Why productivity matters
Productive companies get more out of what they’ve got, enabling them to increase their profits, pay higher wages and invest in their future. More productive businesses mean a more prosperous country. Discover why productivity matters below.
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People & Team
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Steps to building an onboarding process for new employees
Onboarding process steps you need to consider, including how to improve employee performance and a complete onboarding checklist.
Leadership & Strategy
Article
Want the best day of your career? Join an advisory board
Our interim finance director, Regina Lombard, joined our Advisory Board programme for family businesses and had one of the best days of her career.
Seek external advice
People & Team
Article
Business is like sport, you need to balance strengths and weaknesses
Thinking that business is like sport has allowed Roger Smith to focus on building the right mix of people at the family business he's now at the helm of.
Motivation
Sales & Growth
Article
An inspiring export strategy built on trial and error
It’s a brand now synonymous with British design and craft, but an ambitious export strategy was what really put Brompton on the map.
Expanding & Exporting
Leadership & Strategy
Article
Meet two holiday parks leading progressive change in the tourism sector
Two award-winning holiday parks are putting the environment at the heart of their company vision and are delivering unforgettable customer experiences.
Communicate vision and values
Leadership & Strategy
Video
Three tips for improving your business’s productivity
Andrew Peters, from Siemens, passes on three tips for improving your business’s productivity, based on his experiences in business over the past twenty years.
Leadership Behaviours
Sales & Growth
Article
Five SME leaders explain how they picked the best social media platform for their business
From LinkedIn to Pinterest, picking the best social media platform for your business comes down to aligning it with the values, interests and demographic of your customers.
Marketing & Sales
Digital Readiness
Article
The most effective digital tools for growing businesses
The best business tools increase productivity and focus. Digital tools link teams, improve collaboration and act as personal organisers. We spoke to business owners about what’s worked for them.
Digital Commerce
Digital Readiness
Video
A quirky idea to drive up off-season demand in Cornwall
An innovative approach taken by The Olde House in Cornwall has been successful in improving off-season demand for the forward-thinking family business.
Collaborative tools & analytics
Leadership & Strategy
Article
Coronavirus: How to negotiate with your landlord during the outbreak
With coronavirus uncertainty, you may be thinking about the best way to negotiate with your landlord about future rent. Here's how businesses should do it.
Digital Readiness
Video
VIDEO: Why easyJet embraces a curious, not critical approach
Eager to uncover how it can better serve its diverse customer base, easyJet ancillary revenue director Andrew Middleton explained how the airline is iterating and evolving through constant feedback.
Collaborative tools & analytics
Sales & Growth
Article
Simplified customer interaction is key
It is important for companies to think about the way how their customers want to interact and make it as easy as possible.
Marketing & Sales
Sales & Growth
Article
Marketing on a shoestring – the creative ways to get your company’s name out there
From flash mobs to listing on Groupon, discover how four innovative SMEs embraced marketing on a shoestring to great success and carved out new ways of acquiring customers.
Marketing & Sales
Video
Small changes make a big difference
Tiny tweaks in a business can turn out to be game-changers. See how many small changes you can spot in this video and watch how they can really add up.
Planning
Article
Coronavirus: Managing your business cash flow
The delicate balance between sales, creditors and debtors has been disrupted by coronavirus. Finding ways to manage cash flow has never been more important.
Sales & Growth
Article
A small business retail story: Why coronavirus won’t be the end of Papersmiths
Papersmiths founder Sidonie Warren tells her coronavirus story from her spare bedroom, surrounded by neat stacks of notebooks, journals and greetings cards.
Leadership & Strategy
Article
Three business leaders explain how they make tough business decisions
Whether it's firing someone or working out who to promote, many leaders struggle when it comes to making tough business decisions. Be the Business found out seeking advice and simply biting the bullet helps.
Leadership Behaviours
Leadership & Strategy
Article
A look at why productivity really matters for UK businesses
While many in the small and medium-sized business (SME) community might associate productivity with manufacturing and "output per hour", there are a number of less direct contributing factors.
Leadership Behaviours
Sales & Growth
Article
This firm is seeking new revenue streams amidst the chaos
Finnmark Sauna planned to maintain its rate of expansion in 2020, and the founders are using new revenue streams to ensure coronavirus doesn't slow them down.
Digital Readiness
Article
Making sure outside business influences drive business performance
The rapid pace of technological development means companies need to innovate to stay ahead. Tapping into outside business influences is essential to this process and can have a direct impact on company performance.
Collaborative tools & analytics
Leadership & Strategy
Article
A flat management structure can empower staff during rapid growth
A flat management structure gets rid of traditional hierarchies and empowers employees. We looked at the benefits and potential drawbacks.
Leadership Behaviours
Leadership & Strategy
Article
Customer feedback keeps Polhawn Fort ahead of trends
Sarah Turpitt, General Manager of the Polhawn Fort stays ahead of the trends by listening to customer feedback and collaborating with local producers.
Leadership Behaviours
Leadership & Strategy
Article
Three successful coronavirus-led business pivots
With continuity a thing of the past, all leaders will need to be thinking about business pivots. We look at how three shifts produced quick results.
Digital Readiness
Article
How building business partnerships with universities and research bodies can pay off
Universities are edifices of industry expertise. Building business partnerships with these institutions can create commercial opportunities and help small companies kickstart innovation.
Collaborative tools & analytics