Small Business

Doing something different does not mean giving up

08 Jan 2013 | Andrew R Miller

If you're experiencing, or anticipating, business struggles in 2013, think about the options available to. How can you adapt? There are always options open to you, regardless of what you think the situation is.

Management 3.0 - managing in a better way

19 Nov 2012 | Dawna Jones

Management fads come and go, but none of them ever seem to address the fact that many people still hate their jobs. So why do these fads fail and how can we manage in a better way?

The many hats of a micro-business owner

21 Feb 2012 | Dan Bobinski

In my view, micro-business owners are the backbone of the world. If you run a micro-business, you carry a heavy burden and wear a lot of hats. Knowing which hats are the most important for you - as well as how to wear them - will save you a lot of headaches.

Surviving the new normal

26 Jul 2011 | Dan Bobinski

The next 20 years will look nothing like the last 20 years. So says best selling author, Gary Harpst. And as he tells Dan Bobinski, that means that owners of small and mid-size businesses need to be more focused than ever on their strategies and be willing to change the way they operate.

Reinventing the financial system

27 Jun 2011 | Dawna Jones

In this special episode of the Evolutionary Provocateur, Dawna Jones talks to Bernard Lietaer, former central-banker and author of "The Future of Money", about the root causes of financial instability and what practical steps businesses can take to insure against it.

Acting local, thinking global

06 Jun 2011 | Dawna Jones

In part two of her interview with ecopreneur Kemp Edwards, Dawna Jones explores whether using sustainability as a strategy is about being ethical or a recognition that nature's principles apply to business.

Two ways to restart the economy

20 Nov 2010 | Dan Bobinski

I recently heard someone say that a true American does not want a free ride, he wants to sail his own boat. I find that statement to be overwhelmingly true, but as far as running a business is concerned, how much sailing can one do when so many obstacles fill the waters?

Can big company executives suceed in a start-up?

21 Aug 2008 | Michael Travis

Identifying big company executives who can achieve success with a start-up can be tough. Many star players at big companies wilt in a small company where they have finite resources and little or no supporting infrastructure.

Firms turn their backs on the office

12 Aug 2008 | Brian Amble

Who needs an office anyway? That's what an increasing number of organisations are asking as a new survey from the UK reveals that up to half of small businesses don't work from formal business premises.

Don't start a business by the seat of your pants

23 Jul 2007 | Dan Bobinski

If you try to start a business by the seat of your pants, chances are you're going to lose your shirt. But with so much information out there to help, any budding entrepreneur ought to be able to start and grow a successful, profitable enterprise.

Little help for small business down under

22 May 2007 | Derek Torres

It shouldn't take a genius to understand how important small businesses and other entrepreneurs are to a national economy. Unfortunately, it seems that this is a lesson still being learned in Australia.

Small business employees lose out on benefits

01 May 2007 | Nic Paton

Workers in smaller businesses in America are not only less likely to have access to health care benefits, but also left high and dry when it comes to company pensions.

Small business: take advantage of advisors

19 Mar 2007 | Dan Bobinski

Many entrepreneurs have a passion for their products, not a background in business. So startups can give themselves a better chance of surviving if they create a board of advisors to provide regular, outside perspectives on internal and external situations.

SMEs neglect marketing

01 Feb 2007 | Brian Amble

Marketing seems to be a Cinderella discipline in British small businesses, with over a third admitting to having no brand values or acknowledging the strategic importance of marketing.

Why nepotism can have its merits

03 Jan 2007 | Nic Paton

Hiring someone simply because they are 'family' has traditionally been considered bad business sense, but may actually have its benefits, particularly for smaller businesses.

For U.S. workers, small is beautiful

18 Sep 2006 | Brian Amble

You might make more money working for a large company, but if you want something resembling a personal life, don't want to be unhappy on the job and like to be treated fairly, you'd be much better off with a smaller employer.

Nearly half of UK small businesses hire without seeing a CV

12 May 2006 | Nic Paton

British employers, particularly small businesses, are abandoning the traditional CV when recruiting new workers in favour of gut instinct or word-of-mouth recommendations.

Small is beautiful for U.S. college grads

23 Feb 2006 | Brian Amble

Smaller U.S. employers worried about competing with large corporations for graduate talent can take heart form a new survey which finds that seven out of 10 graduate job-seekers would prefer to work for a medium or small employer.

Britain's SMEs face recruitment woes

05 Jan 2006 | Brian Amble

More than half the UK's small and medium-sized businesses have had problems recruiting good people in the past year, with low standards of education and a lack of vocational experience largely to blame.

Flat rate tax no panacea

22 Dec 2005 | Brian Amble

Although three-quarters of small firms in Britain would like to see the introduction of a flat rate tax, they have been warned that the reality of such a revolution might be far less attractive than at first sight.