The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) is urging the Government to extend the 75% rate relief discount for retail, hospitality, and leisure businesses.

It is due to end next April but the FSB argues that the relief is a "lifeline" for struggling small firms.

Martin McTague, FSB national chair, said the system is not fit for purpose and “small firms should not be stifled by the looming threat of higher business rates bills as a consequence of investment.”

Investment in their businesses may be a long way down the list of priorities for many SMEs with the news that the number of companies going bust in England and Wales increased by 19% in August 2022 compared to the previous year.

Elsewhere it has also been reported that Britain's manufacturers are preparing for a potential recession as they see a sharp slowdown in activity, according to the Make UK manufacturing outlook survey.

Whether the Government is listening remains to be seen.

What do you think? Is the business...

Almost 80% of UK companies report difficulty filling jobs according to analysis by the Manpower Group.

So is using AI (Artificial Intelligence) the answer to the skills shortage?

In some instances it may be.

Examples include automating CRM (Customer Relationship Management) systems, machine learning for data processing, and in cybersecurity in defending computer defences. AI is key to automating various routine processes in manufacturing.

Most of the above will be familiar to businesses and have already proven their worth but there is a new and much-hyped piece of AI which has been the focus of attention, and that is ChatGPT.

ChatGPT is an AI chatbot system released by OpenAI that answers any questions and can even compose poems.

It has been argued that it useful for generating creative ideas, providing summaries and writing first drafts. It can also produce large amounts of text with a quick response time, So, It can arguably automate routine tasks, provide personalised customer...

BCC’s most recent update on the difficulties to find workers highlights shortages in several key areas.

The February 2023 update said:

“Attempted recruitment in Q4 remained virtually unchanged from the previous quarter, with 61% of firms looking to find staff (62% in Q3 2022).

“Overall, over eight in ten firms (82%) attempting to recruit reported recruitment difficulties, up from 76% in Q3.

“While the problem is persistent across all sectors, firms in the hospitality sector are most likely to face challenges when recruiting, with 87% reporting difficulties. This is closely followed by the manufacturing sector on 85%, and the construction sector; professional services; and public, education, health sector all on 83%.”

According to research from fintech provider Nucleus Commercial Finance 68% of SMES with up to 150 employees are concerned about staffing in 2023.

So what can SMEs that are already strapped for cash do to help themselves in the short and...

The UK is launching a four-day workweek trial from June to December 2022 (a six-month period where participating employees will see no loss of pay.

It has also been reported that 30 UK businesses had already started a trial of four-day weeks from January 2022.

But is it a practicable proposition for your business?

The results of the trials that have been carried out so far in other countries have shown that it improves workers’ quality of life, giving them more time for other priorities.

They have also, so far, shown that there was no loss of productivity and in some cases businesses have increased sales, reduced absences from illness and improved employee retention.

There is also an argument that the system could have environmental benefits from reduced commuting and traffic congestion.

However, it is questionable whether the four-day week can be applied in all businesses, not only because of the primary consideration of their customer’s needs but also because of the...

How people’s behaviour might change post lockdown is something that may be crucial for SMEs in planning ahead.

While it may be a long time yet before the Covid-19 lockdown is removed completely, following the Prime Minister’s briefing at the weekend, the process of relaxing the lockdown restrictions is now underway.

Despite the financial support that has been provided to businesses and workers it is becoming clear that we shall not return swiftly to a pre coronavirus level of business for some time and before we do many businesses will not survive, especially if the recovery takes a long time and the post lockdown landscape is substantially different.

Much depends on businesses’ ability to recover, on how long it will take them to recover and on how much people will change their behaviour as a result of the crisis.

A key to business survival is communication by leaders to deliver the information and direction everyone needs when a large scale crisis hits....

Robust business models should be based on a clear proposition with a plan for profitable activity.

Each model is essentially a road map of how money will flow from activity.

Business models are a financial expression of the company’s business plan in a way that summarises the strategy, funding, organisation and processes used to achieve objectives.

Given that unforeseen roadblocks and successes will occur, business models should be reviewed regularly and adapted depending on new circumstances and new information.

Tools for refining the model are also useful, such as a SWOT analysis to identify Strengths, and Opportunities to be exploited and Threats and Weaknesses to be avoided.

While arguably, few businesses and especially SMEs, will have had plans to cope with the coronavirus pandemic, it has affected most businesses in ways that were not foreseen. The lockdown has also exposed how little resilience they may have built into their business models to protect from such a...

Arguably, all successful businesses need to exercise agility in a fast-changing world, but never more so than now in the midst of the Coronavirus pandemic.

While there is nothing wrong with having pride in your business, pride is also associated with sticking doggedly to a plan that is not working due to a change of circumstances. Just because you have always done things one way doesn’t mean that way is always right in normal circumstances, let alone in abnormal ones like the current situation. In a crisis everything you do should be challenged and often fundamental change is necessary if a business is to survive.

Business agility is therefore a key attribute for dealing with adverse circumstances, to be creative and adapt to the changing environment. This in particular applies to three main areas: staff, customers and processes.

Social distancing has meant that for some businesses their staff have had to work remotely while others are needed in the office to maintain systems....

In the current pandemic situation, many businesses deemed non-essential have been forced to temporarily close for a lockdown period and it is clear that many SMEs will have serious cash flow problems when they resume trading.

Unfortunately, the cash flow problem won’t go away even though for the moment it is easy to ignore it by holing up at home.

While it is true to say that all businesses should have plans for dealing with emergencies and reserves for cash flow problems, it is unprecedented to have to deal with a period of no income and it is becoming clear that many SMEs – and larger businesses – do not have sufficient cash reserves to survive a lengthy lockdown.

Many are telling me that they paid their staff wages for the first month in anticipation of furlough support arriving in time to fund a second month but they are concerned about the Government’s promised CJRS (Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme) arriving in time to pay April wages. As for paying...

It may seem premature to talk about what happens when the Coronavirus pandemic is over but SMEs need to think ahead and nurture those key relationships needed to ensure their business has a future.

Many of you have had to temporarily close your business and furlough staff due to Government restrictions introduced to try to slow the spread of the virus and many or you have seen your income plummet or cease altogether, with a devastating impact on your cash flow.

According to behavioural scientists it is natural to behave cautiously, even timidly, in the face of a threat, in direct proportion to its magnitude and to what is known about it. But amid the daily deluge of media updates, it is important to remember that we will tend to exaggerate the risk so the threat looms large in our minds.

So, it is perhaps natural to invoke a so-called “bunker” mentality in which self-protection overrides all else.

But as a business owner, no matter how dire the current situation, it is...

Grabbing a lifebelt when you are drowning makes sense, but when that so-called lifebelt is a business loan to survive the Coronavirus pandemic, you need to read the small print before signing on the dotted line.

The various government support schemes for SMEs may have made big headlines, not least their claims about making loans available for SMEs, but the devil is likely to be in the details.

No matter how panic-stricken you might be it is worth making sure you know exactly what you are getting into when applying for a loan under the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS). The difficulty many businesses are having getting through to someone at the bank is an indication of the problem, albeit it is hardly surprising given that banks have run down their SME support teams over the past twelve years.

Before even contacting a bank the first step is to take a deep breath and ensure you know exactly who to approach and what you can apply for. There are ample details about...