Shane Donnelly's Posts

Maternity Leave: What to Expect When They’re Expecting

Maternity Leave: What to Expect When They’re Expecting

Claire Leigh June 5, 2017 People

Anne-Marie Slaughter, Hillary Clinton’s former adviser, hit the headlines in April 2017 by claiming a year’s maternity leave is too long for working mothers. Maternity leave is a controversial subject, but communication is vital – particularly for expectant mothers and their employers. Finding cover, training and changes to working hours upon return are just some of the worries employers may have at the back of their mind when a member of staff announces a pregnancy. Eligible women are entitled to up to 52 weeks of maternity leave by law, 39 of which can be paid. Whether you agree that an upper limit of a year is too long, there is little doubt that this period must be adequately planned for. Options The decision of whether to hire a new member of staff on a temporary basis, or cover the r... »

Employees “Pulling A Sickie” Are Costing The UK Economy £900m

Employees “Pulling A Sickie” Are Costing The UK Economy £900m

Shane Donnelly June 5, 2017 News

UK employees who “pull a sickie” are costing the country’s economy £900m every year, according to a report by breatheHR. The survey of 1,002 UK workers and 504 business owners has revealed that 15% of all workers feign illness at least once a year – with 42% of these fakers doing so just because they feel too tired to go to work - while 19% to do to avoid a certain situation, such as a client meeting. Surprisingly, just 46% of those surveyed admit to actually using up all of their holiday allowance, with businesses losing more than 7.5 million working days a year due to impromptu sick leave – which when based on the average UK salary of £27,000, has a combined value of £900m. When it comes to business owners’ attitude to sick employees, 71% admit they would still expect someone to co... »

UK Economy Given Vote Of Confidence Less Than A Week Before General Election

UK Economy Given Vote Of Confidence Less Than A Week Before General Election

Shane Donnelly June 2, 2017 News

With less than one week before the general election, the UK’s economic outlook remains robust – according to a report by Dun & Bradstreet. Its UK Quarterly Industry Report has revealed that Eurostat’s Industrial Confidence Indicator stood at 9.1 in Q1 2017 – the highest level since Q2 2014. While the pound’s value experienced a modest increase after the announcement of the snap election, its value is still significantly down on pre-EU referendum levels. However, its suggested that British exporters have actually benefited from a weakened pound as foreign buyers now preserve UK products to be good value for money, with this trend expected to continue until Brexit has officially happens. Despite some positives for businesses, consumer confidence remains flat, coming in at -4.3 in March s... »

Small Businesses Spend Just 3.6 Hours A Month On Finance

Small Businesses Spend Just 3.6 Hours A Month On Finance

Shane Donnelly June 1, 2017 News

UK small businesses are seriously underestimating the importance of financial management by spending just 3.6 hours on the matter each month – according to a report by KashFlow. The survey of small firms with less than ten employees revealed that while the process of managing money is a stressful one for a significant number of respondents – a strong majority remain confident in their ability to keep on top of things. Indeed, 87% of those surveyed described their bookkeeping as either ‘really good’ or ‘not bad’, with just 6% admitting they were “not good”. Despite their confidence however, 32% of small firms still suffer from the strain and pressure of financial compliance – a strong indicator businesses should allocate a lot more time to financial management. Oliver Shaw, CEO of KashFlow,... »

Shopping Is The Best Therapy: Consumer Confidence High Despite General Election

Shopping Is The Best Therapy: Consumer Confidence High Despite General Election

Shane Donnelly May 31, 2017 News

UK consumer confidence has hit high a four month high despite the political and economic uncertainty caused by the general election – according to a report by GfK. The survey of 2,000 people between 1 May and 15 May has revealed consumer morale has risen to -5 from -7, despite some predictions it would fall to as low as -8. Despite the optimism however, it’s suggested that most of the negative effects of last year’s vote to leave the European Union, such as a weakened pound and high energy costs, have yet to filter through to a majority of households. Furthermore, another report from Lloyds Bank has suggested that small businesses are a lot less optimistic than their customers, with business confidence falling sharply in May to below its long run average - despite hitting a 17-month ... »

74% of Small Businesses Don’t Believe New Late Payment Legislation Has Worked

74% of Small Businesses Don’t Believe New Late Payment Legislation Has Worked

Shane Donnelly May 30, 2017 News

74% of small businesses don’t believe that late payment legislation introduced earlier this year has had any effect whatsoever– according to a report by Crossflow Payments. The survey of 1,031 senior decision makers has revealed that the vast majority of UK small businesses believe the new guidelines, which force larger businesses to detail how they pay smaller suppliers, will continue to make no difference to their business. It’s suggested that the new rules could actually have an opposite affect and worsen the “late payment crisis” – as larger corporates can now expand payment terms, giving the illusion they are paying on time. It’s estimated that £266bn is currently inaccessible to small firms – with one in ten admitting payment terms have worsened since the Brexit vote. Worryingly, 78%... »

A Brexit Bank Holiday Could Earn Small Businesses An Extra £3bn

A Brexit Bank Holiday Could Earn Small Businesses An Extra £3bn

Shane Donnelly May 26, 2017 News

UK small businesses could earn an extra £3bn this bank holiday weekend, as UK shoppers choose to holiday at home. According to a report by Worldpay, the previous May bank holiday saw in-store card transactions rise 7% - compared to the same time last year. Particularly benefiting the services industry, pub spend was up 25% over a regular weekend, while restaurants (21%), tourist attractions (35%) and hotels (17%) also experienced increased footfall. Not surprisingly, the areas benefiting most from the long weekend are more traditional tourist spots such as Cornwall, Brighton and Edinburgh - where in 2016 spending increased by 11%, 6% and 5% respectively. It’s suggested that in a post-Brexit Britain, a higher cost of foreign travel will cause UK shoppers to holiday domestically.... »

5 Common Mistakes When Networking

5 Common Mistakes When Networking

Royston Guest May 24, 2017 People

Believe it or not, the art of networking is a skill. A skill that needs to be honed and polished with time invested in order to get your desired results. That result could be an unpublished job that has your name on it or the deepening of business relationships for future business opportunities or simply you want to surround yourself with like-minded individuals who can help you move forward personally or professionally. Whatever your reason for networking it can certainly work for you. But there are five common mistakes we make when networking which reduces the power of in-person relationship building: 1. No clear focus of what you are trying to achieve Ultimately what is your end goal. What are you trying to achieve? You have to build this into a plan. A plan you can commit to which outl... »

4 Simple Ways To Cut Costs While Boosting Business

Marissa Pysarczuk May 23, 2017 Green Business, Operations

Every business owner wants to keep costs as low as possible. However, it’s important not to fall into the trap of being penny wise and pound foolish when you’re looking to reduce your overheads. While it’s great to shave a few hundred pounds off your annual expenses, this is totally counterproductive if it’s going to cost you tens of thousands in missed opportunities. However, there are plenty of ways to cut costs in your business without hampering growth. Here, we’ve brought together four of the best — read on to find out how they can help you keep your expenses down and accelerate growth. Become more energy efficient If you’re looking to cut costs in your business, the first place you should look is your energy efficiency. Most business owners don’t realise just how much of an impact thi... »

Lax Recruitment Process Leaving Businesses At Risk

Lax Recruitment Process Leaving Businesses At Risk

Shane Donnelly May 23, 2017 News

UK small businesses are leaving themselves at risk to stunted growth and potential legal action, due to a lax recruitment process - according to a report by Xref. The Xref Referencing and Recruitment Risk Index,which surveyed 1,000 UK employees and job-seekers, has revealed that 23.5% were not asked for either a character or employment reference when they most recently applied for a job - with 23% admitting their referee was never actually contacted. Worryingly, 45% of respondents even confessed they have lied to a potential employer, with the most common embellishments concerning their work experience (36%) and qualifications (28%). An important consideration for businesses, 48% of those surveyed admit they deliberately exploited careless recruitment practices - with 32%... »

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