Category: Management

money

How do I stay compliant with HMRC?

Posted on | by Jade Donno

Your Guide to Navigating UK Tax Regulations

If you’re a business owner or a self-employed individual, one question that may often cross your mind is, “how do I stay compliant with HMRC?” As one of the leading accountancy practices in the UK, 1 Accounts Online Ltd is here to guide you through the essentials of HMRC compliance.

Understanding HMRC Compliance

Staying compliant with HMRC involves meeting the tax obligations as per UK laws. This includes accurate reporting of your income and expenses, prompt tax payments, and maintaining detailed records. Below, we outline some key steps to ensure you meet these requirements and stay on the right side of HMRC.

1. Accurate Record Keeping

Keeping clear and accurate records of all your financial transactions is the first step towards HMRC compliance. This includes details of sales and income, business expenses, VAT records, PAYE records if you have employees, and records of your personal income. HMRC can ask to see your records up to six years back, so it’s crucial to maintain these records over time.

2. Timely Tax Returns and Payments

All businesses need to file their tax returns annually with HMRC. The key is to file these returns accurately and on time, usually by 31st January following the end of the tax year. The same applies to your tax payments – paying your tax bill late can lead to penalties.

3. VAT Compliance

If your business’ VAT taxable turnover is more than £85,000, you must register for VAT. Once registered, you’ll need to charge the correct amount of VAT, pay any VAT due to HMRC, submit VAT Returns, and keep VAT records and a VAT account.

4. Understand the Employment Laws

If you employ people, you must operate PAYE as part of your payroll. This involves deducting income tax and National Insurance contributions from your employees’ salaries and paying these to HMRC.

5. Seek Professional Advice

Tax laws can be complex and often change. Getting professional advice can be invaluable. An accountant can help you understand your tax obligations, plan for your tax bill, and ensure you’re claiming all the tax reliefs available to you.

Why Choose 1 Accounts Online Ltd?

At 1 Accounts Online Ltd, we specialise in helping businesses of all sizes navigate the complexities of HMRC compliance. Our experienced team stays up-to-date with the latest tax laws and regulations, ensuring that your business remains compliant and avoids costly penalties.

So, if you’re wondering, “how do I stay compliant with HMRC?”, remember that compliance is all about accurate record-keeping, timely tax returns and payments, understanding VAT and employment laws, and seeking professional advice. And we at 1 Accounts Online Ltd are always here to help you along the way.

Boost your productivity

Posted on | by admin | Leave a Comment on Boost your productivity

Why you need to ditch perfectionism and embrace failure!

Everyone wants to be successful, but there’s a difference between working hard and striving for perfection. When we’re too focused on getting everything right, it can harm our productivity levels; and when we’re less productive, it’s easy to feel worn out or exhausted every day. We may also end up stuck in a career rut because we think that “doing more” is the answer when really what we need is just “to do something different.”

If this sounds like you, read on. Here is how ditching perfectionism and embracing failure can help you get back on track again!

Strive for ‘done,’ rather than perfect

While it may sound strange to say that you should be aiming for ‘good enough’ rather than perfect, there is a reason for it.

If you’re experiencing burnout or you’re feeling lost in your work, striving for ‘perfect’ is only going to put more unnecessary pressure on yourself. Studies have shown that perfectionism actually tends to result in less productive work too, so just focus on getting the work done for a while (at least until you’re more in control of your workload).

If you do this, you’ll soon see that your quality of work won’t drop as drastically as you first thought AND you’ll see continued growth and progress again. Why? Because when you ditch perfectionism, you make room for improvement and growth.

Only take on what you can manage

You may think that you have to do it all, but you don’t. At least not all at the same time. When we try to do everything, we end up doing a lot of things badly.

It’s hard to see when we’re overpromising, especially when we have our own ideas of what we should be able to handle, so try to be easier on yourself. If you see ‘not being able to juggle too many balls at once’ as a failure, then reframe it! Your strength maybe time management and prioritisation instead (which still means that you can juggle multiple things, just over a more reasonable period of time).

Start managing your own diary and let clients know when they can expect their work to be done. You’ll find that most clients can wait for their work and you’ll have more time and space to do a better job.

Delegate and learn to say ‘no’

Delegating low-value tasks isn’t a failure (remember, you don’t have to do everything yourself). The same goes for saying ‘no’ once in a while. In fact, it’s encouraged. If these are fears of yours, then it’s time to embrace them.

Knowing how much you can take on and letting go of control are two very difficult things to master. When you do, however, you will see significant changes in your productivity and quality of work.

Silence that inner voice

We all have that negative inner voice that criticises us, and it is this voice that forces us to seek perfection. As we mentioned previously, always striving for perfection decreases productivity, and when we are less productive, we feel like we are failing and our inner voice just keeps piling on. It’s a whole negative spiral.

So what can we do to rectify this?

First, accept that you don’t have to always be working at 110%. And if you’re not, it doesn’t mean that you’re not working hard enough. Everybody works differently and that’s okay, so stop being too hard on yourself.

Secondly, ignore that voice in your head and accept that it is okay to be human. Some days, you won’t be able to work as hard and that’s fine. Not pushing yourself too much on those days will ensure that you avoid burnout and will ensure your productivity in the long run.

And lastly, if you’re afraid of failure or limitations, embrace them anyway. Mistakes and obstacles are the keys to innovation, so these are the moments where you have the opportunity to learn and grow the most.

13 Ways an Accountant Can Help a Small Business Owner

Posted on | by admin

There are two huge mistakes that many start-ups or small business owners make. The first one is trying to manage their own accounting system. This is often done incorrectly which can hurt the business in the long-term. The second mistake is assuming that an accountant is only good for managing accounts and filing Tax or VAT returns.
An accountant is a financial guru and an all-around business advisor all in one. Accountants are an incredibly valuable member of any small business team as they can offer a lot more than just accounting to small business owners. Here are 13 ways accountants can help:

1) They can help you go from business idea to start up

They will give you advice on what you need to create the foundation for a successful business e.g. determining the best business structure, creating your business plan, opening a business bank account etc.

2) They can assist with the financial analysis in your business plan

They can also help with loan applications and forecasting.

3) They analyse your finances to determine where your business’ money is going

They can then advise you on where to make improvements in your processes and cash flow so your business can scale and grow.

4) They will explain your financial data so you can make financial decisions with confidence

A good accountant will break it down so you understand the ins and outs of your business at all times.

5) They close out your books and create end-of-year financial reports

With your reports, an accountant will recommend changes to budgets or forecasts.

6) They compile and submit your taxes and financial reports to HMRC and Companies House

As well as submitting, they can also calculate VAT, provide advice on estimated tax payments, and provide guidance.

7) They make sure that your accounting procedures comply with government regulations.

Legislation changes all the time. An accountant keeps up to date with these so they can check your company’s tax position and keep you compliant.

8) They oversee your company payroll and payment process

They can help you streamline your business processes to work smarter, not harder.

9) They can help you streamline your business processes to work smarter, not harder

They can provide advice on the type of accounting software that’s suitable for your business, how to track your expenses, and also invoicing and payroll. More time means more earning potential!

10) They can identify risks in financial transactions to prevent fraud

Many business owners want to identify investment opportunities too. An accountant can provide advice on this and check whether an investment is solid.

11) They can help you identify areas for growth in your business as well as ways to save money

By looking at cash flow patterns, inventory management, your pricing, business financing.

12) They will work with you to create a business budget and stay on track

Every business owner needs a budget to support their business goals. An accountant can actively help with this.

13) They can advise you on all the big things

Reports, taxes, audits, business strategy, you name it and they can probably help you with it. Need advice on property or equipment leasing and purchase? Need guidance or resources to assist with scaling the business? Guess who can help – Accountants!

Accountants are key to business success, wherever you are on your business journey

These are just some of the ways that accountants can work with you to support your business. Whether you’re launching a start-up, you’re a small business owner who needs help with running the business day-to-day or you’re wanting to really scale your business, an accountant can provide essential advice and guidance, every step of the way.

7 ways to have the right mindset for growth during a recession

Posted on | by admin

A fixed mindset is thinking that the recession means business stops and clients don’t want to spend money.
A growth mindset is using this recession as an opportunity to adapt and do things differently.
You bees the second mindset if you want to grow your firm doing the recession.
The only thing holding you and your firm back from growing right now is you. To help you move your practice forward, both now during the pandemic and during any future recessions, here are 7 mindset shifts you need to make.

1) Make peace with your reality

Suffering is what happens when you resist what is already happening. The sooner you confront the current reality and accept it, the quicker you can move past it.

2) Hold yourself accountable

If you want to grow, you need to think of the acronym R.O.A.D. You need to take Responsibility for the choices you’ve made, you need to take Ownership of where you want to go, you need to start taking Action, and you need to be Decisive. When making your strategy plan, be 100% accountable for putting it into action.

3) Don’t compare yourself to others

Some businesses are struggling, others are thriving. Don’t compare yourself to either. Every business owner, firm, and situation is different, so don’t disrupt your focus with doubt.

4) Prioritise delivering value

Concentrate on delivering exceptional service to your current clients. How can you offer extra value during this time? This will make you invaluable and it will ensure that you stand out from your competitors.

5) Focus on your strengths, not your ‘failures’

What work are you good at? What do you love to do the most? Which clients are your favourites to work with? Being positive during this time is essential, so focus on what you love and reflect on your principles and values. Rediscovering why you do what you do is very powerful when it comes to self-motivation and drive.

6) Fail fast and achieve quickly

Inaction is the worst thing you can do, not trying something and failing. During a time of such change, don’t procrastinate and don’t be a perfectionist. Take action, fail fast, learn from your mistakes, and concentrate on getting there first (not doing it perfectly and getting there last).

7) Be grateful and become self-aware

Practice gratitude every day by thinking about what you are grateful for both now and in your future. Also, take time to reflect and to rediscover your purpose. If you’re confident and happy, you will attract similar clients.

Adapt AND adopt

We have all had to adapt to some degree during the pandemic, for example, being forced to adapt to working from home. Changes such as these are necessary to our ‘survival’ during this time.
With that being said, however, it is the accountants who have both adapted and adopted changes of their own, who have thrived. These are the individuals who make quick and effective decisions, who take responsibility for changing their situation, and who take action.
Anyone can grow their firm during a recession, they just have to have the right mindset.

Is your small business struggling to make a decent profit? Here are six little known profit holes.

Posted on | by admin

With the economy as unpredictable as it has been lately it is essential for small business owners to take a good look at your overheads and cost of sales. Add into the mix the rising cost of labour, materials and shipping, and this exercise to examine your cost base may be the difference between your business having a good year next year or going under. This article will look at the 6 most common profit holes that many small businesses may have.

1) Pricing: Has it kept up with your costs?

It’s been a difficult few years and you may be thinking that your customers and clients can’t swallow an increase. Well, think again – If Starbucks and Costa Coffee can afford to still charge eye-watering amounts for a slice of cake and a coffee throughout the pandemic, then you can look at your pricing.
Often, the biggest profit hole we see with our clients is around a poor pricing strategy. Such as:

  • Are your sales team discounting too much in order to make the sale? Particularly for wholesale or bulk orders?
  • Have you kept your prices static whilst your costs have increased?
  • Are your prices in line with your cost base now, rather than when you were a much smaller business? For example, if your prices have not changed since you ran your business from the kitchen table, then it’s time to relook at your pricing.

2) Do you have a revolving door of employees?

Hiring new staff members is expensive; recruitment agency costs, training costs and senior management time spent hiring and training. Losing good employees is even more expensive – both in terms of opportunity cost and also the hit on morale when a good person leaves. If you do have an employee turnover problem, it’s time to take a good look at how to increase the levels of employee engagement in your business. Being very blunt here, you may look into the mirror to see if you personally may be part of the problem.

3) Software costs: Have you had a good look to see what you’re really using?

Those £15 a month per user type subscriptions really do add up over time. How many user licences are you still paying for but don’t actually need? How many of those pieces of software that you decided to try out are you actually using? If you used all the features of your core software, how many other licences or subscriptions could you ditch? You may find that a good look at your software stack could yield a large amount of ‘money down the back of the sofa’ each month.

4) Suppliers: Are they taking the proverbial?

This often happens when we’ve worked with a supplier for years and both you and they have got comfortable and complacency sets in. This cosiness could be hiding the fact that you might not be getting the service you require. Even worse, the prices you are paying might now out of step with the marketplace. Don’t let inertia and a desire to avoid conflict stop you from having a ‘state of the nation type’ conversation with the supplier.
In our experience, the first place to look at is your spending with marketing suppliers. Then your telephone and internet suppliers. Ask yourself; What are they really delivering? Do they need a shakeup? Our advice to you is if this resonates with you, have that conversation!

5) Not using automation – particularly in your financial processes

The cloud revolution which we keep harping on about has been a game-changer for not just accountants. The digital tools out there will help your business cut out so much physical paperwork and manual entry. For example, if you are a small cafe or pub you can now get great phone apps that will allow customers to place their orders from the table. Thus, improving the efficiency of your operation and waiting staff.
Using bank rules, email rules and other types of automation in conjunction with software such as Dext can reduce the time it takes to do your books or manage staff expenses. Why not have a chat with us to see where using apps and cloud-based software can take the grind out of your financial processes and systems?

6) Doing it yourself

How long does it take you to do stuff which should be outsourced or done by others in your business? This ‘doing it yourself’, particularly when it comes to things like bookkeeping or VAT returns, is often a false economy. Your time is much more valuable delighting customers and clients and running your business than puzzling over whether you can or can not claim VAT on your company car expenditure or that coffee with a client.
Using the right people and suppliers to free you up to do what you’re best at is often a great way to generate more profit. It goes without saying that we are always happy to talk about whether we are a good home for your bookkeeping and other financial processes.
If you address these 6 points in your business then you will be in a much better position to face whatever happens next with the economy.

 

How to encourage reluctant staff to return to the office

Posted on | by admin

Since the government advice to work from home was lifted earlier this year and employees have been making their way back into the office, it seems some employees are more enthusiastic than others. How do we encourage our reluctant staff members to return to the office happily, rather than handing in their resignations?

Throughout this article, we will explore the various incentives and business adaptations you can make to encourage your employees to come back to the office:

1) Outline your operational requirements

Many businesses have started adopting a hybrid business model as they combine all the best bits of on-site and remote working! Flexible schedules, greater work-life balance, and fewer expenses are just some of the positives for both employers and their staff!

However, before you can embrace this new business model, you need to hash out the non-negotiable requirements for running your business. For example:

  • The minimum amount of on-site hours per staff member per week.
  • Whether there are any extenuating circumstances that overrule these mandatory hours.
  • Your core office hours.
  • How often your entire team needs to meet in person.
  • What resources your staff will need to work remotely.

2) Speak to your staff

Some employees will be more eager to return to the office than others – that’s just a given. Talking to the more reluctant team members and asking them what they want might give them the encouragement they needed.

By conducting surveys and organising group sessions, you can start finding solutions to satisfy your staff members, improve engagement and protect your retention rates.

3) Offer them incentives

 No one wants to spend their days in a dull, drab office. So it’s your responsibility to make your office an attractive and exciting place to be!

Here are some suggestions to help you spruce up your space and incentivise your employees:

Redecorate your office space – a lick of paint can go a long way.

Provide on-site catering – seriously, save your staff from those stale sandwiches.

Invest in new equipment – try upgrading your dated tech and replacing old furniture.

Offer corporate discounts – predominantly for nearby locations like gyms, coffee shops or food establishments.

4) Accommodate ALL of your employees

When making decisions about your business, it can be easy to focus on the wants and needs of your front runners and management team. The trouble is that this approach is far from inclusive.

It is our priority as business owners to continually promote inclusivity and diversity. So make sure you’re accommodating the needs of ALL your employees – especially those who are underrepresented in professional settings, including people of colour, disabled individuals and women.

The future is flexible!

After two years of working at home, it’s no wonder some staff members are reluctant to give up their home comforts. Instead of demanding that everyone must return to the office, show some compassion by trying to reach a compromise.

Flexible working offers many benefits for both you and your employees – so give it a try! It could be the answer to unlocking a more efficient and engaged team.

Flexible Working: Moving from a time-based approach to an outcome-based approach

Posted on | by admin

Flexible working isn’t new. In fact, research shows that many of us (87%) wanted to work on a more flexible basis in 2018 and 2019. What is new, however, is the many businesses that have continued to adopt either completely remote working or a hybrid model since the pandemic transition.

They have continued to work this way as flexible working results in a better work-life balance, higher productivity, increased motivation, and reduced staff turnover. Not to mention that it’s an employee’s market right now, so many businesses will need to offer flexible working to compete for talent!

While an outcome-based approach leads to these benefits, it is a steep learning curve. Primarily having to change leadership styles and learning to trust that work is getting done. It is doable however. Here is how to make flexible working work for you and your business.

How to successfully implement flexible working

  1. Make sure that employees have the right technology and tools – we’re not just talking about laptops and phones. To support flexible working, you also need to deploy tools for chat, video and virtual meetings as well as integrating company systems, intranets or social platforms.
  2. Ensure that your employees have the necessary training –you need to make sure they have the resources and training so that they can use any new software effectively.
  3. Change your management style – you need to take a more ‘coach-like’ approach and let go of control. Train and support your employees and delegate authority as well as tasks.
  4. Communicate more frequently – this is essential for building trust and relationships and to minimise misunderstandings. The more you can encourage collaboration and team involvement, the better.
  5. Celebrate successes – positivity is key when working from home so make a point of celebrating individual and team successes. It does wonders for self-motivation.
  6. Give your employees more support – some employees may have difficulty managing their workload with their family and other worries, especially if they are going through some personal difficulty. Bear this in mind and actively help them with their work-life balance.

How to move to an outcome-based approach

  1. Start with the overall business vision and direction – when working virtually, it’s important to communicate the overall vision to your employees. Everything flows from this vision, so keep coming back to it.
  2. Define high-level business outcomes – next, you should communicate the key business outcome that you are all aiming to achieve. It’s more effective if this outcome reflects the value that your work delivers.
  3. Help each employee define their own specific outcome – this is essential for remote working! If every individual knows their specific outcome that they are accountable for and how that relates to the bigger picture, it drives them to achieve it.
  4. Measure performance differently – you will need to use a project management tool to review team activity regularly. You can also distribute employee surveys, monitor and evaluate certain metrics or have regular check-ins with each employee.

These tips will ensure that your business continues to grow and thrive along with your employees, who will be happier and healthier as well.

Talent Management Planning: Why Do It?

Posted on | by admin

Talent management planning is a term we often hear floating around the business world, but what exactly does it mean and why should we do it?

To help you gain a clear understanding, we’ll explore what talent management planning is, what it consists of and, most importantly, why it’s beneficial to both you and your employees.

What is talent management planning?

Talent management planning is all about implementing effective strategies to attract, retain and nurture skilled professionals.

What should a talent management plan consist of?

Each company’s talent management plan will look slightly different based on its unique set of goals and objectives. However, each company’s plan should focus on improving these primary features

  • Recruitment
  • Training and development
  • Employee retention
  • Performance management
  • Employee engagement
  • Succession planning

Why is talent management so important?

Talent management planning helps ensure you’re getting the most out of your teams by implementing systems and processes to support their development and improve their performance.

In short, it is the blueprint for hiring and maintaining a highly-skilled, high-performing workforce, which, as we all know, is imperative to your company’s success.

How does talent management planning benefit your business?

Besides the obvious advantage of strengthening your overall workforce, there are several other benefits to implementing a talent management plan. Some of which include:

  • Increased engagement: by demonstrating a keen interest in your employee’s goals and personal development, you will find they are more engaged with their work, making them more productive and more profitable.
  • Efficient recruitment: you can utilise recruitment software to streamline your recruiting process, filter applicants and ensure you’re attracting only the highest quality candidates.
  • Improved staff retention: by offering your employees consistent opportunities to enhance their skills and advance their careers, you’re providing them with a clear incentive to retain their position within your company.
  • More candidates for succession: by adopting formal performance management techniques, you can see which employees are most suitable for senior roles and adapt their training to prepare them for these positions.

How does talent management planning benefit your employees?

Perhaps the best thing about utilising a talent management plan is that it’s mutually beneficial. To demonstrate our point, here are just a few of the benefits your employees can enjoy as a result of effective talent management planning:

  • Better onboarding process: by refining your onboarding process, employees will be more engaged and more at ease from the get-go. So do your best to make the onboarding process as personal as possible.
  • More training opportunities: by facilitating regular training opportunities, you’re providing your team members with the necessary tools to upskill and advance their careers.
  • Greater career autonomy: by partaking in mentorship programmes, you’re able to support your employees with their own career goals by offering advice, recommending training programmes and aligning them with appropriate internal opportunities.
  • Positive working culture: by assisting employees with their goals, funding their training and fostering a culture of growth and development, your employees will be more motivated, engaged and invested in your business.

Don’t underestimate the value of talent management planning

There are countless benefits to developing a talent management strategy, so don’t overlook this opportunity to strengthen your team! Invest in their development, support their career aspirations and focus on creating a compelling company culture. Your employees, profit margins and performance metrics will all thank you for it!

How to combat rising wages and staff shortages

Posted on | by admin

It’s no secret that hundreds of small businesses are suffering from increased wage costs and staff shortages. These issues span multiple industries, from hospitality to construction, and have only intensified since the beginning of the pandemic.

So, how do you handle rising demands with limited labour?

To help you navigate these challenging times, we’ve curated a list of strategies to boost your staff retention, improve your recruitment processes and increase your profit margins.

Here are our 5 strategies for combating rising wage costs and staff shortages:

1) Hire graduates, and interns, and apprentices

Graduates and interns offer an effective and inexpensive solution to staffing shortages.

Straight out of college or university, these young adults are primed for training, ready to be moulded to your company’s exacting needs. What’s more, studies have shown that hiring graduates can significantly increase your staff retention rates. Approximately  57% of graduates still retain their position five years later.

Hiring an apprentice, whilst quite an investment in time, can also be beneficial for many companies.

Although hiring a graduate may not be a quick fix, it’s a brilliant way to source new talent – plus, the ROI is second to none.

2) Invest in your employees

Loyalty is a two-way street. Therefore if you want your employees to remain loyal to your company, you need to invest in their development.

Provide them with opportunities to upskill, fund their training and encourage them to diversify their skillset. Not only will it improve your retention rates by 30-50%, but it will also allow you to cultivate a team of highly skilled professionals.

3) Utilise mergers and acquisitions

More and more companies are deciding to partake in mergers and acquisitions. Why? Because resources are limited and successors are few and far between.

By combining forces the parties involved gain access to a larger workforce, a greater array of talents and more viable candidates to succeed their business.

Plus, with an increased market share, companies are better equipped to manage rising wage costs as they acquire more capital and increase their profit margins!

4) Delegate administrative tasks

With labour dwindling and demand rising, our employees are really being pushed to their limits. So don’t exacerbate the problem by burdening them with non-essential responsibilities. Instead start automating repetitive tasks and hiring administrative staff to handle any paperwork.

Although investing in new employees and tech can be costly, they can notably increase productivity, profits, and employee engagement. Stop placing unnecessary strain on your staff and start streamlining your administrative tasks!

5) Update your recruitment style

Now more than ever you need to be investing your resources into your recruiting process. After all if you want to solve your staffing issues, you’ll need to attract and attain new employees. So what can you do to improve your recruitment style?

Firstly, you need to be harnessing the power of social media. This allows you to broaden your search whilst offering applicants an accurate insight into your business.

Secondly, you want to focus on your company culture as this can quickly attract or deter applicants. Ask yourself, what makes your company the place to work? Do you offer impressive employee benefits? Do you accommodate flexible working?

Whatever it is that makes your company attractive and unique, make sure to funnel that into your recruiting process.

Take care of your employees

Running a business is never easy, but our current climate is making things even more challenging. We wanted to end this discussion with some words of encouragement.

If your business can survive Brexit, a global pandemic and an inflating economy all in quick succession, it can also survive these labour shortages. Just remember to streamline your processes, adapt your recruitment methods and take care of your staff, as they will take care of your business.

6 key changes businesses should have made over the past 2 years

Posted on | by admin

The pandemic has been transformative in many ways. It has changed how we view our health, how we communicate and, of course, how we run our businesses. Whilst we certainly wouldn’t want to do it again, it has taught us a lot of valuable lessons. In light of the lesson we’ve learnt, we thought we’d share 6 key changes we believe all businesses should have made since the pandemic:

1) Hybrid Working

Before the pandemic hybrid working was a lot less common, however this is no longer the case. Recent studies have shown that 76% of companies have adopted a hybrid working model since the pandemic because it has proven to be so effective!
Employees are more productive, more engaged and generally happier when provided the opportunity to choose their work environment. Your employees and your profit margin will thank you for adopting a more flexible working model!

2) Internal Communications

Learning to navigate a business in social isolation has really highlighted the importance of effective communication, not only between team members but between firm owners and partners too.
We made sure to have daily zoom meetings with the whole team throughout the pandemic so that we all had a chance to see and talk to each other, even if there was nothing particular to report. Without these open streams of communication we would not have been able to adapt our businesses, engage our teams or maintain operations during the Covid-19 crisis.
Therefore, you must continue to prioritise and invest in your internal communications. After all, if the pandemic has taught us anything, it’s that effective communication is a valuable commodity.

3) Digital Processes

Working from home forced us to adapt in more ways than one. However, the most notable difference has been the global shift towards virtual working and digital processes.
Adopting cloud-based software has innumerable advantages, but perhaps the most noteworthy is its ability to increase efficiency. In a recent survey, 48% of respondents agreed that cloud computing increased their efficiency thanks to cloud automation and broad network access.
So, if you haven’t already, do yourself a favour and start streamlining your processes by using a digital payment process and introducing automation tools to your workflow.

4) Advisory Services

If guiding our clients through the pandemic has shown us anything, it’s that our advice is both valuable and scalable. Developing your advisory services is something you need to make sure you are doing.
Offering tailored advice can be a simple way to utilise your expertise, enhance client relations and increase revenue. So don’t limit yourself to debits and credits – expand your services by offering relevant business advice!

5) Outsourcing

In a time when we had to adapt quickly many businesses had to outsource labour and resources to operate, and that continues to be the case. Labour shortages have forced us to seriously evaluate what we can and can not deliver in-house.
Yet, despite the great resignation and the global pandemic we’ve come to find there are actually many benefits to outsourcing.
Outsourcing can improve revenue, increase efficiency, and reduce operational costs. What’s more, it enables you to delegate tasks outside of your expertise, allowing you to channel your energy into what you do best. Don’t be afraid to ask for help as you’ll need it if you want to scale your business.

6) Refined client base

They say that every cloud has a silver lining. Whilst the pandemic did present us with many hardships, it also allowed us to take a good look at our client base.
If you’re yet to do so, we highly recommend reviewing your client base as well. Who are your high-value clients? Which clients drain your resources? The aim is to identify which clients you can afford to let go in order to save yourself both time and money.
Although culling clients is never easy, refining your client profile can be extremely beneficial if done respectfully. This will help you make space for more clients that fit your ideal client profile!

Future-proof your business

Unfortunately Covid-19 won’t be the last challenge we face. There will always be another bump in the road or another fire to put out. By implementing these suggestions you have the ability to streamline your business, optimise your performance and keep up with your competitors, all of which are essential when preparing your firm for the future.
Try not to be despondent when times get tough. Remember, challenges are also opportunities for growth and innovation.