The importance of company culture and values cannot be underestimated in brand building, both internally and externally. Companies that display human, authentic ideals to their staff and customers are more trusted, gain more buy-in and build a better business. It’s more than just making money – communicating in a genuine way sets a standard you and your team live by. However, while many companies know the right thing to say, very few make sure that these words are mirrored in genuine business practices. Saying one thing, doing another The negative impact of not practising the values communicated to staff and…

A NEW 78-seat restaurant and event space has opened its doors at Basset Down Complex in Swindon. The recently extended complex designed by owners Juliette and William Nutland is the culmination of five years’ work from concept to creation and opening.  “We now offer members of the public a fantastic venue full of experiences,” Juliette said. “People can come along for a meal, book a private event, use our driving range, play golf or footgolf. Thanks to our two new function rooms, we can also now host business events, wedding receptions and much more. We’re thrilled to have achieved this…

Now lockdown restrictions have been lifted, many companies are making plans to welcome employees back into the office after more than a year apart. However, the next stage will be critical and businesses could risk losing their most valued employees if they attempt to reintroduce the pre-covid work setup. The coronavirus pandemic has changed the way that we work forever, explains Sam Hill, head of people at BizSpace. Staff have had no choice but to adapt to remote working and for some, this has been an extremely isolating period away from co-workers. Others have learnt to embrace and even enjoy…

AMD EPYC™ CPUs and AMD Instinct™ GPUs enable more scalable and power efficient processing to bring AI or ML to more customers The high-performance data center market has been rapidly expanding and U.S. brands have tended to be the predominate providers. But Northern Data is going to change that. The multi-billion-dollar European tech provider is aiming to offer HPC cloud services such as machine learning (ML) to a wider audience. Designed for HPC workloads and modern software architectures, Northern Data’s data centers are to more than 90 percent powered by green energy. To achieve this goal, Northern Data relies on…

Insolvency and restructuring trade body R3 is urging directors of Covid-hit businesses to use the final month of the Government’s furlough scheme to plan for the future and address any financial issues they face. The furlough scheme ends on 30 September, and employers have until 14 October to claim wages for staff who have been put on furlough during that month. Under the initiative, the Government will pay up to £1,875 per furloughed employee to cover 60% of their wages throughout September, with employers required to contribute 20% of the employee’s wages, and having the option of contributing more. R3…

With COP26 around the corner and the IPCC report scientists’ announcing our planet’s temperature is definitely rising due to human behaviour, Pamela Barbato, the creator of Action Net Zero Bristol and its partners are urging business owners to switch to greener, cleaner transport including switching to electric vehicles, to reduce air pollution and cut emissions. Pamela, who set up Action Net Zero Bristol, to encourage and support the city’s residents and businesses to transition to greener behaviour, said: “Even with the alarming evidence that the climate emergency is upon us, it can be difficult to make changes in our own lives.…

It is well recognised that we should be careful with our salt consumption. When we talk about salt we are referring to sodium chloride or common table salt. The recommended salt consumption over and above the salt we find in food is just one teaspoon a day. Salt (sodium) is recognised to be a contributor of high blood pressure as the body will hold on to additional fluid to dilute the sodium in your blood, this increases the pressure. Processed foods can increase the sodium consumption in your diet and there is no need to add salt to your food…

Earlier this year Harry Portch was awarded “Thames Valley young entrepreneur of the year”. Following his awards success Harry spoke to SME Today about starting up his business and his future. Harry is the founder of HM staffing, a recruitment agency aiming to offer a service to recruiters and candidates.  Harry established HM staffing around 3 years ago at 20 years old and became the UK’s youngest recruitment agency founder. The business grew quickly and from working at his kitchen table in the beginning he now owns two offices across the UK with a third in the works. He has…

MRS Digital, the award-winning SEO agency, has shared the results of its best year yet, boosting revenue by 54% amidst major team growth and a number of national accolade wins. In line with the ongoing expansion of the digital sector, with digital marketing now making up over 40% of marketing budgets, the Hampshire SEO agency has continued to grow, securing its biggest client contracts in the first and second COVID lockdowns. Retained client contracts have also grown by 46%. MRS Digital is a family-run agency, founded by Carol Blackford-Mills in 1999. Recently, Carol received the National Business Women’s Award for…

Following the removal of lockdown restrictions, small and medium-sized businesses can look forward to a more prosperous future, particularly if the UK’s ‘third wave’ passes quickly. Most companies have had it tough during the pandemic, but those smaller in size have had substantial challenges. Many simply didn’t have the infrastructures in place to quickly pivot into new product lines or sales channels. E-commerce is a good case in point. With physical stores closed during the first national lockdown, retailers who already had transactional websites were immediately able to switch their sales strategies and earn revenue through digital streams. Those who…

“Freedom Day” has now been and gone and with it the requirement that we continue to work from home.  Many businesses will soon be ramping up their attempts to get their employees back to the workplace. The pandemic plunged many businesses across the country into an unexpected trial of remote working.  Moving back to the more rigid working arrangement will not come without its challenges as employers battle to protect their businesses and safeguard their workforces. Melanie Stancliffe, employment partner at Cripps Pemberton Greenish, explores the carrot and the stick approaches many businesses are adopting to strongly encourage staff to return…

Many professional consultants in business (and trades people) can struggle to answer their phone when they are the sole employee of their business. This becomes even more tricky when the business owner takes a break. At the Virtual Business Centre, we’ve found that some business owners don’t receive lots of calls, however the ones they do are often very important. Those calls can be from: Clients asking questions or making appointments. Clients who don’t want to use email to communicate. Potential clients who want to make first contact. Possible clients who want to know the answers to some initial questions.…

Helen Barraclough, Global Education Manager – Customer Success at global small business platform, Xero, reveals three ways that businesses can create a thriving learning culture for their employees. “The single biggest driver of business impact is the strength of an organisation’s learning culture”, according to a recent Bersin report on how learning cultures can empower businesses to be successful. Findings from Xero’s Future of Small Business Report reveal that the pandemic has led to ten years of innovation and technological adoption taking place in just 90 days. This disruption has led to a shift in demand for human expertise –  in fact, the World Economic Forum suggests we are on…

Websites unfortunately don’t maintain themselves. Between frequent update roll-outs and the ever-evolving threats to site security, investing in a maintenance plan ensures that all the hard work put into building your site wasn’t all for nothing. When it comes to building a website and deciding on the platform on which to base it, many small businesses choose a WordPress site. Although less flexible than a site built in html it means that website owners can easily create and manage new content, change the site’s appearance and extend its functionality via plugins without any coding knowledge at all. But it still…

The office playlist can often lead to a heated debate. While some employees prefer to listen to music to get them through their 9-5, others wish to work in utter silence. But, according to new research1, over half (54%) of workers do favour music in the office. As many offices across the UK prepare to welcome their employees back into the workplace, a new study by Office Furniture Online1 has revealed once and for all whether music really does improve performance, alongside worker’s preferences. Whilst over half (54%) of workers enjoy listening to music when working, 61% of offices don’t play music out…

Manchester-based independent ratings specialist embarks on accelerated recruitment drive. Fast-growing business rates reduction specialist, RVA Surveyors, has launched a targeted recruitment drive that will see the family-owned company triple its workforce in the next 12 months. Professionals are being sought across a range of full time positions including senior surveyors, senior credit controllers, ratings surveyors, key account managers, junior customer service agents, junior audit executives, telesales executives and data administrators. Apprenticeships are also being created for school leavers. 15 new roles have already been filled with 52 more positions set to become available in the coming weeks as RVA seeks…