Trials for the four-day working week have proved successful in both Iceland and Scotland, with excitement for their progress being widely publicised across the UK for having a dramatic increase on the personal wellbeing of employees. An increasing number of businesses in the UK are now signing up for a trial of the four-day working week as they aim to replicate the increase in productivity and employee satisfaction that the scheme has proved. The promise of both a happier workforce and increased output for fewer hours of work is enticing for employers and employees alike. Discussing the potential logistics of…
Author: sme-admin
As Covid cases hit their highest levels for months, the pandemic is exacerbating staff shortages in retail. According to ONS figures, infection rates in retail almost doubled between the start of March and mid-March. Against this backdrop of chronic absences, there were almost triple the number of vacancies in February 2022, when compared to February 2021. Now more than ever, retailers need to show they’re putting employee health first, by developing sound wellbeing strategies. According to Retail Trust, some 91% of retail managers said they’d noticed more mental health issues among staff. However, 28% of these managers said they didn’t…
Mike Cowen, UX/UI designer at Fasthosts, shares his four easy hacks to take your site to the next level, without splashing out. Not all websites are created equal. Custom built sites can come with a big price tag and in the world of small business, budgets don’t always stretch to the hundreds or thousands it can cost to pay a professional to build a site for you. Despite this, websites are still a crucial tool for small businesses, so what’s the solution? Luckily, website builders can save the day. They provide a budget friendly way to get a professional looking…
Running and growing an SME means constantly straddling the balance between being smart about money but still working on growing your business. With the struggles around cashflow and profit that come with being an SME, it’s especially important to find ways that allow your business to save on money whilst still enabling you to think about the future and grow your business. Here are five ways you can save money and still think about expanding your business. Centralise expense management Centralising expense management for your business is key to saving time and money. Too often, time can get wasted trying…
The UK is falling behind the rest of the world for the number of women in Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) careers, placing 31st out of 69 countries, shares female-led, retail technology start-up Slip. However, this number is increasing and over the past six months, online searches for women working in science, tech, engineering and math sectors have increased by 223%. The International Labour Organisation conducted global research to reveal that in the United Kingdom, only two-fifths (40.1%) of STEMworkers are women which is over 10% behind the top countries: Georgia (55.6%), Mongolia (52.6%) and Kiribati (51.7%). The countries…
A business entrepreneur, fed up with the bad reputation salespeople get, has launched a new company likened to the Tripadvisor of sales called Sales Made Easy. Salespeople across the world will be rated by consumers, scored based on performance, and gain accreditations when courses are completed. The move by owner Kevin Hayler aims to see the sector looked upon more favourably as a career choice, the quality of sales improved, and the current recruitment process become extinct. Nothing of this format and scale currently exists for the sector. The difference between Sales Made Easy and others in the market offering sales…
The Southwest Expo opens its doors tomorrow morning 26th April @ The Bristol Pavilion, Cricket Ground, Bristol (10am / 3pm). The one-day event has received high numbers of pre-registrations from people and businesses keen to attend and many of the workshops are close to full capacity. The Great British Expos returns to Bristol after a two-year break due to Covid restrictions. This business expo is aimed at SME companies and is designed to help them adapt, diversify, and grow during this difficult economic period. The GBExpo team has assembled the most comprehensive agenda of workshops and speeches on subjects related…
When it comes to cybersecurity a company is only ever as strong as its weakest password or its worst security habit. But while the case for cyber resilience has never been stronger many of us still slip into bad habits and remain in denial about the true state of exposure to cyber-attacks. As hack attacks of large enterprises grab the headlines, it’s easy to see why SMBs might fall into the trap of thinking they are far removed from the hackers’ radar or even immune completely. However, there is an all too real and startling disconnect between this lackadaisical thinking…
Publisher of Contact Centre as a Service (CCaaS) software Ringover will bolster its global team with one of its most substantial recruitment drives to date. Throughout 2022, Ringover will be hiring telecommunications experts for over 40 roles, after growing more than 100 per cent over its last financial year. Founded in France in 2005, Ringover achieved ambitious plans to internationalise in 2021 when the company opened offices in London, UK, Barcelona, Spain and Atlanta, US. There were just 15 members of staff at the start of Ringover’s journey, but today the company employs over 150 people and has over 10,000…
Allica Bank, the SME-focussed challenger bank, is growing its specialist care home commercial mortgage banking team with the appointment of Brian Bovell, as Specialist Relationship Manager. Brian will spearhead the bank’s expansion into Scotland and the north of England’s elderly care sectors. This appointment follows the bank’s launch of a specialist care home team at the end of last year, designed to specifically support independent or small group operators as the market readjusts from the pandemic. In March, Allica also announced it was doubling its maximum commercial mortgage customer exposure for care home customers to £10 million, intended to enable more…