Nifnex Dec-Jan-2013 Edition by Nifnex

Time is Money

‘LINK’ Acronym in business networking

BY James Law...........Pg 13

7 Bookkeeping Tips

By Tracey Edwardes �� Pg 10

By Ron Gibson............ Pg 5

Dec / Jan 2013 Edition

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Message from the CEO As we leave 2012 behind, it’s important for us to build on what we have achieved in the past years. Thank you to my family, team, friends, supporters and well wishers, Nifnex has well and truly made its mark in the Perth Small Business Community.

Managing Director Zeeshan Pasha

My team and I wish you a very successful 2013. Connect via Linkedin: http://au.linkedin.com/in/zeeshanpasha Twitter: https://twitter.com/zeeshanpasha

Disclaimer:

Printers Rural Press Mandurah, WA

Business Operation Sharmini Pasha

Zeeshan Pasha Zeeshan Pasha CEO Nifnex

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Nifnex Team

This edition is all about 2013 and how we can do business differently to transform ourselves and our business.

Postal Address: PO Box 1186 Technology Park, Bentley DC, WA 6983

Advertising & Sales Saravanan Sithambaram Krunal Dangar

Advertising Enquiries and Media Relations Email: nifnex@nifnex.com.au Tel: 1300 643 639 Mob: 0412 291 206

All articles, advertising, contributions and material supplied to Nifnex are opinions of the advertiser, contributor and author of the article/material. No responsibility is taken by Nifnex. Opinions published are not necessarily those of editor

Index: New Year resolutions 3 Small businesses: Have your say on new Industrial Relations laws 3 Top 3 recommendations for your 2013 Business Plan 4

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“Where inspiration leads” 4 Awaken Your Personal Brand 4 Effective Tool to manage your networking conversations 5 Office Space Trends 2013 6 National Broadband Network opens up opportunities for Australian businesses

9 Telecommunication Strategies to spearhead your business 7 5 Tips To Make Your Marketing Dollars Last Longer in 2013 7 Payroll Tax. What is it Good For? 8 Bni Stockwatch – Galaxy Resources

New Year’s Credit Resolutions

2013: Watch out for the Cliff! 9 Seven bookkeeping tips for small business 10 What You Need To Be Doing Online in 2013 11 Check your backups 11 The New Economy – What New Economy!! 12

Value Your Time, Value It Right 13 The 7Cs of Entrepreneurship 13 Is your business ready for 2013? 14 Locked up for a good cause 14 Top Nine Tips for using LinkedIn over the Christmas Period

9 Perth Entrepreneurs Share Their Business Wish For 2013 16

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New Year resolutions Most people set New Year resolutions and don’t follow them, what about setting New Year resolutions for your business and its finance performance? You probably feel

the same about your financials as you feel about losing weight after Christmas, you know you should but it’s just too hard. I want to set you the challenge of doing this for 2013 as the benefits for improving financial performance are just like a healthy lifestyle, you’ll feel awesome! What should you focus on in 2013?

Expenses – we hear how expensive the cost of living is in Perth but it is a very expensive place to run a business too. What can you do about it? Monitor all your expenses and look to negotiate better terms with your suppliers. Maximise the return on investment, for example, if you give your employees a 20% pay increase they must provide 20% or more value through improved performance.

Pipeline – The pipeline is the work you are expecting to do over the next three, six or 12 months based on projects, tenders, quotes and expectations

you have in the market. It is nice saying you expect $100,000 in sales over the next three months but what is that based on? This will help you plan for the coming months and assist with decision making. Do you need to market more? Do you need to increase capacity because of more work coming up?

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Cash flow – Last month we discussed cash flow through the Revenue Cycle but this is crucial for your business. It is one thing generating a profit, it is another getting paid. So focus on your Revenue Cycle, be the squeaky wheel by following up debtors and negotiate the best possible terms for your business. Take control – would you fly in a plane if you knew the instruments weren’t working? Of course you wouldn’t so why do so many businesses do the same? Get the financials of your business in order so they can assist you in mak-

ing business decisions and improve the performance of your business.

Knowledge – Most people don’t go into business because they love financial information but as a business owner you have a responsibility to understand your financials. Investing in yourself will see exponential returns for your business.

Finally I wish everyone a safe and enjoyable Christmas and New Year’s and look forward to a dynamic 2013. Brendan Mills is a CPA with 10 years’ of experience working with small, medium size businesses helping them improve their performance. He believes the skills required to understand and benefit from financial information are learnable for every business owner and his vision is to share this knowledge with the business world. http://www.cfodynamics.com/

Small businesses:

Have your say on new Industrial Relations laws are part of the Government’s commitment to modernise the State’s industrial relations system.

The Small Business Development Corporation is encouraging small business operators and other interested parties to submit comments to a draft bill, which aims to reform the Western Australian industrial relations system. Introduced to State Parliament on 14 November 2012 by Commerce Minister Hon Simon O’Brien MLC, the Labour Relations Legislation Amendment and Repeal Bill 2012 proposes significant changes to the states current IR laws. Small Business Development Corporation Director of Policy and Advocacy Martin Hasselbacher, says these changes

“The changes, particularly those involving ‘unfair dismissal’ and ‘right of entry’, aim to bring State legislation in line with Federal IR legislation,” Mr Hasselbacher said. Key changes proposed by the draft Bill include: • Broadly harmonising State ‘unfair dismissal’ and ‘right of entry’ laws with the Federal Government’s Fair Work Act 2009 to ensure a better balance between the rights of employers and employees • Updating statutory minimum conditions of employment

Thank you Nifnex Readers. Our passion and your support drives us to achieve more.

• Streamlining the process for setting State minimum wages • Streamlining the structure of the Western Australian Industrial Relations Commission, while retaining its strong conciliation and arbitration powers. • Undertaking an award modernisation process of all state private sector awards The proposed changes within the draft Bill are open for public comment. To submit comments, or for a full list of the proposed changes and copy of the Draft Bill, visit the Department of Commerce website at www.commerce.wa.gov.au/ LabourRelations/. The discussion period closes on Thursday 31, January 2013. For more information about this, or any other business issue, contact the Small

Martin Hasselbacher, Director of Policy and Advocacy at the Small Business Development Corporation says small businesses should have their say on the proposed industrial relations laws.

Business Development Corporation on 13 12 49 or visit smallbusiness.wa.gov.au.

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Top 3 recommendations for your 2013 Business Plan Do you have a Business & Marketing Plan that’s ready to action? Step out your strategy activities. Read our 3 top tips for creating a sustainable business plan and a practical, actionable marketing strategy. Read our three top tips for creating a sustainable business plan and a practical, actionable marketing strategy. 1. Create or update your Business & Marketing Plans – together these are your strategic roadmap! Without them you are working on assumption and not fact. Make sure you are heading in the right direction and your investment is producing returns!

• Competitor

Analysis

• Market

Analysis

At the very least your Business Plan should include: • Strategic Overview • Your Business Model

• Environment Analysis

• Industry Overview

Your vision, mission, values and time-based goals clearly. The who, what, where, when and how of your core business which links back to your fundamental financial objectives. Factors that will affect your business on an organisational, local, national and global level. Industry highlights, key success factors, attractiveness and market dynamics.

• Marketing

Plan

• Operational

Plan

Where you fit in the market; where your competitors fit; how you differentiate yourself from your competitors and how you plan to communicate this to your customers. Market size, value, trends, growth rates, opportunities, and profitability benchmarks within your industry. Which market segments provide the best opportunities; defining who your potential customers are and their buying process; what message to communicate; which channels to use; what tools you need and how you will measure your investment and evaluate performance. A 12 month rolling plan for the day-to-day management of your business integrating all the key organisational elements relevant to your business.

Market Fever is a vibrant Marketing and Management Consulting Firm committed to helping small business grow through Strategic Business, Operational Performance, Marketing and Market Research Projects. Please call us on 08 9389 4498 or visit us at www.marketfever. com.au for more information.

Emma Ruefli

• Financial Plan Identification of all human,

capital and non-capital resources needed to achieve your objectives. An annual budget and highlights of key risks, issues and contingencies.

2. Measure activities effectively – All plans need to be measured. Make sure you set your measures upfront. Communicate them to your employees and build them into their performance objectives. Review these regularly and make amendments to your plan as needed. Work in real-time and not retrospectively. 3. Keep on top of your expenditure needs and flexibility with consistent cash flow management – know your financial situation and how you will prioritise your activities. Be confident that you can afford to invest in and grow your business. Remember it’s all about planning, implementation, measurement and evaluation! Subscribe to The Fever by visiting www.marketfever.com.au and get all the information, tips and advice you need PLUS receive your complimentary Business Planning Pocket Guide.

“Where inspiration leads” Awaken Your Personal Brand

Jordon Steele-John is a young man with a determination to make things happen and he plans to make 2013 his year. He is a confident and articulate 18 year old who has been preselected as the Greens candidate for the State seat of Warnbro. Jordon is the second youngest parliamentary candidate in the State’s history. I read a quote recently which said “if your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more and become more, you are a leader” John Q Adams. Well Jordon is certainly one of those leaders. He is an inspiration to everyone he meets and his actions help others to dream, learn and become more. Jordon is energetic, full of enthusiasm and while he lives with cerebral palsy this does not stop him from making a major contribution to his community. Jordon is committed to being a voice that will raise the issues on access for disabled people as well as older people because he knows from his own personal experience of being confined to a wheelchair the challenges this presents on a day to day basis.

Currently campaigning to be elected alongside Lynn MacLaren, Greens MLC for South Metropolitan Region Jordon is positive that 2013 will take his career to a new level. Through his journey with cerebral palsy he has faced many challenges and taken every opportunity to develop his skills, get involved and fulfil his passion of working towards a fair and equitable world that is safe and environmentally sustainable for future generations. Jordon believes it is vital to inform and engage young people in the political process as many are disillusioned but with support and encouragement they have the potential to be a global force for change. Jordon is not someone who plans to sit still and

Jordon and Lynn

do nothing, he will lead by example and is prepared to go that extra mile. Alongside access issues he is passionate about youth unemployment and wants to see young and mature aged people with disability get the opportunity to benefit from the NDIS (National Disability Insurance Scheme). Intelligent, compassionate and driven, these three personal qualities will ensure Jordon succeeds not only in the year ahead but for many more years in the future. Mabel Laidlaw, Managing Director, Keynote Events We deliver high quality events that feature a diverse range of inspirational and motivational guest speakers. All of our guest speakers are ordinary men and women who are achieving extraordinary things in their business or career. We include a diverse range of professionals and deliver ten events each year, beginning with International Womens Day on 8th March and ending with International Day of People With Disability on 3rd December. For more information visit www.keynoteevents.com.au

Doing business in Perth has changed in many ways. The changes are subtle yet significant. 2012 has seen many business owners finally accept Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter. Some actually went on to adopting a website and a blog. These seem to be trivial changes to some but the market has almost forced them to. There are others who are doing really well without any of the above. Do you see where I am getting at? ‘Personal branding’ also known as ‘Professional Reputation’ is why they could do what they are doing without the help of social media or online presence. For those of us who are new entrants to the market or establishing their own brand or wanting to project our voice to a large audience, we need to leverage our ‘personal brand’ with the tools that are available to us. We register our company domain names (smallbusinessexperts.com) but fail to register our name (firstnamelastname. com) You might wonder what is your own website going to say. I love helping people with that.

My business wish for 2013 is just that. To help people establish their own brand. It is irrelevant whether you run your own business or work for others. You are your own Chief Marketing Officer ‘CMO’ of your own brand – YOU. Feel free to contact me if you would like to have a confidential chat or a coffee! Zeeshan Pasha www.zeeshanpasha.com

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Effective Tool to manage your networking conversations Most people don’t have good questions. What about you? Think about the pile of business cards on your desk of people that you never really connected with. By asking questions, you create opportunities for people to ask YOU questions. When you answer questions/talk about your business/products/services/expertise, focus on the problems you can solve and the benefits you can deliver. Here’s a handy tool you can use to manage your networking conversations… When I started networking to grow my business, I found a good approach to making conversation was to use the acronym “LINK”. LINK helped me (and can help you) to remember questions that elicit the kind of information you want to get from new network contacts. “L” stands for line – line of work. You want to find out what the person does for a living; What line of work are you in? What do you do? Tell me a little about your business.

“I” stands for interests – interests outside work. You want to know what they do when they’re not working; What do you enjoy doing when you’re not working? How do you relax? What are your plans for the weekend? Do they talk about family, sports, hobbies? You’re likely to find common ground here, giving you plenty to talk about. Actual business talk is usually limited in a networking environment. Try to connect with people on a level other than business. People bond over common areas of interest, no matter what they are. “N” stands for needs. I’m always listening for what someone needs and this will come out with good questions; What is the biggest challenge you have right now? What do you need more of to keep your business running? What’s on your worry pile back at the office? Tell me about your business priorities at the moment. You want to know about the issues or challenges the person

is facing and what their aspirations, goals, problems and concerns are. People have needs and they go into a networking environment to get something for themselves. Help them (without expectation of getting anything in return) and you will develop the kind of relationships that will make your networking profitable. “K” stands for know – who they know and what they know. Who can they connect you with? Where else do you go to network? What other groups do you belong to? Do you sit on any boards or committees? Are you working on any charity initiatives?

handling that? How did you overcome that? What are some of the things that have helped you get to where you are today? Best advice you ever received?

And what can you learn from them? What are your best networking and business development practices? How do you coach your staff and team on the importance of building alliances with external contacts and throughout different departments in your company? What do you personally do to stay connected? What do you read that gives you inspiration and fresh ideas? What are your thoughts on…? How have you been

Invite people to tell you a little about themselves. The more you know about them the more you’ll know what they can do for you – and what you can do for them.

Referred to as “That Networking Guy” by many organizations, Ron Gibson provides in-depth networking training and coaching, focusing on business growth and development. Get Ron to speak at your next conference or sales meeting about how to bring in more business, more consistently and more often. Call Ron on 0413 420 538 or email gonetworking@iinet.net.au Looking for a full article on ‘Making the most of your business networking conversations’? Please email us on Nifnex@nifnex.com. au Subject: Ron Gibson Next edition will focus on deepening the connection. Subscribe for the next edition by visiting www.nifnexreview.com. au

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Office Space Trends 2013

cording to rents per sqm or sqf. But this doesn’t quantify the benefits of flexible working. It doesn’t measure the benefits of a happier workforce; of lower churn; of a reduced carbon footprint; of access to a wider talent pool. Here in Perth, small and medium sized business are using Regus to work at three locations in St Martins Tower, Forrest Centre and 267 St Georges’ Terrace. And businesses of all sizes are increasingly using Regus’ services in Australia and overseas to scale their growth by embedding

2013 will be the year that businesses seek growth and that workers break free of the office, according to Mark Dixon, CEO of Regus, workspace provider that operates in 99 countries worldwide: “Globally, all eyes will be on second-term Obama and the new Chinese leadership in 2013. Whether or not they manage to re-ignite growth in their respective economies will affect us all.”

Besides the technological development brought on by the roll-out of the NBN and the rise of the digital economy, Dixon is also in part basing his predictions on research that surveyed of 16,000 businesses, including 400 in Australia. It found seven out of ten professionals are working more on the move than they used to, and that up to 81% of SMEs are working flexibly and not making their staff work from a central office desk from 9 to 5 every day. The traditional one-person-one-desk approach calculates real estate costs ac-

National Broadband Network opens up opportunities for Australian businesses NBN for Business will allow service providers to offer businesses the ability to run up to 50 voice services over the fibre network* and offers extended levels of support for internet service providers, such as seven-day-a-week service and a one-hour response time to incidents.** Jim Hassell, Head of Product Development and Sales for NBN Co, said: “NBN for Business offers service providers the tools to tailor packages for businesses, allowing them to make use of a host of new digital tools to increase productivity and maintain their competitive edge. “By embracing new technologies, Australian businesses can become more agile

For the managers who control their companies operations, and make real estate decisions, 2013 will be a key year. With the right technology and connectivity, their workers can be just as productive wherever it suits them. The development of cloud computing will make this way of working easier and more affordable than ever before. Occupiers, and especially SMEs, will increasingly be exploring a ‘pay-as-you go’ workspace approach, one that enables them to be as flexible as possible in how they approach their real estate requirements.

working on the move or at home. Look too for other changes in how companies use workspace, as they seek greater value and efficiency in their real-estate usage.”

Closer to home here in Australia, Dixon says that “SMEs will enjoy an unfamiliar position near the top of the political agenda, as both parties’ election campaigns will focus on support for them. Their staff may also find themselves at some unfamiliar locations – government encouragement for flexible working, and cloud technology will see more of us

NBN Co unveiled the first of a series of enhancements to the fibre optic network to help enable Australian businesses to make the most of high speed broadband.

flexibility and agility into how they do business.

and responsive to their customers’ needs, potentially lower their operating costs and open up new markets.” The new offering has already met with enthusiasm from the communications industry. Internode, iiNet, M2/iPrimus, and Macquarie Telecom today confirmed that they will be among the first telecommunications providers to offer business-specific services using the NBN for Business enhancements (see below for quotes from service providers). Peter Strong, Executive Director, Council of Small Business of Australia, said NBN for Business would be welcomed by Australia’s more than two million small businesses. “There’s a real chance for small businesses to find new ways to increase productivity,

Call Peter today on

reduce costs and expand markets through new ways of working, as well as gain more free time and cut down on stress,” Mr. Strong said. “What we’re hearing from our members is that they feel they need to have reliable, business grade broadband and multi-line telephony to do this.” The NBN’s fibre optic network already offers companies and individuals high download and upload speeds, which are also important for applications such as high-definition videoconferencing and online backup.* High speed broadband also opens up new ways of doing business, including the ability to offer more efficient and enhanced customer service, run applications remotely in the cloud and access new markets at home and abroad.

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• KPMG estimates that cloud computing over the NBN could increase the size of the Australian economy by $3.32 billion per annum within a decade. • Deloitte Access Economics estimated that the direct contribution of the internet to the Australian economy was approximately $50 billion a year, projected to grow to over $70 billion a year by 2016. • Access Economics says if 10 percent of Australian employees were to telework every second day, total annual productivity gains would be in the order of $1.4 billion to $1.9 billion per year by reducing commute times, office space and staff turnover. More information about NBN for Business is available at www.nbnco.com.au/ business. * Businesses will need the right software, equipment and in-premises connection to access these services

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In addition, a series of research studies have found that increased broadband connectivity will position Australia for tomorrow’s jobs and economic growth, For instance:

** Under the service level agreement with RSPs restoration times are set at 12 hour (Urban), 12 hours + 1 day (Rural) and 12 hours + 2 days (Remote)

Press Release by: www.nbnco.com.au Level 11, 100 Arthur Street North Sydney, NSW, 2060

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Telecommunication Strategies to spearhead your business

What will 2013 have in store for your business? What can a telecommunications strategy do to enable you and your business to succeed in the upcoming year? Take more than a few moments over the break to grab some clear space and work your way through some of the key areas to consider:

Budgeting and Cost Assurance – with so many unlimited plans across data, mobile and fixed communications, why would you not lock in the guaranteed savings and avoid the unwanted fluctuations each month.

Mobility – measure what time is wasted on lost productivity and ask your telco provider to assist with a strategy to enable your team to become more mobile and more efficient. Ask yourself how much time your staff are wasting on travel to and from the office and how mobilising them more affectively will reduce this and increase productivity.

Paperless – are you still using filing cabinets, laptops and printers in the office/field? Investing in expensive mail servers? – move your IT systems and servers to the cloud and cut your costs drastically.

Tablet vs PC – finally we have some real competition in the tablet market with Windows 8 and the Samsung Galaxy Note devices this year not to mention 4G options. There has never been a better time (and price) to embrace tablets and what it says about your business in front of your customers. Bundle your tablets with your mobile broadband solution and realise some great savings.

F2F B2B – demand face to face service from your Telco provider, don’t allow national centralisation to business call centres to stop old fashioned face to face advice and hands on solutions.

Has mobile data finally caught up with ADSL? Time to revisit that ADSL2+ connection and the fluctuating speeds your team endure. With

4G mobile data speeds overtaking ADSL and the NBN, trial it and see for yourself how far mobile broadband has come in 2012.

Culture investment – Real shift takes time so you have to begin with investing in your staff i.e. your ‘internal customers’. So start building your team’s values into your business 1st day back from break. It is worthwhile considering employing a facilitator, external to your business, who can truly bring out the most from your team.

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Measure to Manage – visual KPI’s from your sales team should be updated regularly on monitors and dashboards across the office, live from the field. Got yourself a great backend? Is every process documented? Is the support structure in place today for tomorrow? Bite the bullet and bring forward your plans to get these areas 100% prefect and do it in January. Hosted PABX and email is a great place to start. From here you can truly expand knowing your business is ready for the growth.

Business TIP: Set targets and reward yourself - let your partner know your goals and reward yourselves with 1 day off a week – it’s becoming more and more of good management practice to work 4 highly productive days than 5 back to back, task driven days. Paul has had 17 years’ experience in business leadership and management across organisations as State Manager at Diageo, Hutchison Telecoms (3 Mobile) and Vodafone. Owner of Ripe Communications from 2010 in WA, Paul has recently transitioned from the largest Vodafone Business Partner to owning and managing the sole Optus Business Centre for WA.

Tips To Make Your Marketing Dollars Last Longer in 2013

The new year presents an opportunity for Perth businesses to clarify their marketing strategy, sharpen their message and stretch their marketing dollars.

Business owners who do not plan their success will miss out on potential customers and waste their marketing budget on chasing ideas that do not serve them or help them grow their business. The key to boosting your chances of surviving and thriving is to have clarity, consistency and to make every marketing dollar count by only focusing on opportunities right for your business. Stretching your marketing dollars in 2013 comes down to five simple things:

1. Know Your Ideal Clients Eliminate waste and a ‘spray and pray’ approach in your marketing by being clear about who your ideal client is and where you can find them. Spend time to profile the clients who inspire you, who pay on time and who allows you to do your best work with them. Ask them which social networking platforms they use, what they read, what they listen to and what they watch. Don’t assume you know the answers.

2. Use Cost Effective Communication Some of the most cost effective ways to communicate with your ideal clients are via social media and getting free publicity. Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn are free and each has millions of users. Provide something of value that showcases your expertise and reply to comments on your pages. Publicity is very valuable, gives you credibility and is easy to get if you nurture the right relationships, have effective writing skills and remember to follow up. Outsource this function if you don’t have the skills in-house.

3. Be Found Online Optimise your website to be search engine friendly and be found online by potential clients when they search

Alicia Menkveld is the founder of Radical Consulting, an advisory for small and medium businesses. She specialises in helping time-poor business owners getting clear about their identity, goals and key messages to implement effective client attraction strategies which will help their business grow. Contact Alicia on 0425 177 897 or 08 9279 8769 alicia@radicalconsulting.com. au www.radicalconsulting.com.au for words and phrases related to your business. List your business with free online directories like Bloo, Hotfrog and Google Maps or use Google Adwords to advertise your business online.

4. Use Strategic Partners The right strategic partners will help your stretched marketing dollars deliver a higher result through joint promotions. Pick partners who deliver services complimentary to your business but who are not in competition with you. Choose partners carefully, ensure they are reputable, deliver on their promises and will add value to your brand image.

5. Test and Measure Your Success Lastly, remember to set up criteria for every marketing campaign you plan and test the results you get. You will see what worked well and what needs to be changed the next time. A simple question like: “How did you hear about us?” can transform your business. Testing removes assumptions and boils everything down to facts. Business owners who consistently apply these principles will not only stretch their marketing budgets but will be more successful in attracting clients to their business.

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Payroll Tax. What is it Good For? Human history is full of stupid ideas. Fascism, communism, Barack Obama winning the Nobel Prize. In 1950 the French Senator, Victor Biaka Boda, thought it would be a good idea to do some campaigning in the Ivory Coast jungle. His constituents ate him. But as dumb as all these concepts were, surely payroll tax beats them all for idiocy. The whole idea of government – after providing for law and order – is to not get in the way of full employment. So the concept of a tax on employment fails the common sense test straight away, even before one considers the actual impact that it has. Governments know, and indeed hope, that their taxes have an effect on behaviour. This is why we have excises on cigarettes, alcohol and petrol. The government wants us buying less of these products. In WA we currently have a 5.5% levy on all annual payrolls of

$750,000 or greater (which is most businesses). This seems to suggest that the government actually wants us to employ less people. Does that make sense? No, I didn’t think so either. On the one hand, you have the Barnett Government pumping billions of dollars into projects ostensibly because they will create jobs, but on the other hand, the same people pull $3.4 billion out of the WA economy every year via payroll tax. And in the middle, there are thousands of public servants being paid to administer the whole farrago. You can’t help but think the money would be better spent if it wasn’t taken away in the first place. The political reality is that the WA Government is loath to get rid of payroll tax because it’s one of the few taxes that it has the power to control. The GST and income tax all goes to Canberra and oc-

casionally gets sent back as ‘grants’. Consequently, payroll tax comprises over 13% of annual State revenues, making it the single largest revenue stream but for mining royalties. Yes, you read that correctly. The Government makes more money from taxing employment than it does from the GST! This makes one realise just how heavily taxed WA businesses are and explains why politicians don’t care that they are discouraging employment. They would rather get their snouts onto your cash, no matter the consequences. The sad irony is that, as the former University of Chicago Professor Arthur Laffer explained, reducing or eliminating taxes often has the effect of increasing total tax revenue as businesses employ more, thus providing more employment to people who consequently spend more and have less need for welfare.

Instead of throwing wads of cash at railways in the desert, Mr Barnett would do far more to get jobs and investment for this State simply by abolishing payroll tax. It’s time we all started making far more noise about this issue. Write to your MPs. Write to the papers. Tell your friends... It’s the only way we’re ever going to change it. CoSBA is WA’s Small Business representative body. For more information on CoSBA please visit www.cosba.com.au

BNI STOCKWATCH – GALAXY RESOURCES BNI StockWatch recently saw Galaxy Resources (ASX:GXY) share with the group the story of how Galaxy has positioned itself to become China’s leading vertically integrated producer of high purity lithium products, targeting the battery market.

junior companies. Each month an event is held with an ASX-listed company presenting to the group, ranging from Renewable Energy Companies, Oil Explorers, Education Services Providers to Gold explorers and producers.

Past presentations have included presentations from Managing Directors of Algae.Tec Limited (AEB), Segue Resources (SEG), Matsa Resources (MAT) and Pura Vida Energy (PVD). BNI StockWatch is suitable for business owners and key decision makers who would like to increase their business networks as well as hearing inspiring stories of Perth-based, ASX-listed companies . More recently the event is being sponsored by, and held at the NKH Capital offices in Subiaco. BNI StockWatch is organised by Jarrad Brown, Private Client Adviser with Patersons Securities. Jarrad specialises in providing investment advice and portfolio management services in areas of selfmanaged superannuation, shares, fixed interest, derivatives and capital raising. If you would like to hear more about the upcoming events or have any general investment questions, please feel free to

Forecasts for the lithium battery market globally are very positive particularly with a large short-term demand driver being the introduction of electric bikes in China as a cleaner alternative to the current situation. Energy storage, particularly in the renewable energy sector is also a critical game-changer for the industry. The chart below indicates this growth. Galaxy Resources has a market capitalisation currently of ~$220M and current share price of $0.41. The company has a global footprint as indicated in the below map:

BNI STOCKWATCH BACKGROUND BNI StockWatch is a unique event that has been running since May this year, successfully connecting the like-minded business leaders of Perth with ASX-listed

contact Jarrad Brown on (08) 9225 2863 or email him at Jbrown@psl.com.au Disclaimer: Please note that this is general information only and does not take into account your personal objectives, financial situation or needs. Because of this you should, before acting on this information, consider its appropriateness, having regard to your objectives, financial situation or needs and we recommend you consult with your financial adviser. Patersons nor any of its respective directors, officers, employees, associates or its subsidiaries guarantee or give any assurance in regard to the performance of investments mentioned.

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New Year’s Credit Resolutions By Matthew Walker, Blitz Credit Management Many small businesses don’t give attention to their credit processes until it’s too late. Now is the best time to do something about this – a brand new year to sit back and review your credit procedures. This article discusses some of the issues you can consider when reviewing your processes and reduce risk to your business. Every business is different, and you should consult a professional if you need specific advice on your situation.

sional, I constantly come across businesses who give out thousands of dollars of goods without even knowing who they’re dealing with. The best way is to implement an effective procedure in your business for credit approvals and reviews. Make sure the process covers your credit applications, documentation, credit checks, approval limits and ongoing review. Most importantly, ensure you and your employees always follow these procedures!

Resolution #1: I will reduce my debtor’s ledger

Resolution #3: I will make sure my customer data is up to date

The holiday break can be a tough time for small businesses and cash flow. Projects start slowing down, customers leave for holidays yet staff expenses increase with annual leave and penalty rates. It’s important to keep on top of your debtors to make sure they don’t fall behind. If you need help with collections, call in a professional debt collection agency to help you reduce your bad debt and improve your cash flow.

It’s important to know who you’re dealing with at all times. Even if you do the checks during the approvals process, make sure you keep this information up to date. Quite often, businesses change hands, structures change or businesses move premises. Keep all the details (entity name, trading name, ABN, business premises and contact details) up to date in your accounting or CRM system.

Resolution #2: I will review (or implement from scratch!) credit approvals processes for my business Every business that extends credit needs to have processes to handle this. However, as a credit management profes-

Resolution #4: I will set up alerts to monitor my customers One of the best ways to keep up to date with your customers is to set up alerts. Alerts will notify you about status changes on your customers. The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) offer a free service to set up alerts on companies. Credit Bureaus such as Veda or CreditorWatch also provide alerts which can warn you when your customers start defaulting elsewhere. Blitz Credit Management Blitz Credit Management provides ‘no collection, no commission’ debt collection and credit management services to businesses throughout Australia. Blitz Credit Management stands out from its competitors because of its focus on service and investment in technology. For more information, visit www.blitzcredit.com.au or call Matthew Walker, Business Development Manager, on 1300 887 232.

2013: Watch out for the Cliff! There is a lot in the media about the “fiscal cliff” at the moment, but what is it and how will affect us in 2013 is as unclear as the term’s origination. The fiscal cliff itself refers to a number of tax increases and spending cuts that are planned to come into effect in the US from the 1 January 2013 which if not averted by Congress and President Obama, will prompt the US to “fall over the cliff” due to a likely recession. As a by product of the fall it’s been reported by the US Tax Policy Centre that middle-income families will pay an average of $2,000 more in taxes in 2013 as many previously allowable deductions will be subject to a phase-out, and some of their popular tax credits will be reduced. In addition, their superannuation equivalents ie. The 401(k) and other retirement accounts will be subject to higher taxes. It is estimated that 3.4 million or more people will lose their jobs as an additional

by product and whilst many people disagree about the details, virtually everybody agrees that all Americans will feel the effects of the fiscal cliff. And we all know if America sneezes....Australia seems to get the Cold!

some more structure and support to help dampen the inevitable financial turmoil though.

At the heart of the fiscal cliff are the Bush Era Tax cuts passed by Congress under the guidance of none other President George W. Bush in 2001 and 2003. They included a lower tax rate and a reduction in the dividend and capital gains tax as their largest components. It is the expiry of these at the end of 2012 that represent the largest part of the fiscal cliff.

While both sides of the US political landscape have a difference of opinion on taxation, interestingly each have indicated that they are willing to compromise on many of the more critical issues leading into the deadline however regardless if there is a deal done or not, Americans will almost certainly be paying more taxes in the future, it’s just a matter of how much more, and this will then determine the severity of the cliff.

Some publications have gone on to report some of the benefits that the eventual flow on effect of the tax increases will have in the US, which in short, is a much healthier position, with a much more manageable budget deficit of $200 billion, a stark contrast to the current levels around the $1.1 trillion. The bridge to get there needs

It is almost certain that a deal with be forthcoming and will result in some combination of tax rate increases coupled with spending cuts. And to us in Australia, patience combined with an opportunistic mentality will certainly serve us well with the market opportunities that transpire in the short term.

About Inspired Money: With nothing mo re certain than the continual change in the world of finance, partnering with Conrad and the team at Inspired Money will ensure peace of mind for you and your family for any financial decisions now and in the future, we will inspire you to take action! Inspired Money ABN 98 354 038 802 is a Corporate Authorised Representative of Charter Financial Planning Limited Australian Financial Services Licensee, Licence Number 234665

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3 bookkeeping 4 tips for small

seven

Deposit money daily – if your customers pay you by cash or cheque we recommend daily deposits. This ensures that transactions can be easily identified yon your bank statement. Keep separate accounts – Separate your business and personal bank accounts in order to reduce the time your accountant will require in order to prepare your tax returns. It enables you to have an accurate picture of the REAL results of your business.

business

There is an old saying: “If it can’t be measured: It can’t be managed.” All businesses large or small need to have a bookkeeping system in place that provides them with financial records for their business. This is a core fundamental of any business. Many business owners find bookkeeping a daunting task. However it is critical that accurate records are kept up-to-date. Whether you employ a professional bookkeeper or undertake the task yourself timeliness is critical. Here are seven easy to implement tips that will help you develop an efficient and effective bookkeeping system for your business.

1 2

Bank statements – print your bank statement monthly and check every transaction is valid. If you are using bookkeeping software most programs have a bank reconciliation procedure.

Create a filing system – we recommend that you store all your financial records by Financial Year. Decide how you will file your supplier paid invoices. You can either file them by month or by supplier name, which ever you prefer.

Take control of your financial statements Understand how your business is performing

5 6 7

Petty Cash – Have a petty cash fund. We recommend you have a physical petty cash box with a pre-determined float. Use a petty cash book available of your stationary story to keep track of petty cash receipts and expenses. Treat it seriously – allocate time every month to ensure your accounting records are up-todate and review your financial reports.

BAS Agent – if you use a professional bookkeeper to lodge your BAS quarterly or monthly please ensure they are a Registered BAS Agent. For more information about these legal requirements please visit www.tpb.gov.au

Tracey Edwardes is the director of Flawless Bookkeeping and Flawless Systems. Tracey supports and mentors small business entrepreneurs to help them understand their financial statements. Tracey can be contacted on 1300 854 266 or tracey@flawlessbookkeeping.com.au

An investment of $250 per month for six months will set you on the path for your “Flawless System” with our structured program of 2 hours each month. Providing you with:  Help to create an up-to-date , accurate budget that is integrated with your “MYOB”  Teach you how to find those key accounting reports from your software including: o Gross and Net Profit o Analysing your Debtors and Creditors o De-mystify your Balance Sheet and Profit & loss reports o Comparing Financial years for growth  Customised “MYOB” training

Flawless Systems  1300 85 4 BOOKS (1300 854 266) 0414 740 654  tracey@flawlessbookkeeping.com.au ABN: 74 159 229 973

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Do you need help with Debt Collection? Nothing cripples a business quicker than unpaid accounts. Blitz Credit Management specialises in debt collection and credit information services throughout Australia. You can depend on complete transparency in every phase of the collection process. Best of all, you don’t pay a cent if we don’t collect for you.

Phone: 1300 887 232 www.blitzcredit.com.au info@blitzcredit.com.au

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or call us for help with: Debt Recovery Demand Notices Debtor Location

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What You Need To Be Doing Online in 2013 If 2012 is being recognized as the year of change online (Google has made more changes this year than in the past 6 years), then 2013 stands to be the year of “Authorship” and “Authority”. Realistically, it has always been the preferred option for a business to stand out as “The” authority in its market, whether offline and/or online. However, most businesses have not been able to achieve this in the online space, the main reason being, they have not known what to do and how to do it. To compound this issue, the online space has been changing extremely fast and this has impacted quite significantly on the service offerings of quite a lot of online marketing companies (particularly SEO companies). Moving forward into 2013, the most effective way forward for a business wanting to market itself online, is to broaden out its presence to include not only a well presented “marketing” website, but to build out other platforms to create a

“community”. Why and what does this mean? Well to put it simply, making sure that you are being found on a multitude of platforms and engaging with your customers as much as possible. A business that is presenting updated, quality content that can be seen on a number of well respected platforms across the internet will be seen as the ‘Authority’ in the marketplace. Do you have a well-structured social media profile that depicts your business as the “authority”? If not this is what you need to be considering: • Linkedin profile • Facebook profile • Twitter profile • Pinterest profile • Youtube channel Not only do these need to be set up correctly, but they also need to be maintained, with a strategic plan designed to not only give you authority, but more traffic to your website, pulled through

from well planned promotions and strategies implemented on these social media platforms. Other ways to increase your profile online is to use the following: • press releases • Web 2.0 sites • Quality article directories to post to • Blog on your website to upload and maintain fresh content • Content syndication to industry websites Finally, go crazy with video as it can be used for promotion of your business, testimonials, education and a host of other things. Rule of thumb is that anything you can write about can also be presented in video form. Also, don’t forget about your current list of clients and prospects because a well planned and implemented email marketing strategy can also be a powerful tool for you too.

So, to summarize, think quality, quality, quality in every way you present your business online and you should do well online in 2013. Linxhurricane is able to offer Nifnex readers a free 1 hour consultation to assist with the marketing of their business. Call Greg on 0438 292 11 or 1300 499 550 and start 2013 with some real momentum! Greg Culver is a co-director of LinxHurricane with his business partner Lesley Komlos. LinxHurricane has been operating as an online marketing solutions business for a number of years. Greg honed his marketing skills online prior to that, working on generating income through a number of online platforms and decided to start LinxHurricane to assist business to do the same.

Check your backups As I am sitting here writing this, I have a personal computer harddrive belonging to a customer sitting on my desk next to me churning away, trying to salvage whatever data I can from it. It doesn’t contain anything critical in a business sense; some personal files, pictures of their two young children learning to crawl, walk and talk, home videos, family holiday snapshots, their digital music collection, and e-mail correspondence. The potential loss is upsetting to them. At present it will take another 6 days to get the data of their defunct drive. Then comes the arduous task of rebuilding their data so they can enjoy it again. What if this was one of your computers in your business, or even your mission critical server? The statistics are harrowing. 6% of all computers suffer an episode of data loss in any given year. Only one in twenty large companies (not multinationals) could operate their businesses without IT systems. This rises to one in six small businesses that could continue their businesses without IT. 93% of companies that have lost access to their data for 10 days or longer go out of business within 12 months of the event. Overall 86 percent of businesses experience

one or more instances of system downtime, which on average equates to 2.2 days a year.

Christian’s top 3 tips for2013

Whilst a lot of businesses have data recovery procedures in place, some do not. When it comes to your data in business it always pays to plan, you don’t just want to become one of those statistics.

1. Backup! 2. With new technologies on the market, anywhere can be your office 3. Cloud computing is providing some great opportunities for small business to utilise technologies that only the big boys could afford previously.

Best practices: • • • •

have a backup / recovery plan and procedure test your backups frequently backup as frequently as you can backup important information, at best have a backup of a whole running system that can be restored to an off the shelf PC until your new hardware arrives • take backups offsite, or better reduce the human element entirely and automate your backups to the cloud Make it your New Years resolution this year to test your contingency planning and data recovery in your business and home. It really is a small price to pay to not loose those precious snapshots in time of your children growing up.

About Christian Mueller Christian is the proprietor of a small to medium business IT services provider Civitas and has been working in the ICT industry for 15 years. He lectures part time for the School of Information Systems at Curtin University, and is an avid Dragon Boater with the Perth Pirates. www.civitas.com.au 08 6102 0060

Want to know how your business is really performing? Book your complementary business health check by calling or visiting our website plus find out about our 100% money back guarantee.

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THE NEW ECONOMY – WHAT NEW ECONOMY!! about how they act and behave. Many businesses also have not considered their social responsibility and community contribution and how to tie these into the values of the business. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development(OECD) recently released a paper on how they think the global economy will pan out over the next 50 years. According to this OECD paper entitled “Looking to 2060 - A Global Vision of Long Term Growth”, the shape of the global economy has changed substantially since the year 2000 and is undergoing systemic change. The fundamental changes in wealth, income generation, sources of business value, and types of business activity, are all undergoing structural and systemic shifts at this time in our history. The changes can be summed up as a move towards operating in a new economy. This OECD report predicts that by 2030 the fundamental shifts NOW occurring will have persisted and resulted in America’s GDP to shrink to 18% from 23% of the world total in 2011. China will have grown from 17% to 28% in the same timeframe. Australia will remain at about 1.1% but its mix of business services will have changed. Dun and Bradstreet note that business failures overall have grown 30% per annum over the last 3 years and there are 128,000 businesses in Australia who in 2013 are likely to face financial distress. Insolvencies in the small business sector have jumped by 48 per cent over the last 12 months which shows the accelerating nature of the problem. Whilst the GFC in 2008 and its aftershocks ever since have contributed to the numbers of failures, it also hides failure stemming from traditional business models no longer being adaptive to changing business and social environments in which these businesses operate in Australia. The overall commentary points to the emergence of a new economy which has different economic and social drivers and forces creating consumer behaviour. We are moving towards an age that is dominated by complexity and indeed both innovation and imitation are still to be major aspects of the new economy. The difference and opportunity is that Conscious Business operators will be able to work with these market forces and mitigate their previous impacts on traditional business. Many people say to me “I do not see much change in business apart from the chaos and crisis in world markets”. If you look you will notice elements of the new economy emerging. A casual read of business articles and journals will often uncover stories of emergent technologies and their targeted role in company success. The spokesperson is quite often now the “Vice President for Service Design” or the “Vice President for User Experience”. These strategic senior roles did not exist 5 years ago but are now becoming a requirement for any business serious about maintaining their edge in business. These roles encapsulate and provide leadership for the new paradigm of the technology innovation and imitation dynamics present in the business landscape. Business advantage is increasingly not coming from quality,

reliability, pricing, brand, promotion or any of the mechanisms espoused in traditional business theory. As an example one such change is the role of products in creating business success. Product commodisation is the new norm and so relying on innovative products alone is increasingly failing as a sustainable model of business success. New products are being imitated or superseded in the matter of months now across many areas of retailing and so do not offer lasting differentiation in business. The trend in the new economy is revealing a shift to how to consistently provide compelling user experiences that create brand loyalty. Research also shows consumers are increasing looking to partner with brands who express key values that positively engage the local community through contribution, social responsibility, and environmental sustainability.

footy you are frustrated, upset, angry, tense and negative if you were stuck in traffic or could not get parking easily, or were late as a result. Likewise when you left you may have found that that great feeling of your team winning was suddenly lost as again you got into a traffic jam, found your car damaged, blocked in, or with a parking ticket. Community stakeholders may have resented the regular disruption to the fabric of their community by the congestion, noise, rubbish, vandalism and inconvenience generated by such events. The new Burswood stadium responds to this set of negative emotional outcomes as they ban cars and shift people onto new and existing public transport channels that will be designed to overcome this set of negative pre and post stadium experiences. Secondly there will be “full experience dugouts” built which take the user experience beyond the private sponsor box to a whole new level.

we consciously re-engineer the business to a consciously targeted customer and stakeholder experience. The pathway to this targeted endpoint is increasingly becoming how do I as a business with a good idea make my business succeed in the face of changing market forces. My product or service is good but this and all the traditional marketing 5P mechanisms(price, product, promotion, place, packaging) just get me into business but not business success. The new economy is now being won by businesses that build innovation around the user experience of that product or service. We must become like Thomas Edison or Henry Ford over 100 years ago. They were able to assemble and understand the technologies available and being developed in society at the time. They had a good idea and then innovated a new composite device, product or experience that was novel, engaging, desired and a total experience. If you want to thrive in the new economy you need to be able to link the existing environments to existing and new ideas, products, and then innovate the design and usage to create a new technology or a new experience. The new world is full of entrepreneurs who “get” the new paradigm and are early adopters to the waves of new technology. They use it and adapt it to new means and ends. As an example look at the new Burswood Sports Stadium being constructed in Western Australia. The design and result could have been a conventional stadium which was just enlarged and fitted out with new facilities. This would have been a functional outcome. Instead the stadium is being approached as an “experience” and designed and fitted out accordingly. The change involves two key concepts. The first is the removal of cars and the traffic jam experience that dogs many users of conventional stadiums. By the time you get to the

These new private corporate facilities are designed for the well heeled who will pay a premium for an enhanced user experience of the sporting event they are attending. These boundary side “feel clubs” are the ultimate in experiencing the event. This is achieved by having the user senses as close in proximity to the event as possible, and with instant live footage on large screens inside the enclosure for their private comfort. This will be aided with comfortable seating, climate control, food, drink etc. All senses are targeted to be stimulated. This is new economy thinking. The experience is designed first and then the facility to bring that experience alive is designed second. There is a methodology and set of processes that underpin such experience design and the resulting service design that results. Everyone in the new economy has to examine their service delivery chain and their product delivery mix to become best practice at creating a compelling, consistent customer experience that turns on their customers. A good product with a mediocre experience will create business failure in the new economy. We coin the term “Conscious Business” partly because we consciously re-engineer the business to a consciously targeted customer and stakeholder experience. In the world of Conscious Business we take a business on the journey from being unconscious to the way in which it operates and is experienced by its customers, to a place of consciousness and reality about its existing operations. At Conscious Business Australia we take clients on this journey and then re-engineer the business and its people from this place. Our experience has been that many businesses are quite unaware(unconscious) to their markets, customers and stakeholders(eg staff)

When you tie-in social innovation processes with great customer experience outcomes you have laid the foundations for new economy success. The lesson here is more and more people are seeking out ethical businesses with which to associate. These businesses need to espouse their values consciously, build the values into every part of the business process, and critically into the user/customer experience chain, so customers can see them and associate with them consciously. Given this needs to occur anyway for the innovation reasons mentioned earlier, I do not know of a business who could claim that they are currently doing both, and who do not need to revisit their customer experience chain, or their entire reason and processes of being in business, to position for the new economy. The risk is if you are not then one or more of your competitors already has or is doing so as we speak. Many businesses undertake planning and review in December/January of each calendar year. You should critically examine which economy your plans, strategies and initiatives are taking you towards. It maybe time to give Conscious Business Australia a call in order to conduct a review of your business and where you have positioned yourself moving forward. Our Conscious Business Methodology(CBM) and its Customer Innovated Design(CID) processes are the intersection of psychology, neuroscience, design, project management, marketing, channel design, and digital and physical product design/innovation/imitation philosophies. Conscious Business Australia is uniquely positioned to assist you in your business journey towards the new economy. We transcend traditional old economy business and leadership coaching and consulting models that still dominate the business world using old economy constructs and principles. Have a look at our website www.cbau.com. au for more information and for further articles and notifications of other courses and events that we run on a regular basis. We hope that we have raised your conscious awareness and opened “your eye” to the key dynamics of the emerging new economy. Copyright 2012 Richard Boyd is CEO and Founder of Conscious Business Australia which offers an innovative and thought leading consulting service for new entrepreneurs, existing business in decline or those who are seeking to update, re-engineer or deal with systemic problems within systems, processes, people or products. Mob 0407577793 email: richard@cbau.com.au www.cbau.com.au

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Value Your Time, Value It Right

I often ask clients what their cost of labour is and what rate they are recharging their labour at. How many of us know the value of our time? The astonishing reality is that most do not know, or are not analysing this cost properly. Of even greater concern most business people are concerned about charging more for their labour. I had a manufacturing client in the steel industry that turned over in excess of $5M per annum, and was predicting a turnover for the following financial year in excess of $7M. Logically one would think they were doing well. In reality they were going broke. Will explain why later in this article. At a variety of levels time is undoubtedly the most important cost and (in many cases) re-charge that any business has! In what ways does time affect business? Time is labour, and is reflected as the cost of labour in the Profit & Loss. For many businesses, especially in service industries, labour time forms the basis of the businesses revenue charge to clients. It is therefore critical that business properly understands the effect of labour / time on its operations. Let’s examine some of the issues:

What cost time? • Excessive labour is the most common cause of business failure. The underlying cause being a lack of understanding of business process and how to control labour cost. • Labour is a primary cost of production. Too much time, makes goods and services too expensive and renders sales uncompetitive. • Is labour time correctly allocated as a function of the profit and loss or job cost? If time is not properly analysed within the production and reporting process, its true impact is lost, and business cannot properly understand the impact of times cost on production or on the business generally.

• What is the construction of labour’s cost? Does your business properly understand the real cost of each person, or unit of labour? Significantly, most businesses don’t. • Is each individual’s time measured as a function of production cost? • What is the proper relationship (%) of labour as a function of the cost of production, or as a function of job cost? Are your businesses costs in line with these KPI’s? Again the reality is that most businesses don’t know.

Labour as a unit of revenue. • Does your business charge time as a unit of revenue or as function of job cost accurately? The simple truth is most businesses don’t. A further reality is that most businesses don’t know how to / are technically ill equipped to do so. • If you are a small business, consultant or sole trader are you charging your labour at an appropriate rate thereby ensuring proper labour recovery and profit? • Are you concerned that you might lose customers if you charged more? Most businesses are. The reality is that if you have your costs, including labour, at the appropriate level and under control, you should be able to charge them out at a realistic rate. • What margin should you charge for your labour? Depends on the industry, but if you cannot make an economic return on your labour, you are better off doing something else. Remember the client I referred to earlier whose turnover was going to go up 2 million a year but I said they were actually going broke? I asked them what their cost of labour was, and they told me it was $85 per hour? I asked what they were charging labour out at, and said $82 per hour. I asked why they were doing this and was told they had so much profit in their sales they could afford to do this. I found that clearly was not the case because they were losing money. The way they were measuring their cost of labour was wrong and my concern was that entire analysis of revenue and expense was inaccurate.

The 7Cs of Entrepreneurship A decade in entrepreneurship has taught me many things through experiences, personal and that of others. You needn’t take that long. By documenting and sharing them, I hope to make your entrepreneurship journey enjoyable and rewarding from the start. What are the 7Cs of Entrepreneurship?

1. Core Competence

Your core competence is the greatest competitive advantage your business can have. Imagine it to be the root system that holds your business up and stimulates growth. Reflect on the things you enjoy doing and make you happy. With this knowledge, weave it into your enterprise. Rest assured it will delight your customers, and

most important of all, you.

2. Communication

Everybody loves a story. All too often businesses get caught in fancy taglines lacking in meaning. On the other hand, a great story can be captivating and inspiring. Underline the reason-for-being and how it will help your customers in your story. It will be a compelling reason for customers to buy you.

3. Customers

Different folks, different strokes. Entrepreneurs tend to forget this. Spend resources to develop an up-close-and-personal appreciation of your prime prospects. It will help you engage them in a manner where sales become a logical outcome.

4. Competition Eco-system

An Eco-system suggests collaboration and competition to maintain balance. Entrepreneurs need to adopt this stance today. With the evolution of shared office spaces, for example, there are many opportunities to collaborate. A dose of healthy competition doesn’t hurt either.

5. Creativity

Strangely one of the victims of a successful business is creativity. Ideas and innovations take a back seat as entrepreneurs get busy working in the business. Stagnation and decline may follow. Staying C.R.I.S.PP is critical to sustainable entrepreneurship. What is C.R.I.S.PP? i. Challenge the status quo

What then are the real problems? • Lack of technical knowledge as to how to construct reports and how to measure underlying costs properly. • Inability / unwillingness to add a realistic labour margin. • Fear of charging labour at its correct rate due to a fear of losing sales. In reality many businesses go broke for fear of charging their time at its proper rate! This is a fear. An illogical emotion! If business has its financial fundamentals and KPI’s correctly analysed and under control, business will not go broke charging its time accurately and at the proper rate. If you are unsure, get expert advice! Value your time and value it right! You may just save your business. James Law: James has been an accountant for over 30 years, having originally trained with Ernst & Young. He has also owned and run his own businesses in the hospitality and motor vehicle industries. James has a strong business approach due to his unusual mix of backgrounds. He is a financial accountant with a strong background in sales, administration and business change and reengineering. James knows what makes a business work, and enjoys getting greater performance from businesses. James has excellent communication skills and has been responsible for some significant turnarounds and corporate investigations. James rose through the ranks to become CFO of a large listed (ASX) Australian Pharmaceutical company. James has first hand experience running his own hotels as well as experience in MV retailing and car rental, logistics, pharmaceutical and medical supplies, healthcare products and medication management systems, mining and mining services, mechanical services, labour hire, recruitment, and more. Contact James Law on: james.law@etesiangroup.com.au Or Web: www.etesiangroup.com.au

ii. Reframe perspectives iii. Stay inspired by taking time off the day-to-day operations of the business iv. Be stimulated by everything around you and the business v. Patience and Perseverance pays in innovation

6. Cash Flow

Research has shown that entrepreneurs engage professional help in accounting either for compliance purposes or when the end is imminent. Let’s change this attitude. An acute appreciation of your financial wellness helps in managing your harvest.

7. Coach

It is common to have a personal trainer or an image consultant. They make us look and feel good. But who is helping you do great things with the business? Your entrepreneur coach works with you to: i. Define your goals ii. Develop and design the busi-

ness to achieve your goals iii. Craft the marketing story The 7Cs introduce structure, discipline and rigor to the process of starting up and nurturing a business. It makes for a good start. Often failures at the end are a result of a poor start. In addition, the 7Cs answer the question “What is working on a Business?”. It becomes your business’ dashboard. They have to be watched over as you steer the business in the desired direction. Mark Amin runs an entrepreneurship coaching practice, shared office space as well as a networking initiative where he personally introduces entrepreneurs to each other each week. His mission is to reach out to 100 budding entrepreneurs by year end. http://www.nest-by-potterandsower.com

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Is your business ready for 2013? second highest in Australia after Sydney at AUD 1,048 per sq.m. As a result, businesses expanding or setting-up in Perth are increasingly looking to serviced offices in order to obtain a prestigious core central business address at manageable rents without the burden of major fitting out expenses and long term leases. This is especially the case for businesses that need to meet clients regularly. The leading serviced office providers offer fully-equipped, walk-in-and-start offices in premium buildings with everything from IT support to video conferencing, designer furnishings, meeting rooms on demand and full office support at whatever level the company needs. They also offer virtual offices as an interim step before establishing a physical presence. With their flexible leasing terms, serviced offices offer a low-risk and low-cost base that enables businesses of all sizes to start, grow and flourish in a premium, blue-chip business environment in the fastest, most efficient way possible. So if you are planning to make 2013 your year for business growth in Perth, a serviced office might just be the option you need. According to a recent survey on the Asia-Pacific Business Outlook conducted by The Executive Centre among its 7,000 serviced office clients, 2013 could be a bumper year for Australian businesses.

productivity growth, flexibility will be key to running a successful business in 2013 and beyond. Before making a decision, review your business plan to see its ability to adjust to the ever changing business landscape,”

Over 70% of the survey respondents were confident or very confident of the region’s prospects for the coming year, with Australia ranked among the top five countries most favoured for business expansion within the Asia Pacific region. Respondents cited exports to emerging economies and mining-related investment by both the private and public sectors among the areas most likely to offer opportunities.

With market sentiment looking so favourably on Perth, pressure is building on prime CBD office space and the city is now ranked among the world’s top 24 most expensive office markets. According to the latest market reports, rents have now increased for eight consecutive quarters, with the average prime rent in the CBD of AUD850 per sq.m. now the

Stephen Chatham, Corporate Director, Head of Expansion of The Executive Centre, Asia’s premium serviced office provider with 52 centres in 18 cities across 10 Asian countries. stephen_chatham@executivecentre.com www.executivecentre.com 1800 047 570

Across the Asia-Pacific region, respondents ranked the technology sector top for opportunities in a variety of innovative fields, with the energy and natural resources sectors second. Respondents also saw prospects for the development of sustainable energy sources and on-going developments in biosciences. Stephen Chatham, Corporate Director – Expansion of The Executive Centre said, “Asia sees Australia as a safe place to invest in multiple sectors including mining, energy, agriculture, consulting and finance. The key to continuing to harness foreign investment within these sectors will be to improve productivity and reduce labour costs.” Based on the survey findings, Perth was seen as a destination full of business opportunities with its flourishing mining, steel and energy sectors and strong market sentiment underpinned by low unemployment levels and a rapid population growth rate. Chatham continued, “With such rapid changes in demands, expectations and requirements and the risks associated with Australia’s low

Locked up for a good cause

Over 170 guests including 50 top executives, community leaders, government officials and business people were locked up for the annual Convicts for a Cause fundraiser at Fremantle Prison this week.

Supported by a Royal Medieval Wedding theme the fundraisers were urged to call family, friends and associates to “raise bail” for release. The event features a different convict theme each year and participants joined the theatrics supported by local production company Ellandar Productions. $85,000, almost double that in 2011, has been raised by the Rotary Clubs of Perth and Mt Lawley, Cysitic Fibrosis WA and the Liver Foundation WA. Each organisation is working towards finding a cure or supporting special medical needs within the WA community – to ‘help turn young lives into long lives’.

Rotary has been supporting research into the cause and cure of polio for many years and today the impact of the disease has been significantly reduced. Cystic Fibrosis, the most common life threatening genetic condition in Australia, whilst not cured is subject to ongoing research which will one day lead to a cure.

ing $85,000. I strongly recommend business leaders in Perth get involved in CFAC 2013.” Event page http://www.convictsforacause.org.au/index.htm

The Liver Foundation will support its initiative with funds from the event as it aims to provide a specialised paediatric liver transplant unit in WA. Currently children requiring a liver transplant in WA must travel to the eastern seaboard to receive treatment. This often means that they are interstate for months at a time. Zeeshan Pasha, CEO Nifnex Review commented, “Being locked-up for a good cause and being part of CFAC 2012 was a fabulous experience. I commend the CFAC team for putting together a fabulous event and for rais-

munity Alan Clyne - CEO Com Newspaper Group

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Top Nine Tips for using LinkedIn over the Christmas Period It is certainly the silly season – however there’s not to say that there could be some things that you could be doing to fill up your pipeline ready for the New Year. LinkedIn have become more powerful as an essential business and relationship management tool amongst Australian business professionals. If used effectively, LinkedIn can help generate real business or career results for the user. Whilst corporations are getting ready to shut down over the weeks leading up to Christmas, SMEs can use a few tips to keep their pipeline alive so they can have a successful head start in the New Year. Tips include:

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If you are invited to a networking function or event at this time of the year, say ‘Yes’ – you’ll never know who you’ll meet.

If you’ve connected with a few people, grab their business card and connect with them on LinkedIn. Send PERSONAL connection requests and follow up with them after they’ve accepted your request. Look through your existing networks and read a couple of profiles. Think who you could introduce them to or who could you refer their business to – contact them to catch up and swap updates. Bring that personal connection back to life and see how you could help each other.

Update your own profile on LinkedIn – make it professional and have a clear message about you and what products/services you offer and how people can get in touch with you. Or simply what problem does your business help solve?

Media Contact: Linda Le 0421 398 917

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Put a professional photo in place – having a professional photo makes you more trustworthy and also your profile is seven times more likely to get clicked on.

Linda Le is a Social Media Ghost at gen Y advantage. She specializes in training and coaching Business Owners, Managers, Directors, and C-Level Executives about using LinkedIn to manage relationships, and to generate real business referrals, leads and sales. Linda can be VO_ad_nifnex.pdf 1 30/11/2012 15:54:38 contacted on Linda.Le@genYadvantage.com.au

Make your personal word of mouth travel further by writing someone a recommendation for their products or services – your Printer? Accountant? Lawyer? Coach? Book Keeper? Broker? Public Speaker? Doing something nice for others and good karma will come your way!

7 8 9

Don’t want to write a recommendation but want to acknowledge someone for their skills or expertise? Go to their profile and click on the endorse button – make sure you have exposure to their skills and expertise, don’t just click on anything and everything. Send your networks personalised greetings and messages for the holiday season. Or share an article or something of value to your connections during this time. Keep your connections alive and keep them warm. Consider creating your own end of year event/ bash. Leverage your time by pooling your networks/clients/connections together in the one place. Introduce and connect them to those that you think could be a mutually beneficial business relationship. They’ll appreciate it! C

Naturally LinkedIn – like in life, people want to do business with people they know, like and trust. Think about how you could help your networks, how you could make them feel good or what you could do for them and naturally your business will flourish with good returns. Y

CMY

Linda.Le@genYadvantage.com.au www.linkedin.com/in/profilelinda

JR and his partner Jenny Rory Vassallo and Kathy Kusinski Director of MKDC

St Vinnies Mark Fitzpatrick - CEO Mike Kilcullen -C ommodore of th e Royal Perth Yach t Club

Zeeshan Pasha CEO Nifnex

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9 Perth Entrepreneurs Share Their Business Wish For 2013 David Price

Jamie Davison

”In 2013, my wish is for small business owners and marketing people to focus more on smarter marketing strategies for their businesses and to develop a co-ordinated approach to all of their marketing efforts! If your investment in social media and online strategies haven’t paid dividends in 2012, then perhaps you should get a marketing diagnostic checkup and consider changing your focus in 2013. Now is the time to set some goals and plans for 2013. For example. if you haven’t set aside a budget for your marketing in 2013, then now is the time to do just that.”

“My business wish for 2013 is the opportunity to show more people the benefit and power of the cloud. I want to move people’s bookkeeping and accounting systems from their offices to their Ipads and phones so they can work from anywhere, at home, at the office, on the beach or in Bali. I want to show them that data entry is so 1990’s and there are now options where the information automatically feeds into your system so you can see your business performance in real-time and not have to wait till the end of the month, quarter or year.”

David Price is a Director of Price Advertising, a boutique advertising agency in Subiaco. Ahactum vivehendemus efacerbis ipiem ertem aus bonihin tus

Jamie Davison is a Certified Practicing Accountant (CPA) and the Director of Fortuna Bravado Bookkeeping, who provide cloud based bookkeeping solutions to their clients for a fixed price whether you want them to do everything for you, or implement systems and train your staff so that you can do it yourself.

Colin Atkinson “In 2013, we expect the movement of business and consumer data onto mobile devices and into the cloud will continue to accelerate. Driving this move will be the increased collaboration around the cloud between IT and business leaders. Business processes will need to be streamlined and consolidated, which may see a real-time re-distribution of resources, enabling organisations to enjoy the financial and operational benefits of the cloud as a commodity.

Tony Benson “Software as as Services is a rapidly maturing market space with many large national companies already leveraging those services to underpin dynamic but extremely efficient business process.

It makes sense to redesign the business model to focus on efficiency. Pull the business apart and look at it from a fresh perspective and with a long term focus, not the short term boom-bust mentality that has historically encumbered Perth businesses. And don’t think that this only affects large corporations; SME’s need to seize this unique opportunity and prepare for success rather than retreating while the world re-invents itself.”

During 2013 expect to see a step on from this with a focus on “Big Data” and Analytics as a Service. Google, Amazon and Microsoft are already providing streamlined processes for analysis of your on-premise data without the need for infrastructure investment. Pricing models based upon cents per GB analysed are now making the querying of super large datasets affordable and achievable for businesses of all sizes

Colin Atkinson-BSc, ACA, AACS, is a chartered accountant who also holds a degree in computing and is the Director of CA Management Services to be a leading accounting software support organization with a proven history of successful installations in a wide range of systems.

Here at becloudsmart, our business wish for 2013 is centred around understanding our clients needs, allowing us to implement the best cloud based services and products to meet and exceed those needs.” Tony Benson has worked as an officially certified Google Apps Consultant for several years advising well known International Businesses as they take their first steps on the Cloud Computing journey.

Kaye Hodgkiss “My wish for 2013 is for people to allow more time for themselves. This can be anything from extra sleep to taking that skiing holiday, whatever makes us happy. It has become socially acceptable to be a workaholic and quite often in jobs we don’t really like, but this can bring illness and family/relationship breakdowns. As people take more time for themselves to rest and relax they will find they are actually more productive.” Kaye Hodgkiss is a Personal concierge and owner of Lifestyle assistance. Find out how she can help you and more at www.lifestyleassistance.com.au

Sara Hall “Over the past decade, our pace of living has changed drastically. The digital age has created more pressures whether it’s a perceived or real pressure – the way we deal with it can stress us out or give us more time. Coming into a new year, I would love to see people simplifying their lives. Looking at “less is more” and taking action to use the electronic age as a tool to gain more time, not take it away. If you had an extra hour a day, how would you spend it?” Sara Hall is the founder of Finer Details Personal Concierge Services, a local Perth based business, created to help busy people be organised. As a Professional Organiser, Sara has been invited to give presentations and run workshops on organising to help business owners and busy people. She has been featured in Scoop, Perth Vita, The Sunday Times, The West Australian Habitat and Fernwood Health Magazine.

Rebecca Cole “2012 was a big year for the Networking WA team, taking on a number of new clients, running some big events and building our own business networks. 2013 looks to be just as promising, as we grow our event management business and hope to create some innovative and fresh events for the Perth Market. Ultimately we wish we could work with more clients interested in embracing unique, memorable events with a difference!” Rebecca Cole- Chief Networker, Via Appia Networking WA. Specialising in Corporate Events & Event Management

Now permanently based in Perth, he is offering those skills and knowledge to fellow Perth based SMEs wanting to make the most of their Cloud Investment.

Chris Peacock Whether you are looking for success in your career, business or life itself there are 5 success principles that if you apply them will create the changes you desire. 1) Define your outcome. What is it that you want? No one starts to build a house without a blueprint of exactly how the finished home will look, the number of bedrooms, size of the kitchen etc 2) Take action. There is no substitute for action. The best plan in the world is still a plan until you take action 3) Have insight. If you are not getting the results or outcomes you desire from your actions, don’t keep doing the same thing and expecting a different result. Shift your focus 4) Flexibility. Don’t be rigid or limited to one option. Build flexibility into attaining your outcome 5) Physiology. Create a physiology that will support your thinking. Positive physiology creates positive psychology. Inspire Excellence is all about performance mastery. It all starts with your thinking. My background is operations and project management for International blue chip companies. My coaching commenced in August 2002 with the Oxford School of Coaching and Mentoring in the UK. Following by Inward Bound and study at The Coaching Institute. I formed Inspire Excellence in 2012

Jennifer Rose Bryant “Do not see new business as competition. There is an abundance of honest and authentic business people to choose from and choices are important. Therefore “my business wish for 2013” is simply encourage ‘newbies‘ they need mentors, guidance and support. In the essence of good spirits and heart felt best wishes, I choose to say “enjoy your success, share as much of your journey as possible”. I hope we all enjoy going around the board without ending up alone, broke and dis-heartened. Take a comrade by the hand and offer your support. It is the best feeling.” During my years as a business owner and I felt at times extremely alone in my process to starting a new business. My passion, challenge and offer to help other women who have discovered first hand what feels like. Setting up a process via Women in Business WA to ensure others have a more gratifying experience. The opportunity to give a helping hand that I felt was missing for me.

If you would like to reach Perth Business Owners with your message contact Nifnex Advertising on 1300 643 639

Or Email: Nifnex@nifnex.com.au