Business Continuity Plan for a Home-Based Business
September 2, 2010
By Yvette Vignando, www.happychild.com.au
The subject of organisational resilience and business continuity is not my area of expertise but through my executive coaching clients and colleagues I have learned some of the jargon and theory behind it. You may have heard of business continuity experts – they are people who advise businesses on anything from disaster recovery and insurance to identifying business outputs and risks to them, and how to keep revenue flowing if there is a disaster or crisis. A business continuity plan sets out how your business could recover from a disaster or a major disruption to its operations.
Lately I have been thinking that I should have my own business continuity plan – one that consists of more than just backing up my hard drive from time to time, when I remember. It might sound a bit too grand for a home-based business but I think that a home-based business is particularly vulnerable to catastrophic failure because it usually relies on a small number of people, a limited amount of critical technology and a small number of systems. A house fire, an illness, a house robbery or even a toddler or pet could cause permanent and catastrophic business disruption to most home-based businesses.
If you have not read my ABN blogposts before, I have recently started an online parenting magazine and I am currently running it from home. I have a small number of contractors and volunteers I rely on to develop my business and the vast majority of information I “own” is stored in computer hard drives in my office and in mysterious things called “servers” and ”hosts” on the other side of the world. So I have decided to add a business continuity plan section to my business plan.
For an overview of the elements of a business continuity plan, I found a simple guide on a Queensland Government website . I also found this very helpful pdf guide to Business Continuity Management from the South Australian Government.
It can be expensive to engage a business continuity expert but if you would like to find an expert in Australia, here are two places to look: Continuity Forum and The Australian Chapter of the Business Continuity Institute .
The essential areas that need to be covered are:
Prevention: what do you do now to prevent or reduce risks to your business?
Preparedness: what do you do now to make sure that you could quickly respond to and recover from a business disruption?
Response: when you are confronted with a crisis, what will you do to minimise its impact?
Recovery: what actions would you take to reduce the time it takes for your business to recover from a disaster?
So I have been thinking about my parenting website, the systems behind it, the people I rely on, the insurance I am choosing and the technology I use. I have spoken to a colleague who is an expert in this area and trawled the internet for information. You should consider getting professional advice on some of these individual issues but here’s a quick synthesis of what I have learned:
- Have a plan (and follow it) for regular back-up of your technology-based and hard-copy based information, systems and records. For a great example of what can go horribly wrong, read about Janet Beckers’ experience when her website host went missing.
- Work out where and how you would run your home-based business if your home was no longer available.
- Make sure that you are fully insured against all risks – that usually means comprehensive Professional Indemnity and Public Liability cover and making sure that your home insurance policy covers valuable items in your home office (e.g. your computers, software, cameras, phones). As part of this process, it’s a good idea to make an inventory of the items you own that would require replacement.
- Create a back-up of all the contact information you need for critical service providers to your business and store it off site and/or online in the technological “cloud”. (Some of this may be stored in your computer’s hard drive and some may be in items such as address books or business card folders, for example – and don’t forget to back up/regularly synchronise your mobile phone or PDA. Create a backup of your social media contacts, ‘friends’ and ‘followers’.
- If you have an e-commerce website – make sure that you have reliable back-up of all customer and order information.
- Try to set aside an amount of cash for an emergency; you may need to use it to replace items, obtain urgent services or pay for extra assistance from a consultant.
- Update your business continuity plan regularly and make it a part of your written business plan.
Looks like I have some work ahead of me!
MORE GREAT BLOG POSTS BY YVETTE VIGNANDO
- Can a Mumpreneur Really Crush It? 5 Tips to Myself.
- 3 Tips for New Business Success
- 5 Twitter Tips for Entrepreneurs
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Yvette Vignando - www.happychild.com.auYvette is pursuing her passion – to take action that helps children develop great social and emotional skills as a foundation for a happy and successful life. Formerly a lawyer and then successful executive coach specialising in Emotional Intelligence, Yvette was encouraged by her experience of MentorNet to launch her business – a website for parents that publishes practical and engaging information about raising children with emotional intelligence. Yvette looks forward to sharing the challenges and successes of her experience as she navigates her way through the adventures of launching a website, and tackles online sales and marketing, an evolving business plan, and the growing universe of social media. Yvette hopes that by following her personal and professional development as an entrepreneur you will also be inspired to follow your passions.
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ABN – The Political Parties Respond to Your Concerns
August 19, 2010
By Amy Lyden
With the election days away, many of us are still undecided about who to vote for.
On behalf of the Australian Businesswomen’s Network, I recently wrote to the major political parties with the results of our recent poll and asked them to address your major concerns.
As of the 19 August only the ALP and The Greens have responded. Click here for ALP’s response and here for the Greens response. I also received an auto-response email from Tony Abbott’s office saying that they are too busy campaigning to respond to individual requests. However I have taken information, if available, from the Liberal Party’s website on these issues. Click here for more detailed information.
Note to Liberal Party: your site is not mac friendly – test the links!
Update: A response was received from the Liberal Party on 20 August. It will be posted soon.
The ABN Community’s top issues take from our poll are: Small Business Support, Compliance and Reduction in Red Tape, Gender Imbalance on Boards and Childcare Costs. Following is what the ALP, The Greens and The Liberal Party have to say about your concerns. I hope this helps you get clearer about your choice on Saturday.
ISSUE 1 – Small Business Support:
ALP:
- Instant write-off of assets up to $5,000
- Company tax cuts ( from 30% to 29% from July 2012).
- Enterprise Connect – a $50m a year initiative that provides support to SMEs to develop the skills, tools and knowledge to improve their innovation and maximise growth potential.
- BECs – the govt is investing $42m to enhance small business advisory services. Information and advice is available from 36 Business Enterprise Centres (BECs) including developing business plans, supporting growth etc.
- Small Business Support Line was launched in September 2009 and provides advice to small business owners on matters like finance, cash flow management, and marketing advice.
- The govt will be providing over $100m over four years to the ATO to assist small businesses experiencing financial distress to remain viable within the tax system.
GREENS:
- Help with access to finance for small business including a “fixed interest gap loan”
- Opportunities for small businesses through the Greens’ renewable energy policies (they didn’t go into detail on this)
LIBERAL PARTY (from their website):
- Will reduce company tax from 30% to 28.5%
- Will appoint a Small Business Minister to the cabinet.
- Will extend unfair contracts protections currently available to consumers to cover small business.
- Will require that govt departments use tender procedures that do not disadvantage small businesses.
- Establish a dedicated advocate for small business by creating a new Small Business Ombudsman
ISSUE 2 - Compliance / Reduction in Red Tape:
ALP:
- From 1 July 2010, simplification of business-to-government reporting obligations kicks in. These will include online reporting tools which will save businesses around $800m per year.
- From mid-2011, the government’s national business names initiative will establish a one-stop online shop for businesses to register business names and obtain ABNs.
GREENS:
- The Greens are supportive of a small business minister being responsible for identifying in consultation with small business the most effective way of reducing red tape.
LIBERALS:
- Will reduce the compliance burden on small business with minimum effective regulation and by guarding against growth in regulatory burden through the Minister of Small Business.
- Simplified procedures and greater use of technology by the ATO.
- Genuine consultation with the Small Business sector on changes in govt imposed fees and charges.
ISSUE 3 - Gender Imbalance in Senior Management and Boards:
ALP:
Women currently make up 33.4% of Federal Government boards. The ALP will set a target that at least 40% of these boards will be women within 5 years. They will increase the number of women on boards by providing scholarships to women through the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD) and setting minimum targets for the number of women on Federal Government boards. At this time the government does not support quotas for private sector boards.
GREENS:
Support amending the Corporations Act to require publicly listed companies with annual turnover in excess of $15 million to allocate 40% of board positions to women within five years or risk closure. (wow! – that’s hard hitting!).
LIBERAL PARTY:
There was nothing that I could find on their website that directly addressed this issue. Would love to hear from anyone on this.
ISSUE 4 - Childcare:
ALP:
- Investing $14.4b over the next four years to help with the cost of childcare.
- New standards with a higher carer-to-child ratio.
- Government delivering Australia’s first national Paid Parental Leave Scheme. This will include 18 weeks paid leave at the national minimum wage, currently $570 a week. (for more details please see my previous blog)
- Update 20 August - Yesterday Labor announced a new promise - two weeks paid paternity leave for fathers (worth about $1140).
GREENS:
- Campaigning for six months paid parental leave with superannuation.
- Support the current government’s initiative of a lower carer-to-child ratio.
- Support the establishment of a Co-op Childcare Fund to provide $10m in grants for local, small and medium businesses to collectively establish childcare facilities for their employees.
- Support more publicly funded child care centres in high demand areas and are pushing for fortnightly payments of the childcare rebate (instead of quarterly).
LIBERAL PARTY:
- Will reintroduce indexation of the Child Care Rebate (CCR). This translates into a benefit of around $300 per child per year for parents receiving the maximum amount of the CCR.
- Will have the CCR paid weekly and directly to childcare providers so families don’t have to pay upfront.
- Will reintroduce $12.6m of Occasional Care funding which will provide flexible and part-time access to child care places for unplanned need.
- Will introduce a paid parental leave plan that will provide mothers with six months’ paid leave at the full salary.
Happy Voting on Saturday!
Amy
MORE GREAT BLOG POSTS BY AMY LYDEN
- Businesswomen’s Pre-Election Poll Results Reveal Key Issues for Government to Address in the Coming Election
- Pre-Election Results Reveal the Issues Women Want Government to Act on
- Paid Parental Leave – Article: Maybe Baby: Juggling Home, Work and Family Life.
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Amy Lyden - Advocacy Advisor – Australian Businesswomen’s NetworkAn entrepreneur and specialist in ecommerce and online strategy, Amy has had over 13 years of practical experience in these areas. Launching her first website in 1998 Amy was at the forefront of an online revolution without even realizing it. Within a year this site became and remains today a #1 ranking site and global community of pet lovers that attracts over 4 million visitors a year. This Australia-based business, Bow Wow Meow, now sells product online to over 100 countries worldwide. Amy sold this business in 2007 and turned her energy to the nonprofit sector. Amy is currently the CEO of Australian Scholarships Foundation, an organisation that facilitates scholarships for education and training for people who work in the nonprofit sector. Amy is the recipient of numerous business awards including the 2006 NSW Telstra Business Women’s Awards for Innovation, the 2002 National Telstra Business Award and the Leading Women Entrepreneurs of the World Grant. Amy is an Ambassador and former Chairperson for the Australian Businesswomen’s Network, an organisation that supports female entrepreneurs. Amy was also invited to serve on the Commonwealth Small Business Council, an initiative by the Federal minister for Small Business. Amy has been profiled in the following books: “Women’s Business, Women’s Wealth” by Amanda Ellis, “Female Entrepreneurs”, by Leiza Clark and “Secrets of Female Entrepreneurs Exposed!”, by Dale Beaumont. Amy is passionate about using technology to connect people globally for positive change.
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Asking the *Right* Questions to Get the *Right* Answers
August 16, 2010
By Cat Matson, Alito
We ask and answer questions all day, every day. “How are you?” “How was your weekend?” “How’s business going?”
Most of these questions call for superficial, polite answers – “Well thanks”; “Great, how was yours?” and my favourite “Really busy”. 
Different types of questions, of course, need to be asked if we’re going to get meaningful answers. Women have long learned NOT to ask ‘What are you thinking?’ of their men if they want an insight into their mind … but have we learned to ask the ‘right’ questions of ourselves when it comes to our business?
Performance questions are essential to ask on a regular basis:
- What was our revenue this period?
- What was our profit?
- What was our return on time, effort and financial investments?
- What are the trends?
And then to maximise the power of those questions, you need to ask:
- Is that good enough?
- If yes, how do we maintain or improve that performance?
- If not, what needs to happen differently?
- How do we do it differently?
It’s also useful to ask personal effectiveness questions:
- What will I do more of?
- What will I do less of?
- What will I stop doing?
It’s also important to have the right questions asked of you by other people. One of the most valuable aspects of working with a thoughtful business advisor, mentor or colleague is the insights gained from answering the ‘right’ questions. These are the questions that go beyond the transactional ‘what, where and when’ but push through questions of ‘why, how and what if?’
I’m curious … what is the best business question you’ve ever answered? What insights did you gain, and why was it such a potent question?
MORE GREAT POSTS BY CAT MATSON
- What Every Business Plan Should Have (But Most are Missing)
- Half-Time Address
- Can a Mumpreneur Really Crush It? 5 Tips to Myself.
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Cat Matson - Alito
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| Phone: | 07 3289 7055 |
| Email: | cat@alito.com.au |
| Website: | www.alito.com.au |
| Twitter: | www.twitter.com/catmatson |
| Facebook: | www.facebook.com/AlitoFusion |
| LinkedIn: | www.linkedin.com/in/CatMatson |
| Blog: | www.alito.com.au/blog |
| Member Profile: | See Cat’s Member Profile |
The Business of Busyness
August 13, 2010
By Alycia Edgar, Coastal Accounting Services
How do you keep track of your projects and tasks? How do you get to the end of your day and make sure that you have accomplished your goals for the day? How do you make sure you haven’t been fluffing around being busy but not accomplishing anything? It’s so easy to get stuck in the business of busyness, doing those tasks that are ultimately not important.
Brian Tracey introduced us to the urgent vs important matrix.
From this matrix, you can see that our number 1 priorities should be urgent and important tasks. These are tasks that can have serious consequences if not completed.
Interruptions, emails and the like that appear to be pressing, although urgent, are not that important in driving your business forward as shown in Sector III in the matrix. This is the big busyness sector, when you can appear to be super busy but not really accomplish much. You know this sector, you’ve been there before. I know I have. How do we stop? Delegate.
Sector IV in the matrix relates to all those tasks that are neither urgent nor important, so you shouldn’t be doing them. Get rid of them all together. They are not helping you focus on your goals.
Sector II is not urgent but important. This is the area where business growth occurs and you make time to work on your business. This is where you can truly start to leverage your efforts. Time spent here has a tremendous impact on your business in the long term.
So what should be your focus? Definitely the urgent and important tasks as they have serious consequences attached if not completed. Then, you need to make sure you schedule time to work on the important but not urgent tasks. They drive the business forward and assist you in achieving your goals.
Anything that doesn’t fall into the above two areas should be deferred, delegated or dumped entirely. Rid yourself of the unnecessary tasks that do nothing to fulfill you or your business.
How can you do this? Brian Tracy suggests asking these questions regularly:
- What are my highest value activities? What are the things that contribute the greatest value to my work?
- What is the most valuable use of my time right now?
As a business owner who is constantly fighting the “busyness” disease, I have found the questions above and the matrix very useful in keeping me real and on track. I am fine-tuning my delegation skills, eliminating that unimportant stuff and focusing on the growth aspects of my business. Am I seeing the rewards from this focus? Absolutely!
So tell me what are you doing to keep focused on the important aspects of your business. Have you used any of the tools above? Or do you have other tools you have used to maintain that laser focus?
MORE GREAT POSTS BY ALYCIA EDGAR
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Alycia Edgar - Coastal Accounting Services
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| Phone: | 0403 983 529 |
| Email: | alycia@coastalaccounting.com.au |
| Twitter: | www.twitter.com/alyciaedgar |
| Blog: | www.numbersarelife.com |
| Member Profile: | See Alycia’s Member Profile |
New Free Webinar Explores the iPad’s Impact and Opportunities for Small Business
August 12, 2010
12 August 2010
For Immediate Release
New Free Webinar Explores the iPad’s Impact and Opportunities for Small Business
It’s been called a game-changer, but why is it that the iPad is a must-have tool for small business? On 17 August, the Australian Businesswomen’s Network presents a free 90-minute webinar that explores how small businesses can use the iPad to be engage clients, improve productivity and processes, free them up and leverage their efforts.
“Small businesses are usually under-resourced. So when a tool comes along that can affordably allow them to do business better, it’s important to let them know how to make the most of this new tool and to provide sound examples. For this special webinar, we’ve pulled together experts and small businesses who are already making huge gains using the iPad,” explained the ABN’s Community Director, Suzi Dafnis.
The free webinar, sponsored by Optus Business, will be held from 10.30am – 12.00pm. Small business owners can participate from anywhere in Australia. Already over 450 small business owners have registered to attend.
“The way we work has changed forever. iPad: The Impact and Opportunities for Small Business looks at the power of this fast-selling device and gives practical examples of how to use the iPad for the success of your business. We can interact with customers in new ways.” – Suzi Dafnis, Community Director
Guest Speakers:
Ed Dale – The Challenge
Ed Dale is an internationally recognised marketing expert with a specialty in Internet marketing. Ed has always been involved in technology and has had successes in publishing and retail computing.
Aimee Buchanan – Client Service Director, MPG (Global Media Agency)
Amy will talk about how media is changing, and what the best ways to engage people using the iPad are.
Webinar Details
Date: Tuesday 17 August 2010
Time: 10.30am – 12.00pm AEST
Cost: FREE
For more information and to register: 1300 720 120 www.abn.org.au
The Australian Businesswomen’s Network provides online training and mentoring from women (and men) across Australia. An early adopter of new media and technologies, the ABN is a leader in the delivery of web-based seminars (webinars) and a mentoring program all built on social media platforms.
For interviews and more details — Suzi Dafnis — suzi@abn.org.au — 0413 704 560
Women Masters of Marketing to Share Latest Ways to Direct Change and Growth
August 12, 2010
11 August 2010
For Immediate Release
Women Masters of Marketing to Share Latest Ways to Direct Change and Growth
How is marketing best used to direct change and growth in business? What methods are most effective, and how do we put these methods to practical use in our business?
On 18 August, the Australian Businesswomen’s Network presents Masters of Marketing, a one-hour webinar which brings together three inspiring businesswomen who will represent different areas of exemplary marketing and share the strategies that have worked for them that any small business can implement effectively.
“Marketing remains the key to growth and success for any small business. What worked yesterday, does not necessarily work today. The three women presenting at this webinar are experts in their field and have the up-to-the-minute experience of what works online, in retail, wholesale, services and product marketing.” explained Suzi Dafnis, Community Director of the Australian Businesswomen’s Network
Guest Speakers:
Lucinda Barlow – Google Australia and New Zealand – Head of Corporate Communications and Public Affairs
Lucinda is responsible for Google communications in Australia and New Zealand. She brings ten years experience working in Internet and mobile in Asia, the US and UK.
Sharon McGlinchey – MV Organic Skincare – Winner of the 2010 InStyle Magazine’s Women of Style Award
A true skincare artisan, Sharon McGlinchey has set a new precedent in the fields of natural and organic skin care formulation and holistic skin therapy.
Liz Courtney – The Wardrobe Store
Marketing Communication Specialist turned film director, Liz has used her business acumen to bring together a marriage of sorts between her marketing and love of film making while combining her passion for sustainability.
Masters of Marketing – National
Wednesday, 18 August 2010
$39.00
For More information and to register: Phone – 1300 720 120 www.abn.org.au
The Australian Businesswomen’s Network provides online training and mentoring from women (and men) across Australia. An early adopter of new media and technologies, the ABN is a leader in the delivery of web-based seminars (webinars) and a mentoring program all built on social media platforms.
Businesswomen’s Pre-Election Poll Results Reveal Key Issues for Government to Address in the Coming Election
August 4, 2010
By Amy Lyden
The Australian Businesswomen’s Network (ABN), a community of 20,000 women in business across Australia, has today released the latest results to a pre-election poll it conducted with members to identify key issues they would like the next government to address.
The top issues identified by the national community of businesswomen are:
1. 50.7% of respondents identified government support for small businesses, including grants and training and education, as the top concern.
2. 46% of respondents identified reduction in red tape and compliance for small business as the second highest concern.
3. Not surprisingly, 35.4% of members identified gender imbalance in executive management and boards as the third highest concern.
“With a vast community of voters, it is important to understand what each party’s policies are towards women and business so that our members can make an informed choice at the polls. The ABN has requested that each of the major parties outline how they will address these important issues, and we are currently awaiting their responses to share this with our members,” explained ABN’s Advocacy Ambassador, Amy Lyden.
The Australian Businesswomen’s Network’s herVoice campaign aggregates the opinions and concerns of its national community and presents those issues to the relevant government contacts. “Individuals in small business don’t have the resources to act on their own behalf to make changes, so ABN is a vehicle for their important voices to be heard.”
Childcare cost/incentives are a major concern for many working mums. 30.8% of respondents ranked tax deductibility or greater incentives for all kinds of childcare, including family day care and nannies, as important. An additional 17.9% identified the cost of childcare as an issue.
Other issues that were ranked as a top concern include the Fair Work Workplace Relations (identified by 27% of respondents), the super gap between women and men (28%) and the lack of aged care options (19%).
A detailed breakdown of the survey is attached. Responses represented top 3 issues identified by businesswomen as important, and therefore, total percentages exceed 100%.
For More Information or Interviews:
Amy Lyden – Advocacy Ambassador, amy.lyden@abn.org.au 0414 745 289
Suzi Dafnis – Community Director, suzi@abn.org.au 0413 704 560
MORE GREAT BLOG POSTS BY AMY LYDEN
- Pre-Election Results Reveal the Issues Women Want Government to Act on
- Paid Parental Leave – Article: Maybe Baby: Juggling Home, Work and Family Life.
- Tony Abbott vs Craig Emerson – Live from COSBOA’s National Small Business Summit, 8 July
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Amy Lyden - Advocacy Advisor – Australian Businesswomen’s NetworkAn entrepreneur and specialist in ecommerce and online strategy, Amy has had over 13 years of practical experience in these areas. Launching her first website in 1998 Amy was at the forefront of an online revolution without even realizing it. Within a year this site became and remains today a #1 ranking site and global community of pet lovers that attracts over 4 million visitors a year. This Australia-based business, Bow Wow Meow, now sells product online to over 100 countries worldwide. Amy sold this business in 2007 and turned her energy to the nonprofit sector. Amy is currently the CEO of Australian Scholarships Foundation, an organisation that facilitates scholarships for education and training for people who work in the nonprofit sector. Amy is the recipient of numerous business awards including the 2006 NSW Telstra Business Women’s Awards for Innovation, the 2002 National Telstra Business Award and the Leading Women Entrepreneurs of the World Grant. Amy is an Ambassador and former Chairperson for the Australian Businesswomen’s Network, an organisation that supports female entrepreneurs. Amy was also invited to serve on the Commonwealth Small Business Council, an initiative by the Federal minister for Small Business. Amy has been profiled in the following books: “Women’s Business, Women’s Wealth” by Amanda Ellis, “Female Entrepreneurs”, by Leiza Clark and “Secrets of Female Entrepreneurs Exposed!”, by Dale Beaumont. Amy is passionate about using technology to connect people globally for positive change.
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Pre-Election Results Reveal the Issues Women Want Government to Act on
August 2, 2010
By Amy Lyden
Thank you to those who participated in the Australian Businesswomen’s Network pre-election poll.
We have analysed the results and written to all major political parties so that we can hear how they respond to issues that are important to YOU.
Below is a list of the top issues you identified, as well as a link to a copy of the letter we have sent to the major parties.
You will see the top issues are:
• Government support for small business including training,
• reducing red tape and compliance issues,
• gender imbalance on boards and
• cost and flexibility of childcare.
There were also two running themes in the open ended questions you answered:
1. Reduction of tax for small business – income and payroll, and
2. Climate change – incentives offered for small business and concerns over reducing our carbon footprint.
Many of you commented that many of these issues that are important to you haven’t been addressed by any of the parties or their policies aren’t clear.
We will notify you as soon as we have heard back from the parties so that you can make a better informed choice at the polls on the 21st of August.
Link to letter sent to Political Parties
Will keep you posted…
Amy Lyden
Advocacy Ambassador
P.S. Many of you took time to provide additional comments and reasons. Thank you for your passion. We will post some of these additional thoughts in the coming days.
MORE GREAT BLOG POSTS BY AMY LYDEN
- Paid Parental Leave – Article: Maybe Baby: Juggling Home, Work and Family Life.
- Tony Abbott vs Craig Emerson – Live from COSBOA’s National Small Business Summit, 8 July
- Paid Parental Leave Scheme Gets the Go-Ahead
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Amy Lyden - Advocacy Advisor – Australian Businesswomen’s NetworkAn entrepreneur and specialist in ecommerce and online strategy, Amy has had over 13 years of practical experience in these areas. Launching her first website in 1998 Amy was at the forefront of an online revolution without even realizing it. Within a year this site became and remains today a #1 ranking site and global community of pet lovers that attracts over 4 million visitors a year. This Australia-based business, Bow Wow Meow, now sells product online to over 100 countries worldwide. Amy sold this business in 2007 and turned her energy to the nonprofit sector. Amy is currently the CEO of Australian Scholarships Foundation, an organisation that facilitates scholarships for education and training for people who work in the nonprofit sector. Amy is the recipient of numerous business awards including the 2006 NSW Telstra Business Women’s Awards for Innovation, the 2002 National Telstra Business Award and the Leading Women Entrepreneurs of the World Grant. Amy is an Ambassador and former Chairperson for the Australian Businesswomen’s Network, an organisation that supports female entrepreneurs. Amy was also invited to serve on the Commonwealth Small Business Council, an initiative by the Federal minister for Small Business. Amy has been profiled in the following books: “Women’s Business, Women’s Wealth” by Amanda Ellis, “Female Entrepreneurs”, by Leiza Clark and “Secrets of Female Entrepreneurs Exposed!”, by Dale Beaumont. Amy is passionate about using technology to connect people globally for positive change.
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Does Your Staff Make Your Business Look Good?
July 28, 2010
By Kristy-Lee Johnston, Footprint Recruitment
Many of us have found ourselves in situations where we have had staff in our teams who, despite how much we like them as people, probably don’t make our business look good. You know who they are; they are the ones that you wouldn’t take to a Trade Show to promote the business, and in fact, you probably would rather they didn’t tell the world that they were associated with the company.
Why? Well, probably at the heart of it they don’t reflect the true brand and essence of your business. If they are still in your business, it’s probably because you have resigned yourself to the fact that they may not be in a customer facing role, and given that they process data all day, maybe it doesn’t really matter.
But does it?
Yes! And here’s why:
Every day your employees come into contact with people, and inevitably, their job, workplace and career come up in many conversations.
At a BBQ with friends on the weekend they might be asked about their job; when meeting with their mortgage broker they could be asked about their career path; and refereeing their kids soccer match they might be asked about the products they sell.
Now, think about the answers these staff may give. Perhaps they will seem uninterested, unknowledgeable and even worse, negative.
If they do not have a positive attitude towards work and are not engaged towards achieving organisational goals, they will be negative in response to these questions prompting a negative business image.
In effect (in perhaps a passive way), these staff are ruining your business brand and ultimately your reputation. We all know in customer service terms that we tell people a bad experience much more willingly than a good one, so why would this scenario be any different? You never know; it could be your biggest potential customer they are talking to.
So what should you do? When you hire staff, ask yourself these questions:
1. Does this person make our business look good?
2. Would I be ‘proud’ to introduce them to anyone as part of our team?
3. Do they represent our core brand and message?
If you can confidently say yes to all of these questions and they have met all of your other hiring criteria, you are most likely on the right track to hiring people who are good for your business and reflect positively on your organisation.
MORE GREAT POSTS BY KRISTY-LEE JOHNSTON:
- Pay Peanuts – Get Monkeys?
- Past Behaviour Predicts Future Behaviour – The Importance of Reference Checking
- A Failed Recruit – What Does It Cost Your Business?
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Kristy-Lee Johnston - Footprint Recruitment
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| Phone: | 02 4367 5500 |
| Email: | kristy@footprintrecruitment.com.au |
| Website: | www.footprintrecruitment.com.au |
| Twitter: | www.twitter.com/footprintcc |
| Facebook: | www.facebook.com/footprintrecruitment |
| LinkedIn: | au.linkedin.com/in/kristyleejohnston |
| Member Profile: | See Kristy’s Member Profile |
Paid Parental Leave – Article: Maybe Baby: Juggling Home, Work and Family Life.
July 23, 2010
By Amy Lyden
Having had my first child at nearly 40, after a rather full business life, I agree with Maureen Frank’s position in this article Maybe Baby: Juggling Home, Work and Family Life.
I have found that it’s important to plan, especially around income and child care issues. And, there are things you just can’t and won’t know until your baby is born.
I sold my business when my son was 8 months old. After working hard for many years, I thought I would perhaps be a full-time mum, at least for awhile.
I realised after a year or so that I missed working, and that I get a lot of satisfaction from it. I am a better mother when I am fulfilled in that way. But everyone is different. And it is hard to have everything mapped out before you give birth. Things change. Everything changes really. So try to be open to these changes that you may not even know about now. And enjoy the ride.
MORE GREAT BLOG POSTS BY AMY LYDEN
- Tony Abbott vs Craig Emerson – Live from COSBOA’s National Small Business Summit, 8 July
- Paid Parental Leave Scheme Gets the Go-Ahead
- The Beige Budget – The good and bad news from this week’s lacklustre Budget
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Amy Lyden - Advocacy Advisor – Australian Businesswomen’s NetworkAn entrepreneur and specialist in ecommerce and online strategy, Amy has had over 13 years of practical experience in these areas. Launching her first website in 1998 Amy was at the forefront of an online revolution without even realizing it. Within a year this site became and remains today a #1 ranking site and global community of pet lovers that attracts over 4 million visitors a year. This Australia-based business, Bow Wow Meow, now sells product online to over 100 countries worldwide. Amy sold this business in 2007 and turned her energy to the nonprofit sector. Amy is currently the CEO of Australian Scholarships Foundation, an organisation that facilitates scholarships for education and training for people who work in the nonprofit sector. Amy is the recipient of numerous business awards including the 2006 NSW Telstra Business Women’s Awards for Innovation, the 2002 National Telstra Business Award and the Leading Women Entrepreneurs of the World Grant. Amy is an Ambassador and former Chairperson for the Australian Businesswomen’s Network, an organisation that supports female entrepreneurs. Amy was also invited to serve on the Commonwealth Small Business Council, an initiative by the Federal minister for Small Business. Amy has been profiled in the following books: “Women’s Business, Women’s Wealth” by Amanda Ellis, “Female Entrepreneurs”, by Leiza Clark and “Secrets of Female Entrepreneurs Exposed!”, by Dale Beaumont. Amy is passionate about using technology to connect people globally for positive change.
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