Whilst the recession has provided a massive blow to the fortunes of many, for some it has been the kick start they needed into embracing a new way of life. It is widely believed that certain stress trigger points cause us to re-examine our entire lifestyle and redundancy is one of those trigger points. Although being made redundant inspires the majority to seek new employment as soon as possible, for the rest it is the springboard to try something new or to become self employed.

The annual review of business contributions which is due out shortly will make interesting reading. The last complete picture, released last year using 2008 data showed the UK having 3.5 million sole traders with a further 1 million small businesses employing less than ten staff. Between them they contributed over £650billion to the UK economy. Interim figures for the month of September 2010 reported a rise in self employed people to 3.96million of which 2.9million w ... Read more »

The payroll outsourcing solution for small businesses is simply one of the many companies offering remote payroll services. This is a situation whereby the small business has its financial side of the business taken care of remotely by another business.

This has many advantages and offers many benefits over the more traditional way of doing things. It can be much less costly for one thing. Savings of more than half are not uncommon, and that makes it a very attractive option for the small business owner.

Maintaining and running a dedicated financial department means having office space and specialised employees. Both are expensive options. The office, or perhaps several different offices, needs to be stocked with desks and seats, computers, faxes, telephones, and so on.

The offices also need to be well lighted and properly heated. They must comply with all health and safety rules and be ready for inspection by health and safety officer ... Read more »

If you've started a small business and have had to hire some employees to help you run that business, congratulations are in order! Making a success of any business is no easy feat. To help you bear that burden, you should consider enlisting a professional payroll service to help you easily manage your employees' salaries and wages. Taking this burden off your shoulders will give you more time to focus on the important aspects of maintaining and growing your new business.

The first thing you need to do is decide who to hire. There is certainly not a shortage of companies out there vying for your piece of the payroll pie. A lot of things will go in to making that decision, not the least of which will simply be personal preference. But you should look for those companies that specialize in working with a small business the size of your own and have solutions that meet your needs. Obviously, cost will also be a factor. Don't spend more than you have ... Read more »

If you have a small business that has recently expanded, you know the joys and frustrations of having more employees. While you can get more work done and serve more customers, there are also human resources issues to deal with as well as the issue of things like benefits and payroll. Of course, if your business is not growing at the speed at which you want, you may be tempted to use a small business loan to meet your payroll obligations. The question is: should you do it?

One thing to consider is that there may never be a "right time"to get this type of loan. Remember that the moment you do so, you are essentially placing your business and, depending on the type of loan, perhaps your assets, on the line. If things do not work out the way you intend, you may be looking at heavy interest rates, fees, and other legal action. That said, you may want to reconsider thinking about using a small business loan to meet payroll.

The reason for this is ... Read more »

Each employer in the UK must register as an employer with HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC). Registering to run a PAYE scheme is obligatory if employees have earnings at or above the Income Tax threshold or has earnings at or above the National Insurance contributions (NI) lower earnings level.

PAYE (Pay As You Earn) was first introduced in the UK in 1944 as the system that HMRC uses to collect Income Tax and NI from employees' pay.

Deductions are paid over to HMRC on or before the 19th of the month following the pay period. Small businesses that have a quarterly liability to income tax and NI less than £1,500 per quarter can arrange to pay every 3 months rather than every month.

The financial tax year in the UK is from 6 April to 5 April the following year with each tax year divided into 53 week numbers (allowing for odd days at the end of the tax year) and also into 12 monthly periods. Income Tax deducted is calculated by the bu ... Read more »

Over the years, I have had an opportunity to discuss security measures with many business owners. The thing that stands out the most is the fact that most business owners seem to think that security is only having alarms and maybe cameras.

This is a myth that can and will eventually get you sued. Yes, alarms and cameras can make a difference and be an important part of your security measures to safeguard your business. But, they are not the main stays that people think they are!

There are a number of ways a business owner can and do get sued in today's lawsuit happy society. The U.S. Labor Department in 2009, states that 62% of business owners that were sued were by an employee. These suits were mainly for hiring, termination and retention issues.

This goes back to the policy and procedures that were either not enforce or not followed at the time of the event or not even implemented by the business to begin with.

This can be a p ... Read more »

If you've ever thought of streamlining your business having job descriptions is a good place to start; that way, your employees and contractors will know exactly what is expected of them. First of all, what is a job description? Well, a job description is a document that contains specific information about a job, what it is, who it reports to, how it is performed, including any responsibilities, and also a description of the ideal person for the job.

Why is it important to have a job description prepared in advance if you are planning on hiring someone new into your business? A job description will give your new person a structure to operate within where they know what they should be doing on a daily basis. It provides the parameters that they should operate within so it becomes clear to both the employee/contractor and the business owner (not to mention other people who work for you) what the expectations are of the person performing the positio ... Read more »

Credit card (CC) terminals or point-of-sale (POS) terminals are a necessary piece of hardware at any store or business that accepts credit cards. Usually, businesses purchase or lease credit card terminals from their merchant account provider as that is more convenient. However, there are other options. This article discusses some important points regarding picking CC terminals.

Acceptable payment types in POS terminals

Before you start to look for a credit card machine, establish the payment types you want it to handle.

• Debit card payments: Does the POS terminal accept credit and debit cards? Accepting debit cards is good as it only incurs a transaction fee, not the discount rate. If yes, does it have an internal or external PIN pad? An internal PIN pad is neater than a hand-held but it also means customers will be handling your terminal. External PIN pads cost around $100-$200.
• ... Read more »

Management Reporting Scorecard is a one page document (excel is best) that captures they key metrics and measures of a particular system, and it tracks them over time. For example you might have a system that revolves around creating websites for clients. Within that system there would exist several processes, such as getting the client details of what they require, creation of the website, communication with the client, website updates and tweaks, and delivery of the final product. Each of these processes should have at least one key metric associated with them to measure the effectiveness of how well the process is performing. Take the process of getting client details.

Key metrics associated with this process could be number of new clients for the month, number who have provided details of what they require, the number of clients who have not provided the details of what they require because they have not been contacted, and the number that are ... Read more »

If you are finding a right kind of product to increase your car image dramatically, then nothing will be a greater choice for you than printing static window cling at all because this is incredibly compatible and sizzling sticker which will definitely enhance your car image in an immaculate manner. Generally stained glass window clings are very sparkling types of signs which can be wonderfully created by hottest graphic design tools artistically. Printing wise, they can be simple produced via compatible ink. If you need bulk printing, it can be easily done in an affordable manner. Look wise, they are very shining symbols at all. When it comes to the size, they can be easily grabbed in plenty of shapes such as round, bumper, oval, die cut, rectangular, custom and so on.

Therefore it is pivotal for you to print those types of car stickers which must be suiting to all your needs and requirements compatibly. Otherwise you will be going to loose some ... Read more »