Some of the UKs leading business leaders and opinion formers share their insight and ideas for growth
Small Firms Enjoy Fastest Growth In 16 Years: UK’s small and medium-sized manufacturers grew at the fastest rate in 16 years due to strong demand at home and abroad, according to new data from the CBI published by Sky. The CBI Trends Survey goes onto report that companies have also benefited from the competitive level […]
If you’ve been able to bear watching business hopefuls on TV be dismissed, put down and insulted by people with more money than they have, then you’ll know that the attitudes of those rich people fluctuate with the weather.
In the run-up to the Budget George Osborne announced potential changes to current maternity regulations which would have made small businesses exempt from paying for maternity leave.
As the owner of a small- to medium-sized business, l was pleasantly surprised, but as it turns out the proposals weren’t followed through.
Banks failure to support small business deserves punishment, say MPs. The Government did not do enough to punish taxpayer-backed banks when they failed to hit targets for lending to small businesses, MPs have said today. The London Evening Standard is saying that a report from the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has revealed that The Treasury […]
I’ve been watching Dream School over the last few weeks with a mixture of emotions (admittedly, mainly horror) and now that it has come to an end, I think it’s time to just set something straight.
The number of UK firms showing signs of serious financial problems is growing as customers tighten their belts, says a report produced by corporate turnaround specialists Begbies Traynor, published by the BBC today. The report shows a 15% rise in firms suffering “significant” or “critical” financial distress in the first quarter of 2011 over last […]
Do MP’s really listen to SMEs? There is much criticism that politicians are out of touch with people who run small and medium sized business across the UK. So Business Matters asked Lord McFall of Alcluith, who was the Member of Parliament for Dumbarton and the West Dunbartonshire between 11 June 1987 and 12 April […]
There is much criticism that politicians are out of touch with people who run small and medium sized business across the UK. We asked Lord McFall of Alcluith, who was the Member of Parliament for Dumbarton and the West Dunbartonshire between 11 June 1987 and 12 April 2010 to explain how the UK Parliament is engaging with SMEs to learn from them and offer them as much help and support as they can to help then grow.
At SalesForce, we have examined some of the ways SMEs can migrate to the cloud. As they make their move, however, they should consider the following key tips.
Life’s scary. Think about those things that are scaring you right now. Is “losing my job” or “starting a business” one of those? Then face them now!
It is not often that private sector business initiatives have a keynote address by the Prime Minister, are attended by some of the UK’s leading business entrepreneurs and also receive the backing and support from Sir Richard Branson, the man who many regard as the UK’s best entrepreneur. So surely nothing could go wrong…
Even though the Olympics haven’t taken place and construction of the Olympic Stadium isn’t yet finished, the flagship stadium has already been allocated to West Ham Football Club for use after London 2012.
I for one am relieved that West Ham won the bid. Not because l’m a die-hard ‘Hammer’ but because they appear to be wasting a lot less of the stadium by keeping the athletics track than the other hopeful club, Tottenham, would have done by re-building it as a football-only venue.
In 1884 Thomas Marks opened his first market stall in Leeds. Over the next few years he opened 20 other stalls around the UK. In 1894, Thomas Spencer invested in the business and retail chain Marks & Spencer (M&S) was born.
From humble beginnings, M&S became one of the UK’s biggest success stories and was the first retailer to make a pre-tax profit of over £1 billion.
Companies like WH Smith, Woolworth’s and AMSTRAD all started the same way, so it would seem that in order to make it big, you should start small. Can the same thing be said of the web? Andy Budd, managing director at Clearleft investigates.
I was recently fortunate enough to be asked to join a panel of experts to debate the role of LEP’s.
While on stage, the discussion touched upon the demise of Business Link and the plans to centralise this business support service as well as introduce 40,000 free business mentors. It was reported, or rather tweeted, that I called the government’s new mentoring scheme ‘bizarre’ and asked whether you ‘trust a mentor who was free?’ I did say those things… so perhaps I should explain my concerns.
What does Britain need to do to stimulate economic growth? That is the question taxing so many Ministers in Whitehall. But according to Sahar Hashemi, the founder of the Coffee Republic and bestselling business author, they need to start thinking outside the box.
