggest misconceptions about our industry is that many people think we make a lot of money, or that it is easy. “Just serve a few people, and then have a chat and a drink…”, they think. But those people don‟t realize the long hours involved”, Merv says. “Not just in the restaurant, but also the shopping, bookkeeping, training and management of staff - and all the other aspects of running a business.” “And you have to do your home work. You have to know who your competition is, what your costs are and how much you can charge. It‟s not always possible to make a profit in the first year”, he continues. The main reason for Noreen and Merv to join the Centre Wellington Chamber of Commerce is the TD Merchant Services. They are also considering hosting a Business After Hours event. “Unfortunately, because we work early mornings, we cannot attend breakfasts.” Other community involvements include volunteering for the Elora Festival, billeting an Elora Festival Singer, Sensational Elora, The Centre Wellington Rotary Club and the Elora BIA. They also promote many local events, or join them as a sponsor. The Uptown Café is located downtown Elora at 140 Metcalfe Street. You can contact Merv and Noreen Winter at 519-846-0553 or visit their website www.elorauptowncafe.com.
HOW MUCH HOMEOWNER’S INSURANCE DO I NEED? Every day people ask themselves, “How much homeowner‟s insurance do I need?” The answer varies, depending on each person‟s situation. Usually you should insure your home for its whole value, the actual building and all of its contents. In order to find out exactly how much your home is worth, you can have a builder or insurance agent give you an estimate on its value. However, if you ever remodel or add on to your home, its value will increase, and you will then need to purchase more coverage. For any valuable possessions you have, you can purchase extended coverage, to ensure those items are covered as well. The best thing to do is take a room-by-room inventory of your valuables then keep this list somewhere outside the home, for example, a safe-deposit box. To determine if valuable possessions, such as TVs, stereos or computers are covered, or if you have any other questions about homeowner‟s insurance, contact your local insurance agent. Article submitted by Steve Lund, State Farm®Agent
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CHAMBER EVENTS
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7 WAYS TO GIVE YOUR BUSINESS A PROFESSIONAL LOOK Every business – large and small – needs to worry about their image. Sometimes we forget to take a look at ourselves from “the outside”. There are seven simple things you can do to give yourself a professional look. 1) Get a logo… and use it – properly. This might seem almost redundant to mention, but this is a pet peeve of mine. Every business or organization needs a logo – that is the easiest way for a potential customer to recognize you. The next step is to use it. Every time your business is mentioned, use your logo – in ads, on vehicles, on clothing – everywhere! The most important step is to make sure the logo looks right. There is a reason that large corporations spend a lot of time creating guidelines on how their logo is to be used. When you see a logo that is stretched out of proportion or all blurry, you notice it... but for the wrong reason. You have a nice logo… make sure it is reproduced in a nice way. 2) Get a web presence. Now, this can be a simple one-page informational website, or a complex ecommerce site, but you should have your own domain name. The main point here is to get a domain name that is uniquely yours. Then, make sure people know about it. Make sure your website address is printed wherever your name and logo are. 3) Use the email at your domain name. You should not use a free email account as your business email. There are many reasons, but the main point here is that it looks more professional to use the email at your domain name. You already own the domain… why not use it for your email as well. Many companies still offer webmail access to your account, so it is just as convenient as Hotmail or Gmail. 4) Now that you have a logo, and a great domain name and email address… why not put that logo in the signature of your email. You will just further reinforce your brand, by reminding them of your logo every time they get an email from you. Also take that opportunity to mention your website. 5) Subscribe to a “call answer service”. Nothing bugs me more than a busy signal – except maybe no answer at all. Most telephone companies offer an answering service. I think that is better than an answering machine because it can take a message while you are on the phone. At the very least, you can inform the caller that their call is important and that you will contact them as soon as you can. 6) Invest in a colour laser printer. The prices of colour laser printers are dropping so fast, that soon they will be the same price as a black & white laser printer. You have a nice logo, and probably some nice photos… why print them all in black & white? There is a reason that everything a large corporation produces is done in colour… because colour sells. Why not print everything in colour, such as your brochures, flyers, quotations, and even your invoices. 7) Use social media. If you have time, you can use services such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn to spread the word and keep track of what people are saying about you. This can take a considerable amount of time, so don‟t take this initiative lightly. Large corporations have full-time employees that only keep track of the company‟s social media sites. Nothing screams “unprofessional” than a Facebook page that has not been updated in over a year. In a nutshell, you know your stuff… but you should look like you know your stuff. Article written by Jeremy Woods of ICS Computers
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BUSINESS NEWS ONTARIO CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
CANADIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
Fiscal Policy Will Be Important Post-Election
Time for Parliament to Act on Copyright
Posted on October 4, 2011
Published: 09/29/2011 - News Releases and Videos
Well before the risk of a second economic contraction started to become widely reported in the media, Ontario businesses advised the provincial government not to lose sight of the province‟s fiscal fundamentals as the pace of the economy picked up.
Ottawa, September 29 - The Canadian Chamber of Commerce is pleased that the government has acted quickly to re-introduce copyright legislation in the House of Commons. Many companies, big and small, rely on the protection of intellectual property (IP) rights to maintain their businesses in Canada.
The private sector continued to place emphasis on fiscal responsibility as a top priority in the Ontario Chamber of Commerce‟s (OCC) recent 2011 PreElection Business Survey. With external factors such as the Eurozone debt crisis and political impasse over the fate of the U.S. economy creating ripples throughout the global economy, it has never been more important for Ontario‟s political leaders to adopt sound fiscal policies to foster Ontario‟s economic resilience. Ontario‟s business community has identified three overriding initiatives that will allow the Ontario government to keep the province‟s finances on track: Reduce spending and focus on priority areas Maintain broader public sector wage freeze Reign in municipal government spending These recommendations build on the OCC‟s advice to government in the run up to the 2011 budget – namely, expedite deficit reduction, with a new target date of 2015-16, and ensure the conditions for rapid growth in emerging sectors. The Ontario Chamber of Commerce looks forward to working with Ontario‟s next government to bring this vision to reality. Information on Ontario‟s 40th election and the priorities of the Chamber Network can be found on the Ontario Chamber of Commerce website. This entry was posted in Blog. Bookmark the permalink.
Updated copyright legislation will bring Canada more in line with other leading nations and establish guidelines for those who download and file share in the Internet. Properly applied, intellectual property rights drive job creation, economic growth and innovation. “IP is the economic currency of the future. By defining and better protecting IP rights, we will continue to develop a marketplace that rewards investments in innovation and creation. This bill will help foster new business models that will lead to stronger economic growth in Canada” stated Perrin Beatty, President and CEO of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce. read full story
PLACE YOUR BUSINESS ADVERTISEMENT HERE Contact the CW Chamber at 519-843-5140 for rates and information.
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RISK MANAGEMENT During the daily operation of a company, whether large or small, exposure to accidental losses is a fact of life. Such exposures can cause anything from minor glitches that hinder the ability to achieve short-term goals to major events that threaten the very existence of the entire company. When major accidents occur, a company can be faced with loss of life or injuries to key employees, property damage, huge liabilities and significant loss of income. This is why prudent companies engage in risk management. What exactly is risk management? Everyone actually practices risk management regularly whether they know it or not. For example, if you decide not to take up motorcycling because you are afraid of being injured, you are practicing „avoidance‟ – a basic risk management technique. If you do decide to ride a motorcycle, but only with a helmet, you are practicing „loss reduction‟. Risk management is a methodology that helps organizations make the best use of their available resources to logically and systematically identify, analyze, treat, and monitor the risks involved in any activity or process. Below are the steps in the risk management process as applied to a business: Step No. 1 - Identify and analyze loss exposures Identifying exposures to potential losses involves developing a complete list of loss exposures for your organization. Professional risk managers begin with a physical inspection, and then use tools such as surveys, questionnaires and business flowcharts to identify potential loss exposures or business bottlenecks. Analyzing your loss exposures requires estimating how large (severity) the potential losses you identified could be (in terms of size and dollars) and how often (frequency) they might occur. Step No. 2 - Examine various techniques for addressing your exposures Once potential loss exposures have been identified and analyzed, professional risk managers evaluate industry-accepted techniques for treating these exposures. These techniques include two categories: risk control to stop loss and risk financing to pay for losses. Risk control Risk control techniques are strategies designed to reduce the frequency or severity of a loss and possibly make accidental losses more predictable. The techniques are as follows: 1. Avoidance – if you avoid certain activities, you eliminate exposure to potential losses. However, in the real world, total risk avoidance is rarely practical. 2. Loss prevention - comprises techniques that are implemented with the intent to reduce the „probability‟ or „frequency‟ with which certain losses might occur. An example would be the implementation of speed restrictions in school zones. 3. Loss reduction – actions intended to reduce the severity of a loss. A commonly used technique would be to install sprinklers to reduce the financial consequences should a fire break out. 4. Segregation of loss exposures (separation or duplication) – this technique involves separating or dispersing activities over several locations. This might include having delivery vehicles take several different routes to reduce the possibilities of delays. It also might involve duplication of equipment or activities. It could be as simple as having a backup generator or as complex as having an alternate facility to process from if problems should arise. 5. Contractual risk transfer for risk control – occurs when one business obtains a contractual promise from another entity to pay for any losses that might occur. This technique transfers both the legal and financial responsibility of a loss to the other entity. Leasing property and contracting out hazardous activities are examples of this.
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Risk financing Risk financing involves strategies to pay for losses that cannot be entirely prevented by risk control. Such strategies can be broken down into two groups, retention and transfer. 1. Retention – a decision is made to retain exposure to losses and pay for them by such methods as current expenses, funded or non-funded reserves or by borrowing funds. 2. Transfer – this method involves the transfer of responsibility of paying for losses to another through various methods such as: Contractual transfer for risk financing – the transfer of financial responsibility of losses (but not the legal responsibility) by written agreement to another party (often known as a „hold harmless‟ or „indemnity‟ agreement). Commercial insurance - a contract (policy) that provides financial protection or reimbursement against losses. Commercial insurance policies can be written against many exposures including damage to property and loss of Business Income. Step No. 3 - Select the appropriate techniques (or combination) As avoidance isn‟t always practical and insurance costs money, professional risk managers often apply a combination of the above techniques to address potential loss exposures. For example, businesses can often obtain discounts on insurance for instituting a mandatory risk control program. Step No. 4 - Implement a ‘risk management program’ Once risk management techniques have been evaluated and selected, they must be implemented as a risk management program. The important considerations are: 1. What needs to be done? What are the details of the program? 2. Who needs to be responsible? Accountability for implementing the techniques needs to be assigned to particular persons. 3. Communicate the program. Employees involved need to understand the exposures and how the program addresses them. 4. Allocate costs of the program – Often specific costs associated with a program (e.g., safety equipment) need to be spread over affected departments or business units and budgeted for accordingly. Step No. 5 - Monitor the program and modify as needed Once implemented, monitoring a risk management program is an ongoing activity. Routine observation of the effectiveness of the program is imperative to determine whether progress is being made in addressing the exposures. Measurements may show that further modifications are necessary to the program. More training or safety measures may be required to reduce losses (both in frequency and severity). In today‟s highly competitive environment, the slightest oversight in business can have severe consequences. Accordingly, all businesses, regardless of size, should have a risk management program and review it on a regular basis Article submitted by Garth Green of HJM Insurance & Financial Services Ltd.
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MEMBER DISCOUNTS TD Merchant Services Low rates on Visa 1.59% | MasterCard 1.64% Interac Direct Payments $0.069 per transaction. Contact Carolyn Fox at 519-787-7645, carolyn.fox@td.com
Group Insurance For Extended Health Care, Group Term Life Insurance, Critical Illness, Best Doctors access, Dental Care, Disability Coverage and/or Accidental Death & Dismemberment coverage – this plan is for you! Contact Barney Tracy at 519-820-1283, btracy@groupbenefits.on.ca
Esso Business Card Program cost saving program of 3.5 cents per litre of fuel. Click here to apply: http://www.essofleetoffers.com/CHAMBER
Grand & Toy Save up to 80% on over 7500 quality office products. Contact Grand and Toy at 519-746-3500 ext 0
Ostic Insurance Member to Member discounting for Home and Auto Insurance for qualifying Chamber Members, Employees and Retirees. Contact Tom Waind, twaind@theosticgroup.com or www.theosticgroup.com
Bell Mobility Choose from two different Chamber Plan options, Blackberry & PDA Data pricing available, as well as Mobile Internet Stick Plans. Please view flyer for more details. Contact Dennis Dinesh at dennis.dinesh@bell.ca, 1-888-282-4499 x 5322.
MEMBER TO MEMBER PROGRAM One of the things the Chamber encourages is members doing business with fellow Chamber members - Introduce your products and services to over 360 companies who are fellow Centre Wellington Chamber members! Here is a great way to take advantage of this opportunity: Participating businesses provide discounts or other benefits for their products and/or services. For example, some businesses may choose to provide a 10% discount, a one year warranty with purchase, a $10 gift card with purchase of $100, etc. These are special offers that are available only to Centre Wellington Chamber members in good standing. Interested in participating in our Member-to-Member program? Contact us at the Chamber for more information on how to get started. We look forward to hearing from you! Please note: the M2M Discount is separate from the national and provincial discount programs also offered as a benefit of Chamber membership. Offers are only effective at those businesses listed, if you are a Centre Wellington Chamber Member. 16 | w w w . c w c h a m b e r . c a
USING BUSINESS ASSETS TO SUPPORT RETIREMENT INCOME As business owners become more and more successful, they look for ways to put surplus accumulated cash to better use in a tax effective way. Ideally, most business owners would like more personal benefit without being subjected to the top personal tax rate. An Individual Pension Plan is one opportunity to invest corporate dollars that ultimately pay out to the business owner in their retirement. The company contributions to the IPP are tax deductible to the company and not taxable to the beneficiary (company owner) until they start drawing the pension. Another way to put surplus corporate cash to work is through corporately owned life insurance. For many business owners, life insurance is one of those costs that doesnâ€&#x;t generate income but is necessary to protect your family and your business. If you only look at it this way, youâ€&#x;ll hope you never receive the benefits of the product. But there is a way to add to the protection of a life insurance policy and create an investment asset that contributes to your retirement income plan. Safe conservative low-risk investments like Guaranteed Investment Certificates (GICs) allow the surplus cash to grow but they are taxed at the top corporate rate of almost 50%. A wiser alternative may be for the business to deposit the accumulated surplus cash for investment within a corporately owned life insurance policy. Over time, the accumulated value of the surplus cash and its tax deferred growth within the life insurance policy can be used as collateral for a tax free bank loan to the company. The bank loan is then used to provide tax friendly retirement income to the business owner. At the same time the death benefit of the policy increases with the growth of the investments. The higher policy value provides a tax-free death benefit to the corporation at the business ownerâ€&#x;s death. The bank loan is then paid off and the balance of the proceeds paid out to the heirs using capital dividends and virtually free of tax. Both of these retirement income strategies are very tax effective and require a certain level of expertise. For more information, please contact a qualified financial advisor. Dan Allen is a Certified Financial Planner, recently achieving the Master Financial Advisor designation specializing in retirement income planning. He can be reached at 519-843-2630 or dan@danallenfinancial.com.
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Contact Us Centre Wellington Chamber of Commerce 400 Tower Street South Fergus, Ontario CANADA N1M 2P7 Phone: (519) 843-5140 Fax: (519) 787-0983 e-mail: chamber@cwchamber.ca website: www.cwchamber.ca
General Manager: Roberta Scarrow email: rscarrow@cwchamber.ca Membership & Administration Heather Andrews email: membership@cwchamber.ca
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