Business Update June 2007

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In and out of season "Your cheques could bounce and your standing orders could be left unpaid because you have no money coming in during the quiet season," warns Mark Lister, business adviser for Business Link ...Positive press Good publicity in trusted media is a powerful tool for building recognition with potential customers, suppliers and investors. Like word-of-mouth recommendation, it is usually considered more ...Limiting your risk Being a sole trader is a great way to start a business. It is inexpensive and there is little form-filling to do. But you are personally responsible for any losses the business makes. Restructuring ...Q&A: Chasing late paying customers René de Sousa (RdS), senior procurement specialist at the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply and member of the Better Payment Practice Group (BPPG), tells Tom Whitney how you can ...Software licensing Market research firm IDC has found that more than a quarter of the software used in UK businesses is unlicensed. It may not seem a major offence, but software companies are cracking down on ...10 ways to... be an effective manager Know what is going on. Be aware of what is happening in your sector, your organisation and your team. Knowledge gives you the tools to plan ahead, use your resources effectively and make informed ...New guide for businesses to the latest anti-discrimination provisions New guidance has been published to help businesses comply with the anti-discrimination provisions that came into force at the end of April. The Department for Communities and Local Government ...Employer's guide: how to produce a company handbook Employers looking to produce or improve a company handbook for their organisation will benefit from new guidance from Acas. The new, free Self-help guide: Producing a company handbook, focuses on ...Clarification of flexible working for employee carers The right of employees, who care for qualifying adults, to request flexible working has been amended, so that carers who are a son- or daughter-in-law of a qualifying adult can now apply. An ...Have your say: new rules giving additional paternity leave and pay The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is consulting with employers on how new rules giving additional paternity leave and pay to male employees will work in practice, with the aim of keeping ...Have your say: guidance on directors' health and safety duties The Institute of Directors (IoD) has produced draft guidance for businesses of all sizes that sets out what is expected of directors in overseeing health and safety performance at work. The IoD ...Have your say: preventing illegal migrant working The views of businesses employing foreign workers are being sought on proposals to implement new powers contained in the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006 to tackle illegal working by ...Have your say: employers face stricter national minimum wage enforcement Employers need to make sure that they comply with the national minimum wage (NMW) legislation, in view of proposed measures for stricter enforcement against employers who flout the rules. The ...Data protection provisions to apply to pre-October 1998 manual records for first time Businesses that hold personal information on their employees in certain manual records created before 24 October 1998 need to be aware that the Data Protection Act will apply fully to these records ...Online filing of employee share scheme returns and information Companies that file employee share scheme returns can benefit from the new online filing service launched in April. The tax year 2006-07 is the first for which HM Revenue &Customs (HMRC) ...Case law: relevance of pre-contract negotiations when construing contract terms clarified Businesses must take care to define clearly the terms that they use in their contracts, in the light of a recent High Court decision. The case concerned a dispute, arising under a development ...I've got more business than I can handle... Too much business can present a big challenge to a small firm with limited resources. If unprecedented demand leaves you struggling to fulfil orders, you risk damage to your reputation and loss of ...Case study: How I manage my seasonal business THE ISSUE: Surviving year-round when running a seasonal business THE SOLUTION: "We sell clothing and equipment for watersports such as surfing and diving. Our busiest time of year is between ...