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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #263
Broadcast date: 20May25
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guests: Experts and Special Guests live from Accounting & Business Expo 2025 Part 2

Welcome to Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose. I’m Alexi Boyd and I’m thrilled to be bringing you this special podcast – part 2 - recorded on the floor of the 2025 Accounting & Business Expo.

There’s so much to learn when you attend a conference and they’re getting better every year. The accounting and business expo is definitely one for your calendar as a Must Do.. This year there was dozens or great discussions and presentations, everything from technical tutorials for advisors and keynotes from economists, to growing your practice with AI, to thought leaders discussing the future of the industry.

As my fellow podcaster Dan from Two Drunk Accountants said, “You always walk away with ideas and fuel in the tank, motivation and great ideas to use in your business.”

Didn’t make it? Luckily Small Biz Matters was there and can bring you the Best of from ABE 2025.

In today’s program you’ll learn from mentors and trailblazers from the accounting and business world, who are so generous with their wisdom. But it’s not just for the accounting nerds out there – small businesses and all advisors will get expert advice on topics like AI for teams, how the accounting world should be tackling gender disparity, growing and selling your business and the importance of e-commerce for growth.

Our expert guests include:

Dale Dixon, MYOB – What’s the mission for software companies to support small business through the ever-changing landscape of digitalisation in accounting? How can they leverage AI to improve their practice and for their clients?

Debbie Hatumale-Uy, (The Sweet Stuff) & Martin Rodgers (Realise Business) - The importance of e-commerce in your business but not just to set and forget; recognising you’re only as good as the connectivity between your engagements. How does Realise Business enhance digitalisation and the Federal Government program to support small businesses to get into digital?

Michele Grisdale (Rainforest Bookkeeping), Rebecca Mihalic (businessDEPOT), Sarah Lawrance (Hot Toast) – why does gender disparity in accounting remain such a problem for the industry?

Rob Marshall, General Manager ICB – new compliance requirements for bookkeepers’ code for dealing with incapacity in your practice

Cissy Ma – Grow and selling businesses. How to get started? What are the pitfalls?

Peter Thorp, Australia Bookkeeping Network – what does an association get out of attending ABE?

Dan Osbourne, Two Drunk Accountants – What’s the top highlight of the Accounting and Business Expo in 2025? Why is it important for busy advisers to attend and learn.

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #262
Broadcast date: 29 Apr 2025
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guests: Experts and Special Guests live from Accounting & Business Expo 2025 Part 1

Welcome to Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose. I’m Alexi Boyd and I’m thrilled to be bringing you this special podcast – part 1 - recorded on the floor of the 2025 Accounting & Business Expo.

As my fellow podcaster Dan from Two Drunk Accountants said, “You always walk away with ideas and fuel in the tank, motivation and great ideas to use in your business.”

Didn’t make it? Luckily Small Biz Matters was there and can bring you the Best of from ABE 2025.

In today’s program you’ll learn from mentors and trailblazers from the accounting and business world, who are so generous with their wisdom. But it’s not just for the accounting nerds out there – small businesses and all advisors will get expert advice on topics like Guidance on training your team, best practice when setting up an accounting practice, AI implementation tips, small business restructuring and succession planning, advice from industry associations and the ATO themselves on what’s changing for advisors and their small business clients.

So grab a cuppa and enjoy Hearing from the experts from Accounting and Business Expo 2025.

Our expert guests include:

Michael Morton, Assistant Commissioner for Small Business, ATO – the current focus areas of the Getting It Right Campaign

Sonia Gibson, Director Accounting Heart - the things you wish you’d known when you started your own practice

Sabby Gill, CEO Dext – what value does an international software company like Dext get from an expo like ABE?

Andrew Quinn, CEO AVA Advisory – how advisors can work together to support small businesses facing insolvency through the small business restructuring process

Clayton Wood Founder Seamless – what are the benefits of attending ABE as the founder of a new and emerging app?

Wayne Wanders, The Real CFO – what have you gained from this event as an attendee at ABE? What will you take away for your business? What about the future of Startups?

Dr Craig West, Succession Plus – what and when should you be thinking about succession planning?

Heather Smith, (Anise Consulting), Lielette Calleja (businessDEPOT), Mary Delaney Karbon - Strong women in leadership. How can we support impact, integrity and influence?

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #260
Broadcast date: 1 Apr 2025
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guests: Experts and Special Guests live from the Press Gallery, Parliament House

There is not a lot of small businesses that wait with bated breath each budget night for what is in it for them, but there is a handful of experts; peak bodies who meticulously dissect it line by line, looking out for the needs of small businesses.

Each budget night, they are locked with without their devices, crammed into a room which is never big enough, fed with food that is not eaten, handed a stack of budget papers, and then asked to unpack it all in only two hours! It is a remarkable feat and takes the best minds in the country.

At this year’s Budget Night on 25th of Mar 2025, Small Biz Matters was lucky to be in the media lock up, alongside our colleagues from the Community Radio Network.

After the lock up, I spoke to the leading economic, media, advocacy and policy experts in the country (and a handful of special political guests), unpacking the budget from purely a small business perspective.

Gavan Ord, Policy Adviser at CPA Australia kindly joined me in conversation the day after to unpack all the pros and cons and what it means for Australian small businesses and of course the all-important Federal Election on May 5th.

Our expert guests include:

Dai Le MP

Senator David Pocock

Chris Richardson from Rich Insight

Matthew Addison Chair of Council of Small Business Organisations Australia (COSBOA)

Michele O’Neil President of the Australian Council of Trade Unions

Innes Willox CEO of Australian Industry Group

Ross Greenwood, Business report with Sky News

Helen McCabe Founder and Managing Director at FW

Allegra Spender MP

Senator Jacqui Lambie

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #259
Broadcast date: 25 Mar 2025
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guests: Hon Julie Collins MP, Minister for Small Business and Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry

The national small business strategy was released by the federal minister the Hon Julie Collins MP in Feb 2025. Treasury’s media release described as a Strategy to support Australia's nearly 2.6 million small businesses by streamlining processes, reducing duplication, and ensuring small businesses are front and centre in policy decisions.

It’s signed by all of the state and territory Small business ministers who promised to work more collaboratively together.

It was a rather quiet media release. Those that did take notice namely the professional associations like CPA Australia panned it as being a motherhood statement, lacking in detail and failing to solve any of the problems facing small businesses right now.

If small businesses are so critical to government policy, why do we continue to see a lack of action and practical solutions? What’s the purpose of having a framework that doesn’t offer anything new for Small business nor guarantee a more stable and predictable environment in which they can operate?

It’s the middle of budget week there’s a looming election. In her first long form interview on the national small business strategy, The honourable Julie Collins MP joins us today to unpack, explain and answer the critics’ concerns.

Tell us about the national small business strategy and why it’s so unique compared with what the government has done previously supports more business?
The positives in the report are that it acknowledges what’s currently not working and the driver behind the strategy which is harmonising regulation across the states. It’s also a set of principles on which future small business strategies can be built. Can you take that a step further and suggest what sort of regulations will be targeted as a priority?
Will the tangible policy changes that this strategy will hopefully bring out be led by the federal government or by states?
This report was described in the press release as ground breaking but has left a lot of the leaders in small business wanting. It speaks to motherhood statements without Indicating measurable outcomes. And there’s plenty of things that Small business has been asking for over the years. Would you agree there was a missed opportunity here to offer more practical actions in the strategy?
Small business moves fast and the environmental factors like the economy which small businesses must react to, even faster. Given the pace of small business evolution in Australia, why are the key decision makers, the small business ministers only meeting every 6 months?
Would you consider a working group that includes peak bodies in small business part of this process to really advise on what’s critical to small businesses in a more timely manner?
The success of this strategy heavily relies on cohesive approach by all small business ministers in all states. Given that you are a Labor government do you believe that this will continue with changes of government and changes of ministers.

To find out more about the National Small Business Strategy go to the Australia’s Treasury’s website - HERE

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #258
Broadcast date: 18 Mar 2025
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guests: Dr Sherman Chan, Chief Economist at Business NSW

Dr Sherman Chan is one of those few economists who, when they explain a complex problem, it makes sense. That’s why whenever you attend a BusinessNSW event where she is presenting her findings or read their quarterly Business Insights data report, the science of economics becomes a little clearer. The report provides policy makers and business owners insights from small business in the form of robust, clearly presented data which is consistent in its presentation of its data. That’s why we’re pleased to present this information to you on a regular basis on Small Biz Matters.

In March 2025, for the first time in three years, the report offering a positive lift in the confidence index. Insurance remains a top concern and we are very much in a 2 speed economy but the green shoots have started appearing alongside the RBA’s interest rate cut and as Sherman says, “Confidence comes hand in hand with resilience.”

Regularly briefing small business intel from the quarterly business insights report to the likes of NSW Treasury, the RBA and federal politicians, Dr Chan has an intelligent approach to data gathering, presenting it in a clear and relatable way, Dr Sherman Chan is exactly the right person to deliver the information you need to understand the state of small business right now. She joins us to unpack the findings of the March 2025 report for small business owners, their advisors and policy makers here on Small Biz Matters.

Tell us about the findings in this quarter’s Business NSW data report. What insights have you been able to extract from the data in particular for small businesses?
Is the data showing different situation for regional or Metro base businesses?
What will Business NSW adjust in its priority issues when representing small businesses in NSW? How will they change their policy priorities?
What do you see as the main issues that Business NSW will be advocating for change for small businesses in the coming 12 months?
Were you surprised by any of the findings?

Sherman is an economist with experience in government, banking and consulting. In her role as Chief Economist at Business NSW, Sherman drives strategic research and builds the evidence base for policy advocacy. She manages the quarterly Business Conditions Survey – Business NSW’s flagship research product that generates insights into business opportunities and challenges across key industries in NSW.

Prior to joining Business NSW, Sherman was a Senior Manager in the Risk and Regulatory Consulting practice at MinterEllison. This followed a six-year stint in NSW Government with agencies including NSW Treasury and the Audit Office of NSW where she led large-scale program evaluations and performance audits.

Sherman’s journey as an economist also includes working at Moody’s Analytics and HSBC (Hong Kong) during the Global Financial Crisis, covering economies and financial markets across the Asia-Pacific region. Sherman also has experience working at the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority.

Sherman holds a PhD and a Bachelor of Commerce (Honours in Economics) both from UNSW. Proficient in both macroeconomics and microeconomics, Sherman has been a Lecturer at UNSW since 2014. She specialises in government policy evaluation, impact measurement and cost-benefit analysis.

Business NSW is the peak business organisation for New South Wales representing the needs of 48,000 businesses across the state. Its purpose is to create a better Australia by maximising the outcomes and potential of Australian businesses. The organisation achieves this by working with businesses spanning all industry sectors including small, medium and large enterprises.

To find out more about BusinessNSW Business Conditions Survey, check it out HERE

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Small Biz Matters: Real Biz Stories ~ Episode #257
Broadcast date: 11 March 2025
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guests: Simon Potts Owner of Boxes for Business

Here on Small Biz Matters Real Biz Stories we’re bringing you small business success stories designed to inspire, guide and give you the motivation to achieve your smallbiz dreams. From super heroes who can see the future of an industry or those real life heroes have overcome massive barriers to achieve their small business dreams. Today is one of those journeys.

I love talking to business owners who are passionate about their business but more than that, I love chatting to business owners who are passionate about all small businesses. Those that really want to make a difference. I consider them the real business leaders – not the ones with hundreds of thousands of followers and like the sound of their own voice but because they want to take their lived experience, their love of being their own boss and improve the business lives of others. They’re the advocates, the backers of business and they’re the ones politicians should be listening to.

So with the calling of the 2025 Federal election imminent, its time to start talking Real Biz Stories; small business is what makes this nation tick, so let’s start listening.

Today, we are joined live in the studio this week by an industry leader, Simon Potts. He’s master of his niche and an entrepreneur proudly making a difference. So stay with us and be ready to learn from some of the best minds in the business right here on Small Biz Matters: Real Biz Stories.

YOUR REAL BIZ STORY – Tell us about your business and why you started Boxes for Business?

Running a successful business, particularly in logistics in Australia is challenging. But you’ve managed to do this for over a decade...What keeps you going?

LESSONS LEARNED – Hindsight’s a wonderful thing. What would you tell your entrepreneurial self if you could go back in time? What’s the biggest headache as a business owner and keeps you from doing what you love? What was the lesson you learned from COVID?

WHO DO YOU REACH OUT TO? - Who do you call on when you need help and support?

WHAT CAN WE DO BETTER? - What do you think businesses can do to improve the sector as a whole. Do you feel that representative groups are helping to represent your needs as a business owner? What is the one policy the Government can change to make life easier and help you succeed?

Simon Potts – Small Business Owner Trying to Make a Difference

Simon Potts is an everyday small business owner whose firsthand experience with the challenges of running a business sparked his passion for supporting fellow entrepreneurs and speaking up for small businesses. As the managing director of Boxes for Business, he supplies businesses with quality cardboard boxes and practical packaging solutions, with a focus on sustainability.

Navigating business ownership has deepened his understanding of small business pressures and motivated him to engage in national policy discussions. He has appeared briefly on ABC’s Q&A and contributed to policy conversations by advocating to politicians for practical, business-friendly solutions and raising concerns with key business organisations, including Business NSW and the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman.

Boxes for Business has been featured in a national CommBank campaign highlighting Australian small businesses and has, on occasion, supplied cardboard boxes for productions such as Celebrity Apprentice and My Kitchen Rules.

For more information, visit www.boxesforbusiness.com.au or connect with him on social media.

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Small Biz Matters: RealBizStories ~ Episode #256
Broadcast date: 25 Feb 2025
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guests: Craig Rochat, Executive Director Land of Plenty Food Group

There has been a myriad of government incentives and schemes to bring back manufacturing in Australia, but for some successful businesses, it never really stopped. Those with the experience, tenacity, and the industry know how survived through the ups and the downs like Covid and have been forging the way for the new wave of Australian manufacturers to come after them. One of those industry leaders is Craig Rochat, the founder of Land of Plenty Food Group. He has been working in the industry for decades both internationally and here in Australia and puts all of his passion and experience into his successful business whilst also giving back to Australia’s food manufacturing industry; leading the way with innovations and change to make it better.

After watching so many of Australia’s small businesses flourish, and many of them disappear through the Covid period, what can be learned through the success stories like Land of Plenty? How do you survive a lockdown that affects not only your customer base, but your operations, and ability to even function your business and then emerge, thriving, taking those lessons from that crazy period to see continued growth?

To explain how he did just that we are joined live in the studio this week by an industry leader, Craig Rochat. Stay with us and be ready to learn from some of the best minds in the business right here on Small Biz Matters: Real Biz Stories.

Questions

Tell us about your business and why you started Land of Plenty?
Running a successful business, particularly in food manufacturing in Australia is challenging. What keeps you going?
What is the one policy the Government can change to make your business life easier and help you succeed?
What’s the biggest headache as a business owner and keeps you from doing what you love?
Who do you call on when you need help and support?
What was the lesson you learned from COVID?
What do you think businesses can do to improve the sector as a whole. Do you feel that representative groups are helping to represent your needs as a business owner?

About our Guest

Craig Rochat joined Lotus & Ming in January 2011, partnering with his wife and company founder, Karen Lavecky. Following a successful expansion and growth program the company re- branded in 2016 to become Land of Plenty Food Co.

Craig began his career in the Hospitality and Retail industry in South Africa, Craig trained and worked as a chef before moving into management. In 2003 Craig joined The Food Fund Management Group, heading operations in Australia, The UAE and South Africa. This was followed by a 4-year stint with AHL Group as head of Gold Class Cinemas and then 4 years with David Jones as the National Buyer for the David Jones Food-halls, before partnering in his own business.

Over the past 11 years Craig has driven the Land of Plenty business from strategic, operational and financial direction which is where his strength lies. The impact of covid was significant for the group with approximately 90% of customers forced to close in the 7 days post the first lockdown of March 2023. In conjunction with an Advisory Board, the group set about navigating the next 2 ½ years and developed an investment and acquisition strategy. It is from this strategy that the group delivered record sales revenue and profit.

About Land of Plenty Food Co

Is a gourmet food company, manufacturing premium handmade and high-volume life- style brands for both food service and retail. In addition to our branded ranges, we also provide a bespoke manufacturing service for franchise, big box and multi-location customers. Land of Plenty has recently embarked on a business expansion program through their “brands under management’ strategy to develop a distribution and investment business that runs concurrently with the main owned brand business. Find out more here

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Small Biz Matters: RealBizStories ~ Episode #255
Broadcast date: 11 Feb 2025
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guests: Petko Petkov, FoodTech Founder of CHEFIN

Welcome to 2025! Here on Small Biz Matters we’re bringing you small business success stories designed to inspire, guide and give you the motivation to achieve your smallbiz dreams. There’s loads of stories of success out there from all corners of the small business community from those who can see into the future of the industry or those who have overcome massive barriers to achieve their small business dreams right here in Australia. Today is one of those stories.

Imagine being ahead of the curve. You can see the future for an industry but know that change and innovation takes time and you’re planning on bringing an entire trade along for the ride. You know your ideas are solid and the future... but others doubt your journey.

If you think small business is tough, imagine starting a hospitality business. And if you think hospitality is tough, try doing breaking into an entirely new and innovative way of working in an industry!

That’s the story of Petko Petkov. He took a background managing global projects for industry global giants, partnered it with a passion for food and small business and turned it into an innovative tech baby. And that was long before apps and tech was a thing.

In the first episode for 2025 sit back and listen to a remarkable story of resilience, innovation and pure grit.

YOUR REAL BIZ STORY – Tell us about your business and why you started Chefin?

Running a successful business, particularly in hospitality in Australia is challenging. What keeps you going?

WHO DO YOU REACH OUT TO? - Who do you call on when you need help and support?

About CHEFIN: Picture this: a world where every meal is an extraordinary experience crafted by talented chefs. Welcome to CHEFIN, a network of independent Chefs. By accessing top-tier culinary talent through the CHEFIN platform, individuals and businesses can create unforgettable dining experiences & deliver remarkable hospitality for their guests.

About our guest: Founder & CEO of CHEFIN, Petko boasts 15 years of Consumer Insights & Data experience. He has led sales & operations teams in 12 countries and managed global projects for companies like BP (Carrebean oil spill PR disaster response), Uber's strategic roll out in Asia Pacific, Google's acquisition of YouTube, Nokia's launch in Africa, various NPD projects for Mars, Unilever, Pfizer & Coca-Cola. Petko was part of the Australian launch of global opinion company YouGov Plc.

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Small Biz Matters: People Policy Purpose ~ Episode #254
Broadcast date: 4 Feb 2025
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guests: Lewis Rangott, Executive Director, Corruption Prevention, ICAC

For those of us old enough to remember the 90’s, there used to be a political tagline – Keeping the Bastards Honest. It belonged to a political party which has since disappeared but them became a popular slogan, used by media outlets when describing how to keep a watchful eye on those holding the purse-strings, those making decisions and those creating policy.

Even though that political party no longer exists, the question remains, Who does look after the integrity of our political system and keeps a watchful eye those who pull the levers governing in particular, business?

The vast majority of small businesses strive to be fair and equitable in their business practices, and we expect those in politics to behave the same way. But the reality is, just like some small businesses, they are also prone to turning a blind eye, the misuse of funds or power or dare I say it, corruption. We demand a level playing field in business and expect it from our political leaders too.

In NSW, the body dedicated to investigating, exposing, and preventing corruption in the NSW public sector is the Independent Commission Against Corruption or ICAC. They promote accountability and transparency in government decision-making by identifying corrupt practices and ensuring public officials act with integrity. But what’s that got to do with small business?

Well, their work helps level the playing field. By rooting out corruption in processes like procurement, licensing, and regulatory compliance, the ICAC ensures small businesses can compete fairly without the need to bribe or navigate biased systems. This creates an environment of trust, where decisions are made on merit rather than influence or favouritism.

To explain how and why and the impact the ICAC has on small businesses, we are joined by Lewis Rangott, Executive Director of Corruption Prevention at ICAC for I’m sure what will be a fascinating discussion about who now, as the saying goes, Keeps the Bastards Honest.

PEOPLE - can you tell me about the role of the ICAC? How do other Australian states and territories manage political fairness? Why it’s an important part of keeping the political ecosystem fair and equitable for everyone? Why is it important for should small businesses to understand about the ICAC’s work? ICAC has done some outreach work, can you explain how this supports rural/regional small businesses?

POLICY - when is small business owner raises concerns with a local MP or any representative of government, what sort of a response should they expect in return? How can we find a better balance to ensure small businesses have just as much access to policy makers as those who can afford to buy it?

PURPOSE - Describing the circumstances in which a private sector business could be found to have engaged in corrupt conduct.

Can you tell us about the Operation Mantis report and how it involved some small businesses?

Can you tell us about Op Hector, which might be relevant because we recommended a debarment scheme for certain corrupt businesses (which the Government has said it would implement).

About our Guest

Lewis Rangott BEc (Hons) MCom started his corruption prevention career at the Commission in 2003 as a senior corruption prevention officer and principal officer. He then held senior corruption prevention roles in the public and private sectors before being appointed to the position of Executive Director, Corruption Prevention, in May 2017. Mr Rangott is also a certified fraud examiner

The NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) is dedicated to investigating, exposing, and preventing corruption in the NSW public sector. Independent of the government of the day, the ICAC promotes accountability and transparency in government decision-making by identifying corrupt practices and ensuring public officials act with integrity.

For the small business community, the ICAC’s work helps level the playing field. By rooting out corruption in processes like procurement, licensing, and regulatory compliance, the ICAC ensures small businesses can compete fairly without the need to bribe or navigate biased systems. This creates an environment of trust, where decisions are made on merit rather than influence or favouritism. Additionally, the ICAC’s prevention programs and advice encourage better governance, reducing opportunities for corruption to occur. By fostering a clean, ethical public sector, the ICAC indirectly supports the growth of small businesses, enabling them to thrive in a fair and transparent economic landscape.

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #253 Broadcast date: 10 Dec 2024
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guests: Anna Booth, Fair Work Ombudsman

It’s been a big year for Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose and we’re finishing it off with a bang!

This week we welcome Anna Booth, Australia’s Fair Work Ombudsman to discuss the changes to industrial relations legislation and what it means for small businesses now and into the future. And importantly, what does it mean for the Fair Work Ombudsman agency itself?

Industrial relations and the Fair Work Act have always been a minefield for small businesses but the recent changes are really overwhelming and many have said they will avoid employing anyone as a result. The Respect @ Work legislation, changes to Fair Work Act with Same Job Same Pay (tranche one and tranche two), the Right to Disconnect laws, the introduction of Family and Domestic Violence Leave, Psychosocial hazards and positive duty guidelines... it’s not a far-fetched assumption to say it’s a little bit confusing at times and downright out of scope for most.

There’s a lot of speculation in the media (both political and practical) about the impact on small business owners navigating this complex web. Will it mean more owners will shift back to under-the-counter cash in hand wages? With more complexity, will we see more workers vulnerable as small business owners struggle to navigate changes or, is this all a smokescreen and they’re handling it just fine.

Well, the Fair Work Ombudsman’s team is on the front line of these questions from both employers and employees and there to assist both with navigating the complexities. Plus, they’ve made some pretty snazzy changes to their website in order to make it easier.

In the final episode of People Policy Purpose it’s a big show, so let’s get straight into hearing from this week’s expert guest, the Fair Work Ombudsman Anna Booth.

PEOPLE – How would you like to see small businesses become more activated in regards to workplace relations? What sort of education and outreach programs do you currently have to engage with that audience? Where have you noticed small businesses have been engaging to find info on Fair Work?

POLICY - industrial relations legislation is complex. How does the fair work ombudsman take such complex legislation and translated into procedures that small businesses can follow? What would be your recommendations to small businesses listening as a good place to start? Who are the best advisors to work with, if a typical small business owner can’t afford an HR lawyer on their team? COSBOA launched the PEAK resource for small businesses to navigate IR changes. How does your office interact with support services like this, offered by other agencies?

PURPOSE - can you describe the role of the Fair Work Ombudsman? Is it independent and how do you keep your work at arm’s length from policy makers? Do you influence their decisions and guide on best practice when it comes to considering the small business community in their deliberations?

Anna Booth was appointed to the position of Fair Work Ombudsman for a 5 year term from 1 September 2023.

Under the Fair Work Act 2009, Anna is responsible for promoting harmonious, productive, cooperative and compliant workplace relations. She has extensive and diverse experience in industrial relations spanning more than 45 years, working with unions, private, and public sectors. Anna was most recently Director of CoSolve Pty Ltd. She returned to CoSolve in 2020 after serving as a Deputy President of the Fair Work Commission for 8 years. Before her appointment to the Fair Work Commission, Anna combined her CoSolve directorship with non-executive directorships of ME Bank and IFM and was the non-executive chair of Slater & Gordon Ltd.

Anna spent much of her early career in the union movement. She was the National Secretary of the Textile, Clothing and Footwear Union of Australia and a Vice President of the Australian Council of Trade Unions.

Anna has also been Vice President Corporate Affairs at Sydney Harbour Casino and a lecturer at the Macquarie Graduate School of Management and the Australian Institute of Management. She has served on the boards of Commonwealth Bank of Australia, the Sydney Organising Committee for the Olympic Games and NRMA Ltd.

Anna is an accredited mediator under the National Mediator Accreditation System. She holds a Bachelor of Economics (Hons) from the University of Sydney and is the patron of the Industrial Relations Society of NSW.

The Fair Work Ombudsman’s purpose is to promote harmonious, productive, cooperative and compliant workplace relations in Australia. Their functions are to outline the responsibilities set by the Fair Work Act 2009 to achieve this purpose:

provide education, assistance, advice and guidance to employers, employees, regulated workers, regulated businesses, persons in a road transport contractual chain, outworkers, outworker entities and organisations
promote and monitor compliance with workplace laws
inquire into and investigate breaches of the Fair Work Act
take appropriate enforcement action
perform our statutory functions efficiently, effectively, economically and ethically.

To find out more about the Fair Work Ombudsman and how they help small businesses click HERE

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #252
Broadcast date: 26 Nov 2024
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guests: Patrick Coghlan, Chief Executive Officer CreditorWatch

There’s a lot of talk in the media right now about the state of small business. If you read across the mastheads and articles covering corporate and personal insolvencies, there’s always a mention of the small business community falling victim. Is it because of Covid? Is it because of the current economic conditions? Or is this the new norm?

This week on Small Biz Matters, we welcome Patrick Coghlan, the Chief Executive Officer of CreditorWatch to answer these questions.

They pull together powerful data that paints a picture of the reality for small businesses right now. Recently, that focus has been on payment times and the knock-on effect to small businesses part of a supply chain when large businesses take too long to pay their suppliers. In some cases where supply chains are limited like in regional areas, and this can be in the collapse of several businesses.

So, if small business in Australia is 32% of GDP, what does an increase in business related personal insolvency mean for the economy and why is CreditorWatch’s data is so important to keep an eye on them? Let’s hear from this week’s expert guest.

PEOPLE – What is your data telling you about how small businesses are doing at the moment? Which macro economic factors are having the biggest impact on small businesses in your opinion? Are we really at the “edge” or is this a “course correction” following the temporary measures to protect small businesses from insolvency?

POLICY - How affective do you think the Payment Times Reporting Register in reducing payment times to smaller business? What else in your opinion can the Government do to accelerate payment times or other measures to support small businesses?

PURPOSE - Why is CreditorWatch working with its data and media reports to highlight the plight of small businesses? Why the change and what are you hoping to achieve? Why is it important to have Unsecured lending in the sector? What’s been the impact of COVID side hustles?

Patrick Coghlan is the CEO of CreditorWatch. In 2010, he became one of the three founding employees of CreditorWatch and helped to shape the innovative product we see today. Patrick’s knowledge and experience has led him to become an industry thought leader, regularly presenting at conferences and providing commentary and insights for the media. His leadership qualities have enabled him to play a key part in developing CreditorWatch’s values and culture, for which the company has won multiple awards including the AFRs Best Places to Work and a Great Place to Work certification.

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #251
Broadcast date: 19 Nov 2024
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guests: Renee Baltov, Director The Barberhood

Running a small business is complicated enough, but imagine throwing yourself into unpacking a complex area of policy like skilled migration to ensure that your small business can grow and then, helping other small businesses to do the same. My guest today on Small Biz Matters has done just that. Not only has she unpacked, understood and implemented skilled migration as part of her business model, but she uses her knowledge and awareness to advocate for her industry and small businesses everywhere to ensure that it is more accessible, affordable and a useful tool for small businesses.

Hairdressing is one of the most complex small business models out there. Not only do you have customers, rent, overheads and profitability like everyone else, but you also have the added complexity of a younger workforce, and let’s not forget the expectation of being a psychologist to your clients! Like other small businesses, innovation in hairdressing can be progressed faster by importing skills and knowledge and then , training other staff from these international workers. The Barberhood in Sydney’s CBD has flourished and Succeeded, by learning from the skilled migrants they have hired… and so have their staff.

Today’s story to me, is inspiring. The Barberhood is a success; a CBD businesses rising from the ashes of COVID, but also I find it amazing that any small business owner would want to be a changemaker in policy Renée Baltov is a real business leader who is passionate about making policy and advocacy part of her business and part of everyone’s business.

PEOPLE – Tell us about your journey as a successful small business owner in the CBD. How does your business grow? How did COVID affect you?

POLICY - How did you become aware of skilled migration as an option for you as a small business owner? What have been the biggest hurdles trying to navigate the system? Is it getting any easier? What advice would you give to a small business thinking about bringing on board a skilled migrant to grow their business?

PURPOSE - Why do you advocate for other businesses when it comes to skilled migration? What do you fight for (e.g. the skilled migration lists) How do you work with your professional associations to get support and assist them?

Renée Baltov is a results-driven leader with extensive expertise in strategic marketing, business management, and commercial strategy. With over twenty years of experience spanning the FMCG, Retail, Health & Beauty, and Tech industries, she excels as a skilled business strategist.

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #250
Broadcast date: 29 Oct 2024
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guests: The Hon Bruce Billson, the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman

The Australian small business and family enterprise ombudsman has a plan. A 14 point plan. A guide. A list of recommendations to support small businesses to survive and thrive. Is it a comprehensive be-all-end-all or should it just be considered just a start?

Governments have traditionally had problems compartmentalising small business policy, shoehorning them into a single department, or support program.. The reality is every policy affects every small business in the country. So how do governments begin the process of understanding the impact and untangling regulation, making it easier to do business in Australia, and assist small businesses (32% of GDP) to grow flourish and help build their communities?

The Energising Enterprise report: 14 steps to boost Australia’s small and family businesses. What this report does is help to prioritise the governments thinking; it assists policy makers with deciding what’s most important, what’s critical right now and what can perhaps be considered down the track. The reality is small businesses need deregulation in every space but this is at least a coherent starting point at which to tackle the issue of the red tape for small businesses. It covers areas such as small business access to procurement, meaningful regulatory impact statements, tax offsets for startups, mandating low fees for payments, banning unfair trading practices, and Readily accessible and easily navigable central resource hub of ‘best of breed’ actionable information.

He’s got a plan, the man has a plan so let’s hear from the man, The Hon Bruce Billson.

The 14 Point Plkan - Take us through ASBFEO’s Energising Enterprise report: 14 steps to boost Australia’s small and family businesses:

Tax discount/offset scheme during the critical first three years.
Right-sized regulation - For every Cabinet submission and new policy proposal include a regulatory impact statement
Prime Minister’s Small Business Awards
Federal Small Business and Codes List in the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia to give small businesses an affordable, effective and timely alternative to defend their own economic interest where fair trading protections and reasonable commercial conduct safeguards are infringed upon
Procurement & compete for government contracts
Mandatory for banks and other providers to charge the lowest fee
Insurances - understandable, accessible and affordable
Ban unfair trading/business practices that distort competition and harm small business
Small Business Commissioner and Division within FWC for smaller employers
Digital platform providers standardised procedure for dispute resolution
A ‘Good Business Pays’ recognition and accreditation.
Focus on business system and reg-tech solutions, information management (including cyber resilience, eInvoicing, data management, privacy duties and Consumer Data Right awareness, AI uses)
Readily accessible and easily navigable central resource hub of ‘best of breed’ actionable information

Bruce Billson commenced his role as Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman (ASBFEO) in March 2021. The Ombudsman is an independent advocate for small and family businesses.

Bruce brings three decades of experience, knowledge, commitment and an understanding of the issues facing small business. Bruce was the Australian Government Cabinet Minister for Small Business from 2013-2015, a founding Director of Judo Bank and has held various board appointments, including the Franchise Council of Australia, Deakin University Business School and Australian Property Institute. He has also owned and operated a number of small businesses, and knows first-hand the joys and challenges this involves.

To find out more go to: https://www.asbfeo.gov.au

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #249
Broadcast date: 15 Oct 2024
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guests: Professor Barney Glover AO, Jobs and Skills Australia Commissioner

For years surveys have told us that one of the biggest concerns for small businesses in almost every industry is finding the right people with the right skills, to get the job done.

When unemployment statistics are discussed in small business circles it’s not just about the macro-economic number, there is real world impact. A tight labour market impacts on a small business owner differently since they’re the ones who compete for and attract talent, then manage the longer wait times to find, employ and train the people for their business. And when the economy is challenging as it is right now, small businesses would rather pay themselves less than lose their local employees and go through the arduous process of finding more staff.

Despite warnings from advocates, many industries have experienced years of underinvestment in skills, training and institutions. Apprentice completion rates are problematic, some courses were cut or defunded, and the difficulty as a small business owner trying to navigate across state jurisdictions all led to general confusion in the market. Some industry associations tried to resolve the skils shortages in their industry by becoming RTO’s (registered training organisations) but then found themselves dedicating manhours to navigating this complex system. The whole situation was made worse by the COVID pandemic, the departure of migrants and more recently, a drastic cut to international student numbers.

So the Federal Government established Jobs and Skills Australia to bring cohesion to the industry, better access to skills for workers and a simpler system for employers. Their vision is “for the full skills potential of our nation to be realised, resulting in improved workforce participation, productivity, wages and equity.”

This week Small Biz Matters is proud to welcome the Jobs and Skills Commissioner, Professor Barney Glover AO to deep dive into the workforce and skills shortages faced by small businesses and how Jobs and Skills Australia will aim to solve this complex policy and issue.

PEOPLE – Can you tell us a little bit about Jobs and Skills Australia and how you are engaging with the small business community to consider jobs of the future and meeting the shortfall of the skills required for growth?

POLICY - Skilled migrants speak of barriers to work such as requiring local experience get their foot in the door. Is Jobs and Skills Australia looking at innovative ways to link the skills we need with the migrants struggling to find work?

PURPOSE - Tell us about the Jobs and Skills Australia Atlas project. How will it work to solve the difficult problem of matching the needs of regional small businesses and availability of skilled workers?

Professor Barney Glover AO is the Commissioner of Jobs and Skills Australia. Professor Glover began his five-year term as Commissioner in 2024.

Professor Glover is a distinguished academic leader, an accomplished mathematician and mathematics educator with significant experience in developing strong relationships with the vocational education sector. He is well respected for his engagement with First Nations Australians and disadvantaged communities.

He was Vice-Chancellor and President of Western Sydney University for ten years, from 2014-24, and in 2019 was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia for distinguished service to tertiary education, professional associations, and cultural organisations. In 2015, Professor Glover was awarded the title of Emeritus Professor for his outstanding leadership whilst Vice-Chancellor of Charles Darwin University from 2009 to 2013. Professor Glover was awarded the title of Emeritus Professor and an Honorary Doctorate of Letters from Western Sydney University in 2024 in recognition of his decade of leadership.

To find out more about Jobs and Skills Atlas resource click HERE

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #248
Broadcast date: 1 Oct 2024
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guests: Leanne Faulkner, Small Business Wellbeing Advocate and founder of Fortitude at Work

Advocates have long spoken about small business people being at the centre of the economy. They are the business, they live and breathe it and often describe it as their livelihood, not just a source of income. So, knowing this all too well, why do policy makers treat them the same way as large corporates, placing the same burden of regulation on people as they do a well-oiled corporate machine? Why is it so critical that we put small business people first and treat them differently than larger businesses in policy?

Here to discuss with us today the true impact of overregulation on the mental health of small business people, is our guest, Leanne Faulkner, successful entrepreneur, founder of multiple businesses, fierce advocate and life-long learner.

Leanne took those experiences, those trials and tribulations small businesses all know too well, and placed them squarely at the feet of academia; pushing the system to research into small businesses differently and treat them as people, not corporates. She’s an expert in small business mental health, not only based on lived experience, but as an academic and incredibly well connected business owner.

She’s going to talk us through how she approached your body of work and what were her key conclusions in her PhD. Also, how she would like to see her work influence policymakers now and into the future when dealing with small business mental health and strategies to keep them flourishing and surviving.

PEOPLE – advocates of long spoken about small business people being at the centre of small business. Why is it so critical that we put small business people first as opposed to the way we treat larger corporate’s in the economy? You’ve been studying small business mental health for a number of years now; what have you noticed that has changed dramatically since Covid?

POLICY - congratulations on completing your PhD, which is all about small business mental health. Can you explain how you approached your body of work and what were your key conclusions? How did you research and approach the well known problem of accessing them and explaining the small business perspective? What programs do you think of my successful in recent memory support small businesses?

PURPOSE - How would you like to see your work influence policymakers now and into the future when dealing with small businesses, their mental health, and strategies to keep them flourishing and surviving? What should be approached be; do we consider support when small businesses are at the brink (like we are currently doing) or try and initiate programs so that small businesses can put themselves first.

Leanne Faulkner was the original founder of Central Coast skincare brand, Billie Goat Soap. Starting in her kitchen on the Central Coast, Leanne built the brand over several years resulting in sales in over 2000 stores nationwide and exports to several international markets.

For over ten years she has advocated for more mental health resources for business owners, not just employees, and today there are a range of services available for entrepreneurs and those who own a business. She has just completed her PhD on the same subject at the University of Newcastle. Leanne has developed unique insights about working well that are relevant to people in all business sizes, large and small. She is a popular keynote speaker because she addresses the intersection of business ownership and workplace mental health. She inspires people to think about innovative ways they can care for their wellbeing at work, and there's not a fruit basket, massage train or group hug required.

To find out more about Fortitude at Work click HERE

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #247
Broadcast date: 10 Sep 2024
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guests: Janelle McIntosh (Labor), Nathan Tilbury (Independent), Warren Waddell (Liberal)

If you were to ask a small business owner which level of government has the most impact on their business, to be honest, it would depend when you ask them. Right now small businesses are thinking about interest rates, rising complexities in compliance around hiring and keeping staff, cost of doing business and of course, the state of the economy right now.

But frequently the decisions made by your local council can have an enormous impact on your ability to run a business. They are responsible for much of the red tape which can suffocate small business growth. Development planning of residential and commercial areas, parking, foot traffic, events, rubbish and recycling disposal, and increasingly finding the right people with the right skills who can afford to live locally.

Small Biz Matters asked a number of businesses right here what they thought were the main concerns facing their small businesses at a local level and what they would like to see the new Hornsby mayor change to improve their economic outlook and make it easier to do business in Hornsby.

Joining us live in the studio we have:

Janelle McIntosh - Labor
Nathan Tilbury - Independent
Warren Waddell - Liberal

PEOPLE – What do you think is the number one issue for small business people right now? How will you improve engagement with local small business representatives? Will you support the council creating a new role of economic development manager?

POLICY - Beyond the Hornsby After Dark campaign, how will you improve foot traffic for areas tenanted by predominantly small business? What policies will you implement in the first 12months for small businesses in Hornsby?

PURPOSE - How many Chamber of commerce or other business events have you attended in the last 3years?

Councillor Janelle McIntosh

Janelle was born and raised in Hornsby Shire and together with her husband is raising her son here. She is passionate about local government, returning for her third term at Council after being first elected in 2004. Janelle is proud to have initiated many key issues and strategies such as Aboriginal Acknowledgement in Hornsby, the Economic Development & Tourism Strategy, Public Domain Guidelines, Dementia Friendly Hornsby, Street Library Grant program and the Healthy Ageing Strategy. She is well known for fostering engagement with the community and for active promotion of local businesses and organisations, Council issues, programs and events.

To find out more about Janelle McIntosh’s campaign to be your local Mayor, click HERE

Councillor Nathan Tilbury

Nathan Tilbury was first elected as Councillor representative in 2012 and has served since. He genuinely knows and cares for his community. He is well known for his empathetic approach and his ability to listen to all residents, no matter how large or small their issue may be.

To find out more about Janelle McIntosh’s campaign to be your local Mayor, click HERE

Councillor Warren Waddell

As a fifth-generation resident of Hornsby and a proud second-term Shire Councillor, I have a deep-rooted connection to our community. Growing up in Galston, attending Macquarie University, and managing my family’s historic orchard have all shaped my commitment to our Shire. My experience with local organizations such as the Hornsby Kuring Gai Women’s Shelter and Habitat for Humanity has reinforced my dedication to creating a safe and thriving environment for everyone

To find out more about Warren Waddell’s campaign to be your local Mayor, click HERE

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #246
Broadcast date: 3 Sep 2024
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guests: Guests, CEOs and leaders in Regional Australia at the Regional Australia Summit

The appeal of regional living is here to stay for thousands of metro movers, requiring new thinking and action on how the services, housing, and skills landscape will develop to meet this ongoing demand across the country. Important economic and social transitions are underway, and regional Australia is at the frontline of this change.

That’s the focus of the 2024 Regional Australia Institute’s Regions Rising National Summit and exactly the right platform to tackle the critical policy issues for regional Australia. Small Biz Matters was lucky to be invited, interviewing speakers, experts and leaders on their thoughts about their people, policy, and purpose for in particular, small business.

The program featured engaging addresses from the nation’s politicians, inspiring thought leaders and changemakers. A series of panels and concurrent sessions addressed the key pillars of RAI’s Regionalisation Ambition – a framework to ‘Rebalance the Nation’, telling the stories of regions’ challenges and success stories, and providing a wealth of knowledge to help drive change in communities and businesses.

It was a solutions-focussed, nation building event bringing together thought leaders across all sectors of government, industry, academia, and most importantly regional communities.

We interviewed:

Liz Ritchie CEO Regional Australia Institute
Hon Kristy McBain MP Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government
Senator the Hon Bridget McKenzie, leader for Nationals in the Senate
John Cleland, CEO Essential Energy
Sam Dimarco , GM Regional & remote nbn
Hacia Atherton CEO empowered women in trades

Let’s have a listen to their thoughts on the regional Australia’s People, Policy and Purpose!

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #245
Broadcast date: 20 Aug 2024
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guests: Dr Sherman Chan, Chief Economist at Business NSW

Dr Sherman Chan is one of those few economists who, when they explain a complex problem, it makes sense. That’s why whenever you attend a BusinessNSW event where she is presenting or read their quarterly Business Insights data report, the science of economics becomes a little clearer.

Small business is on the roller coaster of macro economic conditions, and its currently on the downward side of the big dipper. It is of course greatly affected by interest rates, unemployment rates and inflation (the usual suspects) and well aware of the micro conditions facing their own small business but the insights coming from small business can paint a clear picture for policy makers too. This is particularly true when that data is robust, clearly presented and consistent in its undertaking. It’s a powerful tool for both small businesses but politicians and policy makers who are ultimately making decisions which affect your business every day.

Dr Sherman Chan is passionate about making small business data meaningful, accessible and importantly impactful to these policy makers. Regularly briefing small business intel from the quarterly business insights report to the likes of NSW Treasury, the RBA and federal politicians, she has an intelligent approach to data gathering, presenting it in a clear and relatable way, Dr Sherman Chan is exactly the right person to deliver the information you need to understand the state of small business right now.

PEOPLE – Can you tell us a little about yourself and why you’re so passionate about supporting small businesses through data? Why has business New South Wales continue to produce the Business Insights report? How have economists become so influential in the media and advocacy work and critical in the decision making process when it comes to policy decisions made by Government?

POLICY - What difference can surveys make to the policy direction for businesses in NSW? What’s the difference between your Saturdays and the work that the ABS does? How do the surveys influence the policy work of BusinessNSW? How do you use the surveys to drive decision makers?

PURPOSE Can you tell us a little bit about the BusinessNSW surveys that have been running for many years? How are they put together? And how do you decide which questions to ask? How influential are they?

To find out more about BusinessNSW Business Conditions Survey, check it out HERE

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #244
Broadcast date: 6 Aug 2024
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guests: Huy Truong Co-Founder and Executive Chairman at Thrive Refugee Enterprise

Recent data from Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman shows one out of three small business owners (34%) were born outside of Australia. Migrants and refugees are more likely to be successful in business ownership; they may have previously run a successful business or simply have the unique skills from challenging life circumstances which bring the tenacity and grit to run a small business.

Australian Bureau of statistics data shows that typically it takes 4 years before humanitarian visa holders earn more than $30,000 per year. That’s not a liveable wage anywhere. It’s one thing to welcome refugees with open arms and it’s another to support them into viable, economic stability and empower them with skills and training to, if they wish, to start their own small business.

So why are there not more opportunities and programs encouraging this, given that it can be a more reliable source of income for those who don’t have their skills or qualifications recognised? Well, one such organisation is feeling this very important gap.

The Thrive Refugee Entrepreneurship Program is specifically designed for refugees and asylum seekers interested in starting their own businesses and aims to accelerate and increase social and economic inclusion for refugees and asylum seekers through self-employment.

The strength comes from a national footprint with grassroots service delivery model embedded in key refugee settlement destinations. And as migration flows towards different areas and refugee communities become more established, the need for communities outside the major cities to access and benefit from the Thrive continues to grow.

There is also added benefit to the whole economy, of increased employment opportunities for the local community as the number of small businesses grow, and of course the benefits to the government of GST and tax collected. Plus, refugees and migrants who have invested in a small business, both financially and with their time are more likely to remain in a community where the type of business are forged.

Today we welcome Thrive’s proud co-founder, Huy Truong, who, along with an incredible board and advisory council who are passionate about refugee, economic empowerment is ensuring this not-for-profit grows from a concept to a national organisation, making a real difference to the Australian economy.

PEOPLE – Tell us your story and how your journey had led you to be one of Australia’s foremost refugee advocates. Why is it so important to empower through entrepreneurial enterprise rather than position refugees as victims?

POLICY - Why should economic empowerment for refugees be front of mind for all policy makers? What are the benefits to the local and national economy?

PURPOSE - What role does your NFP organisation Thrive Refugee Enterprise play in leading the way for purpose-driven funding? Which areas of Government do you and your team work with and how do you advocate? What would be your advice to other social enterprises starting today?

Huy arrived in Australia as a refugee and is an entrepreneur and investor who now dedicates his time to the success of refugees and migrants in Australia.

Huy is the Executive Chairman and Founder of Thrive Refugee Enterprise – a NGO dedicated to the economic self-reliance of refugees. Since inception, Thrive has provided almost $15m in business financing and planning support to over 700 refugees to start/grow a small business – generating over $70m p.a to the Australian economy. Thrive operates in QLD, NSW and VIC with a strong governance including Advisory Council members Martin Parkinson, David Gonski, Christine Holgate and John Curtis.

Huy began his career with the Boston Consulting Group before embarking on his entrepreneurial and investment career path.

Huy has an Economic Honours Degree from Monash University and a MBA from Harvard Business School.

Huy lives in Melbourne, married with 3 children and is passionate about a confident, united and Progressive Australia.

Thrive was founded on the core beliefs that refugees are entrepreneurial, hard working and contribute back to the economy through business participation and social integration.

You can find out more about Thrive HERE

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #243
Broadcast date: 30 July 2024
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guests: Liz Ritchie, CEO at Regional Australia Institute

The latest Regional Australia Institute report Regional Movers Index (created in partnership with CommBank Business and Institutional) highlights fascinating trends in our nation's population movements. Metro to regional relocations are now 20% above pre-Covid levels with 24% more people moving from capital cities regions compared with the opposite direction. That’s a net migration out of our cities into our regional towns!

With such a large change population and the unique circumstances that brings, what’s required is relationship building, placed based approach to policy and connectivity into community. Luckily there’s a think tank doing exactly that, and it’s run but the policy powerhouse and regional expert, Liz Richie.

The Regional Australia Institute captures the unique skills of their team, as well as their passion for regional Australia. In fact, the majority of them live in the towns which they represent! Researchers, policy experts, and influential relations experts who come together to make regional Australia better.

There are few people as interconnected into regional cities, understanding population growth, the need for skills and how their small businesses flourish and when they need support. This is going to be an excellent discussion from an expert in the field and a true female leader in Australian policy.

PEOPLE – Who does RAI represent? How do you work so successfully as a regionally located team, focussed on regional issues? Tell us about the upcoming Regions Rising Summit in Canberra in August and what you're hoping to achieve and what you'd like to highlight to decision makers at the conference?

POLICY - Which policy areas are you currently focussed on? Which departments do you work with and how do you work as an advocacy organisation with politicians and departments to ensure the voice of regional, rural and remote Australia is heard?

PURPOSE Tell us about your recently published reports and what you’re trying to achieve in the policy space for each of these?

The daughter of a farmer who grew up amongst the rice crops and river redgums around Deniliquin in south-western New South Wales, Liz Ritchie’s had a lifelong affiliation with regional Australia. As CEO of the Regional Australia Institute her purpose is to empower regions to thrive through leadership, activation, and impact. Liz firmly believes that by replacing myth and stereotype with facts and knowledge, the RAI can help build a bridge between city and country Australians. She spearheaded the development of the Regionalisation Ambition – a framework to ‘rebalance the nation’ by driving a parity of population between the regions and cities. Prior to joining the RAI, Liz worked for Westpac and the Committee for Economic Development of Australia.

Independent and informed by both research and ongoing dialogue with the community. The Regional Australia Institute (RAI) develops policy solutions and advocates for change to build a stronger economy and better quality of life in regional Australia – for the benefit of all Australians.

To find out more about Regional Australia Institute, check it out HERE

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #242
Broadcast date: 23 July 2024
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guests: Alexandra Cannizzaro, Founder of Platform Zero

With so much going on in the world, it’s time to be inspired on Small Biz Matters. Our guest is a founder, has spent most of her working life since 2014 in the industry and a changemaker. She’s the sort of person that sees a problem and knows that she’s the right person to fix it. As the old adage goes, if you want something done right do it yourself.

We all know that sustainability and the responsibility of business go hand-in-hand and Alex is one of those young, inspiring people, who have really taken the bull by the horns, and made it their mission to implement change. She is the Founder of Platform Zero; an expert in redirecting and repurposing food waste and passionate about tackling climate change and rising prices. She knows the problem and has lived experience in the fresh food, wholesale and the premium quality produce industry. Now made it her life’s mission to create a successful sustainability business, tackling climate change, and rising prices called Platform Zero.

She'll join us to inspire, and offer some tips on how we can do better in our homes and businesses and get involved with great organisations like Platform Zero.

PEOPLE – Tell us about your small business journey and how you came up with the concept for your startup. As a young person trying to start a business in Australia, what has been your biggest hurdle? You mentioned during your appearance at the COSBOA summit this year how a lack of competition in the grocery sector impacts small business like yours. If you could talk directly to the CEOs of the giant businesses out there, what would you say to them to encourage them to make a Farah for young people and young business is trying to get started in the industry?

POLICY - If there was one thing, the government could do to reduce the red tape in your industry what would you suggest to them? You are involved in the supply chain in the grocery sector. Clearly there are major problems with how this is streamlined, despite big business being in control of those processes for so long. What small business attributes could big businesses learn from to improve the process

PURPOSE we all know how difficult it is to start and grow a business here. What keeps you going? What drives you to succeed and where would you like to be in 10 years time? How would you like to influence the industry

Alex Cannizzaro is Founder of Platform Zero; and expert in redirecting and repurposing food waste and passionate about tackling climate change and rising prices.

At Platform Zero, I have developed technology solutions that cover the whole supply chain ecosystem to redirect waste from landfills and re-purpose them for a wider range of purposes. At Platform Zero we hit all your ESG targets and we do it fast.

Where it all started? The fruit and veg industry. My family has been involved in the fruit and vegetable industry for over 70 years, covering the entire ecosystem both nationally and globally. I am the third generation within the family business, and I am responsible for steering this industry in a more sustainable, digitally advanced, and environmentally friendly direction in order to contribute to a more sustainable future.

To find out more about Platform Zero, check it out HERE

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #241
Broadcast date: 16th July 2024
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guest: Wes Lambert CPA, FGIA, CAE, MAICD and CEO Australian Restaurant & Cafe Association

Wes Lambert describes himself as passionate about advancing the interests of the hospitality industry through advocacy, education, and leadership. He has over 24 years of experience in the hospitality industry, a deep understanding of the challenges and opportunities facing the sector, as well as the skills and tools to deliver solutions that meet the needs of businesses.

But more than that he’s a passionate advocate. He lives and breathes the sector as a leader who has dedicated decades to bringing the industry to great heights and more than once, ensuring its survival.

But right now, the industry he loves so dearly and has made his life’s mission to see succeed, is on its knees. So, why is it now, even after the ravages of COVID and massive downturns in the economy like the GFC are thought leaders like Wes Lambert talking about devastation of an entire sector like never before? And what can Wes, with his deep knowledge of the policy space push for, to ensure survival of the industry – not just of the fittest?

This isn’t just about $8 lattes anymore. This is about jobs, high streets filled with empty shop windows and the very survival of communities and our way of life. And Wes Lambert is just the leader, advocate and experienced passionate policy influencer who cafes and restaurants need fighting in their corner.

PEOPLE - Tell us about the business owners you represent. Why is it critical for Australian communities and the economy that cafes and hospitality businesses get support right now? Do they need a hand out or a help up? And what does that look like?

POLICY - In a perfect world, in which department would you want to start to improve policy to make it easier to run a hospitality business in Australia? Which areas need the most work? Do you think the Australian Govt is really listening to the needs of small business?

PURPOSE - There's been a lot in the media recently about the dire state of the industry. Is it as a result of inflation, the lag from COVID closures, restaurant input costs or all of the above? What do policy makers need to do urgently to save hospitality small businesses on the brink?

As the CEO of the Australian Restaurant & Cafe Association, Wes Lambert is passionate about advancing the interests of the hospitality industry through advocacy, education, and leadership. With over 24 years of experience in the hospitality industry, he has a deep understanding of the challenges and opportunities facing the sector, as well as the skills and tools to deliver solutions that meet the needs of businesses.

Wes Lambert is the former CEO of the 2020 Association of the Year Restaurant & Catering Australia (R&CA), winner of the AuSAE 2020 Influencer Award, and a board member of several industry bodies, including the Australian Foodservice Advocacy Body, the Council of Small Business Organizations Australia, and the Children's Tumour Foundation. He holds a CPA, a FGIA, and a CAE, and am a Member of AICD. He is also a US Army veteran, an author, and a father of three.

The Restaurant & Cafe segment of the Hospitality Industry has been under constant threat & pressure as Taxes, Inflation, Wage rises, Migration & Staffing Challenges, and Relentless Rent Increases decimate business after business throughout Australia.

Our purpose is to Drive Change and be the voice of Restaurants & Cafes by uniting industry leaders, fostering collaboration, and driving impactful legislative and policy shifts to benefit Restaurants & Cafes.

By amplifying the voices of our Members and advocating for their interests, we aim to shape policies and regulations that foster a thriving and sustainable Hospitality Industry.

Join us as we embark on this journey to redefine the future of Restaurant & Cafe advocacy in Australia, one Member and one change at a time.

Together, we can make a real and lasting difference. To find out more go to: www.arca.org.au

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #240
Broadcast date: 9th July 2024
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guest: Live from the Fintech Australia 2024 CDR Summit

This week we were live from Fintech Australia’s CDR Summit for a very interesting discussion on why small biz mattes and why does Consumer Data Rights matter to our community – the advisors, the small businesses and the Fintech industry. Panellists were

Eric Tsang, CEO and Co-founder Skript

Grant Augustin, Managing Director SISS Data Services

Simeon Duncan, Senior Manager of International Corporate Affairs, Intuit

It’s been a hard fought regulatory battle to get us to this point and as you’ll learn in today’s discussion there’s still a long way to go.

So, what can we learn from other CDR and open banking from the rest of the world, where are the opportunities to collaborate? How can the Fintech industry make the most of this change to adapt and evolve to meet growing data needs of business? What are the missed opportunities to the Aust economy if we ignore CDR’s power and the potential to unlock the digital economy?

We need to ensure small businesses and their accountants and bookkeepers can effectively engage with the system and make data valuable and meaningful. Today’s discussion from our experts is about empowerment, enablement and overcoming the barriers.

Let’s here from the experts as they introduce themselves and their expertise when it comes to Consumer Data Rights.

PEOPLE - What is the difference between CDR and bank feed in terms of a small business’ access and right to data? What’s been the advocacy journey to get to this point and who has been involved and why? What do these changes to CDR mean for small businesses and the Fintech industry in the future?

POLICY - What’s the difference between bank feed and, open banking and screen scraping and why does it matter? Does the “perfect scenario” exist anywhere else in the world? Why is data quality integral to small business, government and policy making? How important are bank feeds to cash flow and accurate / informed decision making?

PURPOSE – What is Consumer Data Rights and how did we get here? Who has lobbied to ensure small businesses, advisors and Fintech to ensure there was minimal disruption to bank feeds and the digitisation of all small businesses?

The 2024 Fintech Australia Consumer Data Rights Conference’s aim was to build awareness about the Consumer Data Right reform so more organisations across sectors can be involved in future proofing its success. It also aimed to achieve a high level of technical education for stakeholders on how Open Innovation can evolve the emerging Consumer Data Right ecosystem towards economy wide Open Data reality. It successfully showcased CDR opportunities, current and potential use-cases and connecting the established ecosystem with a broader commercial audience. full day of plenary and breakout sessions to explore the vast potential of the Consumer Data Right and highlight potential use-cases and commercial opportunities. It captured a broad audience spanning the digital economy, including fintechs and large financial institutions which are interested in but not yet fully harnessing the CDR. The event provided opportunities for players from across this burgeoning ecosystem to connect and discuss the vast opportunities CDR provides for the future digital economy.

Featuring local and international experts, policy makers, founders and builders will take to the stage to discuss the future of the CDR and showcase the most exciting emerging use cases.

The Major sponsor was Intuit.

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #239
Broadcast date: 2nd July 2024
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guest: Dominique Lamb, the QLD Small Business Commissioner

Queensland is a unique part of the world, not only for its natural beauty, incredible tourism industry, but it’s people. And it’s Queensland’s people that are at the heart of small business. From agriculture to retail to tourism to metro and regional areas they are as diverse as any other part of Australia.

Unique to Queensland is their passionate, experienced small business commissioner, Dominique Lamb. Formally the CEO to the National Retailers Association. She’s brought with her a wealth of experience and passion for her state to deliver some incredible achievements after only a couple of years in office. Cheers tenacious, empathetic and loves her state and the diversity of small businesses within it.

She joins us on Small Biz Matters today to talk about those achievements in two short years, and the difficulties facing small businesses in Queensland now and into the future. Plus we unpack the recently published report and first of its kind study: Understanding the lifecycle and mindset of Queensland small businesses. Its been nominated for an international award! We will ask what did the agency learn about small business in QLD and why was it so important to inform through this publication?

PEOPLE Can you tell the audience why you’re so passionate about small business and what you’ve done over the years to support? The reality is governments have a lot of impact on small business is through regulation. So realistically, is there anything that can be done, any thought leadership thinking to improve this situation?

POLICY - What are your key policy priorities for businesses in QLD? In your opinion, is there a good place to start for small businesses who want to be more involved in reducing red tape and improving policy in QLD? What successes have you recently had? QLD seems to be at the mercy of the impacts of climate change. What are the key policy priorities here of your office to support small businesses who experience its impacts?

PURPOSE - Tell us about your recently published report First of its kind study: Understanding the lifecycle and mindset of Queensland small businesses, I’ve heard it’s nominated for an international award! What did you learn about small business in QLD and why was it so important to inform through this publication? Can you tell the audience about the role of the commissioner, how it is independent and how you influence policy in the federal Govt? Who are the main advocates who support your work and how does your office engage with them?

Dominique Lamb assumed the role of Small Business Commissioner in December 2022. With a robust background in industrial relations and employment law, she brings a unique blend of legal expertise and advocacy skills to her position.

Dominique's primary objective is to enhance the operating environment for small businesses in Queensland and to reduce the time and costs associated with resolving disputes involving small business. In her capacity as Commissioner, Dominique has embarked on a proactive engagement strategy, collaborating closely with governmental bodies, industry organisations, and regional stakeholders. One of Dominique's notable achievements has been the significant expansion of the Small Business Friendly (SBF) Program, which now boasts participation from 49 Councils. Additionally, she has taken proactive steps to establish three new roundtables, providing platforms for industry representatives and regional stakeholders to voice their concerns and contribute to policy discussions.

Beyond her professional endeavours, Dominique is deeply committed to social causes, particularly those addressing domestic and family violence.

To find out more go to: https://qsbc.qld.gov.au/

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #238
Broadcast date: 25th June 2024
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guest: Hon Bruce Billson, the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman

I get cross when people say there’s no one representing small businesses. Not only do we have great business leaders and industry associations speaking up (often as volunteers or with relatively low funding or pay) but we have business peaks like COSBOA standing up for ONLY the concerns and needs of small business. By far the most empowered and collaborative of our representatives is the tenacious, independent and laser focused Ombudsman, Bruce Billson. With fewer resources than is needed the ASBFEO team works across activities like research, policy submissions, constant engagement with small businesses, outreaches into community, all in order to effectively advocate for all of us.

In today’s show, we get our Small Biz Matters exclusive update from the Ombudsman on recent activities and research, plus we get Bruce’s take on the recent May 2024 federal budget.

In the world of digital marketing and social media ASBFEO has been busy. Complaints from small businesses about social media platforms and marketing companies targeting the small end of town have been increasing dramatically. Thanks to shockingly poor processes to protect their clients (the small businesses), its relatively easy to hack a social media business account. This can be incredibly damaging. And Marketing companies looking after websites aren’t doing any better: often offering poor customer service and then threatening small businesses if they try to leave.

On the issue of procurement: Government spends billions and a very small proportion of that goes to small business. Shouldn’t small businesses have a bigger piece of the pie? Why is it so difficult to get the Government as a client? Because the rules are complicated and as Bruce describes “it’s in-crowdy”. Plus, agencies tend to favour the usual suspects (the Big 4). The focus of ASBFEO’s report was all about not just saying we should do better but invest in, create policies and monitor the procurement process so the “doing better” actually happens. Now that the Buy Australian Plan is in place ASBFEO is working to put more profits back into Australian communities, and that means small businesses.

ASBFEO has also been advertising the Flinders University independent statutory review of the family and domestic violence leave entitlement and how small businesses can get involved and have their voices heard. He makes a good point that the impact on small businesses is disproportionate given all the double handling of work, costs and those wanting to do the right thing navigating a complex system.

Plus, we also have a good chat about the May 2024 Budget.

Bruce’s thoughts about backing small business are inspiring; let’s amplify his work and back this great business advocate.

PEOPLE - you’ve recently released the ASBFEO report into Government Procurement in which you make 11 recommendations. What are they and why are you critical of the equity of procurement for small businesses? What exactly do small businesses have to do in order to gain access to the billions of dollars of government spending? Is the process to prohibitive? And which given the recent federal budget, which dept has the biggest opportunities for small businesses?

POLICY - Flinders University is conducting an independent statutory review of the family and domestic violence leave entitlement. How can small businesses get involved and why is it important to hear from them at this point in the process?

PURPOSE - What did you think of the May 2024 Federal Budget for small businesses? With the economy at such a low, did they go far enough to support small businesses in their hour of need and what could be done to improve their lives and make it easier to run a small business in Australia right now?

Bruce Billson commenced his role as Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman (ASBFEO) in March 2021. The Ombudsman is an independent advocate for small and family businesses.
Bruce brings three decades of experience, knowledge, commitment and an understanding of the issues facing small business. Bruce was the Australian Government Cabinet Minister for Small Business from 2013-2015, a founding Director of Judo Bank and has held various board appointments, including the Franchise Council of Australia, Deakin University Business School and Australian Property Institute. He has also owned and operated a number of small businesses, and knows first-hand the joys and challenges this involves.

To find out more go to: https://www.asbfeo.gov.au

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #237
Broadcast date: 18th June 2024
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guest: Will Day, Deputy Commissioner Small Business at Australian Taxation Office

We are pleased to be joined on Small Biz Matters by those in government who are really at the coalface of supporting small business. Today we welcome Will Day, Assistant Commissioner in charge of small business at the Australian Tax Office. So why did we ask the ATO on the program you may ask?

Well, as difficult as it may be, whilst small businesses struggle to keep their doors open in the current economic climate, it’s also important that they continue to work on meeting their obligations. We all know that tax and compliance is difficult and unnecessary burden on small business but it is also critical ensuring that small businesses a vital role in the economy. But whilst we all struggle with compliance and making sure everything is in order there is a group of businesses who do the wrong thing; making it unfair and inequitable for the rest of us.

The ATO takes a considered and careful approach when dealing with small businesses, doing their best to really understanding what they’re going through. Critical to this is their relationship with the advisor community and associations who speak openly and frankly about what their small businesses; and how the policy burden can be better administered by the ATO to make the process as simple as possible.

So let’s have a listen to what Will Day has to say about the way they support, work with advisors, the latest digital developments on the ATO website and what they’re doing to stamp out software that gives some small businesses and unfair advantage.

PEOPLE - How does the tax office engage with the small business industry groups and associations to understand the needs of small businesses and the best way to support their members to meet their tax obligations? How important is it to engage with advisors, and is that a different conversation? POLICY - What are your current priorities which the ATO developing with these groups to refine and make fit for purpose for small business? "The new Commissioner mentioned at the COSBOA summit the amount of collectable debt is now at over $50 billion. 65% of all collectable debt owed relates to small business and 74% of that relates to activity statements. What's your message to small businesses listening today who have a debt with the ATO and are not sure what they should do?"

PURPOSE - How does the ATO work with other government departments and regulators to streamline processes and make it easier and lessen the reporting burden on small businesses? Are there any new tech developments in the pipeline?

With over 25 years’ experience in the Australian Taxation Office, Will Day has performed many senior roles leading its support to client experiences.

As ATO Deputy Commissioner for Small Business, Will is focused on helping small business owners get things right from the start by making it easier to comply with their tax and superannuation obligations as well as helping to improve overall business literacy and skills through education.

Will has responsibility for delivering a program of work that is focused on collaborating with partners to design a digital-first approach to make it easier for small businesses meet their obligations.

Will is also focused on making sure there is a level playing field for the vast majority of small businesses that do pay their fair share by looking closely at activities in the shadow economy.

Prior to his current role, Will had senior roles focused on improving the quality of the ATO’s technical public advice and guidance as well as roles supporting the integrity of the tax and superannuation systems.

To find out more go to: ATO Small Business Newsroom

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #236
Broadcast date: 4 June 2024
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guests: Roger Gregg, Sabby Gill, Aly Garrett

We all know that data, in the wrong hands can be destructive. But we also know the power of data to make us more efficient, save us time and the potential to make us better advisors and business owners.

There’s a tug of war going on right now. As small businesses, advisors and Fintech companies, how do we work together to simultaneously embrace data’s potential and control its misuse? How do we take into account the needs of businesses and consumers and the advisors in the middle? And who owns the data anyway?

In today’s panel we unpacked all this and more including AI's impact on small businesses and software development and what Australian policy makers can learn from the rest of the world to resolve the issues around data privacy.

We’re lucky to have such an esteemed group of guests. Our expert panel consists of leaders in the fields of accounting and small business, Fintech Founders and renowned international software, data and AI policy experts.

Roger Gregg - Hospitality leader and founder of software companies like LightYear

Sabby Gill - CEO of Dext and Chair of the international Digital Leaders professional network, Aly Garrett FCA - All In Advisory Architect and Accounting Adventures Podcast host.

This podcast was recorded back in 2023 at the Xero Mastermind Community Precon and co-hosted in collaboration with Heather Smith, Host of Accounting Apps podcast and international speaker on AccountTech.

PEOPLE – - How should or could advisors embrace AI to make their practices run more efficiently (yes we do include some good practical examples). What is the reality and do small businesses in different industries even have the time to implement AI and what happens to them if they get left behind?

POLICY - Potentially, we could be looking at more regulations placed on accountants and bookkeepers as government knee-jerk-reacts to community concerns. What will be the impact on advisors and clients if regulations tighten in data privacy with the number and severity of cyber attacks?

PURPOSE - The impact of CDR consumer data rights could have been disastrous for advisors and their clients; luckily we dodged a bullet here in Australia but it’s a great example of how too much restriction can strangle innovation. From the perspective of those who rely heavily on data to function (the advisors and their clients) what would happen?

Roger Gregg is a seasoned professional with a diverse background in management accounting, manufacturing, retail, fintech and hospitality.

Born in Northern Ireland, prior to moving to Australia, Roger was involved in the manufacturing sector in Belfast, and was Chairman of the Northern Ireland Furniture Group.

Then when he moved to Australia in 2007, Roger was recruited to be Director of Operations for Keystone Hospitality Group, taking the group to win the prestigious Australian Group Operator of the Year award in 2008, 2009 and 2010. It was there that he saw (and felt) the need for Accounts Payable automation and in 2011 he co-founded the Accounts Payable tech start-up invitbox with his brother Chris. Despite neither of them having any tech experience, invitbox was awarded Xero’s Emerging App of the Year for Australia in 2013, just prior to being acquired by Intuit in 2014.

Building upon their previous success they founded Lightyear in 2018 to continue their mission of solving Accounts Payable headaches for SMEs. The company operates both domestically and internationally, with a staff of 60 offices in Belfast and Sydney, servicing 6,000 businesses across 22 countries.

In addition to Lightyear, Roger is involved in a number of hospitality businesses as a partner in House Made Hospitality, as well as helping Bondi Brewing Company take it to the big guys.

Aly Garrett FCA is a multi-award winning fellow chartered accountant, tax agent and podcast host (check out Aly & Andrew’s All Aussie Accounting Adventures) who founded All In Advisory Pty Ltd in 2018.

All In has won Boutique Firm and Start up Firm of the Year at Accountants Daily and are Xero Cloud Champions of the Year.

Aly has worked in the accounting industry for 30 years, with big, small, traditional and innovative firms and everything in between and has helped many of them work through their digital journeys. She knows the challenges and opportunities this can present and likes to use her experience to bring positive change in our accounting and bookkeeping communities.

Sabby Gill was appointed CEO of Dext in October 2022 and brings more than 35years’ experience in the technology sector, spanning sales, operations, development, support and customer service. He has spent his career supporting businesses of all sizes with technology that looks to unlock their potential—both at home and in international markets. Prior to Dext, Sabby was CEO of Thomas International, which is a leading talent assessment and psychometric provider. Other past roles also included UK & Ireland Managing Director of Sage, in addition to senior executive leadership roles at Epicor, IGT, HP, CA Technologies, Oracle, PeopleSoft and Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC).Sabby currently is a member of the UK’s Digital Economy Council with Secretary of State, and the Chair of Digital Leaders Advisory Board, which has over 180,000 members across the UK.

To find out more about the best Accounting podcast out there, check it out HERE

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #235
Broadcast date: 28 May 2024
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guests: Gavan Ord, Policy Adviser CPA Australia

What could be better than one Budget Special?? Two!! That’s right, we are the only dedicated small business policy and advocacy analysis radio program so its important we bring you the budget experts to really help you understand what the Budget means for you.

If you missed last week’s episode, we had a jam-packed show filled with experts on budget night for their immediate reactions and a great unpacking of the budget from David Harding from Business NSW.

So, to recap, there’s not a lot of small businesses that wait with bated breath each budget night for what’s in it for them, but there is a handful of experts looking out for the needs of small businesses in every single budget. They include Peak business groups, community organisations, industry groups and advocates from all over the country.

Making it more difficult for small business advocates, is the fact that small businesses are affected by spending decisions every single policy area and every single government department.

This week, we take the advisors’ perspective; Gavan Ord from CPA Australia gives us an analysis from what it means in terms of small business investment, planning and the future of small business policy for advocates.

Gavan is one of those experts who has been in many lock-ups, and understands how to read the papers with an added bonus capability – he’s an accountant!

Plus, we unpack a great piece of research from CPA Australia - their 2023-24 Asia-Pacific Small Business Survey. The research found that businesses owned by under 40s are more likely to invest in new technologies, are more likely to innovative, are less risk averse, and ultimately, are more likely to grow. Getting more young people into business – and nurturing their entrepreneurial spirit – can only be a good thing for the economy in the long-run. Problem is, we have an aging population of small business people in this country; so what are the policy settings the Government needs to consider to support them and enable them to handover the mantle to a new generation of entrepreneurs? Let’s find out on Small Biz Matters this week.

PEOPLE – Can you tell us about the recent survey conducted by CPA Australia, annual Asia-Pacific Small Business Survey and what the key findings were? What does the Govt think of when they think of innovation? What impact do accountants have on the everyday lives of small businesses and why are they so important in the co-design of policy?

POLICY - Why should policy makers pay attention to this data, and what should it mean for the emphasis for self employment assistance programs? How does an organisation like CPA Australia consult to Government and what other key areas are you working on right now? Does it go beyond Tax & Super?

PURPOSE - What are the positives from this research about the future of small businesses in Australia? Or, should we be worried about growth and innovation? There is clearly a strong link between migration and small business success. This data proves it.

Gavan is an expert on business and the economy, with a special interest in small and medium enterprises in Australia and Asia. Gavan meets frequently with governments to give CPA Australia’s perspective of the impact of policy changes on the business sector. He also makes regular appearances in media commenting on business conditions and the economy.

CPA Australia’s 2023-24 Asia-Pacific Small Business Survey found that businesses owned by under 40s are more likely to invest in new technologies, are more likely to innovative, are less risk averse, and ultimately, are more likely to grow. Getting more young people into business – and nurturing their entrepreneurial spirit – can only be a good thing for the economy in the long-run.

A link to the full survey results, the Australian summary and infographic, and the characteristics on high-growth small businesses can be found here

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #234
Broadcast date: 21 May 2024
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guests: David Harding, Executive Director BusinessNSW and expert guests from the Budget Lockup

There’s not a lot of small businesses that wait with bated breath each budget night for what’s in it for them, but there is a handful of experts looking out for the needs of small businesses in every single budget. They include Peak business groups, community organisations, industry groups and advocates from all over the country.

Each budget night, they are locked with without their devices, crammed into a room which is never big enough, fed with food that isn’t eaten, and handed a stackof budget papers, and then asked to dissect and unpack them in only two hours. It’s a remarkable feat and takes the best minds in the country. Making it more difficult for small business advocates, is the fact that small businesses are affected by spending decisions every single policy area and every single government department.

On Budget Night 14th of May 2024 Small Biz Matters was lucky to be in the media lock up, unpacking the budget from a small business perspective, surrounded by policy experts from the Community Radio Network, The Wire and leading educational institutions.

After the lock up, I spoke to a number of leading economic experts in the country, unpacking the budget from a small business perspective.

Then this week I was lucky enough to unpack the budget with David Harding, Executive Director from BusinessNSW, who dissected it from all angles and all policy areas.

We start the show with the small business segment on The Wire, live from the studios of the Press Gallery in Parliament House.

PEOPLE – Why does the Federal budget mean so much to small businesses? Do you think they listen in, or do they rely on organisations like BusinessNSW to unpack and make the budget info relatable?

POLICY - Tell us about the Federal Budget and what small businesses need to know. Were there any nice surprises or was most of the information generally inconsequential? What are the major areas where the Government has offered support?

PURPOSE - Do you think it will it encourage innovation, growth and survival? What does the budget mean for BusinessNSW? How will the announcements make you change direction in your policy and advocacy work representing small businesses?

Chris Richardson, Australia’s leading independent Economist

Bran Black CEO of Business Council Australia

John Grimes CEO of Smart Energy Council

Georgie Dent CEO of Parenthood

David Harding, Executive Director from BusinessNSW

As Executive Director at Business NSW, David leads a number of diverse and capable teams ranging right across NSW's cities and regions, and also sits on the national business Executive Leadership Team.

He is dedicated to ensuring a strong economic and social future for all NSW communities. He is also co-Chair of the Committee for Sydney Commission into the Future of the Sydney CBD, represents customer’s interests at the Australian Energy Regulator and sits on a wide range of other trade and industry groups, policy teams and government boards and taskforces.

A supporter of good social investment, he is a Director of Engineering Aid Australia and works with many other sporting and community charities and foundations in NSW.

Business NSW is focused on the well-being and sustainable growth of our business community. Our purpose is to provide a strong, clear leadership voice for businesses on important economic and financial issues. Working closely with our members and government, we identify key challenges and develop practical policy solutions to ensure that businesses across NSW prosper and grow.

To find out more about their budget coverage go HERE

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #233
Broadcast date: 14 May 2024
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guest: Dr Brendan French, CEO of Energy Consumers Australia

There are some big changes coming down the pipeline for small business; and it involves an input every business needs: Energy. Whether you’re located in a small country town or the middle of a major shopping centre in the middle of the CBD, the energy transition is marching towards net zero with or without you. And the changes will affect many aspects of your business; from the equipment you use to make stuff, to how and where you get your energy from. And once again policy makers are grappling with how to include small businesses in the energy transition.

So what is the transition and how has it already affected your business? What’s in store in the future? Are costs only going to go up? And what about the businesses who have no power over their power?

Luckily there is an organisation which represents small businesses when it comes to the cost of energy, changing to renewables and navigating the maze of unrelatable information for small businesses. Today we welcome Dr Brendan French, the CEO of Energy Consumers Australia to answer all those questions about Energy and small business and explain how ECA is advocating for small businesses in the energy policy space.

PEOPLE – Tell the audience about how ECA works to advocate for small businesses in the energy system? How does it influence decision makers in Government and what is its relationship with regulators to make the energy system fair and equitable for small business? How do small businesses think about energy and how does the Government think about small businesses? Is there a disconnect?

POLICY - what are the key considerations for small business and energy policy? What do policy makers need to consider as the priorities?

PURPOSE - The clean energy transition is upon us but many small businesses don’t know what their role is or what deadlines they have to meet. Is there anything the Government can do to keep them informed?

Dr Brendan French is a leading consumer protection and dispute resolution expert, with extensive executive experience across corporate, academic, public, and community spheres.

Prior to joining Energy Consumers Australia as CEO, Brendan championed consumer interests as the Commonwealth Bank’s Executive General Manager Customer and Community Advocacy and before that as Deputy Ombudsman at the Energy and Water Ombudsman NSW (EWON). He also taught in the Law School at Western Sydney University, was a Board director for a number of consumer and charitable organisations, and is a published author of academic and popular texts. Brendan holds a doctorate in the History of Ideas and has been awarded for his innovative work on fostering trust between community, corporates and government.

To find out more go to: https://energyconsumersaustralia.com.au/

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #231
Broadcast date: 30 April 2024
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guest: Hon Bruce Billson, the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman

Back in April 2024, Small Biz Matters was lucky enough to attend the Council of Small Business Organisations Australia’s National small business summit. COSBOA is the peak body representing the entire small business community in policy, advocacy and media on the national stage.

It speaks directly to ministers and departments and policy makers everywhere. So you can imagine the importance placed on its national summit – which each year the opportunity to set the national policy agenda for small business; which as our regular listeners will know, is EVERY area of policy. And this year they listened with leaders including the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition in their speeches speaking of the importance of small business to our economy and our nation.

The closing remarks from the Summit were presented by Hon Bruce Billson, the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman. He spoke about the policy areas covered by the conference but also highlighted the desperate need for well thought out policy measures by Government to secure the future of small business in the economy, our communities and in our lives.

PEOPLE – Who did we hear from at the Summit - the politicians, the regulators and the advocates.

POLICY - What new policy suggestions were made? What are the policy priorities for small businesses (NOT the Government) right now?

PURPOSE - Who REALLY has the finger on the pulse of small businesses? What SHOULD policy settings be trying to achieve for Australia's 2.2million small businesses... And what about the self employed?

To find out more go to: https://www.asbfeo.gov.au

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #231
Broadcast date: 30 April 2024
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guest: Gina Cass-Gottlieb, Chair, Australian Competition Consumer Commission

Competition is a major part of law reform which affects all small businesses. Whether it’s a small grocer in a regional town or a newsagent in a major city’s shopping centre, having a level playing field is paramount to small business community survival.

And without it, there is a serious impact on communities themselves.

A reduction in foot traffic as a new shopping mall is built nearby, changes to infrastructure which bypasses a regional town’s city centre in an effort to improve traffic, a big box retailer moving into the middle of town... these changes not only affect small businesses but their ability to grow, hire more people and continue to support their community.

So, who’s thinking of small businesses when these laws are being designed? It’s the ACCC. The Australian Competition Consumer Commission’s role has unique powers to administer and enforce the 2010 Competition and Consumer Act and other legislation promoting competition.

Whether it’s a big giant company gobbling up the competition with view for a bigger market share or a multinational company buying land to lock out their smaller competitors, or a large shareholder led conglomerate sidestepping competition laws by moving into a different segment the ACCC is keeping an eye on them to level the playing field.

Today we welcome Gina Cass-Gottlieb, Chair of the ACCC to tell us about the important work they are conducting to ensure small business voice and perspective is heard in these complex negotiations.

PEOPLE – Can you explain the unique powers of the ACCC? What are the benefits to small business to have a strong, vigorous competition in their sector?

POLICY - Often the public reads about multiple enquiries into aspects of competition (in this instance the grocery sector); ACCC, Treasury, sometimes ACTU. Is it necessary? Isn’t this a duplication? How do ACCC enquiries differ? the franchising code of conduct is administered by the accc and was recently reviewed by a former deputy chair of the ACCC, Dr Michael Schaper. It’s endorsed the ACCC’s suggestion to move to a licensing system. Where are we up to with that proposal?

PURPOSE - The law regarding unfair contract terms has recently been amended to improve protections for SB. How’s that working out? Should small businesses fear the ACCC? After all, many see the sale of the business as succession planning and don’t want any limitations placed on this as a possibility for their business. Can you explain the merger reform and this will benefit small business? How will increased regulation not mean more red tape?

Gina Cass-Gottlieb commenced her 5-year appointment as Chair of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) on 21 March 2022. Before she joined the ACCC Gina was a senior and founding partner of Gilbert and Tobin’s competition and regulation team. Gina has over 25 years' experience advising on a large number of merger, competition and regulatory matters in Australia and New Zealand. She is widely recognised as one of Australia’s leading competition and regulatory experts.

Gina was appointed by the Commonwealth Treasurer to the RBA’s Payments System Board in 2013 and again inin 2018. Gina was appointed to the Financial Regulator Assessment Authority in September 2021 and for 10 years Gina was a director on the board of the Sydney Children’s Hospitals Foundation.

Gina chairs the Digital Platforms Board and Financials Service Inquiry Board, and is a member of the Consumer Data Right Committee, Enforcement Committee, Infrastructure Committee and Communication Committee, Mergers Review Committee and the East Coast Gas Market Board, Electricity Markets Inquiry Board and Supermarkets Inquiry Board. Gina is also a member of the Bureau of the OECD Competition Committee.

Gina holds Bachelor of Economics and Laws degrees from the University of Sydney and was a Fulbright Scholar at UC Berkeley from 1986 to 1987, obtaining a Master of Laws degree, majoring in US competition law, comparative constitutional law, financial institutions regulation and securities regulation.

Gina is the first female Chair of the ACCC since it was established as an independent statutory authority in 1995.

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #230
Broadcast date: 23 April 2024
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guest: Tim Beresford CEO Australian Financial Security Authority

So many acronyms, so little small business time. But the PPSR is one you and your advisors should know about. Why? Because it’s free, it helps to protect your assets and your business. PPSR stands for the Personal Property Securities Register which is an official government register; a public noticeboard of security interests in personal property that is managed by the Registrar of Personal Property Securities. According to the Attorney General’s department it must be reliable, managed responsibly and is accessible.

But that’s not much use if small businesses, the ones who can benefit the most, don’t know about it. So, who the AFSA is and what they regulate and enforce, how the PPSR came about and what important role advisors and associations can play in assisting small businesses to manage their assets?

The AFSA also manages the application of bankruptcy laws in Australia, which right now, is a big deal for small businesses. According to CreditorWatch’s most recent research, Australia is on track to see 10,000 small businesses collapse by the end of June, the worst number in 11 years. CreditorWatch has said the number of businesses in external administration has hit a record high.

Today we welcome Tim Beresford, the CEO of the Government regulator in charge of Australian Financial Security Authority to tell us about the importance of their work in engaging with small business in all industries and how they’re working harder to ensure more small businesses can take advantage of the PPSR and understand better the regulations around bankruptcy and personal property.

PEOPLE – Tim, tell us about yourself and how you’ve come to be an advocate for small business in this space? How can small business people best utilise the personal property security services in their businesses? Who should they go to for advice?

POLICY - Bankruptcy and personal property securities laws seem like a personal problem but we know the Government is very concerned about small businesses too. How has the COVID insolvency laws impacted the current state of small businesses?

PURPOSE - How did the PPSR come about and what problem is it trying to solve? Who does AFSA regulate and enforce? Advisors play an important role in assisting small businesses to manage their assets - how can the Aust Financial Security Authority and advisors work better together to help small businesses to manage their assets?

Tim Beresford is the Chief Executive at the Australian Financial Security Authority (AFSA), having joined the agency in mid-2022. AFSA’s role is to support a strong credit system for Australia and is a visible, modern and contemporary regulator. The agency administers and regulates the personal insolvency and personal property securities systems and manages criminal assets. Tim is also the immediate past Chair of the Benevolent Society (TBS), Australia’s oldest non-Indigenous not for profit.

Previously, Tim has held the roles of Acting Chief Executive of the Australian Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade), Deputy Vice- Chancellor of Macquarie University and First Assistant Secretary of the Social Policy Division in Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. He has significant leadership experience in the higher education, government, not-for-profit, financial services and professional services sectors. His areas of expertise include strategy, governance, public policy, change management and organisational design. He holds a Bachelor of Economics (Honours), Bachelor of Laws, a Masters of Philosophy (International Relations), and is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Relations) and is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

To find out more go to https://www.afsa.gov.au

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #229
Broadcast date: 16 April 2024
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guest: Dr Michael Schaper, Board Chair, small business advocate and policy specialist

There is a sector of the small business community that is even more regulated than others but there is a good reason for that. Due to some bad actors in the sector in the past, Franchising has been under scrutiny and so has the Government and the way the Franchise code is managed.

It’s not just stock or a shop or a brand you’re buying, you’re entering a complex contract which is in fact a long term relationship. And like long-term relationships, things can sometimes turn sour. Franchisees can sometimes be the victim of poor contract terms, unfair, or inequitable relationships with the company they paid a lot of money to, for the privilege of using their brand and not get the relationship they paid for.

According to the Franchise Council of Australia, franchising is a $146bn sector and there are approximately 1,200+ different franchise systems, over 800,000 franchised businesses and the sector employs more than 500,000 people. Ans that’s a big chunk of the economy we need to get right.

In 2014, the government introduced The Competition and Consumer (Industry Codes-Franchising) Regulation 2014 (Franchising Code) regulates the conduct between participants in franchising which is regulated by the ACCC. The code was created to establish walls between the two parties to make the relationship more fair and equitable.

Today we welcome Michael Schaper, who’s going to tell us all about the 2024 franchise code review. He was one of Australia’s first small business commissioner’s, a previous deputy commissioner for the ACCC, named COSBOA’s small business champion in 2009, and a passionate advocate for small businesses around Australia.

PEOPLE – You have been involved in small business policy, making and codesign for many years; tell us about your journey and why you’re so passionate about helping the sector. Can you tell us about the franchising community and what impact and benefit does it provides to the economy?

POLICY - Why does the franchisee code exist? And how does influence policy in other areas when government is making decisions about small business? How many reviews have their been and in the past, what has changed?

PURPOSE - What were your key recommendations as part of the review, and which would be the most important to be implemented to help the sector?

Michael has substantial experience across the small business sector. He served as one of the country's first Small Business Commissioners (for the ACT), held the first designated professorial chair in small business at an Australian university, and was the inaugural Deputy Chair (small business) within the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission. In 2009 he was named as the COSBOA national small business champion. More recently, he has worked on a number of SME projects for the United Nations, Asian Development Bank, and the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. Today he chairs a number of boards in Australia, and in 2023 was asked to review the Franchising Code of Conduct for the federal Small Business Minister.

To find out more go to: https://treasury.gov.au/publication/p2024-487230#:~:text=On%208%20February%202024%2C%20the,by%20its%20Terms%20of%20Reference

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #228
Broadcast date: 9 April 2024
Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor
Guest: Dr Stephen Morse, ESG Strategist & Founder Unchained & Serena Stewart Head of Strategic Partnerships, Business/Law School at UTS

If you asked a small business owner if they had processes which showed consideration, fairness and equality when hiring new staff, that they were making considerable effort to reduce their impact on the environment and be more sustainable, and had all their paperwork up to date with ASIC; the vast majority would say yes, they were working on all of that or had it nailed. But if you said to the same small business person: Are you meeting your ESG reporting requirements they would probably look at you quick blankly and ask what that stands for.

Yet another reporting requirement, is what it stands for. Something small businesses are not ready for, is what it stands for. But what it IS, is the reality coming down the pipeline. Yet many small businesses owners are unaware of the impact of ESG reporting requirements, what and when they need to take action and how it will change their business significantly if they’re not ready.

Luckily, we’ve got Dr Stephen Morse on the Small Biz Matters again. You’ll remember him from a few years ago when he came onto our radio show to talk about another set of requirements : Anti-Slavery reporting requirements. He’s joining us once again to support small businesses to understand what they need to do and where to get help. Plus,

Serena Stewart from UTS will be jumping in to tell us all about the ESG survey they are developing and they’re asking for your help to make policy better!

PEOPLE – Tell us about your journey and how you became so passionate about helping small businesses to navigate regulation like ESG and anti-slavery requirements. What sort of small business people are the most vulnerable if they don’t start planning out how ESG will affect their business? Are you concerned that small businesses will be left with another overly-onerous reporting regime they don’t understand? What is working elsewhere in the world?

POLICY - Is the solution for ESG additional regulation really just reg-tech or do you think the Government needs to consider small businesses at the co-design phase? Which is more efficient: Should we be designing ESG reporting methods around different segments of small businesses or allow big business to dictate what they need to see from their supply chain

PURPOSE - What exactly is ESG and why do small business people need to be aware of it and starting to plan NOW for the changes coming? Where is a good place to start? Will it be mandatory? How can we make it as easy as possible for small businesses to report and what do you think the Government needs to do now in its policy settings to support the transition?

Dr Stephen Morse is CEO of Unchained Solutions Pty Ltd, a Sydney-based facilitation and advisory firm that enables organisations to make a meaningful contribution to the UN Sustainable Development Goals and improve their ESG reporting and CSR commitments. Unchained’s solutions are designed to help local and global teams to thrive. Stephen has over 25 years’ experience in entrepreneurial leadership in the not-for-profit and private sectors, both in Australia and overseas. He’s a seasoned public speaker, thought leader and strategist who brings an engaging and refreshing perspective on business and human rights due diligence in supply chains. Stephen obtained his Doctorate in Human Trafficking Intervention through Fuller Theological Seminary in 2016, and MBA through University of Technology Sydney in 2020. He currently serves on the Advisory Board of the Freedom Business Alliance. He also Chairs the Ethics Committee of the Australasian Supply Chain Institute and the Communications & Capacity Building Working Group of the Commonwealth 8.7 Network.

To find out more go to: https://unchainedsolutions.com.au

Serena is currently the Head of Strategic Partnerships for the UTS Business School and UTS Faculty of Law. She has 15 years’ experience in new business and program development management with a strong focus on strategising, developing, planning, implementing, and managing multifaceted programs with industry, government and community (domestically and internationally) to support multidisciplinary research projects and enterprise learning activities (I.e., funding, resourcing and advocacy).

She has built an extensive network across multiple sectors, comprising of senior executives, high net worth individuals, government, and leading corporate organisations and demonstrated the capacity to raise revenue from multiple channels (primarily industry and philanthropy), generating approximately $205M, with the funds supporting major capital infrastructure projects, research and education.

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #227

Broadcast date: 2 April 2024

Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor

Guest: Sandy Chong, CEO of Australian Hairdressing Council

There is a sector of the small business community who has always been on the business frontline and constantly impacted by macro and micro economics. They are the embodiment of small business people : First in line to feel it when consumers tighten their belts, often holding together a regional community, quick to feel the pain of supply chain issues, wondering how they’re going to pay their energy, rent and wages bills, listening to customer’s woes whilst wondering how they’ll keep their on doors open... They wear all the hats and suffer all the consequences of poor Government decisions.

Yet without them we would grind to a halt – which is what happened during COVID when we all realised how much we need their listening ear, their business to flourish so young people in our community can get a head start and of course, their magic touch to make us feel good and a smile as you enter their salon. I am of course, talking about Hairdressers.

And there is no one. And I mean no one out there who is more dedicated, passionate, fearless and fabulous than today’s guest, Sandy Chong. So strap yourself in and hit that record button; she’s about to share with us a rollercoaster of a career as an advocate, a business leader, an industry leader and a formidable woman in Canberra.

PEOPLE - Tell us a bit about your background and why you are so passionate about advocating for small businesses in your industry. What have been the highs and lows of advocacy? How difficult do you find it to engage with small business to help advocate for them?

POLICY - What areas of policy are you focused on right now? And who do you tend to speak with and on what formats/roundtables? Do you touch on all levels of government?

PURPOSE - What policy issues matter most to small businesses in your industry? Does that change from year to year? How do you deal with the slow pace of change in government policy? What are the biggest threats to them? Are the needs of small businesses in your industry different to that of small businesses in other industries?

Sandy Chong is a key influence in the Hairdressing Industry. Currently she is the CEO/Director of the Australian Hairdressing Council and past Director of COSBOA (Council Of Small Business Organisations Of Australia) representing small business. She speaks on behalf of the industry to Government, creating relationships to support an industry that is often overlooked.

Her role at the AHC has established better business practices, training and education and building sustainable careers for the future of the industry.

Sandy’s vision is to create an industry that has the highest possible standards in ethics, technical ability and workplace practices.

Owner of her own salon Suki for 38 years, Sandy is a business multi award winner as well as being inducted into the Industry's Hall Of Fame and is also the recipient of The Australian Hair Industry Special Recognition Award. She is a respected industry source for the media and has been interviewed as a guest on countless television, radio, press and online platforms.

To find out more go to: https://www.theahc.org.au

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #225

Broadcast date: 19th March 2024

Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor

Guest: Elizabeth Skirving, CEO of Rural Business Tasmania

Small businesses are often (when it is convenient) referred to as the “backbone of the economy” but nothing could be closer to the truth in regional, rural and remote communities. They literally are the fabric binding economic success, growth, jobs, training and the survival of many communities.

Its not the big businesses running down the flooded or fire ravaged high streets supporting communities immediately after a disaster or when a call to action is heard to support a community or sporting group. It’s the small businesses who are quick to lend a hand, equipment, resources and even just a listening ear to their friends and family which is their community.

So what can be done to keep these small businesses front and centre of policy and planning? Is this a local, state or federal issue? Are councils doing enough and leading the way? Does the Federal Government in Canberra even know how important a regional high street is to the communities? And how can Government do a better job of listening to their leaders?

Today, Elizabeth Skirving – quite frankly a bonafide thought leader in this space and CEO of Rural Business Tasmania and Director of COSBOA, joins us to share her thoughts on how Government can improve their engagement and strategy to support small business in regional, rural and remote areas so they can continue to grow and support their communities and the national economy.

PEOPLE - Tell us a bit about your background and why you are so passionate about advocating for small businesses in regional, rural and remote policy. Why is it so critical for small business to be considered when developing regional policy in Australia? How do you find the balance between the social needs of regional communities and the economic needs of the small businesses which are part of their fabric?

POLICY - What areas of policy are you focused on right now? And who do you tend to speak with and on what formats/roundtables? Why is it critical small businesses in regional areas are considered at the co-design period of policy development?

PURPOSE - What regional issues matter most to small businesses? What are the biggest threats to them in regional Australia? Are the needs of small businesses in RRR really that different to that of small businesses in metro or city areas?

Elizabeth is passionate about Tasmania, and in promoting good business management to ensure prosperous rural and regional communities continue. She believes in supporting local communities and business.

With a background in finance and business, Elizabeth has been CEO of Rural Business Tasmania since 2006 with a board portfolio which includes previous Deputy Chair, Council of Small Business Organisations of Australia COSBOA, Director of Tasmanian Agricultural Productivity Group, Director of Tasmanian Small Business Council and as an Industry representative of Tasmanian Institute of Agriculture (TIA) Advisory Board.

As a 5th generation of a farming family who were active within their community and industry, she has a long history of community involvement including board experience with various not-for-profit associations, including a substantial time with Rural Youth Tasmania and current Hon. Auditor for Encore Theatre Co Inc.

Established in 1986, Rural Business Tasmania Inc is a not-for-profit association that primarily offers financial counselling and business support expertise to rural and regional communities. It’s key objective is to help rural families, businesses, and the community manage the ever-evolving demands and challenges facing the primary industry sector.

To find out more go to: https://www.ruralbusinesstasmania.org.au

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #225

Broadcast date: 5th March 2024

Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor

Guest: Emma Clarke, Chief Operating Officer, Mable

Increasingly, big tech companies are playing the role of advocate on behalf of their small business users. Some even have branches dedicated to governance and ensuring the data is aggregated, safe to share and presented so policymakers can read it as a reflection of what matters most to small businesses.

There are some tech companies who use their data for the power of good. They use it to support advocacy efforts that shape policies to ensure the views of their small business customers are well-represented both directly to the Government and through organisations like COSBOA and industry associations.

However, some tech companies only use data to further their corporate bottom line. Unfortunately, this is a practice that happens worldwide.

So, how do policymakers tell the difference? Should big tech and its data be the advocate for small businesses? Especially when the sector can not produce data themselves. And where do the big four consulting firms fit into this picture?

Today, Emma Clarke, the Chief Financial & Operations Officer for Mable, joins us to discuss how Mable supports small business owners in the care and support sector. We will explore how Mable uses data to ensure that its business decisions and advocacy efforts align with its platform users' needs, wants and preferences.

PEOPLE – Tell us about how this small tech start up and been so successful? When it Why does a company like Mable find itself in this position of being an advocate for contractors? In a practical sense, how do you do this and why?

POLICY – What sort of an influence does big tech have in policy? Were you surprised by this and how did you prepare the organisation to grow in this direction? In which areas of policy do you have the most impact and with which organisations do you collaborate with to improve the landscape for your small business members?

PURPOSE How do you balance profitability and sustainability with the expectation that big tech has a role to play in social licensing and social responsibility these days?

Emma has a Bachelor of Business from Monash University and is Certified Practising Accountant (CPA) qualified. She held executive roles at Redbubble Group, ANZ’s Technology Division and Diners Club Australia.

Emma ensures sound financial management and continuous improvement in all systems, processes and people development at Mable. She’s also responsible for our high-quality customer service.

“It’s very rare to have the opportunity to work in a company that is fast moving and high growth, but also full of purpose-driven people working together to enable everyone in our society to remain in their homes whilst living their best life.”

Mable is where you can live your kind of independence
Since 2014, our online platform has connected Australians looking for disability and aged care support to independent support workers. Mable is where people provide and receive the kind of support they want, enjoying more choice, control and flexibility.

To find out more go to: https://mable.com.au

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #224

Broadcast date: 27th February 2024

Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor

Guest: Stephen Walters, Chief Economist Business Council of Australia (BCA)

There is a group of boffins who wield influence and power in Canberra and across the state and local governments too. And it is just as well since they know the effect of policy and politics on businesses and the economy as a whole. But the big question we’re going to ask today is how well do they understand and reflect the needs of small business in their research and policy work? We are, after all, the backbone of that economy!

We welcome to the show Stephen who as the previous Chief economist for NSW Treasury and Chief Economist with the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD) and J.P. Morgan. He’s passionate about ensuring all stakeholders in the economy have a better knowledge of how macro economics shapes the real world we all live in and that which small businesses thrive.

PEOPLE – Tell us about your role as NSW Chief Economist during the pandemic. How have economists become so influential in the media and advocacy work and critical in the decision making process?

POLICY – How and which macro-economic factors most influence policy makers when designing that which so greatly impacts small business

PURPOSE Behind closed doors, what data really matters as opposed to the limited stats we hear about in the media? Does this between state and federal governments?

Stephen Walters is Chief Economist for the Business Council of Australia (BCA), based in Sydney.

He previously was Chief economist for NSW, based in NSW Treasury. Before joining Treasury, Stephen was Chief Economist with the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD) and, for 14 years, was Chief Economist for investment bank J.P.Morgan. Stephen previously was Senior Economist with Access Economics in Melbourne and International Economist with Norwich Union and Alliance Capital in the United Kingdom. He also spent seven years as an Economist with the Treasury in Perth.

Stephen holds a Bachelor's degree in economics from the University of Western Australia and a Master's degree in applied finance from the University of Melbourne. He also has qualifications in journalism and graduated from the AICD's Company Directors Course in 2017. Stephen has published two books, with a third to be published soon.

Stephen is chair of the Executive Committee of the Australian Business Economists (ABE) and is a member of the Australian Statistics Advisory Council (ASAC).

To find out more go to: Business Council of Australia

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #223

Broadcast date: 20th February 2024

Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor

Guest: Dr Suji Sanjeevan, co-founder Light & Glo Designs

Resilience is one of those words that is overused and bandied about when describing small businesses. After Covid it can probably be adopted by every small business that still has their head above water. But today’s story is unique and our guest has come all the way from Melbourne to share her story with us, and inspire our small business listeners.

Dr Suji Sanjeevan, as the co-founder Light & Glo Designs started her business just as Covid hit hard, especially for retail and manufacturing businesses in Melbourne. Through severe, never-ending lockdowns, massive supply chain disruptions, abrupt location changes and downturns in her business she didn’t think she could survive; Suji has emerged triumphant and a success story. Not only that, but she also supports her small business migrant community by being their representative on the Victorian Government Multicultural Business Ministerial Council. And she has inspired numerous other female entrepreneurs through appearances on Shark Tank and mentoring through local business support programs.

She’s joining us today to share with us her amazing journey from Kings College medical graduate to a small business success story and also to teach the importance of building on the skills you never thought you had to overcome the hurdles that are still to come.

PEOPLE - Tell us about your background and how you got into business. Who helped you along the way? You arrived in Australia as a refugee, what skills did you develop in that phase which continue to help you grow and overcome hurdles even now?

POLICY - Accessing Gov support as a manufacturer in Australia is tough. What's been your experience? (why is it that you have to reach your $1.5M in sales before you get the support as a producer)? You have to be connected and really resilient in growth how do you approach that with few connections here?

PURPOSE - Part of your business purpose is to help others learn from your experiences - which is why you're here today. Tell us about why you continue to advocate for small business to decision makers on the Victorian Government Multicultural Business Ministerial Council and how you started that part of your journey?

Dr Suji Sanjeevan is a Melbourne-based medically trained clinical researcher, who made the ultimate career change to become a co-founder of Light & Glo Designs, an Australian fragrance house. With a mere investment of $237 Light & Glo has grown to a successful product-based business, delivering feelings and emotions through senses and scents.

BrandScent, their second business creation was born through the notion that you can spiral one of two ways, either up or down, with COVID – 19 we choose to spiral upwards and built BrandScent to stand out, niche down and innovate.

In the short span of time BrandScent has forged partnerships with American Express, Mimosa Homes and Four Pillars Gin and most recently been named APPA Australian Boutique Supplier of the Year 2020. In 2023 BrandScent appeared on Shark Tank where they presented their fragrant creations to the sharks, who were eager to dive into this aromatic adventure.

Light & Glo also won a multitude of awards, including Wyndham Business Award “New and Emerging Manufacture,” “Manufacturer of the Year”

A natural leader and businesswoman, Suji, a mother of three, started making wood-wick candles as a creative outlet to relieve stress that turned into the start of an entrepreneurial journey and that of personal development having faced many obstacles as a woman, mother, migrant and person of colour.

Prior to her small business journey Suji, who graduated with a medical degree from King’s College in London, stepped into policy and research governance roles by working for Murdoch Children’s research Institute, Melbourne University and Breast Cancer Network Australia. In between studying and running the business, Suji also participates in local and state community initiatives business growth programs as a mentor and is a board member of the Victorian Government Multicultural Business Ministerial Council.

To find out more go to: Light & Glo and BrandScent

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #222

Broadcast date: 13th February 2024

Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor

Guest: Natasha Hawker, Managing Director Employee Matters

It is all the politicians and business leaders are talking about right now: the new Industrial Relations Reforms passed by Parliament recently after months and months of negotiations. The business groups representing small businesses aren’t happy, the industry associations having been campaigning for months, and small businesses themselves and once again, lost. I suppose they’ll have their say at the next election. But in the meantime, when all the dust settles on leaders’ and the media’s perspectives, what does that mean for you, the small business person?

Luckily, an expert with decades of experience joined us to take us through these changes and the myriad of other laws which have also recently dropped; Natasha Hawker from Employee Matters.

We chatted about Respect@Work, People at Work (psychosocial hazards) D&FV Leave and the process, Pay secrecy... and what small businesses can expect when these recent laws coming into affect.

PEOPLE - How is small business coping with these changes to IR? What is the best advice you can give small business people on how to manage all these changes coming down the pipeline?

POLICY - Can you walk us through the main changes which have recently been legislated recently and when and how small businesses can expect this to take effect in their business? Respect@Work, People at Work (psychosocial hazards) D&FV Leave and the process, Pay secrecy

PURPOSE - Why in your opinion has the Government felt these changes to workplace laws are necessary? What do you hear from your clients in response to the changes they need to make? What are the risks if you do nothing? When did the changes come into effect?

Natasha Hawker is the Managing Director of Employee Matters and a leader in the Australian HR space. She uses her 29 years of HR and business experience to alleviate 'employee headaches.' From large corporations to startups, she's worked with clients across a diverse range of industries. Her business acumen and commitment to sustainability made Employee Matters a NSW State Finalist in the 2023 Telstra Best of Business Awards and she's an Amazon best-selling author of 'From Hire to Fire & Everything in Between.

Founded in 2011, Employee Matters provides employee support to businesses who want to maximise profitability through their employees but struggle with hiring the best, understanding the legislation and firing non-performers. She could see the frustrations, time wasted and trouble that business was getting into and could see that many businesses were not fully utilising their employee resources to get maximum productivity.

To find out more go to: https://www.employeematters.com.au

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #221

Broadcast date: 30th January 2024

Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor

Guest: The speakers and attendees at the Intuit GetConnected23 conference!

Conferences are a great way to connect with your peers, learn the latest industry trends and grab some swag! And last year’s Intuit GetConnect conference was no exception. But what made this accounting and bookkeeping get together different was the quality of the discussions and the focus on the future of tech.

A big focus for me at the conference was Open Banking and what small businesses can expect in the near and distant future. How have international companies supported advocates in the fight to ensure small businesses control, retain and utilise their banking data as an all-important tool.

I’m keen to share those interviews with captains of industry, economists and innovative app founders to find out what they think will be the impact of AI on the Fintech Industry, advisors and small business owners. Small Biz Matters went on the road to find out. We interviewed:

Lars Leber, Vice President Australia, RoW & Global Expansion at Intuit
Robyn Jacobson, Senior Advocate at The Tax Institute
Danielle Franklin DeSarzant - Global Senior Product Marketing Manager at Mailchimp
Damien Greathead - Head of Marketing - Accountant & Advisor Group, Intuit Australia
Grant Augustin, Founder of SISS Data Services and Steve Kemp, Head of Financial Institute Partnerships at Intuit

Let’s have a listen to their thoughts on the digital future, advocacy and open banking!

PEOPLE - Are small businesses in Australia more digitised? Are they really that different than those in other countries? What’s the key piece of advice you’d give to FinTech startups just starting out? How does the Tax Institute work across so many policy areas to improve the tax system? How does a massive industry shift like AI impact a product like Mailchimp and help the end user like a small business? Does AI really make life easier?

POLICY - What will the Australian Government’s open banking and CDR changes mean for small businesses? What sort of incentives would encourage small businesses to fix tax unintended errors and make the system educative rather than punitive? Why are late payment times so problematic for small businesses and what can be done to speed up this problem?

PURPOSE - What are the benefits of digitisation for small businesses and their advisors?

What international experience does a global company bring to the table in the policy areas of open banking and digitisation? How have you been active in this space and helped policy makers to make these policy areas work for small business?

So what is it? GetConnected brings together accounting professionals and industry experts for two days of inspiration, education, and networking. Speakers share their experiences and provide insights and strategies to help advisors grow and succeed and support their small businesses.

To find out more go to: https://quickbooks.intuit.com/au/events/getconnected/

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #220

Broadcast date: 23th January 2024

Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor

Guest: Rosemary Sinclair AM, CEO of au.Domain Administration

With decades of experience as a leader and advocate in the telecommunications industry, today’s guest is no stranger to policy, international diplomacy and being at the helm of industry bodies, powerful advocacy organisations and having the ear of Government. As the CEO of auDA, the administrator and self-regulatory policy body for Australia’s country code Top Level Domain, the .au domain, she heads the team which manages domain name system (DNS), which is Australian critical infrastructure that supports more than four million .au domain names and helps internet users navigate to websites and send emails with domain names ending in .au. Its about delivering a secure and reliable .au, implementing effective .au policy rules and investing in the Australian internet ecosystem to improve the utility of the .au domain. She’s here today to tell us its purpose, why this matters to small business people, and in what ways auDA advocates for small businesses in the telco industry.

PEOPLE - Tell us about your role at auDA and why you’re so passionate about helping Australian small businesses to successfully digitise. Tell us about your work as as the administrator of Australia’s top level domain?

POLICY - In what ways does au.DA’s research and reporting influence the Government’s policy decisions in the tech space? What of the future of cybersecurity in the online space, how is au.DA supporting the work of the Government here?

PURPOSE - With which Government departments and agencies does au.DA collaborate with and how does au.DA work with small and large providers in the telecommunications industry?

Rosemary Sinclair AM is CEO of auDA, the administrator and self-regulatory policy body for Australia’s country code Top Level Domain, the .au domain.

Rosemary has over 20 years’ experience in international policy development and multi-stakeholder engagement with bodies including the (OECD), (APEC) and received the Order of Australia Award for service to the telecommunications sector in the 2018 Queen's Birthday Honours List.

Prior to joining auDA, Rosemary was CEO of Energy Consumers Australia, responsible for enhancing consumer advocacy in the national energy market on issues including price, quality and security of supply. With a distinguished record in the telecommunications, technology, energy and education sectors, driving transformation, high performance and advocacy, Rosemary has served on local corporate, government and international boards, including CPA Australia, the Communications Alliance, International Telecommunications User Group (INTUG) and West Tigers Rugby League Football Club.

To find out more go to: https://www.auda.org.au/web/

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #219

Broadcast date: 16th January 2024

Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor

Guest: John Shepherd PSM, First Assistant Secretary, Digital Identity Taskforce, Dept Finance

You don’t have to be a Fintech or a tech company to work with data as a small business owner. We work on a daily basis with business data, integrated personal information and the data held on behalf of our customers. For most, it’s just contact information in a CRM but small businesses are becoming increasingly aware that even the simplest data is personal, it can be sensitive and should be protected.

Digital Identity is coming and will transform the way a lot of small businesses deal with the data for which we are responsible. It sounds like another Government process which will create more red tape. Well, John Shepherd PSM’s role is to make this economy wide transition as seamless as possible. Luckily he has plenty of experience dealing with small business having previously been in charge of Single Touch Payroll rollout and understands the importance of integrating such a change into small business’ natural processes.

PEOPLE - This new legislation will have direct impact on how small businesses operate with their data and accompanying responsibilities. Can you give us an overview of what they can expect?

POLICY - Where are we in the legislation cycle for Digital Identity? When will these changes take affect? With whom did you consult from the small business community?

PURPOSE - What's the purpose of this legislation, what problem is it trying to solve? Is it going to make the landscape fairer for small businesses? What does it mean for the data processes we have in place now?

John Shepherd PSM has held a range of senior positions in the Commonwealth Public Service and has more than 20 years’ experience leading successful large scale transformation programs.

John is the First Assistant Secretary, Digital ID and Data Policy Division within the Department of Finance. The Division includes the Digital ID Taskforce, which is leading work to develop a comprehensive, economy-wide system for digital ID, including the introduction of legislation and rules and establishment of a regulator. The Division is also responsible for whole of government public sector data policy, cross jurisdictional data and digital ministerial engagement, and assurance of the Australian Government’s high-cost and high-risk projects and programs.

John held a number of senior roles at the ABS and ATO, leading significant change programs and projects focused on improving the client experience including leading the implementation of Single Touch Payroll. For this he was awarded a Public Service Medal (PSM) in the 2022 Australia Day Honours list.

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #218

Broadcast date: 9th Jan 2024

Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor

Guest: Kate Carnell AO

There are few people in Australia with more experience in small business policy, advocacy and purpose than Kate Carnell AO. Her resume as a community leader is impressive. Aside from a long career in policy and politics, Kate for five years fiercely fought for all small businesses as the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman. Prior to that she was the CEO of the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and for many years the head of the Pharmacy Guild. Now she offers her advisory skills and experience as a Director and Chair on numerous boards in the tech, startup, social enterprise in the issues she cares most about; small business, mental health to continue to improve the lives of countless of small businesses.

So who better to discuss the future of small business advocacy in 2024 and beyond? I sat down with Kate to ask what the future holds for small business advocacy in the current political landscape, if anything can be done to improve governments consultation with small businesses before policy is set in stone, and whether the colour of the party in power really makes any difference.

I met with Kate a couple of months ago in Hornsby, and we had an excellent discussion.

PEOPLE - Kate, you’ve been involved in politics for many years and across many jurisdictions. What does the future look like for small businesses and regulation here in Australia? Does a different colour or party really make any difference?

POLICY - The reality is governments have a lot of impact on small business is through regulation and red tape. So realistically, is there anything that can be done, any thought leadership thinking to improve this situation?

PURPOSE - In your opinion, is there a good place to start for small businesses who want to be more involved in reducing red tape?

Kate Carnell Company Director is the Chair Mable, Chair Racing and Sport Technology, Deputy Chair BeyondBlue, Chair Violet, Director Australian Made, National Co -Convenor of Liberals for Yes. Kate for five years fiercely fought for all small businesses as the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman (ASBFEO). Prior to that she was the CEO of the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and for many years the head of the Pharmacy Guild. Now she offers her advisory skills and experience as a Director and Chair on numerous boards in the tech, startup, social enterprise in the issues she cares most about; small business, mental health to continue to improve the lives of countless of small businesses.

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #217

Broadcast date: 12th December 2023

Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor

Guest: Murray Hurps, StartUps Director, University of Technology, Sydney

The tech StartUp world is sometimes seen as the darling of government industry policy. Fast paced, fast growth, its an exciting world filled with hard working entrepreneurs. They tried to woo this sector by encouraging private investment, boosting funding and creating new opportunities to rapidly grow. But how do they talk to the sector to find out what they really want? How is the sector represented and who are their advocates? Well, we have with us today one of the giants of that sector - Murray Hurps, the Director of Entrepreneurship for UTS, leading the work of the University to inspire and support technology-enabled entrepreneurs.

PEOPLE - You're a giant in the startup world, involved as the Board Director of tech representative organisations, running the first university startup hub, helping new startups get their shoelaces tied... What brought you to this world and why are you so passionate about supporting them?

POLICY - What do startups really need to start up and grow at that famously fast pace? What can the Government do to support them at each stage?

PURPOSE - There seems to be an announcement in every budget to support the startup ecosystem - from both state and federal government. How can that money be best spent? Is a grant system best to encourage single companies creating cutting edge innovation or support for the entire sector to create a better foundation for all?

Murray Hurps is the Director of Entrepreneurship for UTS, leading the work of the University to inspire and support technology-enabled entrepreneurs.

Australia’s recovery needs job-ready graduates, productivity-boosting research, and new entrepreneurs spreading innovations, creating new jobs and driving our recovery. Murray’s work is enabling this critical third pillar of work at UTS.

Before building the largest community of student-launched startups at UTS, Murray was CEO of Fishburners, growing it from 100 desks of startup space, to 750 across Sydney, Brisbane and Shanghai, and supporting 508 startups during this time.

He founded, ran, re-founded in 2023 and ran again, Startup Muster, the largest survey of Australia’s startup ecosystem.

He founded FUELD, Westpac’s data-focused accelerator program.

He’s been a Director of the Australian Information Industry Association, Spark Festival and WorkVentures, all in support of Australian technology-enabled entrepreneurs.

He does what he does because at 16 he founded Ad Muncher, an ad-blocking startup that grew for 14 years, to a peak of 100 million active users. He wants more Australians to understand and pursue the opportunities they have today through technology-enabled entrepreneurship, and for Australia to realise the benefits of this as well.

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #216

Broadcast date: 5th December 2023

Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor

Guest: Christine Pope - Director at Australian Traditional Medicine Society

ATMS is uniquely positioned to advise Government on health, women, the economy and micro business. How do they juggle multiple policy areas and represent their small businesses?

Women are core to the success of the Australian health economy and the same goes for traditional medicine. The vast majority of Australian Traditional Medicine Society members are women, micro business, working from home and juggling a family, their practice and continued education.

So how does ATMS’ leadership best represent their members when the policy areas in which they advocate cross over social, economic and small business issues? Plus, are cross jurisdictional – Federal, State and Local Government? This is an excellent example where an association uniquely intersect between policy and small business and we’re keen to hear from Christine Pope, Director of Australian Traditional Medicine Society and (because she can) the Treasurer and Director of Council of Small Business Organisations Australia ... and she still runs her own practice online and in person.

PEOPLE - Tell our listeners about the work of ATMS and how you advocate for your members? How can members of ATMS (and other similar orgs) become more involved in their industry association? What sort of influence can they have?

POLICY - In a practical sense, what does an organisation like ATMS do to influence government policy? What areas of policy are you focused on right now? And who do you tend to speak with?

PURPOSE - What inspired each if your to take on a role in advocacy for your industry? Why do you think ATMS is well placed to advise government on health?

Christine Pope is an experienced Naturopath and Nutritionist based at Elemental Health St Ives. Christine is also an experienced trainer and presenter and was Head of Nutritional Medicine and Homeopathy at Nature Care College at St Leonards from 2012-2015. More recently she has founded her own training programs “Ageing Outrageously”.

Christine has over twenty years experience in her earlier career in Risk Management and Venture capital. In 2016 Christine undertook training with Dr Dale Bredesen in his protocol for Reversing Alzheimers, a detailed protocol involving up to 36 points of intervention including diet, lifestyle, hormonal balance, exercise and detoxification. Subsequently her focus in clinic has been working on healthy ageing and reducing the impact of chronic disease.

Christine is a director and treasurer of The Australian Traditional Medicine Society and the Council of Small Business Organisations of Australia. (COSBOA).

The Australian Traditional-Medicine Society (ATMS) is Australia’s largest national professional association of natural medicine practitioners. ATMS is a multi-modality association representing around 9,000 accredited practitioners and students throughout Australia. ATMS currently accredits 20 natural medicine modalities.

ATMS promotes and represents accredited practitioners of natural medicine, who are encouraged to pursue the highest ideals of professionalism in their natural medicine practice and education.

To find out more go to: https://www.atms.com.au/

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #215

Broadcast date: 28th November 2023

Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor

Guest: Andrew Williams, CEO Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN)

This week on the show we welcome Andrew Williams, CEO Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN). After the recent (and increasingly frequent) interruptions and disruptions caused by the telecommunications powers-that-be, small businesses can feel as though they are helpless victims of these events, with no power or voice to stop them. Well, we are here to tell you there is an advocacy organisation working with small businesses to fight for their rights in these situations. They’re also a strong voice in the room with Government when telco policies and support measures are being written and fight for smallbiz rights to make sure that contracts, access and price is fair and equitable for small businesses.

ACCAN was founded in 2009 and their aim is to empower consumers to make good choices about products and services. As a peak body, ACCAN represents the views of its broad and diverse membership base to policy makers, government and industry to get a better outcome for all communications consumers. As their CEO, Andrew Williams is with us to explain how.

PEOPLE - Why are you so passionate about supporting small businesses in the telecommunications industry? Is this more difficult for small businesses in regional areas? If so, why? Is that a current focus?

POLICY - How do you support small business people in the telecommunications industry and fight for their rights to make sure that contracts, access and price is fair and equitable for small businesses? Where do you submit and consult government? What policy areas is ACCAN currently working on? Can you tell us about the telecommunications review which is currently underway?

PURPOSE - ACCAN was founded in 2009. Tell us about some of the major milestones and successes, the organisation has had in advocating for small business.

Andrew Williams joined ACCAN in 2019 and became CEO in November 2021 With experience base spans a wide range of commercial disciplines in both private and public sector industries.

ACCAN is Australia’s peak communications consumer organisation representing individuals, small businesses and not-for-profit groups as consumers of communications products and services. They focuse on all goods and services including broadcasting, internet and online services, for current and emerging technologies.

They aim to empower consumers to make good choices about products and services. As a peak body, ACCAN will represent the views of its broad and diverse membership base to policy makers, government and industry to get a better outcome for all communications consumers.

To find out more go to: https://accan.org.au/

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #214

Broadcast date: 21st November 2023

Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor

Guest: Bjorn Jarvis, Head of Labour Statistics at Australian Bureau of Statistics

This week on the show we welcome Bjorn Jarvis is the head of the labour statistics program at the ABS. Why are we talking to the ABS? what has this got to do with my small business? Because they are advocates for the power of high quality statistics in understanding the Australian economy and society, and in informing important decisions by businesses, households and governments. And as we know many of these policies are based on this data and as we are going to learn this week, much of this data comes from the ABS.

PEOPLE - Who influences the decisions on which data is most important and when to release the data? Is it political or is the ABS independent and driven by the economic landscape?

POLICY - How the data the ABS provides influences government policy decisions and where does it have the most influence?

PURPOSE - What's is the ABS' fundamental purpose? What is it hoping to drive with its data? How can small businesses make the most of this data?

Bjorn Jarvis is the head of the labour statistics program at the ABS. He is a prominent advocate for the power of high quality statistics in understanding the Australian economy and society, and in informing important decisions by businesses, households and governments.

Bjorn is a regular voice in public commentary and on social media highlighting important insights from ABS statistics, including the experiences of small businesses. He is also passionate about small business owners being able to get their hands on data, with lots of data available for free through the ABS website, including information on how their industries and communities are changing.

To find out more go to: https://www.abs.gov.au

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #213

Broadcast date: 14th November 2023

Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor

Guest: Rob Marshall, GM Community Engagement and Education at Institute of Certified Bookkeepers

Let’s dive into the world of member associations.

Bookkeepers and accountants are critical to your small business success. Assisting with compliance, getting set up and keeping all of your financial ducks lined up, and support as you grow and evolve your business. You ask them for advice not only about your numbers but staffing, human resources, cybersecurity, data, super, payroll... the list goes on.

But who supports the supporters?

The Institute of Certified Bookkeepers do... and they are a formidable organisation if you’re on the receiving end of their advocacy for members and small businesses. They work with almost every regulator and administrator in Government which deals with small business – which is all of them. ATO, FairWork, ASIC, ACCC, in constant communication with Ministers and Senators plus heavily involved with the good work of strong advocates like COSBOA.

Rob Marshall, is of their passionate Directors, taking his decades of experience as a small business owner with numerous accolades including WA Micro Business of the year, a professional bookkeeper since 1996 and an inaugural member and Fellow of ICB.

This is who supports the supporters, the army of bookkeepers looking after their small business clients.

PEOPLE - How can members of ICB (and other similar orgs) become more involved in their industry association? What sort of influence can they have?

POLICY - In a practical sense, what does an organisation like ICB do to influence government policy?

PURPOSE - What inspired each if your to take on a role in advocacy for bookkeepers? Why do you think ICB and bookkeepers are well placed to advise government on the impact of regulation on small businesses?

Rob Marshall is the GM Community Engagement and Education at Institute of Certified Bookkeepers. He’s been a small business owner in many industry since 1985, a professional bookkeeper since 1996 with numerous accolades including WA Micro Business of the year and an inaugural member and Fellow of the Institute of Certified Bookkeepers since 2006. ICB is a formidable organisation, if you’re on the receiving end of their advocacy for members and small businesses. They work with almost every regulator and administrator in Government which deals with small business – which is all of them. ATO, FairWork, ASIC, ACCC, in constant communication with Ministers and Senators plus heavily involved with the good work of strong advocates like COSBOA.

To find out more go to: https://www.icb.org.au/

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #212

Broadcast date: 7th November 2023

Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor

Guest: The stars of Xerocon!

EP#212 ~ Highlights from Xerocon 2023 ~ What will be the impact of AI on the Fintech industry and small business?

Back in August I was invited to attend Xerocon where I interviewed captains of industry, economists and innovative app founders to find out what they think will be the impact of AI on the Fintech Industry.

All small businesses are well on their way to a digital future and are already familiar with how integration works between their business, banking and process data. But what will AI mean? What new changes will small businesses have to adopt and who will manage these? What’s the role of advisors? What’s already under way in the Appshpere?

Small Biz Matters went on the road to find out. We interviewed:

James Bergin, Executive General Manager - Technology Strategy & Integration at Xero
Louise Southall, Economist at Xero
Sabby Gill, Global CEO at Dext
Tony Harcourt, Co-Founder at WorkGuru.io
Trent McLaren, Strategic Advisor, Growth Consultant & Brand Ambassador at Annature

Let’s have a listen to their thoughts on AI and the future of data and integration.

PEOPLE - What will AI mean for small business owners and their data in Xero? How can advisors support small business clients in change management and AI automation?

POLICY - The quarterly Xero Insights report is influential with policy makers as it provides quality small business data into Government. How is the data gathered and how can users be confident their data is protected? Why do small businesses need to know about changes to Anti-Money-laundering

PURPOSE - What were the key takeaways from the latest Xero Small Business Insights report? What does AI mean for a large, international company like Xero’s future? What’s the future of AI to solve our “wicked problems”

So what is it? Xerocon is It's a two-day annual cloud accounting and bookkeeping conference for accountants, bookkeepers and advisors. It is designed to help delegates discover the latest technology to help them save time and grow their business, listen to keynote speakers to be recharged with fresh ideas to improve operations and working with clients and a community event of learning, inspiration and celebration.

To find out more go to: https://www.xero.com/au/events/xerocon/

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #211

Broadcast date: 31st October 2023

Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor

Guest: Paul Zahra, Chief Executive Officer at Australian Retailers Association

EP#211 ~ The Australian Retailers Association is celebrating 120 years - what makes a successful association last? With Paul Zahra, CEO ARA

Today we welcome Paul Zahra, the CEO of the Australian Retailers Association. It is their 120 year anniversary so we are going to talk about how they represent their 50,000 retail shopfronts throughout Australia. what makes a successful association last? As a national body, how do you balance the policy work across so many different government agencies? And importantly, what do you think will be the focus of small business policy in the next 12 months?

PEOPLE - ARA has been around for 120 years now – what makes a successful association last, through the trials and tribulations of government policy and advocacy work? As a national body, how do you balance the policy work you do across so many different government bodies (local, state, federal)

POLICY - What are the key areas of policy that the ARA focusing on at the moment? Are there some issues that occupy much more of your time and are more complex and how do you determine as the CEO where the focus areas are at any one time? What do you think will be the focus of small business policy in the next 12 months?

PURPOSE - Tell us a little bit about how you personally moved into the world of advocacy and why you’re so passionate about looking after small business retailers?

Paul Zahra is a leading figure of Australian retail having worked in the industry for 40 years including in senior executive and non-executive roles and as a company advisor. He has previously held senior leadership positions at Target, Officeworks and at David Jones where he was the CEO and Managing Director.

Paul leads the team at the Australian Retailers Association – Australia’s oldest, largest and most diverse retail body, representing a $400 billion sector that employs one in ten Australians.

To find out more go to: https://www.retail.org.au

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Small Biz Matters: People, Policy, Purpose ~ Episode #210

Broadcast date: 24th October 2023

Host: Alexi Boyd, Small Business Advocate & Policy Advisor

Guest: Hon Bruce Bilson, the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman

I sat down with The Hon. Bruce Bilson, the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman to discuss how small businesses can be more involved in policy and what ASBFEO does to support small business. In what way do they speak on behalf of the small business community represent us in Government consultations – particularly in difficult policy areas.

We discussed in what ways ASBFEO assists with dispute resolution, improving payment times, and learned about the tax concierge service the office provides to small business who are resolving problems with the ATO.

Always an interesting discussion, Bruce will be joining Small Biz Matters throughout the year to inform listeners on what advocacy work ASBFEO is conducting, and how you can be involved.

PEOPLE - Can you tell the audience a bad why you’re so passionate about small business and what you’ve done over the years to support? The reality is governments have a lot of impact on small business is through regulation. So realistically, is there anything that can be done, or any thought leadership which can improve this situation?

POLICY - In your opinion, is there a good place to start for small businesses who want to be more involved in reducing red tape?

PURPOSE - Can you tell the audience about the role of the ombudsman and how you influence policy in the federal Govt?

To find out more go to: https://www.asbfeo.gov.au

Next week on the show we welcome the CEO of the Australian Retailers Association Paul Zahra live in the studio. It’s their 120 year anniversary so we’re going to talk about how they represent their 50,000 retail shopfronts throughout Australia. what makes a successful association last? As a national body, how do you balance the policy work across so many different government agencies? And importantly, what do you think will be the focus of small business policy in the next 12 months?

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Small Biz Matters – #208 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 18 May 2021

We all live, work and spend money in a global economy. E-commerce, virtual assistants, zoom calls & remote working are not new concepts. So what’s stopping you from operating your business globally?

As a small business we can struggle to see the bigger picture - scaling, growing internationally, a true global business - concepts which can seem out of reach for most of us. But what if this was a real possibility? What if there were government supports in place to help you? You just need the right advice and then you’re ready for global growth.

Trena Blair from FD Global Connections, is an expert in transitioning businesses of all sizes into having a global presence. She’s going to explain the logistics, the pitfalls involved with setting up globally and some strategies to ensure that you’re prepared and NOT attempting this monumental change to your business all by yourself.

Welcome to the show Trena.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Under what typical circumstances would you consider setting up an office overseas?
- Examples of small businesses who have done just that?
- Expanding on opportunities you may not have here in Australia
- Is there a particular type of small business or sector of the economy which do this better?
What’s involved in setting up and launching a business in US in particular
- Visas
- Office space
- Restrictions about being an overseas based business?
- Cultural differences?
- Are there restrictions from the Australian side? ATO?
What about a non-physical presence? Who can you utilise to help you?
- Interim sales professionals and tapping into that process?
- How are they paid - Retainer
What are some of the pitfalls to setting up a presence overseas?
- Growing too fast
- Typical mistakes you see
- Growing a network
- Webinar - scaling during turbulent times
Which industries at the moment are seeing growth in global market

To find out more go to their website: https://www.fdglobal.com.au

Forbes 2018: "Trena Blair is an expert in expanding businesses from Australia into the U.S., with New York as the entry point."

Trena is a global citizen, having lived and worked in Australia and the United States of America (New York) during the course of her 20+ year international executive career. During her career, she managed global regions including Asia Pacific and the America’s.

Trena has extensive expertise in working with organisations in establishing holistic sustainable business models and served for 7 years as a Business Excellence Evaluator for Business Excellence Australia. This led to her passion of working with Australian companies to prepare them for, and launch, in the USA, specialising in New York.

In addition to her executive responsibilities which included working at a Telco startup, Trena has founded 2 startup's, including an Italian luxury import/wholesale business. In 2014, Trena founded and is CEO of FD Global Connections which works with Australian companies to prepare for and launch their business in the USA, and also USA companies launching in Australia.

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Small Biz Matters – #207 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 11 May 2021

You couldn’t get more topical than this at the moment. Equality, fairness and equity in the workplace. Our country’s leaders have failed so can the small business community become the leaders in this space and embrace a new philosophy around fair and equitable discussions?

The reality is many small businesses don’t even know what their obligations are, let alone how to be equitable, fair and equal when engaging with others. Today’s guest might just be able to help us with this. I found her social media presence to be refreshing at a time when I felt only disappointment and dissolution in the way our country was being run. Her thought provoking posts led me to invite her on Small Biz Matters to help us tackle this important topic.

Cathy is passionate about equity and equality in the speaker space, and was disappointed to find that the traditional speaker agency and bureaus tended to only feature celebrities and professional speakers; the same perspectives but repackaged differently. So she founded Keynoteworthy which aims to see diversity and inclusion on stage, and she joins us today to share her own small business journey and help us to see things differently, or rather, equitably.

What does it really mean to be to be fair and equitable?
Why did you decide to become self-employed and start your own business, Keynoteworthy?
There is a lot of talk about diversity, equity and inclusion. What does it mean? Is it all just corporate-speak?
- Pronouns, how to understand them and what meaning they hold for individuals?
Why should small businesses think about diversity, equity and inclusion in their business?
- Is it a must as part of your duty of care to your staff?
- What about the speaker’s circuit, and choosing those who speak for your branding?

To find out more go to their website: https://keynoteworthy.com.au/

About our Guest:

Cathy Ngo (pronounced norr) is an entrepreneur, writer, presenter, speaker and who thrives at the intersection of tech, comedy and activism. She’s the founder of Keynoteworthy, a challenger speaker agency and social enterprise focused on bringing diversity and inclusion.

Cathy has a degree in Business, majoring in Human Resources because she didn’t want to be an accountant, lawyer or doctor. Much to her parent's dismay, they still don’t know what she does for a living.

She’s spent more than ten years climbing and playing ‘snakes and ladders’ in Australia’s top listed companies before hitting the ‘bamboo ceiling’ several times (it’s like the glass ceiling but thicker). Entrepreneurship has always been in Cathy’s blood from a young age.

Outside of work, she dabbles in stand-up comedy at random covid-safe bars and restaurants and mainly jokes about being positively discriminated against for being Asian-Australian. She is also an obsessive indoor plant collector and has a hard time trying to keep them alive.

About Keynoteworthy

Keynoteworthy solves the problems that events and conference organisers have in finding and booking speakers that reflect the diversity of gender, sexualities, ethnicity and ultimately, perspectives and ideas that event-goers and sponsors are increasingly looking for.

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Small Biz Matters – #206 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 4 May 2021

That’s where the brick walls start to pop up.

In the last 12 months things have changed; lending criteria, requirements for financial fitness, what the banks are looking for and looking at have evolved. The goalposts have shifted. So who can you turn to, to untangle the maze?

Today we welcome David Gandolfo, Chair of Advocacy at CAFBA Commercial and Asset FInance Brokers Association of Australia to explain what you need to know in regards to changes over the past 12 months, what to expect now in small business lending, and what to do to access funds more efficiently.

Tell us about CAFBA as a professional association and what you do for your members and the small business community as a whole?
In your experience How has covid impacted business borrowing over the past 12 months?
- The evolution of small business lending - credit crunch, second tier lending
- The loan deferral scheme & other options
What can business borrowers do to manage their funding requirements and get better outcomes?
- Tactical tips on preparing your business for accessing funding
- Financials & interims up to date
- Identifiers in place to prove you are who you say you are
Why is ATO tax debt such an issue?
- Are you up to date with ATO & reporting or not?
- Why is having a loan with the ATO a problem when borrowing?
- What are banks looking at - bank accounts, tax portals, spending patterns, benchmarks for your industry
How do you see things going forward?
- What’s going to change in the next 12 months for small business’ lending - will there be improvements to lending criteria for small business?

To find out more go to their website: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-gandolfo-86736116/

About our Guest:

Director of Quantum Business Finance, which arranges Equipment Finance (Lease, Hire Purchase and Chattel Mortgage). Our clients range from small and medium sized businesses through to ASX200 companies and Government authorities, and we assist them to acquire the necessary plant, machinery, motor vehicles, computers etc that are used to run their businesses. Quantum is a broker with a panel of over 25 commercial lenders, from whom we source the best outcome for the customer, and then arrange the approval and documentation through to settlement. Broking firms like Quantum are known for their long-term personal relationship with each customer, which allows us to have "line of sight" and a first-hand understanding of each customer's needs. We are a highly capable business that assists other capable businesses. See www.quantumbusiness.com.au

Board Patron and Past President of Commercial & Asset Finance Brokers Association of Australia (CAFBA), which is the peak national body of both commercial and equipment finance brokers in Australia. CAFBA is a self-regulating body which enforces stringent education, probity and procedural standards on its members, and advocates for its members and their clients through high-level engagement with regulators and legislators. CAFBA strives for industry excellence through education and scholarship programs, and is heavily engaged with regulators to make the clear distinctions between the very different needs between consumer and commercial borrowers.. See www.cafba.com.au

Advisor and Former Deputy Chair of the Council of Small Business Australia (COSBOA), which is the country’s peak body exclusively representing the interests of SME businesses. COSBOA has a proud history of strong advocacy on small business issues ranging from taxation and workplace relations, through to competition law and retail tenancy. COSBOA is an association made up of associations whose members are small and privately owned businesses. (e.g. The Pharmacy Guild, Master Grocers, etc) and we are the collective voice exclusively representing the interests of small businesses through policy change and regulatory reform at all levels of Government. see www.cosboa.org.au

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Small Biz Matters – #205 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 27 April 2021

Small business can be an incredible ride: exhilarating, rewarding, fulfilling, exhausting, challenging, and sometimes depressing. How do you ride the highs and lows without completely burning out? And as a small business owner where can you find the strategies and support you need, particularly when you’re going through those tough times?

In today’s Small Biz Matters show we’re joined by Tim Hoopmann, Beyond Blue Speaker, who is going to share where you can get help and what to do if you’re in a position to help other small business owners. NewAccess is a free and confidential mental health program developed by Beyond Blue. Over six sessions, coaches with a small business background will work with you to overcome difficult issues, providing you with practical skills to manage stress and get you back to feeling like yourself.

There are some great resources produced by the team at Beyond Blue and Tim, our regular guest on mental health for small business will share his own experiences and how he’s supported others.

What is New Access for small business owners?
What can you expect from the programme as a small business person?
Why has it been set up specifically for small business owners?
How long has it been available?

To find out more go to their website: https://www.beyondblue.org.au/get-support/newaccess/newaccess-for-small-business-owners

PLUS…

The Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman’s My Business Health web portal - https://www.asbfeo.gov.au/my-business-health/home

Everymind’s Ahead for Business digital hub - https://www.aheadforbusiness.org.au

The Support yourself and small businesses: A learning course for business advisers developed by

Beyond Blue and Xero - https://www.headsup.org.au/training-and-resources/educational-and-training/beyondblue-resources/small-business-advisers

About our Guest:

Tim Hoopmann has owned and operated a bookkeeping practice specialising in cloud services for over 10 years. He transformed his business from a desktop and paper based practice to a cloud bookkeeping practice, 100% online and paperless with streamlined and automated processes.

Tim utilised technology to change the way he serviced his customers by moving them online and streamlining their bookkeeping and finance. Showing them how to take back control and sit in the drivers seat of their business thus allowing them the freedom to focus on key revenue generating areas of their business instead of being buried in day to day processes.

Tim is passionate about helping businesses make the transition to being fully automated and cloud based though enabling the power of todays technology. This will allow for greater freedom and the ability to enjoy a powerful work/life balance.

Tim is a speaker for beyondblue helping to increase the community’s understanding about mental health. He knows the importance of mentally healthy workplaces and shares his experience in how to create an environment that values mental health.

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Small Biz Matters – #204 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 20 April 2021

As councils and governments try to balance the needs of the environment, accessibility, urban infrastructure and private developments, small business can often be left to last in the consultation process.

But if you’ve ever attended any kind of small business key stakeholders consultation group, a new networking event or even headed to a new venue in an unfamiliar area, you’ll learn that a key issue for small business is parking - and it’s not just about retailers.

So how does government, enterprise, and small business find the right balance in this important issue that can affect a small business’ livelihood - and make it fair? Well, funnily enough there’s an app for that.

Michael Doherty, Head of Business Development for Smarter City Solutions joins us to explain that with good research by government departments, a fair consultation process and an enterprising tech solution the balance can be found which supports small business and the entire community in which we operate.

So why is parking so important to small businesses, particularly retailers?
- It’s all about foot traffic and customer turnover
- It’s not just about the high street or CBD
- g. city of Sydney are trying to remove parking for competing reasons
- Whose responsibility is it to communicate to small business customers
- It’s important this is transparent and clear
How does technology support reducing traffic commuting issues?
- Adoption of electric & driverless
- Disabled parking
Selling with Government - what has your experience been of the procurement process
- What top tips would you offer for those interested in selling to government
- Govts not doing their research to find out the different options in the private sector
- Is the solution a multi-app approach - where does that happen elsewhere?
  - Which city is the gold standard?

To find out more go to their website: https://smartercity.com.au/

About our Guest:

Michael Doherty - Head of Business Development for Smarter City Solutions

Michael Doherty has been at the forefront of parking technology for close to a decade, having worked with many of the businesses behind Australia’s leading parking and payment apps and cloud-based permit and compliance technologies. As Head of Business Development for Smarter City Solutions, he oversees the sales and marketing of unique integrated parking solutions for local councils, universities and corporate clients all over Australia.

Michael was the first employee at Smarter City Solutions when it launched as CellOPark in 2013. He returned to the company in 2020 after several years at parking availability app UbiPark, as well as SenSen Networks, one of the world’s leading AI solutions providers for smart cities and enterprises.

Multi-disciplined with a solid, 25-year strong track record in information technology, Michael embraces disruptive technology and looks forward to a future where parking permit stickers and coin-fed meters are a thing of the past.

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Small Biz Matters – #203 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 13 April 2021

It’s been tough for everyone these last 12 months but conceptually, it’s been difficult for those of us who are largely soldiering on to understand what it means, really means, to be shut down. We think of the inconvenience, the hassle of wearing a mask and of course, the hit to the bottom line.

So what is it really been like when an entire industry, worldwide, is brought to its knees. Imagine one day you’re open and trading as normal with stock, employees and happy customers, and the next nothing. Zip. Nada. Employees sent home with no wages, stock slowly

It’s kind of like a really, really, really long blackout with severe consequences for everyone and everything you hold dear.

So, I thought it would be a good idea to bring into the studio Shaun de Vries, Hospitality Expert & Advocate from Open Pantry to educate us on how Hospitality is faring all those months later and how we might be able to help.

Let’s take a practical approach and explain to us what it’s been like for the hospitality industry in the last year
- It’s not just about closing your doors and saying no wages to your staff
- Uncertainty means it takes longer for consumers to come back
- Even a short term lockdown can break the business - key dates are really important to these businesses - be conscious of the dates for the industry
- Stock levels - has this changed the way the industry deals with stock suppliers etc? What about the relationships?
What skills and attributes have you seen from those who have successfully navigated the crisis
- From adversity comes power and it’s Shaun’s belief that Melbourne hospitality will bounce back and be successful
- The movement to online ordering - different verticals
- Back of house operations were really crucial - good management was a real strength
- Time and cash was really necessary to pay for those online platforms
- Putting their head in the sand was never a good idea
What can the industry learn from this experience
- Be better at planning in terms of crisis - actually have processes in place
  - Not having too much stock
  - Think less about staffing & recruitment - use tech as an enabler rather than thinking of it another cost
- In what way can small businesses in the hospitality industry support one another and be an advocate for their colleagues?
  - Who’s doing that well?

To find out more go to their websites: Principle of Hospitality- https://www.principleofhospitality.com/

Open Pantry Consulting - https://www.openpantryconsulting.com/

About our Guest:

Shaun, Open Pantry Co’s founder has been an industry leader in Melbourne’s hospitality industry for over 20 years. Shaun has been a venue owner himself, he knows the commitment, effort and experience required to develop a concept into an award-winning, and profitable venture. He also knows how to develop a process to get there that’s enjoyable and rewarding for all involved.

Today, Shaun hosts the Principle of Hospitality - The Podcast, an initiative set up in 2018 under the former name of the Open Pantry Podcast, to give hospitality leaders a voice on an international platform. The insights shared by Shaun’s network of hospitality pros have helped thousands of people in the industry. With over 130 episodes so far, Shaun has interviewed big names such food writer Kara Irving, Nick Stone from Bluestone Lane Coffee, Kim Teo from Mr Yum and hospitality expert, Frank Widen.

With the support and knowledge of Shaun, his team and Open Pantry Co’s partners, Open Pantry Co. can quickly apply their organisation improvement model to ensure high-quality execution and operation of any food and beverage brand.

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Small Biz Matters – #201 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 30 March 2021

LinkedIn is the place to be if you’re B2B, we all know that. But are we getting to messaging, profile and social strategy correct? How can we possibly understand the algorithm (which keeps changing) and how can you tell if your message is even making a difference?

Like all social media there’s the good, the bad and the ugly. You still need to be yourself, polite and wear your “happy face” and know where the dangers lie, but this is business rather than socialising and sometimes it can be hard to tell the difference. For example, How do we build a LinkedIn network of followers and how do you find the balance between numbers and genuine connections?

There is literally no one else I would have on this radio show to educate you on priming your LinkedIn profile and LI social media planning than Jillian Bullock. She speaks all over Australia, is the only certified LinkedIn Ninja in Australia and is incredibly generous with her knowledge of the LinkedIn Matrix.

How can you tell if your message is even making a difference?
- What diagnostics should you be looking at and is this available in the free version?
What is the role of a LinkedIn Profile?
- Does it depend on your audience?
- Are there any stats around where people look predominantly?
- If you only had time to improve one section, which would it be?
What's the biggest mistake you see people making on their LinkedIn profile specifically?
- What about in their feed?
How can we understand the algorithms?
- Can they realistically be manipulated
- Ow frequently does LI make these changes and are they big or incremental so we don’t notice?
How can people work with you and learn more about you?

About our Guest:

Jillian Bullock is Award-winning & Cert. LinkedIn Expert, Veteran LinkedIn Trainer (12 years), Podcaster, PSA qualified Speaker, Co-Author & Ranked No1 LinkedIn Trainer Australasia 2018 SMMI!

Is your business taking advantage of the 26% increase in traffic on LinkedIn during COVID-19?

Professional services, consultants and contractors are being forced to downsize or finding that clients have dried up. Use this downtime effectively to focus on networking and branding, using LinkedIn as a pivotal tool to create and generate new leads.

LinkedIn can be confusing and difficult to use as an effective and profitable business tool as so much of it is hidden. This powerful platform is the most direct Social Media tool today to showcase your expertise within your niche. Without a great LinkedIn profile ‘selling’ you on your behalf just like a brochure or website you are definitely missing out on business.

If you have been reliant on local trade, face-to-face networking or worse still, converting from stage at events, the LinkedIn platform should be a crucial part of your strategy to ensure ongoing development of business and relationships. Especially now!

On average, I increase people’s visibility on LinkedIn by 600%. Since being recognised by LinkedIn HQ as one of only 12 “LinkedIn Independent Experts worldwide, I was ranked #1 LinkedIn Trainer Sydney in 2019 and In February 2020, I was ranked #1 LinkedIn “Rockstar” globally.

If you are stuck for ideas or not sure what to do next, book yourself in to a free 20-minute discovery session with me at https://calendly.com/jillianbullock

To find out more go to their website: https://linkedinninja.com.au/ or LinkedIn.com/in/jillianbullock

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Small Biz Matters – #200 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 23 March 2021

In the last 12 months policy makers, regional communities, corporates and small businesses all sat up and have taken notice of remote working. But it’s not a new normal for regional communities.

Part of the evolution of the Tree Change Sea Change concept is the move towards working remotely. So, corporate does it, government does it, but for once small business has been a little bit slow off the mark, slow to adapt to a sensible way to grow.

Is it because we are now fearful of employing in Aust thanks to our archaic employment laws? Ot the tyranny of distance (which is ironic), or a mistrust in internet capacity? Or has the offshoring process simply become too easy and switching back by bringing the jobs, money and employment home again all seems too hard?

Here to talk us through the processes, the new innovations, the myths and the wonderful impact this has had on regional communities is Jo Palmer. One can only describe her as a powerhouse for regional Australia. She speaks for communities and offers actual solutions which make a difference. A person who, put simply, gets it done.

We are really focusing on the impact that remote work has on rural communities in regards to the attraction and retention of population.
We have built a new tool that helps those living in metro areas to find communities in the regions to relocate to.
Happy to talk about businesses no longer being location dependent in regards to staff or their physical location? Storage space and logistics are cheap in the bush!

To find out more go to their website: https://www.pointerremoteroles.com.au/

About our Guest:

Jo is the Founder and Managing Director of Pointer Remote, a company that supports communities, businesses and individuals to leverage remote work to grow. She is particularly passionate about how remote work is an economic development tool to attract and retain populations in the regions. Pointer Remote runs training programs that support business owners to make remote and flexible work actually work in an organisation as well as supporting team members to be the most effective and efficient remote worker possible.

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Small Biz Matters – #199 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 16 March 2021

The silver bullet vaccines are being rolled out and the economy appears to slowly be getting back on its feet. But a recovery for small business is unique and much more unpredictable than that of our larger counterparts.

Remember that we span all sectors of the economy, all geographical regions of this huge country, all spaces available; and across all cultures and diversity our society is made up of. It is difficult to pigeonhole us at all beyond being “small business”.

Given that there are complex issues including stock to replenish, staff to re-train, premises to re-configure and budgets to re-evaluate it’s a huge task to wrangle us as a group let alone provide the support, and administer the government’s stimulus measures.

So how does an agency the size of the ATO manage this and still keep in touch with the unique and complex needs of small business?

This week we welcome back to the show Andrew Watson; Assistant Commissioner of the ATO to explain what stimulus measures are being administered by the ATO and what plans the ATO has in place to support small business in particular when navigating a recovery that effects us all.

In 2020, the government announced a number of stimulus measures to help businesses deal with the impact of COVID.
- Can small businesses still access any of these?
- What is the ATO responsible for as opposed to other agencies?
- Who are the best people to ask for advice on these matters?
Now that we’re into 2021 and the COVID vaccine is starting to roll out, we can only hope that lock downs are a thing of the past, and businesses can look to getting back to normal. What should small businesses do to start their COVID recovery?
- What are the mistakes the ATO witnessed from the GFC that small businesses can perhaps learn from?
- In terms of what the ATO would like to see, what should small business do to avoid red flags?

To find out more go to their website:www.ato.gov.au

About our Speaker:

Andrew Watson is an Assistant Commissioner for the Australian Taxation Office in the Small Business line. He is currently responsible for understanding how small businesses engage with the tax and super systems, collaborating with small businesses, industry groups and government agencies to shape the client experience and drive improved digital services. His area also helps small businesses manage cash-flow and digital readiness so sustainable and viable businesses can thrive, and advocates for small businesses within the ATO.

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Small Biz Matters – #198 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 28 February 2021

With more and more small businesses becoming fluent with social media landscape (and all of it’s platforms) we find ourselves in a changing world where we used to dominate with thousands of views and have become almost invisible.

As small businesses,competition can drive us to be unique, genuine and clarify what you offer to your clients but it can also make us fearful of change. A dip in our engagement numbers can signal a change in the landscape; perhaps a competitor is muscling into your territory and grabbing your likes followers?

So what can you do about it?

Stella Gianotto is an expert in brand recognition, helping retail business increase market share by creatively using data to futurize their customer experience, and she’s joining us to explain the difference between differentiating or distinguishing so you can avoid being a copy of a copy!

Primarily we are talking about how to create differentiation for your brand of your business, to achieve distinction or to be distinguished.

What is the definition of differentiation for a brand or a business? VS What is the definition of distinction?
How can a small business achieve differentiation in the absence of a big budget?
How many ways are there to achieve differentiation for a small business?
Has branding only been reserved for larger business, global brands, and the elite?
What can a small business do right now to start to create differentiation for their brand?
Does differentiating a brand increase revenue?

To find out more go to their website: https://brandforbrands.com/

About our Guest:

With 25 years’ experience as a Branding Expert and the Creative Director at the Brand for Brands Agency (a family owned business co-founded with her sister Joanne Gianotto), Stella Gianotto has delivered over 1,000 brands globally, received multiple business awards including Best Brand Agency Sydney 2019.

Stella is a multi-award-winning Creative Director and the go-to Branding Expert, working with businesses to create brands for a purpose, profit or a legacy. She is demystifying what branding “really” is, educates us on what branding “actually” does and makes branding accessible for business across various industry segments.

This has led to wide ranging recognition including multiple business and design awards, including being awarded BEST BRAND AGENCY in Sydney 2019. Her brands have even appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show!!!

Stella’s industry presence and expertise has led to her contribution to several books, Keeping Retail Alive, Marketing Brands Made Easy, Social Media Marketing: Write Up Your Tweet and Well Spun: Big PR and Social Media Ideas for Small Business.

Stella also contributes to media including articles’, podcasts and video presentations: SME Experts Show with Mark Boris, SME TV and Podcasts, Daily Telegraph, Business Daily, The Shaker, Oxygen Magazine,Start-up Daily Australia; Dynamic Small Business Australia; Australian Business Solutions Magazine, Australia Post Priority Magazine; CEO Blog Nation and Marketing Space to name a few.

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Small Biz Matters – #197 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 23 February 2021

Time to get excited about statistics. No, really!

As small business owners we are often reminded to learn who our ideal client is and research this with gusto until we have a perfect image in our minds as to who they are and what makes them tick. We normally gather this info from anecdotal experiences and conversations with other business owners or mentors.

But what if all this ideal info like location, B2B details, demographic, political persuasion, customs and habits, and social media use was already easily and freely available.

Well, guess what… it is!

There’s a government department full of real boffins who are passionate about sharing this wealth of knowledge and when it comes to collecting, analysing and delivering this sort of data they’ve made it accessible and useful to small business - and now have a brand new website too!

Its all there for the taking and today we welcome back John Shepherd the General Manager, Industry Statistics Division & Bjorn Jarvis Head Labour Statistics to explain how and why we should tap into this goldmine of data.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Why should small businesses be across these statistics and how to access specifically the labour force data?

How can being aware of labour force data influence your growth decisions as a small business?
How can a business navigate their way through the website and what are the most useful sections, in your opinion?
Where does the ABS get this data from & how robust & accurate is it?
- Building on success on ATO’s STP and exploring ways a business can report survey data through their software
- It’s now real-time rather than based on tax returns which can be months out of date

Sharing the latest ABS updates for small business & new website

COVID business survey
Patterns and trends
Latest retail trade survey
Business conditions updates

Why check out the new website?

Easy to digest info
Start with business snapshot then go and explore the main page
Jobs and wages info (from 700,000 businesses) then breaking down by sectors > how can businesses use the data

To find out more go to their website: www.abs.gov.au

All about the ABS - https://www.abs.gov.au/about?OpenDocument&ref=topBar
ABS response to COVID-19 - https://www.abs.gov.au/websitedbs/D3310114.nsf/home/ABS%20responds%20to%20COVID-19.
A handy calendar that lists statistical releases for the coming six months - https://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/webpages/ABS+Release+Calendar

About our Guest:

John Shepherd is the General Manager leading the Industry Statistics Division. The Industry Statistics Division is responsible for developing, compiling, analysing and disseminating statistical information across a range of sectors including Agriculture, Environment, Building and Construction, Transport, Tourism, Financial Institutions, Innovation and Technology. The Division also produces Main Economic Indicators including Private New Capital Expenditure, Retail Trade, Business Indicators, Building Approvals, Job Vacancies, New Motor Vehicle Sales and Housing and Lending Finance. The Division includes the Statistical Infrastructure and International Branch, encompassing the International Relations & Regional Statistical Development section, the Business Register Unit and the Statistical Standards and Infrastructure section. The Division is focussed on working with its partners to provide a strong information base for policy development and evaluation. John joined the ABS in June 2019 after a lengthy career at the Australian Taxation Office (ATO).

At the ATO, John held a number of senior roles in his 28 years, including leading significant change programs and projects focused on improving the client experience. John’s most recent role was leading the implementation of the Single Touch Payroll (STP) initiative, enabling employers to report their tax and superannuation information for their employees at the same time as they paid staff. STP aims to streamline business reporting to government and support better tax and super experiences for all employees. John also played an active role in superannuation reform, including leading the implementation of SuperStream and a number of other superannuation reform initiatives including online superannuation account consolidation.

John is a passionate Movember ambassador and fundraiser for men’s health initiatives.

John holds a Masters of Taxation from the University of NSW and is based in Canberra.

Bjorn Jarvis is the head of labour statistics at the ABS. His team produces the wide range of information on the labour market, based on data provided by businesses and people. He has a passion for how statistics can help businesses, governments, communities and individuals inform their important decisions, and also loves a good graph.

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Small Biz Matters – #196 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 14 February 2021

Small Biz Matters is proud to announce our ongoing collaboration with the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman through regular updates from Kate Carnell about all ASBFEO is doing to advocate and support small businesses.

In the fourth third of the series Kate Carnell will update us about ASBFEO’s response to the crisis facing small business. This week we’re updating you on:

Insolvency changes and access to funding for small business since 1Jan2021
Temporary restructuring relief - how to get started
Why should small businesses familiarise themselves with the Personal Property Securities Register?
Access to credit after JobKeeper and how will small businesses cope with its removal?
What about those businesses looking to hire additional staff – what do they need to know about JobMaker Hiring Credit

Kate Carnell, as an independent advocate for small business owners, has the legislative power to influence our nation’s lawmakers, ensuring legislation and regulations are put in place to help small businesses grow and in these times, survive.

A lot has happened since January 1 – rules around insolvency have changed for one – what do small businesses need to know?
Let’s talk about temporary restructuring relief. What is it and how do small businesses get started?
There’s a lot of talk about a steep rise in insolvencies this year. Why should small businesses familiarise themselves with the Personal Property Securities Register?
JobKeeper is being phased out and that will no doubt put struggling small businesses under pressure – how important is access to credit? (Kate to talk about revenue contingent loan scheme)
What about those businesses looking to hire additional staff – what do they need to know? (Kate to talk about JobMaker Hiring Credit)

To find out more go to their website: https://www.asbfeo.gov.au/

About our Guest:

The Ombudsman - Kate Carnell

"In this role I will seek to bring together the many voices within the small business community in a way that promotes growth in this vital sector."

Kate Carnell is the inaugural Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman (ASBFEO).

As the ASBFEO, she is an independent advocate for small business owners. Her office has the legislative powers needed to effectively influence our nation’s lawmakers, ensuring legislation and regulations are put in place to help small businesses grow.

The ASBFEO office also provides small businesses and family enterprises with assistance should they find themselves involved in a business dispute.

Small businesses are the engine room of the economy; it’s a big reputation to live up to, so we need to do all we can to ensure they have the freedom to innovate, employ and thrive well into the future.

About ASBFEO

Australia is a nation of small businesses and family enterprises. It’s a dynamic and exciting sector that allows people with an entrepreneurial spirit to pursue their dreams.

One of the fastest growing in the economy, the sector presents many opportunities – and challenges – for those who dedicate themselves to pursing a small business venture.

The ASBFEO's role is to support small businesses and family enterprises to enable them to grow and thrive.

The ASBFEO was launched on 11 March 2016 and has two key functions: to assist and to advocate for small businesses and family enterprises.

ASSIST:

We understand the challenges facing small business owners. We provide access to dispute resolution services for those who may be involved in a disagreement, so they can try and find a solution to their problem without having to go to court.

ADVOCATE:

There are a number of different activities the Ombudsman may conduct in fulfilling the role of small business advocate. Broadly these include:

Conduct inquiries and research

Work with other arms of government

Contribute to other inquiries

Promote good business practice.

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Small Biz Matters – #195 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 9 February 2021

So the Australian Government in defence of one industry, has decided to take on the giants of the tech world and this may affect that proportion of small businesses that rely on those giants for marketing, sales, data storage, functionality, admin, our processes.... Pretty much everything. I know what you’re thinking - that’s basically all of us.

It’s like a David and Goliath battle with small business playing Piggy in the Middle.

So, how concerned should small business be that this currently slightly worrying news story may implode our businesses? Is the threat real or just grandstanding? Will it turn our online worlds upside down or are we just going to pivot to a new search engine?

There’s no one else who’s better positioned to allay our fears (or perhaps make them worse) than Seamus Byrne. With decades of experience as an Award-winning journalist and broadcaster covering the future of technology, videogames and digital culture he’s going to explain the current situation and what you, as a small business, need to know.

What is the fight between google and the gov about?
Is the google threat real? Or just a bit of grandstanding to help get their view out?
What’s the most likely outcome here? Is there a middle ground? Or is it all or nothing on both sides.
Worst case scenario and google leaves ... are we screwed? Or could we adjust to a life of Bing or Duck duck go?
How should we prepare as small business? Or is it wait and see what happens?

To find out more go to their website: https://byteside.com/category/shows/byteside/

For many small businesses the thought of digital solutions encompasses a long list of To Dos which can quite frankly, be overwhelming. Between website, social media, admin, maintaining data, compliance and learning all the above, getting a foothold in the digital space is almost as challenging as starting the actual business itself!

So how do you prioritise which digital solution to use for which problem? What aspects are important when getting your business started, ramping it up or growing quickly? And what client behaviours in all of these aspects should influence your decisions?

Dinesh De Silva is the founder of netStripes, a leading authority on digital innovation and has helped over 7000 businesses to understand and implement digital solutions. He’s joining me in conversation today to help you prioritise the MUST DOs above the nice to have and help you overcome those hurdles of overwhelm to nail all the digital spaces.

Behaviour of Consumer/customers have changed dramatically with the pandemic, how can business owners understand and then cater to these changes successfully ?
In this new year, what are the top 3 things Small and Medium business must do to keep their businesses progressing despite the pandemic
Are there success stories of businesses who have taken these steps in the most affected industries, and what have they done differently?
What is stopping a business owners taking this action despite the transformation of results they can achieve

To find out more go to their website: https://www.netstripes.com/

About our Guest:

Dinesh De Silva – Founder of NetStripes

Dinesh is a leading authority on Small and Medium Business Digital Innovation. His current passion is to empower 1 Million SMEs to accelerate their business growth through Digital Innovation, which he believes can change the course of small businesses in this country, whilst creating millions of jobs across the world.

Having worked with over 7,000 business owners in recent years, he is regularly called upon to share these deep insights as a thought leader. Media appearances include ABC News, ABC Radio, Sky Business, Sky News, AFR, and CIO.

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Small Biz Matters – #194 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 2 February 2021

According to our guest Ben Joseph, manufacturing in Australia is the one sector in which you SHOULDN’T niche. With tight margins, a globally competitive industry and fragile supply chains, a lack of diversification can mean you can’t adapt fast. For instance, when a global shutdown strikes how can you pivot your way out of that one? The industry, like all other small businesses, has learned a great deal from 2020. Good, solid processes, tech integration, communication and of course resilience have been necessities for survival into 2021.

Part of Josco’s recipe for success has been solid processes, access to real time data through reliable tech integration but more important than that - communication with key stakeholders. When the world shut down ‘cause of COVID they relied on those relationships to build back up again. And some were in Australia and some overseas. See, diversification in action!

But what of the future of the industry and the reality of being independent in Australia - is it just a pipe dream? Is it the industry which will drive change or does key policy makers have a role to play to shape its future.

Let’s hear from Ben, who has lots to say on the issues of the future of the industry, procedures, tech integration, communication and of course resilience necessary for survival from 2020 into 2021.

What would you like to see in terms of the the future of manufacturing in Australia and whether it, in reality, can be sustainable?
- A “blended” approach and working collaboratively and utilising the skills in which we excel seems to work at the moment
- But the industry needs to be evolving and adaptable all the time.
- What did 2020 teach us about globalisation? The fact is there are risks as well as positives
- What is the Government focusing - innovative manufacturing, reducing the dependency on one nation as our “factory”. Innovation reduces our dependency on nations which provide labour cheaply
Describe the affect the COVID crisis had on the manufacturing industry as a whole
- Disruption of supply chains
- Breakdown in communication
- How long did the “panic”last
Was it a matter of survival of the fittest or was it something about your processes and procedures which meant you could survive?
- Why was being aware of your cash flow position and real time data so important?
What about the relationships with your suppliers - did they take a beating and did you have to rebuild the trust?
What lessons did you learn about business continuity now that you’ve come out the other end?
- Planning for the future – where do you invest and how do you make those decisions?
- What do you consider as “Innovation” when reinventing & reinvigorate your business
- Focus on your strengths
- Remote working – how to manage staff
- What are some signs to look out for in for business owners
- how to use the guide to support the conversation?

To find out more go to their website: https://www.josco.com.au/

About our Guest:

Ben Joseph is the Managing Director of Josco Australia, a trusted Australian owned and operated business supplying hand tools and power tool accessories for nearly 45 years.

Originally from Adelaide, Ben spent his formative years in Perth where he commenced his career before moving back to Adelaide and then ultimately Melbourne 27 years ago.

Throughout his working life, Ben has worked for manufacturers, importers, multinationals and iconic Australian businesses, including Hills Industries and Philips Electronics.

As the second generation in the Josco business Ben has seen the business grow from its formation in a back yard garage, to a business now operating nationally throughout Australia New Zealand and the UK, with major customers including Bunnings, Mitre 10, Total Tools and Blackwoods.

In recent years, Ben has worked actively on the business to transition the business to the generation, becoming the major shareholders together with his other director Maury Chalmers. In making this change there has been a transformation from a “family business” to a more corporate professional organisation and the disciplines associated with this. Many of these changes proved highly beneficial as the impact of COVID-19 hit in 2020.

“Trust” is a major focus for both Ben and Josco. As many of Josco’s products are used in heavy duty applications on powerful power tools, the ability of the products to perform under pressure is critical. Over many years the products have been put to the test in the toughest Australian conditions and met the challenge. Josco’s customers and end users “trust” the business and products, for their reliability and ability to get the job done.

Ben is married with 4 sons, one of whom is now the 3rd generation working in the business in a sales capacity.

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Small Biz Matters – #193 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 26 January 2021

Have you ever wondered what your accountant and bookkeeper really thinks? How about tapping into that wealth of expertise to gain an understanding of the transition between 2020 to 2021 and the potential impact on your small business?

Last week I was lucky enough to be invited by ReceiptBank to moderate a panel of such experts; tapping into the knowledge, experience and opinions from three giants of the accounting and bookkeeping world. With hundreds of small businesses between them, this panel brought with them not only a diagnosis on 2020 but a prognosis for 2021.

2021 is sure to be an important year for businesses as they look to bounce back and maintain consistent growth. But for this to be possible, these businesses will need brilliant business-minded accountants supporting them.

Stuart Brandman from 542 Partners, Rebecca Laut from The Business Organiser & Kaia Kaldoja - from BlueRock Books, discussed the ongoing challenges for their industry in 2021, and how cloud accounting technology can help support businesses prepare for success.

Let’s have a listen to what they have to say, and what we can learn from their expertise.

Q1 – Reflecting on 2020, do you believe the challenges the accounting industry faced in 2020 going to bleed into 2021?

Rebecca - advisory has played a major role in growth of the industry. It is a combination of services and depends on the types of businesses we work with. Particularly what at stage of their business their clients are at the time. Some will be growth phase if they were expanding whereas others are in the process of contracting, or even closing . Either way, 2020 has brought with it a more advisory focus.

Stuart – Chat about the stimulus and its impact on clients and practices. Thanks to this major change to legislation we are all playing catchup with timetables and getting back to an even playing field on compliance and challenges. What do you mean by an even playing field? Keeping on top of billable hours - practical tips around how to make

Our roles are busy enough. Finding the space to grow and keep track.

Kaia – expanding on their points and bringing it back around to technology and implementation. How does tech help us to keep on top of advisory and our OWN business growth. We have to remember we too are businesses needing to focus on ourselves!

All - Discussion - What role has tech played in the development of your business in 2020?

Q2 – So speaking of Advisory services, what does that mean from a practical perspective?

Rebecca - what does advisory mean practically? Being a partner to the business, showing interest, being supportive. Genuinely human and knowing the differences between businesses. BUT we don’t take enough time to look at our OWN businesses.

Kaia – Planning your own business should be number 1. Setting up for success. Is it crucial to use the tech products before suggesting your clients. It becomes about people power and some practices might not have the time or staffing to action this.

Stuart – how do you implement change in your own business? How has the format changed? And now we can commoditise it. Tech joining with expertise. And that is a challenge to combining your use and skill with tech and then conveying the message to your clients

All - Discussion - So if the concept of Advisory has evolved because of 2020, did tech evolve fast enough to keep up? In terms of advisory what app in your stack could you not live without?

Q3 - Implementation of tech - how do we find the time to transition to use it better and switch to advisory.

Stuart - what are some practical ways to translate the tech and advisory and compliance?

Stuart

Firstly ask yourself WHY you’re implementing the technology? What is going to enhance the message? THEN look at the best option. Then look at your team & clients likelihood of using it.

Kaia – practical tips for implementing tech with clients. The client needs to be able to USE it. Get the team on board - set up a competition! Don’t forget your clients needs to know how to use it soo!

Rebecca – If you’re listening as owner of a a smaller firm, what do you suggest in terms of implementation?

All - Discussion - Do bigger firms implement tech better because they have the manpower to access, learn and deal with change management?

To find out more go to their website: www.jimmyhalfpenny.com.au

About our Guests:

Rebecca Laut - Director at The Business Organiser

Rebecca is a cloud software specialist who supports businesses in the design and implementation of cloud technology platforms. Rebecca's work is focused on improving businesses overall efficiency and increasing insight across their financial performance. Recently Rebecca led the technology component of PwC’s Outsourced Finance Solution before moving on to build out a new tech advisory offering in her family business The Business Organiser. In her previous roles with global accounting platform Xero, Rebecca was at the forefront of technology disruption having exposure to global markets and fast-paced growth when the organisation went from start-up to international tech darling.

Kaia Kaldoja - Director at BlueRock Books

Kaia joined BlueRock in 2018 as their superhero Head of Bookkeeping, but her origin story is a little different to most superheroes – she got her first taste of the bookkeeping life by helping her parents painstakingly enter stock orders one by one into an ancient point-of-sale system. This is where Kaia’s love of all things process automation and cloud system integration came from. Kaia gets really excited about new software and cutting edge business technologies that make life easier for clients.

Stuart Brandman - Director at 542 Partners

Having worked in large mid-tier accounting firms for nearly ten years, prior to founding 542 Partners, Stu has worked with a range of businesses in financial accounting, advisory, taxation and business planning matters. Stu specialises in providing virtual CFO services and real business solutions and advice to his clients. From implementing the appropriate accounting software, providing accounting and business advice and conducting strategy sessions, Stu has an impressive skill set.

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Small Biz Matters – #192 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 19 January 2021

Despite changing location, updating tech to stay home, avoiding contact with others, and moving all of our pertinent business data into the cloud we still manage to be interrupted by people with those pesky online meetings! You can’t escape meeting people on a screen but is this new way of interacting an improvement to the way we work; or one giant distraction? Depending on who you talk to and without the right tools, it can certainly be a headache.

So, what’s your Tool of Trade when it comes to online meetings? Have you applied a bandaid to solving the problem with a simplistic software add-on to your app stack or actually thought about what’s best for you and your stakeholders; your employees, your clients and importantly your business itself?

It takes a giant of the tech world to move quickly to adapt along with small business. Companies like CISCO has also adapted in their tech hardware offerings and they recently launched over 150 new features to their WEBEX product. Being at the forefront of worldwide tech means they can be a resource to small business to help us understand what’s available and what these changes mean in 2021 and beyond.

I recently joined CISCO at their worldwide launch and spoke to Peter Self, Director Sales Operations - ANZ Collaboration at Cisco about their vision behind WEBEX and how technology can improve the online meeting experience for all.

How the introduction of systems like Webex can encourage collaboration for small businesses, despite meetings not being in person.
Spontaneity & equality seems to be a foundation of the new design. Why is this going to revolutionise the way we interact digitally?
- Meeting templates
- End to end encryption
- Hotdesking for small business capabilities
- Noise removal – no morer you’re on Mute!
- Immersive sharing
What does the mass movement towards online meeting to the concept of community coworking spaces? Has CISCO seen a shift away or a renewed enthusiasm for coworking with everyone returning to their “offices”?
Are you going to continue to engage with your small business IT management teams you currently utilise to grow the small business market?
What makes WEBEX different from it’s competitors?
- Hardware will be open but integrated with webex
How are you going to train all these small businesses on a whole new system with all these new features ?

To find out more go to their website: https://www.webex.com/

More information on Webex:

Cisco has always been at the heart of innovation and enabling businesses to collaborate. Webex has a rich history of helping employees innovate and remain productive wherever they are. Since the pandemic, Webex has not only continued to help businesses thrive, it has also been an integral platform for governments to continue to lead remotely, doctors to meet with patients safely, and educators to teach students at a distance.

The announcement of the latest innovations come as companies across the world are preparing for a ‘hybrid’ future of work – where employees move between office-based and remote working with greater frequency – in a post pandemic world.

Recently, Cisco announced a wave of new Webex innovations that enables seamless, smart and secure collaboration for organisations to deliver the best inclusive virtual experiences that are 10x better than in-person interactions.

The all new Webex provides a single secure place for connecting and getting things done – call, meet and message in one app. New features include:

noise cancellation and speech enhancement
transcriptions and closed captioning
highlights and action items
real-time language translation
In-meeting gestures powered by body movement recognition
enhanced video layouts and Webex Huddle (spontaneous meetings with a single click)
a number of AI-powered features in messaging and new calling features help you focus on what matters most

About our Guest:

Peter Self is the Director for Cisco Collaboration in Australia and New Zealand. In this role, Peter is responsible for the continued growth and adoption of Cisco’s Collaboration technology in the context of all Cisco’s technology and services within Australia and New Zealand

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Small Biz Matters – #191 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 11 January 2021

Apparently, there’s a fair amount of government money flying around as a result of a pandemic and it’s up for grabs if you just know where to look. No matter which side of politics you fall we all have to agree that the Australian economy and the Australian Government came into this COVID induced recession in the best possible position.

And small businesses should be at the front of procuring and receiving this investment. We are, after all the engine room of the economy, the most innovative sector and the collectively, the biggest employer.

So how do you access, apply for and eventually receive a piece of this pie? Of course there are processes to follow (as all things government) and these can be onerous (because Government) and difficult for small businesses to understand.

Joining us on Small Biz Matters this week is Thomas Pollock from THINQ Learning, who will give us top tips on making your business grant-ready so you can confidently apply for that pool of government funding a grow your business!

QUESTIONS

Is it true that many small businesses don’t bother to compete for government contracts, simply because they believe larger corporates will always beat them?
What holds a small business back from competing for a government contract?
How valuable can Government contracts be to small businesses?
Through your book as well as you own personal experience as a business owner, you understand how to win government contracts. Can you share some of your secrets?
Can a business survive on government contracts alone?
If you were a small business owner today, and you’d just made the decision to try and win Government business, what would your first steps be?
- Why does business need to know about the process and how is it different from winning other clients’ business?
In your book you talk about the importance of small business increasing their ‘Government IQ’. What exactly do you mean by that?
- What not to do – what can listeners learn from your experience at missing out on winning that lucrative Govt contract
- Does it make a difference if you’re dealing with state, local or federal level of government?
- Is the process fundamentally different when applying for grants as opposed to winning govt contracts?
Any advice to a small business which has just won its first Government contract?
Through your tool, what are the main areas that your experience has shown small businesses need to work on?

To find out more go to their website: https://thinqlearning.com.au/

About our Guest:

Thomas Pollock is the Founder of THINQ Learning, and the author of the book Winning Government Business: The 6 Rules and 9 Absolutes for Small to Medium Businesses. In a continuing 22-year business journey, Thomas progressed from BDM, to Operations, Sales, then General Manager of an education and professional services organisation. Realising that the business was missing out on one of the biggest revenue pools, Thomas set himself the task of finding a way through the confusing maze that Government procurement can be. Following a lot of hard work, wins, losses, and everything in between, Thomas ensured 23% of the business's total revenue came directly from the Government sector, easily making it the largest customer for the business.

Thomas's working life is now taken up with THINQ Learning, helping Queensland small businesses find and open Government revenue streams, and ensuring they don't make the same mistakes he did.

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Small Biz Matters – #190 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 11 January 2021

Many would say 2020 may not have been the perfect time when it came to setting up an art gallery in suburban Sydney but it WAS the perfect time to bring together community, support local small businesses and offer a platform for creative minds to flourish in a difficult time.

So really, it WAS the perfect time to establish a suburban art gallery!

So what does it take to set up a creative space in the middle of a pandemic? And, to make it a success? With a background as teacher, artist and creative, Melony Smirniotis knows how creativity can both foster innovation and support the community. As she states, “The art making process nourishes, challenges, provokes, humbles and provides grounding and perspective”

Coupled with a desire to provide artists with a space to shine, Melony recognised the potential of the Epping community and the resilience of it’s artists to create a space in which the whole community could benefit, and prosper. Today, she hopes to help other businesses to learn from her experience, innovation and creative success.

Why build an Art gallery in North Epping?
- How did you recognise the potential for what is essentially quite a suburban landscape? How did you research the area to create an artistic space that would be welcomed into the local community?
- What part do you think local, community based
How do you choose Artist's to exhibit and also to teach workshops?
- What does it take to recognise artistic talent in others, what background do you need?
How do you sustain momentum in regard to innovation? How do you keep content fresh and constantly evolving?
Describe a few of the upcoming exhibitions in regard to narrative and practice and the way they fit into the local community and the broader artistic community?

To find out more go to their website: https://www.gallery1111.net/

About our Guest:

Melony Kara Smirniotis, a textural expressionist, is the founder and owner of Gallery 11:11 Studio and Art space in the leafy suburb of North Epping. Completing a Bachelor of Fine Arts at the University of Western Sydney, Nepean in 1998 marked the beginning of taking her artwork to a new level. Post University studies, teaching, exhibiting and curating have been Melony's key areas of focus in the past two decades.

“The art making process nourishes, challenges, provokes, humbles and provides grounding and perspective. My surroundings constantly influence her technique and choice of materials”.

Melony has a permanent body of work showcased in her gallery and in the Blue Mountains at Gallery One88 Fine Arts. She currently works from her gallery / studio in North Epping, Gallery 11:11 Studio & Art Space.

Texture and colour, light and movement remain a constant source of painting inspiration. Such elements are observed and recorded on a conscious and subconscious level daily. This collection of thoughts and experiences tend to build and then eventually pour out into the canvas. She remains open to the concept of change pushing herself to engage in the exploration of tools and mediums. Her constant is the tactility of her work and the subject matter that being nature. Melony aspires to create work that evokes emotion and warms the soul, celebrating natural surroundings.

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Small Biz Matters – #189 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 30 November 2020

It’s pretty difficult these days to run a small business and be free of the conflict experience. From managing staff to negotiating with suppliers and clients, it’s bound to happen at some point. And then there’s the serious conflict scenarios such as between business partners or family members which, when you add personal life into the mix, can be very destructive.

Because we ourselves are human who are dealing with humans we can come across conflict pretty regularly in our everyday business dealings.

So if the human aspect of running a small business can’t be removed and the threat of conflict is ever present, what can we as small business owners do to mitigate the risk? And when is the best time to seek help when it threatens to overwhelm you and all you’ve worked for?

As always, it’s always best to get support before your business is threatened so here today with us is Tulsi van de Graaff, Conflict Expert with Brave People Solutions to take us through some strategies and help us understand what conflict resolution looks like and how it can help.

Topics we’ll be covering:

What the difference between working with corporates and small business
- It’s a missing link – the people side of things breaking down undermines everything
- Everyone is tiptoeing around issues, not calling out the wrong or inappropriate action
What do the steps to reconciliation look like?
- How do you recognise conflict before it becomes all out war?
- Signs that things are unravelling
- How do you miss them?
Is it just a matter of being present in the office? No, it goes to the hart of communication and being valued. We need to know what our role is, and what the expectations are.
- The timing is important.
What do the conversations look like ?
- Start with the basics – do what is my role?
- Without that people can feel unsupported.
Teaching the leaders how to lead – and that can be you the business owner.

To find out more go to their website: https://bravepeoplesolutions.com.au/

About our Guest:

Tulsi is a partner at Brave People Solutions and a former lawyer with a psychology degree and a mediation, coaching, investigation and counselling background. For the last 10 years she has worked with organisations including small businesses, to solve their communication, conflict, leadership and workplace culture challenges and build impressive and strong teams, leaders, and workplaces.

Tulsi presents on various topics including communication, conflict resolution, building a positive performance culture and leadership and teaches Masters of Science students on Communication and Conflict Management. She has written articles on a range of topics including resilience, communication, conflict resolution and building a positive performance culture including for Wellbeing Magazine and the Australian Journal of Pharmacy.

Tulsi previously worked at the Australian Human Rights Commission investigating and mediating discrimination complaints, was a child protection investigator for the Department of Education and a pre-marriage counsellor for CatholicCare.

Tulsi is also a passionate volunteer at Dress for Success, a charity that supports women in need find employment and runs workshops including on resilience, self esteem and confidence.

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Small Biz Matters – #188 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 19 November 2020

In the third of the series Kate Carnell will update us about ASBFEO’s response to the crisis facing small business. This week we’re updating you on:

Insolvency changes and access to funding for small business
Access to funding
What’s the Australian Business Growth fund and how can small businesses access this resource?
The latest update on the Business Funding Guide - further improvements thanks to the learnings from COVID; the changes to trading conditions and a practical HOW TO pathway to becoming financially fit

Welcome back to the show Kate Carnell.

Insolvency changes and access to funding for small business
- Why is it so important that small businesses are aware of these changes and the associated timelines?
- What do the reforms mean to the way you structure debt when you are restructuring or winding up a business
- Who is at risk of failure?
Access to funding
- How has ASBFEO assisted with encouraging Federal policy makers to make it easier for small business to access finance?
- What’s often at risk when increasing funding
What’s the Australian Business Growth fund and how can small businesses access this resource?
- Why was this established and who is eligible?
- Where has this model come from?
The latest update on the Business Funding Guide - further improvements thanks to the learnings from COVID; the changes to trading conditions and a practical HOW TO pathway to becoming financially fit
Commercial tenancies - who’s helping who here?
Insolvency laws and what it means to be trading insolvent right now

To find out more go to their website: https://www.asbfeo.gov.au/

About our Guest:

The Ombudsman - Kate Carnell

"In this role I will seek to bring together the many voices within the small business community in a way that promotes growth in this vital sector."

Kate Carnell is the inaugural Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman (ASBFEO).

The ASBFEO office also provides small businesses and family enterprises with assistance should they find themselves involved in a business dispute.

About ASBFEO

Australia is a nation of small businesses and family enterprises. It’s a dynamic and exciting sector that allows people with an entrepreneurial spirit to pursue their dreams.

One of the fastest growing in the economy, the sector presents many opportunities – and challenges – for those who dedicate themselves to pursing a small business venture.

The ASBFEO's role is to support small businesses and family enterprises to enable them to grow and thrive.

The ASBFEO was launched on 11 March 2016 and has two key functions: to assist and to advocate for small businesses and family enterprises.

ASSIST:

ADVOCATE:

There are a number of different activities the Ombudsman may conduct in fulfilling the role of small business advocate. Broadly these include:

Conduct inquiries and research

Work with other arms of government

Contribute to other inquiries

Promote good business practice.

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Small Biz Matters – #187 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 19 November 2020

In the world of small business data is everything. It helps us to control cash flow, maintain client relationships, streamline basic and complex processes and give us the confidence to know the decisions we make are based on real, up to date information.

And the explosion of cloud based accounting software is what has given small business a power of on-demand financial data to be used in ways we could not have dreamed of only a few years ago. In fact, in times of crisis it’s been a saving grace - the one true source of truth.

But what other ways, beyond how YOU process data, does it have the power to drive change?

I’m delighted to be joined today by Trent Innes, Managing Director of Xero Australia & Asia to talk to Small Biz Matters about the power of data not only to drive the direction of your business but how it guides Govt policy and influences key decision makers all the way to the top.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Can you tell us about the Xero Small Business Insights program and the reasons for establishing it? To whom do you deliver the info and how does this powerful data guide policy?
What trends have you been observing in small business in recent months?
What do you believe to be the role of software companies when it comes to the power in this data and an advocate role?

New September data indicates positive signs of revenue and jobs growth in Australian small business

Xero, the global small business platform, has today released new data on the health of Australia’s small business sector in September from its Xero Small Business Insights (XSBI) program, in partnership with research firm AlphaBeta (part of Accenture).

Based on anonymised and aggregated data of hundreds of thousands of customer records, the latest XSBI analysis shows the small business sector experienced its fastest revenue growth in six months and a jobs increase after a two-month pause.

Revenue growth fastest in six months

Small business revenue grew 5.2% year-on-year, the fastest pace since March 2020. This is just above pre-crisis average annual revenue growth of 4.6% (July 2019 to February 2020).

Victoria, where lockdowns continued in September, recorded a 0.4% year-on-year revenue rise for the month, which was a significant turnaround from the 6% year-on-year decline recorded in August. Victorian health care (+10%), manufacturers (+8%), professional services (+9%) and retail trade (+8%) underpinned this year-on-year revenue growth result.

Despite the rise in revenue in Victoria, the state is still lagging the rest of Australia with revenue growth almost five percentage points lower than the nationwide outcome.

Jobs growth after two months pause

After largely flat results in July and August, small business jobs rose 0.8% in September and have now recovered around two-thirds of the losses experienced when the crisis hit.

As with revenue, the national result was helped by Victoria, where jobs rose 0.9% in September after falling 3.6% between end June and end August.

Despite the rise in small business jobs in September, the Victorian labour market situation is by far the most challenging across Australia. Victorian jobs are still 10.9% lower than they were prior to the pandemic.

The most positive news around jobs in September was the rise in the two hardest hit sectors so far, with hospitality (+3.2%) and arts and recreation (+2.5%) both recording a growth month-to-month. Although both sectors are still well below pre-crisis jobs levels, at -12% and -15% respectively.

“It is encouraging to see national revenue figures returning to pre-COVID levels and industries that were hit the hardest – hospitality and arts and recreation – experiencing a growth in jobs. While small business has been showing a promising recovery, there is still a lot of support needed by the sector to continue this upward trajectory and ensure it can sustain any further turbulence. The September data also provides optimism of a steady rebound in Victoria as restrictions continue to ease,” said Trent Innes, Managing Director Australia and Asia, Xero.

Casual jobs led the downturn but are now leading the rebuild

XSBI data shows that casual employees were hit hard by the onset of the pandemic, when small business casual jobs fell 25% in late March and early April. From June, casual workers began to be rehired and employment of casuals has risen by 24% since the trough of late April.

There is however still some way to go to return to pre-pandemic small business casual employment levels which remain 5.7% below pre-crisis levels. This is a bigger shortfall than the overall job situation, which has small business jobs 3.9% lower than pre-crisis levels.

Payment times remain faster than pre-crisis level

In April and May average payment times rose slightly with small businesses waiting on average a day longer in April to be paid than the 25.4 days they waited in February. However, this trend reversed in June and by September, small businesses reported that average payment times were 24.1 days or 1.3 days faster than before the pandemic crisis.

"Continued improvement in payment times to small businesses will be pivotal at this time. This can ease the strain the pandemic is placing on cash flow and boost confidence for businesses to rehire. This month is a critical one for small businesses and their employees with various government support measures either coming to an end or getting adjusted. The XSBI October data will provide early indications of how small businesses are adjusting to the new policy settings,” added Innes.

To find out more go to their website: www.xero.com/small-business-insights/

About Xero Small Business Insights

The Xero Small Business Insights (XSBI) program provides analysis on the sector’s health, with its metrics based on anonymised, aggregated data drawn from hundreds of thousands of subscribers. The result is a picture of business conditions that’s more accurate than most private surveys, which typically have a far smaller sample size, and more frequently updated than much of the data on small business. Xero is currently producing a series of specialised monthly metrics, providing a view of the impact of COVID-19.

About our Guest:

Trent Innes is the Managing Director of Xero in Australia and Asia, the global small business platform. Guided by a strong people focus, he has developed and grown Xero's teams around a common purpose: to help small businesses to thrive. Passionate about the power of using data to help policymakers make informed decisions, Trent launched Xero Small Business Insights in 2017, the first true snapshot of the sector’s health. Since launch, the insights have helped to shape thinking on the Australian small business economy. Trent is also passionate about fostering a thriving technology industry in Australia, and using collaboration to bring this to life. In 2017, Trent was named Managing Director of the Year by CEO Magazine.

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Small Biz Matters – #186 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 17 November 2020

It’s all about Local right now. Shop Local, Buy Local, Support Local - it’s everywhere! And it doesn’t get more local than your local council. Their role in the community is constantly evolving - it’s not just about Rates, Rubbish & Roads these days; we have an expectation that our local representatives understand how we operate not only as citizens but businesses too, and support us in that journey.

Some councils achieve this brilliantly and others not so much. But could that be because you’re not telling them what you need from them as a small business? But how are they supposed to represent you if you don’t actually communicate what you need?

Bottom line is you’re not allowed to whinge about the problem unless you’re part of the solution. So that means explaining what’s wrong and how they can fix it. What do you need as a business to grow, create jobs and, as they say, keep it local.

Joining us today is Steven Head, the General Manager of Hornsby Shire Council to explain how you as a small business (and community leader) can communicate what you need. They’re open and willing to help!

Welcome to the show Steven.

Topics we’ll be covering:

There’s a bit of confusion about what role Council in general plays in small business compared with State and Federal Government. So, can you explain how does Hornsby council currently support and consider small business in it’s approach to each of these:
- Waste
- Environment
- town centre planning
- (others?)
Tell us about the economic development strategy which is currently being considered by Hornsby Shire Council. What’s going to change and get better?
What would the council like to hear from the small business community to make things better for them?
- Contributing to strategies when they’re available for consultation
- Chat to your local representative
- Call the council and ask for help!

To find out more go to their website: https://www.hornsby.nsw.gov.au/business and to https://hornsby.localised.com.au/.

About our Guest:

Steven Head has been general manager of Hornsby Shire Council since 2018. Prior to that he was Head of Network Sydney at the Roads and Maritime Service. Most of Steven's career has been in local government, including time at Ku-ring-gai, Parramatta and Willoughby councils. He is a passionate supporter of the role of local government in improving local communities.

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Small Biz Matters – #185 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 10 November 2020

I realised recently that I haven’t had a real life disruptor on Small Biz Matters before. Someone who recognises early the potential, uniqueness and well, the magic of their idea. Coupled with a desire to make true change, disruptors are a special type of entrepreneur.

Carl Gough, the Founder of MeetMagic is one such individual. Listening to him you can’t but get swept up in his excitement in making real change in the events and conference industry. He’s a passionate disrupter.

Along with all the corporate execs, software partners and the Starlight Foundation he supports, he is like a bull at the gate, ready to make you rethink your preconceived ideas and bring you along for the ride.

Welcome to the show Carl.

Topics we’ll be covering:

What do you think is inherently broken about the business growth market?

So before all this why did people go to conferences
Has COVID broken the conference system or was it broken beforehand?

o The disingenuous lunches & conferences, speed dating

o Time waster & time is becoming more and more precious

o The badge scanning & out bounding marketing process

o The huge cost, the ego stroking and the missed opportunities

This is the structural shift
COVID is the Closing ceremony of the industrial revolution
Other examples happening now – remote health, remote learning,

Did you recognise quickly that your business was going to be disruptive? What advice would you give a small business on the cusp of being a disrupter?

Recognise it because people try and shut you down and through this they show you their fear
Recognise quickly who you’re disrupting and keep it from them
You need to have some background knowledge if you’re going to disrupt

Do you need to be lean to be a disrupter?

Partnering with a not for profit – how has this benefited your business growth?

Talk me through the passion for purpose model – its not just a line on your balance sheet, you need to be genuine
How do you build a relationship with the charity – your key stakeholder. Look at existing fundraising models or build your own?
50/50 model
What’s your story?
The inception, and what motivated Carl to start meetmagic.
How we engage and are received by the tech community (vendors who purchase our meetings).
What motivates executives to pledge their time to meetmagic.
The importance for charities to have an alternative stream of funding, especially with the current climate of covid and the resulting charity fatigue experienced by the public.

To find out more go to their website: https://www.meetmagic.org

About our Guest:

Carl Gough - meetmagic Founder and CEO

Carl is a fundraiser, a social entrepreneur and an enterprise sales & business development executive. Hailing from Nottingham, the land of Robin Hood, Carl holds over 17 years experience in Business Development in the IT industry globally. After making the leap from the IT industry to the non profit space, Carl realised the uphill battle that is fundraising. Combining his understanding of the challenges faced by both charities and tech vendors, Carl applied his innate ability to open doors for people to build the brainchild that is meetmagic. He is an inspiring motivator of people and has a hands-on practical approach to making business work. As a rapid new business growth specialist he is the unending energy force behind the success of meetmagic.

About MeetMagic

meetmagic started as a way of disrupting how charities raise funds sustainably by helping the corporate world make better connections. What we do is simple. We curate meetings between executives and problem solvers from leading global tech companies. Vendors get instant access to corporate leaders and leaders gain access to the best problem-solvers for their company's current and future needs. Execs donate 45 minutes, vendors purchase their time, and 70% of the meeting price goes to charity.

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Small Biz Matters – #184 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 3 November 2020

As we hurtle towards the middle of the 21st century small businesses are becoming more and more environmentally conscious and good habits are beginning to emerge. Whether it be reducing our carbon footprint, investigating our supply chain, going paper free there are many strategies we can implement to reduce our impact not only as individuals but as business consumers.

But have you considered food waste and the relationship your small business has with this element? How do you and your staff consume it, source it and ultimately, dispose of it. Haven't thought about it yet? Well, considering food security is emerging as a major global issue, you might want to rethink that.

There are programs in place that you can access to reduce your small business’ food print. Here to share with us the mindset to rethink your small business’ relationship to waste, great practical strategies plus a little bit about the reality of the start up world is Donny Chien, the Founder of yWaste.

Welcome to the show Donny.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Food waste & food security
- What can small business do to reduce their food waste
- The circular economy - through the vehicles of donations vs sales
- Look at food as a resource rather than a commodity
- Our changing relationship to food.
  - Who and when do we consider food to be waste?
  - The economics of food security
Change in perspectives of consumers
- What has changed - Changing behaviours, it’s making sense to the broader community, it’s no longer a trend or fad, it’s a bit more of a reality
- Could this concept help you grow your business?
- Building trust in the local community
- Turn waste in customers- and environmentally value drivenlocal customers
- Targeting the environmentally conscious consumer and how businesses can better address the “green” expectations
yWaste’s start up story
- Telling it like it is as opposed to the San Francisco Garage Startup Drea
- Startup newbies - it’s not all warm and fuzzy - beware of engagements being personality driven, PR, “greenwashing”
- It’s not just a dream - its very, very hard and requires a strong why and drive and patience
- But, there’s lots of like-minded people to collaborate with - the collective moving in one direction

To find out more go to their website: https://ywasteapp.com/

About our Guest:

Donny Chien is a long term Local Ku-ring-gai Resident( not sure if this is a founder), 2nd Generation Taiwanese Australian and co founder of YWaste. Y Waste was founded in 2017 as a way to help restaurants, takeaway shops and cafes across the country reduce food waste. “A third of food produced in retail goes in the bin simply because it’s unsold at the end of the day. That’s a lot of food being wasted, and being the son of Taiwanese immigrants, where his father lost his parents when he was four, and he suffered from food insecurity, so I grew up learning never to waste food. Ywaste is an crowd sourced App that serves a digital platform to effectively solve the first worlds dumbest problem in food waste and a response to his anti food waste values which as part of his upbringing by connecting those who have surplus unsold food to the local community of waste warriors and want to support the local businesses who support these values.

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=ywaste.com.ywaste&hl=en (Android)

https://itunes.apple.com/au/app/ywaste-reduce-food-waste/id1265599631?mt=8 (iOS)

https://m.facebook.com/ywasteAU/

Instagram ywasteau

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Small Biz Matters – #183 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 27 October 2020

Time to get excited about statistics. No, really!

But what if all this ideal info like location, B2B details, demographic, political persuasion, customs and habits, and social media use was already easily and freely available.

Well, guess what… it is!

Its all there for the taking and today we welcome back John Shepherd the General Manager, Industry Statistics Division at ABS to explain how and why we should tap into this goldmine of data.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Sharing the latest ABS updates for small business

COVID business survey)
Patterns and trends
Jobs and wages info (from 700,000 businesses) which can be broken down by sectors
Latest retail trade survey
Business conditions updates

Why check out the new website?

Easy to digest info
Start with business snapshot then go and explore the main page
Jobs and wages info (from 700,000 businesses) then breaking down by sectors > how can businesses use the data

Upcoming developments in the pipeline to help small business

Building on success on STP and exploring ways a business can report survey data through their software
Making sure the data is safe, aggregated and ready to use
Email address to be involved for beta testing to help make this useful

To find out more go to their website:www.abs.gov.au

All about the ABS -https://www.abs.gov.au/about?OpenDocument&ref=topBar
ABS response to COVID-19 -https://www.abs.gov.au/websitedbs/D3310114.nsf/home/ABS%20responds%20to%20COVID-19.
A handy calendar that lists statistical releases for the coming six months -https://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/webpages/ABS+Release+Calendar

About our Guest:

John is a passionate Movember ambassador and fundraiser for men’s health initiatives.

John holds a Masters of Taxation from the University of NSW and is based in Canberra.

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Small Biz Matters – #182 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 13 October 2020

The annual CEBIT conference is a must on the small business education calendar. Always covering a wide range of interesting, thought provoking subjects, this year’s online version - the SMB Digital two day Conference held on 20th and 21st October is no exception. And it’s all free!

Topics will include Data management, Digital transformation, Finance and HR software & technology, Marketing platforms & automation & Security.

There are some CRACKING panels up for grabs and today’s guest joins us for a sneak peak at the quality of experts you’ll experience at the conference.

Danielle Owen Whitford is the founder of Pioneera) and today we’re chatting about ~ Using HR & talent management software to help navigate the new work from home environment and Braden Voigt, Founder of Lynkz, is with us to chat about the latest developments in software which small business needs to know about.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Tell us about changing the way we work & manage others

It’s not just about shifting the exact way you were working previously and shifting it online
Example – back to back meetings, longer hours, workshops to engage different audiences. Bare in mind not everyone is comfortable to answer online – online meetings are different.
Easily distracted too.
Tactics to minimise distractions and being more clear about your expectations

This is obviously a very dynamic time with many businesses being thrown unexpected curveballs. What do you think are some of the ways that SMBs can meet the current challenges while continuing to find ways to build their business?

With respect to the myriad of technologies and tech solutions out there, what are a few areas that you would suggest SMBs focus on in order to get the best results.

Why its so important that in the era of COVID that small business owners need to keep updated with the latest trends, tech and software to make their business more successful

So make sure you register HERE ~ bit.ly/3nC5Ojl

SMB Digital, powered by CEBIT AUSTRALIA, will take place virtually on 20-21 October, 2020. This two-day event is for small-and medium-sized companies and will appeal to IT decision-makers and professionals, CEOs and Managing Directors and CXOs. The event will be a forum for business owners to better understand how they can utilise new technology to fortify their organisation for the future. Watch and interact during live presentations, panel forums and Q&A sessions. Register for free atwww.smb-digital.com.au

About our Guests - Danielle Owen Whitford

Former Corporate Executive that moved into Start-ups in 2018. A boundary pusher throughout her career, she’s constantly challenged the notion of “we can’t do it differently, so we live with what we have”.

Using technology and curiosity to create a new normal, Danielle founded start up Pioneera to tackle the crippling issue of workplace stress, using the simplest of approaches – our words and behaviour. Pioneera’s AI platform combines technology with psychology to predict and prevent workplace stress and is gaining strong traction across both corporate Australia and small businesses.

Danielle speaks regularly on stress, AI, women in technology and leadership and stress and wellbeing.

“Indie” by Pioneera

Covid-19 has changed the way we work, interact and live. Suddenly everything we knew to be true about our people and workplaces is uncertain. Employees working from home have different stresses and over time, decreased resilience. The frequency of mistakes increases, as does missed deadlines. Language can become more negative and emotional. Action is required and Indie by Pioneera improves mental wellbeing and encourages productivity and greater quality of work.

How do you construct an environment where your people are engaged, and you know where and when you need to help them be at their best?

We rely on our senses to connect

When your people are with you, you feel like you know what is happening because of what you see and hear. We rely on our senses to understand and connect with our people. Now, with remote working, or a blend of remote and onsite working, we lose even these simple indicators. So, we struggle to do our best.

Indie does the sensing for you

Pioneera’s bot “Indie” integrates into your communication systems (eg. Email, chat channels) and uses language to help you sense and manage behavioural indicators in real-time. Indie recently helped one of Pioneera’s clients identify that their regular Covid-19 briefings were causing team stress. As they were able to identify this trend in real-time and take instant action, stress immediately reduced and productivity improved. Indie does the sensing when you can’t.

About our Guests - Braden Voigt

Braden has been in the IT industry for nearly 20 years and is the CEO of Lynkz – a wholly Australian-owned software development company – founded in 2017. Lynkz specialises in the delivery of data using machine learning, artificial intelligence and cognitive services. Prior to starting Lynkz in 2017, Braden was the Co-Founder of SixPivot – a software development and solutions company. While at SixPivot, he built the ‘Cloud Control’ product which provides a multi-cloud billing management platform.

Due to the outstanding nature of his work, Braden and his companies have been presented with the following awards: Young Entrepreneur of the Year – Technology (Business News Australia) 2017, 2018 and 2019; Start Up of the Year – Merit Award – 2017; Top 20 Most Innovative Companies in Australia – May, 2017 (Anthill) and Coolest Company – Start Up –2017 (Anthill). He holds a vast array of certifications including multiple Microsoft technologies and is a member of the Azure Advisors program and a member of the Australian Institute of Management.

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Small Biz Matters – #181 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 13 October 2020

An ABN is an Australian Business Number which is required for anyone to be conducting business activities in Australia. It’s an unique 11-digit identifier issued by the Australian Business Register (ABR) which is operated by the Australian Taxation Office.

We all know this, right?

But what you might not know is the incredible mechanics behind maintaining this huge database used by businesses, advisors, government agencies all over the world.

Did you know the ATO conducts regular audits of these numbers and cancels them if they’re unused over a period of time? Or that the integrity of this system is a fundamental part of the australian financial landscape?

So let’s get it straight from the ABR and the ATO themselves: Michelle Crosby is the Deputy Registrar for the Australian Business Register & Deputy Commissioner, Commonwealth Business Registry Service, ATO

Michelle will talk about the work the ATO is leading to build a modernised registry service and transform the way that businesses interact with government. She’ll also share new requirements for company directors and discuss how registry information helps governments provide support to businesses and the community.

Welcome to the show Michelle.

Topics we’ll be covering:

What’s changed recently and how is the government modernising in regards to the use of ABR data?

There is a shared responsibility to keep ABR up to date and accurate, so it can be utilised in times of crisis
Modernising Business Registers program will create a single business registry
Chat about the Deregulation Agenda, self service, tell-us-once approach
State based agencies like Service NSW have been using ABR data to provide a range of support options to small businesses

What are Director Identification Numbers and why are they being introduced?

What are the recent changes to the ABN system?
We want to help Australian businesses and those who want to do the right thing, and equally we want to make it difficult for those who try to do the wrong thing
- What does the ATO consider the right and wrong things – give examples here?
Director Identification numbers will be provided to all directors, enabling us to try and do this from next year
- Why?
- How is this going to be implemented?

You are the Deputy Registrar of the Australian Business Register, what does your role entail?

How to the various Govt agencies communicate about our data
Looking after the ABR – the data is an important national asset and is vital to help us support businesses
I want to strengthen the ABN system and ensure our data is used to unlock social and economic value - ABN registration insights reflecting challenging business environment and uncertainty due to COVID-19 & ABR data to various levels of government through events like the recent disasters

To find out more go to their website: www.abr.gov.au

About our Guest:

Michelle Crosby, Deputy Registrar, Australian Business Register & Deputy Commissioner, Commonwealth Business Registry Service, Australian Taxation Office

Michelle Crosby is the Deputy Registrar of the Australian Business Register (ABR) and the Deputy Commissioner of the Commonwealth Business Registry Service business line within the Australian Taxation Office.

As Deputy Registrar, Michelle helps businesses manage their Australian Business Number (ABN) registrations, undertakes activities to strengthen the ABN system and assists government agencies to access ABR data.

Michelle is currently leading the Modernising Business Registers (MBR) program, which is a transformative program of work across multiple agencies to build a new registry service. The MBR program will also deliver the director identification number initiative, which will help address illegal phoenix activity.

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Small Biz Matters – #180 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 6 October 2020

We talk a lot on this program about advocacy and how you, the listener, are a leader. You’re passionate about small business whether that’s you being more successful in your own business, leading others by example or mentoring someone less experienced.

So, thanks to all of you from your small business community.

But what if you took it to the next level? What if you made advocacy your core work and grew a successful business from the foundation of looking after others?

Our guest today has done that not just once, but six times over. Amanda Rose is a columnist, TEXx speaker and the Founder of Small Business Women Australia.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Tell us about your work with the Small Business Women Australia and how this advocacy strategy has supported specifically this group of small businesses?
Why did you decide to support women in western Sydney in particular?
What have you learned from your recent COVID survey results conducted on your Small Business Women Australia group?
Why is real time data crucial for policy makers and how can it be used more effectively?

To find out more go to their website: https://www.smallbusinesswomenaustralia.com.au/join

About our Guest:

Amanda Rose is Australia’s foremost Strategic Connector, Founder of Small Busi-ness Women Australia, Publisher of Business Woman Media and Founding Director of Western Sydney Women, Western Sydney Executive Women & Managing Partner of Western Sydney Advisory.

As one of the most influential people on LinkedIn, Amanda Rose (#BossLady) is quoted as an “internet winning blogger” by TIME.com and contributes regularly to ABC The Drum, HuffingtonPost, Sydney Morning Herald, Greater Sydney Living Magazine, AFR & SkyBusiness.

Amanda has a weekly #BossLady careers column in the Daily Telegraph.

A passionate keynote speaker, Amanda Rose works with The Australian Defence Force, CPA Australia, Law Institute, UTS, UBER, ANZ, Western Sydney University and the Royal Australian Navy on the areas of confident leadership, conflict resolution & relationship building via connection.

Amanda has a degree in Business majoring in Marketing & Psychology from Macquarie University, a Masters of Communications Management from UTS & Post Grad in Educational Leadership from Macquarie University and is a non executive director at Excelsia College.

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Small Biz Matters – #179 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 6 October 2020

So, What is Neuro Linguistic Programming and how can mindset help you achieve in small business? It’s certainly not a topic many are thinking about right now as small business in Australia finds itself in the deepest crisis since crisis’ were invented.

But it is exactly that - mindset - which might help you dig your way out of that hole we all find ourselves in. And mindset or mindfulness can come in many forms. Self talk, being thoughtful about how we communicate with others, believing in yourself and the programming that occurs as a result of all these conscious changes are all examples of NLP.

Even those of us who don’t prescribe to this method of growing our business are utilising it without even realising it.

So let’s acknowledge it as a valuable business tool and start putting it to work.

Anne McKeown, is a highly regarded Master Coach & Trainer who empowers women to turbo-charge the results in their life and business, so they can enjoy more success every day.

Welcome to the show Anne.

What is NLP?

Neuro, Linguistic, Programming. NLP - Neuro (our thinking), Linguistic (the language we use (self-talk) and communicating with others), and Programming (our behaviour that comes as a result of our thoughts and language).
- In the 1970s Grinder & Bandler wanted to uncover what made some people extra-ordinary/ successful and others not. They discovered it came down to 3 main things : Their beliefs (it is possible). Their mindset (open and positive). Their strategies (action plan).
Every thought creates an emotion, this emotion triggers a reaction (verbally and/or physically). Successful people ACT they do not REACT. Understanding the power of the mind is key.
Awareness around your use of the language is very important. Especially if it’s negative self-talk. We are often harder on ourselves than anyone else would ever be! We kill our own confidence and sabotage ourselves with negative self talk. If we split this word in two lan and gage – it is interesting because this word alone tells us that we can gauge what a person is thinking and feeling by the vocabulary they use eg: I can’t get any sales ... I will try... I must… I should… I ought to… VERSUS I can get two sales… I will... I choose to…. I want to… I have decided to. (giving self permission and power to achieve).
Think of yourself as a communicator. What is your verbal language and body language telling the world?

And what about the mindset and its impact on beliefs and success?

Answer : Carol Dweck, prof at Stanford University coined the phrase ‘open/closed mindset’
Closed = black or white, right or wrong, we’ve always done it this way etc. NO GROWTH, NO CHANGE, NO PROGRESS.
Open = I’m open to learning and growing, I will listen then make up my mind, people are entitled to their views and opinions.
The person with the most flexibility will enjoy more success.
NLP teaches that our perceived limits are not our actual limits.

Is there a difference between the Conscious and Unconscious Mind when it comes to achieving our goals?

Answer : Yes. The CONSCIOUS mind is our goal setter. It likes to be in charge of logical, conscious processes. It responds well to SMART. (Specific. Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Timed). When I read the words: goals/targets/aims they make me think of football, archery and darts! Each of these sports encourage the player to focus in one direction. All with the same result in mind – to score! NLP teaches that if you don’t focus your thoughts on what you want to achieve - your mind will quickly fill with unnecessary worries and you will feel overwhelmed, exhausted and confused before you’ve even started to shoot (for a sale!)
Our UNCONSCIOUS mind is our goal getter because of the part of our brain known as the reticular activating system – RAS for short. Your RAS takes instructions from your conscious mind and passes them on to your unconscious. You may have played spotto with your kids (start looking for yellow cars and they seem to be everywhere) that was what your conscious mind was focused on so your unconscious mind, did what it was told, and delivered what you were focused on. This is why you should be careful what you wish for, if you only focus on your needs and wants, your unconscious mind will find you more needs and wants!

To find out more go to their website: http://www.annemckeown.com

About our Guest:

Anne McKeown, www.annemckeown.com is a highly regarded Master Coach & Trainer who empowers women to turbo-charge the results in their life and business, so they can enjoy more success every day.

Anne is the owner of 2Mpower.co and has created a step-by-step proven ‘Process for Success’ that empowers women to take full control of their life and business by shifting the psychological barriers that hold them back.

She incorporates NLP techniques when coaching or facilitating individuals and teams because she knows it’s not enough to tell people what to do - it’s essential to show them HOW to do it.

Anne is also a published author and the founder of Sydney Women’s Self-Empowerment Meetup which has over 500 members.

https://www.meetup.com/Sydney-Women-Self-Empowerment-Meetup/

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Small Biz Matters – #178 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 29 September 2020

Intro:

In the second of the series Kate Carnell will update us about ASBFEO’s response to the crisis facing small business. This week we’re updating you on:

Jobkeeper, FairWork and the eligibility tests
The latest on negotiations between ASBFEO, Govt and Banks’ response to the crisis
Commercial tenancies - who’s helping who here?
Insolvency laws and what it means to be trading insolvent right now

Welcome back to the show Kate Carnell.

Topics we’ll be covering:

JobKeeper 2.0

From 28 September, the JobKeeper payment will be tapered over two stages.
28 September – 3 January 2021:
Payments to be delivered in 2 tier system to employers that meet the JobKeeper criteria –
- - Tier 1 applies to employees that have worked more than 80 hours in the 28-day reference period. This payment is $1,200 per fortnight.
- - Tier 2 applies to employees that have worked less than 80 hours in the given 28 day reference period. This payment is $750 per fortnight.
The following extension period from January 4 – 28 March 2021
-Tier 1 payments reduce to $1000 per fortnight
-Tier 2 payments reduce to $600 per fortnight

Turnover test

Businesses can pass the actual decline in turnover test either through using the basic test or the alternative test.
Most businesses will likely use the basic test, which is based on GST turnover.
In applying the actual decline in turnover test, businesses should note that:
It must be done for specific quarters only.
They must use actual sales made in the relevant quarter, not projected sales, when working out their GST turnover.
They allocate sales to the relevant quarter in the same way they would report those sales to a particular business activity statement if they were registered for GST.
For the first extension period, a business meets the test when current GST turnover for the quarter ending 30 September 2020 (the months of July, August and September) has declined by the specified shortfall percentage in comparison to their current GST turnover for the quarter ending 30 September 2019.
Likewise for the second extension period, a business meets the test when their current GST turnover for the quarter ending 31 December 2020 (the months of October, November and December) has declined by the specified shortfall percentage in comparison to their current GST turnover for the quarter ending 31 December 2019.

Alternative test

The alternative test applies to businesses where the normal comparison period is not appropriate. A common example would be if the business has been operating for less than a year.
Businesses that are looking to apply for the JobKeeper extension using one of the alternative tests will now need to indicate to the ATO that they are doing so.
This means filling out an extra box on the form.

Banks

The banks are taking a more flexible approach to small business loan repayments. They are working through assessing the position of customers now. From the ABA website, depending on how the business is fairing, the next step for customers will be one of:
- Those who can resume repayments at the end of their deferral, will be required to do so;
- Those still in difficulty, will work with their bank to restructure or vary their loan, including converting to interest only payments for a period of time, or extending the term of the loan;
- Following the assessment once the bank understands the customers circumstances, in some cases, a further 4-month deferral may be granted, but this will not be automatic; or
- Customers who will be unable to pay their loan over the longer term will be offered tailored assistance that addresses their needs.

Commercial tenancies

WA – no change, WA announced on 10 September, they were extending the emergency period under its Commercial Tenancies (COVID-19 Response) Act 2020 until 28 March 2021.
SA – potentially no change, there is legislation before its Parliament (to be debated this week) to extend SA’s COVID-19 Emergency Response Act 2020 until 3 January 2021. We will monitor the passage of this bill.
TAS – no change, TAS announced on 4 September they are extending the financial hardship period under the COVID-19 Disease Emergency (Commercial Leases) Act 2020 until 1 December 2020.
VIC – no change, VIC announced, on 20 August extended its Commercial Tenancy Relief Scheme until 31 December 2020.
ACT – no change, the ACT announced on 10 September that it was extending its current arrangements for SME commercial rents until 31 January 2021.
QLD – no changes, regulation under the COVID-19 Emergency Response Act 2020 does not end until 31 December 2020.
NSW – no change, Retail and Other Commercial Lease (COVID-19) Regulation 2020 is not to be repealed until 25 October 2020. Will continue to monitor.

Insolvency

The Federal Government has just announced plans to overhaul insolvency rules to make it easier for small businesses to restructure or wind up. These are in line with our Insolvency Practices Inquiry final report.
The reforms will allow small businesses to restructure their debts while remaining in control of their business and for those businesses that do need to wind up, the liquidation process will be changed to make it quicker and easier.
The government has extended the temporary insolvency and bankruptcy protections until 31 December 2020. Temporary changes to statutory demand and bankruptcy notices requiring a debt of $20,000 and allowing six months to pay the amount demanded will also be extended until 31 December 2020.
My office continues to recommend the establishment of a small business viability voucher program, where small business owners facing financial stress can get a voucher valued up to $5000 to access tailored advice on the state of their business.

To find out more go to their website: https://www.asbfeo.gov.au/

About our Guest:

The Ombudsman - Kate Carnell

"In this role I will seek to bring together the many voices within the small business community in a way that promotes growth in this vital sector."

Kate Carnell is the inaugural Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman (ASBFEO).

The ASBFEO office also provides small businesses and family enterprises with assistance should they find themselves involved in a business dispute.

About ASBFEO

Australia is a nation of small businesses and family enterprises. It’s a dynamic and exciting sector that allows people with an entrepreneurial spirit to pursue their dreams.

One of the fastest growing in the economy, the sector presents many opportunities – and challenges – for those who dedicate themselves to pursing a small business venture.

The ASBFEO's role is to support small businesses and family enterprises to enable them to grow and thrive.

The ASBFEO was launched on 11 March 2016 and has two key functions: to assist and to advocate for small businesses and family enterprises.

ASSIST:

ADVOCATE:

There are a number of different activities the Ombudsman may conduct in fulfilling the role of small business advocate. Broadly these include:

Conduct inquiries and research

Work with other arms of government

Contribute to other inquiries

Promote good business practice.

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Small Biz Matters – #177 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 22 September 2020

Intro:

There are some changes afoot. No, I’m not talking about Jobkeeper, cash flow stimulus or any other support package, rather a piece of legislation which has crept up on the small business community. But like all things legal - we need to be aware of it.

A Safe harbour “applies where a director, after beginning to suspect a company may become or be insolvent, starts developing one or more courses of action that are reasonably likely to lead to a better outcome for the company than the immediate appointment of an administrator or liquidator”. What does this mean for a small business, and what’s changed about the important dates particularly in the time of COVID?

Today we’re joined by Wayne Wanders, a virtual CFO who brings with him 35 years as a chartered accountant and decades of experience with real businesses at every stage of their lifecycle. He’s chatting to us about what these laws mean for you and your small business.

Welcome to the show Wayne.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Why there is an increased risk of your business being placed into administration from late December 2020.
What is the potential impact on your business and your personal assets if you do go into administration.
What are the Safe Harbour laws and how can you use these to protect both your business and your personal assets.

To find out more go to their website:www.arealcfo.com.au

About our Guest:

Wayne Wanders, has been a fully qualified chartered accountant for 35 years including being the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of two businesses listed on the Australian Stock Exchange.

For the last 20 years, Wayne, through his own small business, A Real CFO, has worked alongside many small and medium businesses. He offers his talents, strengths, skills and experience as an outsourced CFO. Letting small and medium business owners access the finance and business skills that big businesses take for granted, without the big business price tag.

Wayne has seen the ups and downs of many businesses. Some of these have been through economy wide issues such as the GFC, or the recession we had to have in the early 1990s. Others are just from the normal cycle many businesses experience.

This experience has led to Wayne developing his own strategies, systems and processes to help business.

One of these is Wayne’s Business Survival Guide which was developed to help business survive and thrive during down times, just like many businesses are facing today.

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Small Biz Matters – #176 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 15 September 2020

I enjoy having authors as guests on Small Biz Matters. They’re great talent having researched for their publication and really knowing how to articulate the issues explained within; often drawing on their own experiences to bring the book to life. Much like a small business owner does with their baby.

One could argue that the emotions associated with Shame are common amongst new small businesses; being concerned about what others think, previous failures which follow us around like the Black Dog … but do these ever really leave us?

Today’s guest brings with him a wealth of media and small business experience plus a more personal viewpoint on the topic of shame. And he’s not ashamed to talk about it.

From a book review: ...make (ing) a compelling case for the rehabilitation of the "ugly emotion". The book is rich with arguments and examples from literature and ordinary life. Although demanding, the reading pays off, especially by providing clear and refreshing distinctions between shame, guilt, embarrassment and humiliation.

Welcome to the show Dr Ahmed.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Let’s begin with your latest book - In Defence of Shame. Tell us about the process of writing and the concepts behind it.
- Is there something to be learned here for small business owners and their advisers?
Let’s talk about the small businesses in the Health sector - what are the flaws of the current system and what could be done to support doctors, essentially emerging small businesses start a practice?
- Being a doctor is spending many years as a wage earner in hospital systems, learning nothing about business or money, then suddenly being thrust out in the private sector and essentially having no idea how to run a business.
- The changing nature of consumer preferences and the concept of democratisation of this information as clients (patients) seek you out in other ways apart from classic GP referrals
  - the doctor is the traditional "professional" but the nature of doing business has changed significantly and reflects trends in society and economy.
You’ve written several books, why is this another potential stream of growing your brand as an industry expert?
- A wage earner part-time in public hospital and writing (which is its own business of building yourself as a brand)
You’ve chosen to lead a public life; balancing politics, journalism and psychiatry in private and public practice. Can this public life affect my brand as a psychiatrist? how might I protect it or do I try and keep them separate?
- media business is the toughest of all and effectively requires subsidising from my doctoring.
- What publications’ contributions have been the most challenging for you?
- the Fin Review column has been useful for me; forceing me to apply ideas I have relating to social issues, but to business. ask about how the workplace, both in small and big business, has become the site for a whole lot of modern clashes in values eg diversity, mental health, gender wars etc.
Advice regarding good mental health, maintaining boundaries between work and life especially during Covid.

To find out more go to their website: https://www.connorcourtpublishing.com.au/In-Defence-of-Shame--Tanveer-Ahmed_p_368.html

About our Guest:

Dr Tanveer Ahmed is a psychiatrist, author and columnist for the Australian Financial Review, writing about social issues. He is a former local government representative having served in the City of Canada Bay. His private practice is at the Hills Clinic in Kellyville. Dr Ahmed's most recent book is titled "In Defence of Shame".

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Small Biz Matters – #175 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 8 September 2020

What could possibly be better than one small business educational podcasts? Two!!

Dan Osborne and Tim Garth from Two Drunk Accountants started their podcast a few years ago when they realised that accountants have a lot to give and talk about when it comes to their industry and small business education. Coupled with excellent commentary on the financial services sector and a generally good vibe, this podcast is highly recommended by yours truly.

So... what brings these like-minded vocal entrepreneurs together? Advocacy !

You see, just like Small Biz Matters, 2 Drunk Accountants do it out of a passion to deliver great advocacy for small business and excellent content when it was lacking for years. But there are a lot of companies and business leaders out there who do advocacy for other reasons.

It is time we asked the question: Who has a seat at the table? And who really represents small business when key policies that affect your ability to function, are decided?

Welcome to the show Dan & Tim!

Topics we’ll be covering:

So, tell us a little about the podcast Two Drunk Accountants and why you started it in the first place?
- What sort of guests and topics do you cover?
Let’s talk Advocacy - what do organisations like the business chambers actually do for small business?
- Who in your opinion can we trust?
- Who you get contact to help make changes as a business owner
A big question “who’s is in the room” when those decisions which impact every facet of your business, are legislated?
- Roundtables and presentations - who speaks for small business?
- What sort of lobbyists make up small business?
Inequities in small business loans. Many small businesses are cashflowing their businesses with credit cards @20% as opposed to big business being able to get bank loans more easily.

To find out more go to their website: https://www.facebook.com/twodrunkpodcast/

About our Guest:

The Two Drunk Accountants is a weekly small business podcast that dispels the myths and mysteries of running a small business over a lovely beverage. Hosts Dan Osborne and Tim Garth are accountants based on the Central Coast on a quest to support, teach and help grow small businesses. On a daily bases this happens through their accounting firm CATS Accountants but once a week they get together and tackle hot topics like business planning and jobkeeper, interview guests in the industry and provides plenty of banter along the way.

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Small Biz Matters – #174 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 1 September 2020

The road to small business success is dotted with the pitstops of life. Previous experiences, major milestones in your career, successes and failures in a former working life or maybe the success of failure of a former small business!

But with each of these comes important life lessons that help to build up the pallet of colours that create your small business success.

Some of those transitions are bigger leaps than the norm. Take for example today’s guest. Eric Peck from Swoop Aero who, in a former life was a Australian Air Force pilot. How could you possibly take such unique experiences from around the world and utilise those skills to create a small business? Well that’s exactly what Eric is here to share with us.

Welcome to the show Eric.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Moving from piloting to the world of business — learnings, challenges and how his pilot experience spurred him on to tackle healthcare inequalities
- Transitioning from military to corporate culture - where to use the best of both worlds
Why he decided to create a for-profit business and the impact he believes it has helped become more accountable as a result
- The mindset you need to be a for-proft business in a NFP world
Business growth — going from zero to a global medical logistics network in three years
The importance of creating a fully sustainable business — Swoop Aero’s drones have a smaller carbon footprint than a bike
The future of healthcare and how it can be improved through technology

To find out more go to their website: https://swoop.aero/

About our Guest & Swoop Aero

Swoop Aero transforms the way the world moves essential supplies and enables access to healthcare for millions across the world. Founded in 2017, this Australian born and bred company is bringing healthcare logistics into the 21st century by deploying two-way drone networks capable of delivering essential medical supplies to urban, rural and remote areas globally. Their managed air transport service provides access to the skies to ensure sustainable, safe and reliable provision of essential health supplies. Unmanned vehicles are at the heart of the next significant shift in supply chain logistics. From the UN to USAid and the Gates Foundation, they are trusted to create value by sustainably transforming health supply chains.

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Small Biz Matters – #173 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 1 September 2020

Jobkeeper. JK. Stimulus. Handout. …. No matter how you describe it, it’s been a great illustration that we are living in the Lucky Country. Where else in the world has government been able to with one piece of legislation, simultaneously prop up the economy, maintain the employee/employer relationship, keep businesses alive and flush cash back into the broader economy?

But is it all good news? It is FAIR ? Is it EQUITABLE ? and what about those businesses we all know are being just plain dodgy? And another question; was COVID a missed opportunity where those businesses who were on the way out should have folded?

Joining us this week is financial frontline worker Nicole Lynch from Streamline Management who is now, like so many other BAS Agents a JobKeeper ninja. In just a few months these financial experts have navigated the JK legislation (often compared in its complexity to the GST which took months to roll out) and guided their small business clients through this minefield with finesse, expertise and just a little bit of hand-holding.

Welcome to the show Nicole!

Topics we’ll be covering:

How do I get it?
- What is the criteria for the new 2.0 JK payments? Whole quarter rather than monthly sales downturn
- What’s changed compared to JK 1.0
  - ... and what about that 1july employee change?
- What changes at the end of September?
  - Retest turnover decline (ACTUAL not estimate)
  - Test staff - fulltime vs part-time
  - Stuff we don’t know about yet (changes on changes)
  - Is it happening with the BAS?
- What are the traps for young players / bookkeeping DIYers?
  - What happens to those doing it yourself? Many are not reporting, not testing correctly and not keeping records!
  - What’s the ATO doing to claw back those who assumed they were eligible or just plain dodgy. What have they been doing to data match and what questions are they asking?
  - When is an Eligible Business Participant not eligible?
  - How have good BAS Agents such as yourself bailed out those DIYers. What’s involved in this process? (I just run! You got yourself into this mess, you need to call the ATO to fess up before they catch you)
- What about startups and those covered by the alternative testing for 2.0?
- Have you noticed which businesses/sectors of the small business economy have benefited more for jobkeeper in the past few months?
  - Yes, those that are still trading are opting in (you need to be able to fund it for a whole month - not easy with no income), business with lots of staff need to have a good cash reserve to be able to pay ALL eligible staff before they are reimbursed
  - It’s all about hanging onto employees who you still need to pay first
- As an adviser how to do if you think JK has helped the economy at large?
  - The money is being spent – the younger generation is more likely to spend it.
  - Or is it keeping the businesses alive which should probably go and get a JOB.
  - Businesses need to be aware of insolvency protections and the impact JK will have on this.
- Generally JK legislation with all its trappings is a great example as to why it’s good to have a BAS agent on your side and already knows your business!
  - BAS agents are doing a lot of these claims, they have access to industry professionals to help them, a business owner just doesn’t have access to the same info and support.
  - BAS agents assist many of their clients run payroll - so they are in a great place to assist.

To find out more go to their website: https://www.streamlinemanagement.com.au

About our Guest:

Nicole Lynch is a co-founder and director of Streamline Management.

Nicole is a senior bookkeeper and has worked closely with countless businesses from differing industries over 20+ years – that’s plenty of experience in office administration and bookkeeping.

Nicole is our office Xero champion and loves helping small businesses make the switch from desktop to the cloud using connected business apps.

Nicole wears a lot of red!

About Streamline Management

We pride ourselves on our professional, confidential and personalised bookkeeping service. We are a small business, just like you, so you’ll never be just a number to us (pardon the pun!). Let’s put the fun back into your financial FUNdamentals!

Since 1997, our team of Australian based bookkeepers (we don’t and won’t offshore your work) use cloud technology to provide a seamless, continuous service. We will be there for you now; when you expand; and help you achieve your goals for your business. We offer bookkeeping & beyond.

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Small Biz Matters – #172 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 25 August 2020

With a welcome influx of innovative startups into our small business community it is helpful for experienced small business owners and newbies to understand the Startup Support Landscape.

Your idea can be grown, collaborated with, mustered, incubated, and accelerated so with no many opportunities to choose from (and pay for) the scene can appear cluttered. Beware to the inexperienced charlatans claiming to understand what it means to be starting out, or have any inkling of what the path to growth looks like.

We need to have information to help our friends the startups and (insert descriptive text here)-Preneurs to navigate the brave new world.

So we’ve invited Caroline Lepron, the founder of several successful startups including Skoutli to share with us the good, the bad and the ugly experience that is the Start Up Support world.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Tell us about the concept of Skoutli and how you got started
- It’s about the sharing economy sharing space
- Avoiding waste and going against the idea of single use items
- In our first company we found kitchen spaces to share at certain times of the day when they weren’t being used (such as evenings inside a lunchtime cafe)
In what ways have small businesses been tapping into this concept of Skoutli?
How do you think the gig economy is changing the economy as a whole?
- Allowing more people to share what they have
Tell us about your experience in the Fishburners environment?
What’s your best advice for startups when choosing your support program. What should tech startups be looking for in terms of support?
- What makes a good program? KNOW what phase your business is in, especially if you’re paying for the program
- What to avoid
- What overseas options are there - Austrade support - and what should you be prepared to do?

To find out more go to their website: www.skoutli.com

About our Guest:

Caroline is French and Australian. She discovered Australia 12 years ago for a 6months internship and never left! She is 35yo, Serial Entrepreneur, Mum of a 3yo girl. She loves traveling, food, extreme sports, she is a Kite Surfing Instructor, and she focused on creating a positive impact on earth! She is an expert in Marketplaces, her last one Cookitoo was about commercial kitchens. She soft launched Skoutli almost a year ago and just launched Skoutli properly! She loves helping entrepreneur and she particularly wants to help women entrepreneurs as she thinks that there are not enough of them.

Skoutli (www.skoutli.com) helps content creators (photographers /producers /influencers) to find locations for their next photoshoot. These sets are people home / environment /backyard/ vehicles that can be used for advertisements, social media posts, and movies. The way Skoutli is different from its competitors is that it offers location rentals by the room by the hour. The price is also different according to how many people come on the set to be fair for small and big teams. It’s possible to rent a yellow bathroom for 2hours, a modern kitchen for a full day or a swimming pool for 3hours!

Adventurous and passionate person. Highly motivated and positive thinking individual. Lived and studied in France, Mexico and Australia and was part of the Australian Landing Pad in SF for 3 months.

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Small Biz Matters – #171 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 18 August 2020

Despite the best intentions and our hard work at building relationships, sometimes it can all go to the proverbial. A dispute over an unpaid invoice, incomplete work, timing issues or workplace grievances can lead to your small business’ downfall.

We’re fearful of lawyers and the legal system perhaps because generally we worry about being in trouble. But the legal system can support you, protect your rights, and help you recoup losses and income which is rightfully yours.

The role of the mediator is one which small businesses should familiarise themselves with. Crombie Pitts joins us this week to explain the role of mediation, how the small business commissioners’ offices supports and generally what the process is to resolve disputes.

Welcome to the show Crombie.

Topics we’ll be covering:

As a small business owner can you give me some examples of how and why we might seek mediation in a small business dispute?
- What sort of legislation can they support you and your business
What the difference between mediation and going to court?
- Parties come together at a time convenient for both
- Costs are lower and resolution is faster
- 80% success rate which you’re not guaranteed at court and you could have to pay costs too
In a practical sense, how do mediators work with govt organisations like state based Small Business Commissioners
- Mediators are on a panel
- How does the process work?
What to look for in a mediator
- Accreditation via National Mediation Standards Board
- Do both parties need to agree on a mediator?
- They can work across state boundaries and online
- What are the qualities you need to be a good mediator
- Fair, open ended questions, a professional
What is the mediator’s role?
- The process…
- Do I need to have a lawyer at a mediation?
- What are my rights? What happens if it fails in private and commissioner settings?

To find out more go to their website: www.cpmediations.com

About our Guest:

Crombie Pitts from CP Mediations is a National Accredited Mediator and Licensed Real Estate Agent. He has over 30 years commercial experience in senior roles within the property industry. He is married with one 21 year old son and a labrador called Roxy! Originally from the UK, Crombie and his family have now been living in the northern beaches for 15 years. He is a volunteer with Warringah Rugby Club.

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Small Biz Matters – #170 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 11 August 2020

Not all Tech Founders are cut from the same cloth. We imagine an uber-cool twenty something hipster in designer ripped jeans in their inner west grungy garage, spouting bourjois ideals and claiming their commercial idea is there to make the world a better place.

But what of those founders who fell into the role - coming up with one of those once in a lifetime nuggets that might, just might make them a fortune. Oh, and make the world a better place too.

Sharon Melamed, the founder of Matchboard is one such creator. She’s a self proclaimed Non-Techy Tech Founder who wears life experience and a distinct lack of IT fluency with pride. Her approach to nurturing what she recognised as a brilliant idea and turning it into a hugely successful company was very different and drew more on her past than the tech future she now owns.

Topics we’ll be covering:

What’s it like to be a Non-Tekky Tech Founder
- Some stats on tech founders - they’re not always millennials!
- Discussion about what’ it’s like to come into this world after leading a successful internationally successful corporate JOB career.
  - With corporate experience you take the best of the best of their business
  - Building a network and collaborated with so many others.
  - Didn’t need an accelerator to understand the execution but rather it became around learning the tech.
Setup & Collaboration - a different approach
- So, rather than co-founding which is what techpreneurs typically do, you partnered with a company based overseas
- Negotiating a different sort of contract with an overseas company
- How did you think of that approach?
How has social marketing has been important in developing your credibility as well as growing your business.
- Organic LinkedIn strategy to get your business off the ground
- What does it mean to be targeted by the LinkedIn gods in their ivory tower?

To find out more go to their website: https://www.matchboard.com.au/

About our Guest:

Sharon is a multi-award winning entrepreneur. Following a corporate career across 5 countries, she founded Matchboard, a free-to-use website where companies can enter their needs and get matched with “right-fit” suppliers. In 2018, Matchboard was crowned “Business of the Year” at the Optus My Business Awards. And in 2017, Westpac named Matchboard as 1 of Australia’s top “200 Businesses of Tomorrow”. Sharon was named Suncorp Innovator of the Year 2018, and Entrepreneur of the Year at the 2019 Women in ICT awards. Sharon has a double honours degree and University Medal from the University of Sydney and speaks five languages.

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Small Biz Matters – #169 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 11 August 2020

Podcasts, videos, radio, TV, socials, posts, comments and notifications. The world has an unquenchable thirst for content, and no shortage of new platforms for you to tap into. And the pressure is on to nail the communication with your potential clients or audience across a number of these online spaces.

We all know that we should be constantly working on our marketing strategy as our business grows but are you tapping into all the best channels available to you as a small business? We are spoilt for choice and many of these are free but we can drown in the options too.

Here to join us on Small Biz Matters this week is Stefan Sojka a Media expert who will take us on an adventure through the new media landscape where you can learn how to tap into this unique marketing resource to grow your business.

Topics we’ll be covering:

What sort of media opportunities are available to small business?

First define what we mean by “media”, because understanding that will go a long way to where we might fit in and discovering the opportunities.

The digital age has redefined the meaning of the word ‘media’. It used to refer mainly to mass media, like TV, radio, newspapers, magazines as it has with a few other words, like, platform and channel. A USB stick is media, as is a Website, a billboard, a t-shirt with a message on it, social media post, a reaction to that post, a search engine result a text message.

I take an extremely broad view, that media is the delivery of information, material or data via a delivery mechanism that reaches a destination and/or audience.

When we say media now, we can mean the content, the platform, the delivery mechanism, the format, we can even be talking about artificial intelligence algorithms and agents sorting, ranking and delivering information to us.

This broad definition ensures you take into account every possible format, channel, device, touch-point, reaction.

Also media is a two way street now. It used to be one to many, now it is one to one, one to many, many to many and everything in between.

Before digital technology, media opportunities were plentiful, but now they are almost limitless.

Traditional channels vs digital - The huge spectrum of touch points available, from social to directories, podcasts (of course) magazines, how to videos, walk throughs, Google’s numerous channels, like Google my Business, reviews, street view, 360 degreee walk-throughs of your shop, business networking groups, newsletters, etc. Even things like old school discussion forums, local groups, complementary channels that may not seem logical but may have your target audience there. Sports clubs use apps to communicate to their members.

The huge range of channels actually creates a unquenchable thirst for content, so you can tailor your output to suit what they are looking for (kind of like what I am doing right now). Councils and other levels of government provide many opportunities for businesses to engage and feed their channels, too. Exchanging reviews between customers if you are B2B (I’ll review you if you review me - so long as it's genuine)

Finding the right media to align with There are as many right answers as there are people looking for the answers. I’d be asking a bunch of questions first, because if you don’t, you risk disappearing down a digital media rabbit hole:

What do you do?

What do you have to offer, both as products/services but also as good content?

What are your values?

Who is your audience? Where do they hang out? What are they looking for?

What are you best suited to create? Are you a good writer, or presenter? Or more technical? Helpful hints, etc?

Where are the gaps in the media landscape that you can fill?

What are your competitors doing?

Can you use tools like Google’s keyword tool, to inform your content?

Where do you see yourself positioned in the marketplace?

How much time/effort/money have you got to dedicate to marcomms? Usually never enough so go for the low hanging fruit and quick wins.

Etc.

The answer to all these helps you determine where to focus and what to create.

As a small business, you are now a publishing house and a Public Relations agency. So you need to think like this.

Publishers are in the business of creating content and finding ways and means to publish that content.

Public Relations agencies are on the lookout for opportunities to get their clients’ messages out there.

This is what you need to do.

How to make the most of every media opportunity and get your goals when it comes to your marketing strategy and business planning?

Analytics and measurement to help decide what is working and what isn’t. Try different things. Be creative.

There is no magic formula, although certain things are more measurable and certain than others (eg GoogleAds can give you all the data and stats, but you still need to have your own unique way of dealing with the customer when they arrive)

Tighten up and improve all the related activities and processes within the business.

Marketing is much more a holistic exercise now, so the entire business needs to look at itself holistically to ensure better outcomes.

This digital age is also an age of information overload and overwork. No one can really afford to do absolutely everything (big businesses have whole teams looking separately at every aspect of digital marketing - analytics teams, user experience teams, media buying teams, content creating teams etc) Small business must be realistic and work within limitations so try to find out what fits and works well for you and focus on that, with a little openness to explore new channels and opportunities.

Now that you are a small business media publishing mega corporation, you can find your niche, and your most suitable channels and mediums, and start feeding the digital media machine. Every morsel you give it, creates an expanding and more refined unique footprint of your presence and your activities.

Tips

Develop your own skills and get experience – jump at learning opportunities

Spend time googling to devour as much information as you can about media, marketing, publishing, content

You can never do everything, so focus on what works, what you are good at and get help if you need it.

The one irony about the web is so much of it is free, so considering the huge benefits a small business can get that traditional businesses never had, why not spend some money here and there to achieve what you want.

Even business is different every industry more or less competitive. If you are in a competitive industry, you need to try harder, because your competitors are, or you need to find your niche

Examples/Anecdotes Political Video

Rotary Afghanistan School Message - Flag eCommerce - “Wholesale enquiries welcome”

Ideas International - Tech journalists, Twitter

Envato - MVP then SEO. Build ecosystem with Freelance Switch / Job Board / Blogs / Tutorials

Cleverseal - Facebook, Blogs, Focus on USP and Family Business angle, nurture installer network Star Jewellers emphasise 50+ years trading and bricks and mortar presence, custom Commerce theme and constant iteration and customer engagement, reviews, Google merchant, SEO, Consulting GSSM - Single Product Websites with dual language.

Wavelink - 20 years. PRL

Motexion - Walk-through videos, ecommerce, SEO, facebook, one-on-one meetings with key people eg dealers and manufacturers, refine the business processes, team, supply chain, etc

Me personally: Youtube planted link on journalist site. SEO Good Website - messaging prequalifies, establishes trust, communicates values.

About our Guest:

Cyrius Media Group http://www.cyrius.com.au/about

A media, events and marketing consulting agency, centrally located in Ryde, we design, produce and manage all aspects of digital media, marketing, events, Website design and Web development for: individuals, businesses, agencies, departments and community organisations across Australia.

We’ve been building and managing online assets since the mid 1990s and more recently have expanded into live events, podcasting production and taking the opportunity during the pandemic to pivot towards doing some of our own in-house pet projects.

Stefan Sojka https://www.linkedin.com/in/stefansojka/

Stefan spent the first 20 years of his career as an entertainer and musician, playing thousands of gigs from major corporate events for companies like Microsoft, Optus and Sony to backyard parties, weddings, clubs and pubs all over Australia. When the internet came along in the mid-90s, Stefan became a convert.

He became a staff writer for numerous national Internet magazines, then gradually evolved into a small business owner, employing designers, programmers and multimedia creators in what became the Cyrius Media Group digital agency. His background in music and entertainment seemed to fit nicely into the new media landscape, as he found his writing, creative and communication skills were a great asset for the business and for his clients.

Stefan is big on mentoring and encouraging others to succeed, and many of his employees have gone on to be hugely successful, and his clients have benefitted by increasing their combined revenue by hundreds of millions of dollars as a result of working with Stefan’s agency.

He’ll probably write a book about it all, because a brief biography simply can’t cover everything. But today we’ll be focusing on helping your small business improve digital networking, search engine visibility and positioning your business with the right messaging and image.

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Small Biz Matters – #168 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 4 August 2020

Running a small business is never a solo road; your path is guided by key stakeholders and strategic partners who help you. They might be people who work within your business, key clients, suppliers or supportive advisors.

Fostering these relationships is very important to running and growing a successful small business. But equally important is recognising who is STRATEGICALLY IMPORTANT to your business development. As yourself, what role can this partner play in building foundations, growth of even calling it quits? Are they strategic for growth or just supportive? Do you collaborate with, or are you guided by them?

So we’ve brought someone onto the show who’s hugely experienced and keen to share this knowledge with our listeners. Annie Gibbins, in the role of CEO of several large medical institutions, had led teams who couldn’t exist without the partnership and guidance of strategic partners. Constantly engaging with and recognising the value of your key stakeholders can make or break these businesses. She is also an inspirational and dynamic business leader who is all about THRIVING - in business and life and author of Becoming Annie - A biography of a curious woman.

Topics we’ll be covering:

As a change management CEO, what has been your strategy to influence significant change in Glaucoma Australia?
- 4 pillars
  - Stakeholder engagement
  - Clarify UVP
  - Build Trust and Credibility
  - Rebrand
  - Go Digital
  - Risk Awareness Campaigns which drive testing
- What change have you achieved over the past 2.5 years?
  - Massive stakeholder engagement (Ophthalmology, Optometry, Pharmacy), Digital Referrals (Oculo), 300 referrals per year have grown to 7000 in 2 years
  - New Strategic plan – Detect and Defeat.
  - Patron – Governor General
  - Ambassador – Kirk Pengilly INXS
- What have been the biggest challenges?
  - Mindset
  - Funding model
  - Small team
  - Website and CRM (new ones coming in the next 6 months!)

To find out more go to their website: https://www.anniegibbins.com/

About our Guest:

Annie Gibbins is the Chief Executive Officer of Glaucoma Australia. In this role, Annie is a powerful force for change in the war against the blinding impact of glaucoma and 100% passionate about eliminating preventable glaucoma blindness.

With over 25 year’s experience in the Health Education sector and qualifications in science, education and business, Annie has developed high impact skills in collaborative change management focussed on patient centred outcomes and data driven evidence.

Annie’s is also the CEO of Lipstick Consulting, and her previous roles include CEO of the Australian Institute of Ultrasound, CEO of the Australasian Society for Ultrasound in Medicine, National Education Manager of the Australian Orthopaedic Association and Senior Nurse Educator TAFE, NSW.

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Small Biz Matters – Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 4 August 2020

When the chips are down you need a peak body on your side. And boy are the chips down right now.

Right now small, medium and even large retailers are losing income and purging employees to the point of no return. And their biggest overhead? Commercial Rent. And suddenly, the Code of conduct is everyone’s business. What are the Small business owner’s rights and the landlord’s responsibilities? What is mandated and what is inferred? Which level of government administers and is policing the protections?

And importantly; who can you turn to for help?

Right now the National Retail Association is flooded with queries about what has been mandated. Kyle Swain is the Leasing Advisor to the National Retailers Association and has been in the room supporting and negotiating for you and your business so we’ve brought him on Small Biz Matters to help you understand the changes.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Background - The creation of the National Cabinet Code of Conduct and the SME Commercial Leasing Principals

How did the code of conduct come about and who did the National Cabinet consult when it was created?

What is it’s intent?
Administration committee (a group of advisors in this case made up of 4 peak bodies) gave info to National Cabinet.
- National Retail Association’s advisor contributed to the guiding principles for the agreement to protect the tenants
Then the States give effect to the code through legislation. So some states were quick to act and others slow to implement the desperately needed change.
It is a mandatory National Code of conduct but many landlords wouldn’t act until the legislation actually assented in each state.

So how does this work for business owners who have multiple locations across multiple states?

What’s the main difference between the states?
Confusion around the different data required by landlords in each state

Now: what’s the current impact on small business?

You mentioned you’ve had a big increase in businesses seeking information about the Code of Conduct to achieve rent relief and understand what their requirements are.

There is a lot of grey area and it’s very open to interpretation. It’s not robust enough.
How tough is it out there? It’s not just the Mum & Dad small-scale operators; the participants are across the board in terms of size
How important is this code of conduct to keeping businesses alive?

What about the big boys: Westfield etc. What’s your report card on them?

It’s the landlords who have, over a number of years, pushed “market rents” to a level that is unsustainable for SME’s and resulted in such a large percentage of tenants and occupiers of real estate, whether it’s a retail premises, a commercial office space or a warehouse, who don’t have 3-6 months of cashflow in the business to survive a sustained downturn such as a pandemic. For many, particularly in retail, even 1 month of having to close the business and receiving no revenue, even if 50% of the rent is waived, will result in financial failure,... and we’re seeing that in small numbers already, and expect to see it in huge numbers after JobKeeper ends.
So my report card on landlords generally is that the bigger ones are certainly fulfilling their minimum obligations under the Code, but not really doing enough to fulfil the ‘intent’ of the code and I fear they will suffer the impact of that for the next 3 or 4 financial years rather than having 1 bad year.

The future: The continuing negotiation process between peak bodies & government across different scenarios

The ‘reasonable recovery period’ - why is it important to understand what the definition of this period is?
Returning to the two versions of “normal” - with or without the vaccine
How dependent is the industry on Jobkeeper and why is it important to remember the impact it’s removal will have?
With Jobkeeper now extended, will the Code of Conduct also be extended? And do we know what’s going to happen after this Code of Conduct period ends?

How can small businesses improve the negotiation process?

Where can those affected small businesses go for help?

Peak bodies
- Webinars and understanding the legislation
- Know your rights, know where to go for help, educate to understand your requirements. Peak bodies can also support in the mediation process on the side of the small business
Small business commissioners at state level & ASBFEO

To find out more :

The National Cabinet Mandatory Code of Conduct - SME Commercial Leasing Pricipals - https://www.pm.gov.au/sites/default/files/files/national-cabinet-mandatory-code-ofconduct-sme-commercial-leasing-principles.pdf

About our Guest:

Kyle is the Retail Director for LPC Cresa who were founded in 1993 and are now one of Australia and New Zealand’s’ leading, independent, tenant-only leasing and property advisory businesses, and part of the global Cresa group.

Lpc Cresa advises office, retail and industrial tenants exclusively across every stage of the property lifecycle and seek to level the playing field when negotiating with landlords and developers to ensure tenants achieve the best possible outcomes.

Lpc Cresa has built a reputation as the preferred problem solver among occupiers of real estate through their unwavering commitment to providing tenants with professional, high quality and independent property advice.

As the Retail Director, Kyle is passionate about helping retailers improve their bottom line through strategically aligned property outcomes and has particular expertise in optimising lease portfolios.

Kyle has post graduate degrees in both Property Economics and Business Administration and a solid background in retail management having worked for major Australian retail brands including Coles Myer Group before entering the property industry.

Kyle has been the Leasing and Tenancy Advisor to the National Retail Association since 2017, providing advice and representation to Australia’s most representative retail industry association with more than 24000 shopfronts nationwide, positioning Kyle as leader in tenant-side retail leasing, tenant representation and retail advisory services.

In his spare time, Kyle is a Childhood Cancer Awareness advocate and avid cyclist, riding 250-300km per week before most of us even get out of bed.

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 21 July 2020

In the world of small business, marketing strategy can seem like a long battle requiring constant tweaking and analysis. We work tirelessly to post, upload, photograph, describe, blog, video and it can sometimes seem like a waste of time.

Well, without a strategy you might very well be doing that; wasting your time!

What is important is knowing your product, knowing your clients and their customer journey as they navigate all your marketing collateral. It’s a simple strategy and a great starting point for many small businesses who may not yet have even given a strategy a thought.

Laura Prael specialises in supporting small businesses in her business LEP Digital; drawing on years of working with big corporate brands and is here to share with us her understanding of the customer journey and why this is an important piece of the strategy puzzle.

Welcome to the show Laura.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Content marketers often refer to the customer buying journey - what is that and why is important?
- Is it literally a linear pathway from start to finish or is it more nuanced than this?
- Where does the idea of the ideal client fit into this?
- Essentially, thinking about what you’re trying to achieve; how do you want the potential customer to behave?
Has the customer journey changed over the years - if so, how and why?
- The impact of social media, different forms of advertising
- The importance of creating brand awareness
How can you use content marketing to support the buyer’s journey?
- Linking this back to your marketing strategy
What are your tips for creating an effective buyer persona?

To find out more go to their website: lep.digital

About our Guest:

Laura is an accomplished copywriter and communications professional with more than 13 years of experience working in senior digital communications roles for large companies. Over her career, she’s mentored and trained more than 600 professionals in topics including writing for the web, content marketing, and building a personal brand. Today, she’s best known for founding a fast-growing award-winning digital content marketing agency, LEP Digital. The company is now in its sixth year running and employs a team of four women.

In 2018, she won the Regional Outstanding Young Entrepreneur Business Award by the NSW Business Chamber and two international Stevie® Awards for Women in Business in the Female Entrepreneur of the Year and Women-Run Workplace of the Year categories.

Her recent speaking experience includes keynote speaker at the City of Parramatta Council for International Women’s Day 2020, speaker at the Marketing to the Rural Sector Conference 2019, keynote speaker and panellist at the University of New South Wales and University of Newcastle, and private presentations for various businesses. Laura holds a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Newcastle, and a Master of Public Relations & Advertising from the University of New South Wales.

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 21 July 2020

There are certain types of stories we all listen to in times of crisis. Stories of strength when overcoming personal hardship, of growth in economic slumps, of great leadership when dealing with unusual situations, and those ones which inspire us when we simply don’t want to adult anymore.

Well this story will tick the box ALL OF THE ABOVE.

With literally no previous retail experience Karen Edbrooke started Big Girls Don’t Cry Anymore, using extraordinary work ethic and desire to assist women, it is now a rare success story in a weird world of retail closures. Founded before social media and online sales, she has been forced to adapt not only the way she sells to clients but how she interacts with them. Her team has completely changed, her products have evolved, and her business is a great example of how the retail world is now survival of the fittest.

Welcome to the show Karen.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Growing your online sales
- Where was the starting point? Did you divert away from your strategy or start over in the crisis?
- Socials – did you increase your budget?
- employing the right people & the ideal worker who can adapt
- top tips on finding the right fit
Passionate about upskilling retail workers in IT
- what the industry leaders can do to improve the candidates
Helping the local business community
- mentored other female entrepreneurs
- using her space to support other businesses
Operating in times of crisis
- Adjusting your mindset & staying focus on what you want to achieve,
- keeping your team focussed

To find out more go to their website: https://brastogo.com.au/

About our Guest:

Big Girls Don’t Cry Anymore was founded by Karen Edbrooke in Brisbane in 1992. Edbrooke got inspiration for the business whilst recovering from a serious car accident. Edbrooke grew increasingly frustrated by the challenges that larger women faced in the fashion and lingerie industry. She believed that mainstream lingerie manufacturers in Australia ignored the needs of larger women. Upon realising that the Australian lingerie industry was ignoring a significant portion of the female population, Edbrooke decided to take action.

Founded before the birth of the internet and the existence of Facebook, the business has been forced to adapt, but has done so with immense success. Big Girls Don’t Cry Anymore has a large social media following. They currently have the largest social media following of any independent Lingerie Store in Australia. They currently have over 105,000 ‘followers’ on their Facebook page and hundreds of thousands of followers on other platforms.

Before her accident, Edbrooke was working at the National Australia Bank. She never went to university and she is completely self-taught in business. She uses her experience to teach others about how to start a business from scratch. Edbrooke’s passion for her brand, extraordinary work ethic and desire to assist women to find the right fitting bra has helped her to create one of the country’s leading business success stories. The business is now the most successful retailer of lingerie and swimwear for women of all sizes with customers across the nation and around the world. Services are also offered virtually through virtual bra fittings, live streamed fashion parades and a number of other innovative offerings.

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 14 July 2020

At the cutting edge of technology the innovation revolution is fast paced, exciting and inspirational. Many new startup small businesses play in the tech space and there like in all small business worlds, innovation comes in many forms. Each small business at some point adapts or pivots or evolves and that can be considered an innovation.

Just like small business and all the hurdles that come with it, those who navigate the techpreneur space have their own Innovation Frustrations. Whether it’s in a corporate environment where the wheels turn so slowly it can be painful, to those familiar small business compliance issues we all know and love, innovative tech businesses face the same trials as we all do.

Laetitia Andrac is highly experienced in this world. She’s worked with multinational giants to get them to move faster and nimble small businesses to get them to move slower! Each of these experiences have brought with them challenges to overcome. And overcome them Laetitia has! She’s with us today on Small Biz Matters to share those experiences from which we can all learn.

Welcome to the show Laeticia.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Tell us about your background and what your experience can tell us about where innovation is today
- Corporate Innovation, StartUp consulting, Bloomberg Cities (bringing innovation to socially driven strategies)
What are the frustrations you can expect to experience when working in a corporate environment/team?
- Frustrations driving within a large corporate, they are so slow and labour intensive. The obsession around controls, privacy, but then you can leverage their client base, they leads. Accepting the balance that there will be a slow to start then accelerating.
- The difference between corporate and startup: fast to iterate, move from ideas to MVP but hard to get traction
What advice would you give to those trying to innovate when working within a large corporate?
- Be resilient. If doors are closed find a way to go through the window!
- Making sure you don’t waste time with the wrong people. Who are making the key decisions?
- In a practical sense what other departments do you need to be aware of in the process. Which other departments will be working with at every stage of implementation?
Start up space - Confusion of innovation vs creativity in the startup space. Framework is crucial.
- Just because you’ve got a great idea doesn’t mean you can bring it into fruition. Discipline of the 10 types of innovation.
- Cover the 4 key mistakes I’ve observed on innovation: focus on creativity, go after a solution without investigating the problem, focus on product innovation only, launch too late when everything is perfect

To find out more go to their website: https://www.essentialshift.co/

About our Speaker:

Laetitia is an innovation and strategist expert, an accredited holistic coach,a proud mama of two little girls. She is born in France, lived in India and Brazil, and moved to Australia ~5 years ago.

With an insatiable curiosity and energy, she is dedicated to empower individuals, teams or businesses to bring their innovative project to life with clarity and impact by applying mindful and effective frameworks.

For over 12 years, she has designed, facilitated and led significant projects, working groups and seminars from ideation, innovation strategy, strategic planning, process improvement, to performance optimizations. She has worked with global companies, start-up/business owners, NGOs, public sector and local governments.

She is currently working part-time for a big corporate on innovation and big data projects and the rest of the time on her own consulting and coaching company: Essential Shift.

Through Essential Shift, she wants to share her passion and experience by blending innovation and strategy frameworks with coaching, mindfulness and ayurveda approaches.

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 14 July 2020

Staff you never see, emails flying around at all times of the day, meetings on a screen… Welcome to the new world of staff and team management for small business. And if you hadn’t already nailed time tracking, online comms and screen sharing you might have just had a steep learning curve in the past few months.

So now we’re faced with this new normal being a long term reality.

Well, for some of us it’s new but for some tech savvy companies out there who are used to rapid growth, remote staff and everything being online it’s business as usual?

So what can we learn from these experts?

Well, for starters a workplace culture that evolves, hiring for values and not a creating a monoculture and crystal clear comms are key. Vu Tran the co-founder of GO1, a successful and fast growing tech company specialising in training software - with an interesting journey of his own to share.

Welcome to the show Vu.

Topics we’ll be covering:

How can businesses foster a strong organisational culture as more team members than ever are working from home?

As a larger business how do you draw on that experience of adapting to change from when you were a startup?

We’re agile & nimble, we continue to evolve. The business keeps ticking away in the background whilst we continue learning
As you start you hire what you know. As you grow you need to think of what the culture has to grow into Hire for cultural contribution not cultural fit – hiring for cultural fit makes for a monoculture.
How do you grow towards values rather than a culture.

How do you find the different staff?

Sharing the same values as you are a must
Cultural contribution is the difference – age (diversity of experience), diversity of business backgrounds (NOT typical startups, different industries), culture (different backgrounds)
Adapting & problem solving more valued than history of what’s been achieved.

How do you remain clear in communication with a larger staff base?

Example – doctor patient comms.
When a leader can’t communicate to their managers this has a trickle-down effect of the whole screen
In crisis’ clear communication from government & health has flowed on to the whole economy
Think about your customer journeys for one example. They need to feel confident in the product to continue engaging.
As your team grows it’s important to keep reviewing your business plan and goals every quarter.

o Focus on key areas & metrics and then subgoals. Everyone in the company knows which goes we contribute to

o OKR’s is the system; setting objective and goal setting around this. Stretch goals so individuals know where they sit in achieving those goals. The objectives are met from bottom up not top down.

o Even though we’re digital we still use butcher paper!

o K.I.S.S

How do you remain clear in communication in this remote workforce?

Worried about the incidental engagements which aren’t happening.
What’s going through your mind at this time? Don’t have the answer, keep working,
It’s not about the TECH TOOLS you use but the culture of communication.
As leaders we need to be constantly communicating, keep calling people

o Straight up Q&A with the leaders

How are you dealing with anxiety in your workplace?

We’re big enough to have support staff
Find those services which can support you to support your staff like Beyond Blue
Make the opportunity to talk rather than diving into specific issues. It’s about the communication channels
The most important thing is to be able to identify mental health issues
Dispelling the myth of asking Are You OK achieves nothing. Starting the conversation really does help.
Not everyone’s a navy seal and has to be ridiculously strong

To find out more go to their website: https://www.go1.com/en-au/

About our Guest:

Vu Tran is the co-founder and Head of Growth at GO1.com, the world’s largest onboarding, compliance and professional development platform; a global business founded in Brisbane, Australia. Vu oversees GO1.com's structure and strategy, manages projects and stakeholder engagement while also working part-time as a practicing GP.

About GO1

GO1.com makes it easy for businesses to train their staff, with the world’s largest compliance, professional development and general training marketplace. By providing a single platform that extends from first aid training through to degree bearing courses, GO1 makes it easy to find and compare the best training options available. The marketplace features over 500,000 courses and other learning items created by local and international experts. Customers include SEEK.com.au, Oxford University, State and Local Governments and St John Ambulance.

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 7 July 2020

Small Biz Matters is proud to announce a new collaboration with the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman - regular updates from Kate Carnell about all her office is doing to advocate and support small businesses. Kate Carnell, as an independent advocate for small business owners, has the legislative power to influence our nation’s lawmakers, ensuring legislation and regulations are put in place to help small businesses grow and in these times, survive.

Small businesses are the engine room of the economy and it’s ASBFEO’s role to do all they can to ensure they have the freedom to innovate, employ and thrive well into the future.

We’ll be regularly broadcasting information on small business strategies, programs and legislative updates which you, as a small business owner in Australia can rely on from the office of ASBFEO and Small Biz Matters.

In the first of the series Kate’s speaking to us about the COVID-19 recovery plan, improvements to payment times and updates in the areas of taxation and procurement.

Welcome back to the show Kate Carnell.

Topics we’ll be covering:

The COVID-19 National recovery plan
- What is ASBFEO’s role in these sort of discussions & who does ASBFEO speak to when advocating for us?
- Is it similar to a lobbyist’s role?
Taxation update
- We know about the instant asset write-off which has been extended but in terms of tax (particularly with it being EOFY) what other developments has ASBFEO been working on for small business?
Procurement panel update
- What is the intention of the procurement panel and why does ASBFEO believe this is an important reform?
Payment times
- Something we are passionate about here at Small Biz Matters is accelerating the economy through ANY sort of improvement to payment times for small business.
- Have any of the recent reforms made any difference in reality for small businesses?
- Is mandating payment times a reality or even a possibility?
Access to justice
- One of the roles of ASBFEO is to support small business in business disputes. Can you give some examples of the sorts of scenarios and businesses you’ve helped?
IR reforms – federal level, small business award
- Industrial relations is a real minefield for small business. In some ways it actually restricts our ability to employ and as Australia’s largest employer in these times of employment crisis it’s not ideal.
- What’s currently happening in this space to reduce the compliance burden for small business?

To find out more go to their website: https://www.asbfeo.gov.au/

About our Guest:

The Ombudsman - Kate Carnell

"In this role I will seek to bring together the many voices within the small business community in a way that promotes growth in this vital sector."

Kate Carnell is the inaugural Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman (ASBFEO).

The ASBFEO office also provides small businesses and family enterprises with assistance should they find themselves involved in a business dispute.

About ASBFEO

Australia is a nation of small businesses and family enterprises. It’s a dynamic and exciting sector that allows people with an entrepreneurial spirit to pursue their dreams.

One of the fastest growing in the economy, the sector presents many opportunities – and challenges – for those who dedicate themselves to pursing a small business venture.

The ASBFEO's role is to support small businesses and family enterprises to enable them to grow and thrive.

The ASBFEO was launched on 11 March 2016 and has two key functions: to assist and to advocate for small businesses and family enterprises.

ASSIST:

ADVOCATE:

There are a number of different activities the Ombudsman may conduct in fulfilling the role of small business advocate. Broadly these include:

Conduct inquiries and research
Work with other arms of government
Contribute to other inquiries
Promote good business practice.

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 7 July 2020

Whilst everyone interested in small business is trying to reinvent themselves through pivoting and adapting there’s one small business who is living it … and everyone is talking about their story. From the Prime Minister, to the media, to national advocates the story of StoryKings is reinvigorating our faith in the small business economy to dust themselves off and reinvent to success.

So how did StageKings do it? With amazing speed and efficiency actually. They saw an opportunity and grabbed it with two hands, hung on to their employees, and collaborated with other small businesses who supported them.

StageKings are as passionate about small business as the rest of us and we’re proud to welcome Jeremy Fleming, the CEO to share the story of their overnight (haha) pivot success and help out other small businesses to learn from their journey.

Welcome to the show Jeremy.

Topics we’ll be covering:

What gave you the idea to produce remote working office furniture when your company sits squarely in the events industry?
- Did you draw on your own experiences or your staff’s skills to meet the need?
- How did that conversation develop with your staff?
- After trying other ideas like pop up testing facilities and temporary waiting rooms, it was a discussions with a friend in Ireland with a similar company to mine that sparked the idea. He discussed their plan to start making furniture, and suggested that we had the same machinery and know-how, and that we should look at doing similar. We’d seen that other desk suppliers were out of stock and, relying on deliveries from China, they likely would be for some time. So our Head of Production, Mick Jessop, and I decided that work from home desks was the idea to run with. With a history of design, and a furniture building hobby, Mick ran with the idea, and overnight had 2 designs ready for production.
You had the idea, what steps did you take to get it up off the ground? What did you do first and then later, how did you recognise and chase the organic growth?
We moved very quickly with the idea that we had at 11am on Sunday morning, to having prototypes build on Monday, the eCommerce site written overnight on Monday night, a photo shoot on Tuesday morning, and on sale 3pm on Tuesday afternoon. I started with an open letter that I posted on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn, which focuses solely on our story, and what we planned to do to keep our people in work. That post quickly went viral, and withing days had been seen, shared or liked by a million people. The organic growth is due largely to us focusing on our story, and not trying to sell a product. Of course it helps that the products go together very easily without tools, they look great, and are very functional, but the story is what got people interested.
Did you know it would succeed in those beginning days or were you really throwing your business and all its resources at a possibility
We worked on the idea not realising how big it would actually get. We thought it would keep some of our crew working, and that Mick and I would do the sanding, and deliver to people on our way home. We thought we might sell 100 desks in a month. We quickly realised that it was going to be bigger than that, when on our first weekend we were featured in multiple newspapers, and on the TV news. Within 3 days of starting we were taking 200 orders per day, and needed to bring back a bigger crew than we had when Covid hit. We now have over 50 crew working, made up of out of work event industry workers.
What advice would you give to small businesses out there who are fearful of the risks associated with Pivoting?
It starts by being agile by nature. As a staging company, nothing we ever do is ever exactly the same, so we really pivot the way we work frequently. One day we could be building a replica of Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre, and the next week we could be building a 26m tall lion as the centre piece of a stage (which actually happened last year). We looked at the furniture as another project, and looked at what we needed to do to make that work. Outside of that the biggest thing for me was to move quickly. Don’t over analyse. If getting started is not going to put a huge strain on finances, and you have the equipment to get going, do it, and learn along the way. We didn’t get a lot of things right when we started this, but had we procrastinated for another week, we would not have had the same reaction, and we wouldn’t have done near as well as we’re doing now.
Has this experience changed your core business forever or simply split you into two niches? How can a small business recognise when it’s NOT working?
- Has it re-invigorated your staff
- How will it change your outlook? What lessons have you learned from this side business that crosses over to your core business?
- We will still build stages again once the live event industry opens up, but we will also continue to manufacture furniture, likely as a separate company. With the focus returning strongly to Australian Made, and Shopping Local, I see a very good opportunity to grown our product range, and partner with other designers to grow that part of the business

Recognising when a small business isn’t working can be difficult if you’re embedded in that business day in, day out. It often takes removing yourself (emotionally and sometimes physically), to take a look from the outside. This allows you to scrutinise things that appear to be working, but maybe not well enough, and consider a better way.

To find out more go to their website: https://www.stagekings.com.au/

About our Guest:

“Jeremy Fleming is the Managing Director of Stagekings, the company responsible for some of the most well-known temporary event structures of the past 5 years. Building stages and sets like the Opening Ceremony at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, the set for Ninja Warrior, the replica Edinburgh Castle at the Edinburgh Military Tattoo in Sydney, Shakespeare’s Pop up Globe Theatre in Melbourne, Sydney and Perth, Ultra Music Festival, and the Adelaide 500 Concert Stage.

Jeremy is currently navigating Stagekings through the most difficult time the event industry has experienced, since the outbreak of Covid-19. Seeing a chink in the supply chain he has pivoted the staging business to manufacture work from home office furniture, and now return to work office furniture to fill the gap in the market, and to keep Stagekings in business. By doing this he has reemployed staff, as well as employing many more out of work event crew to help in the manufacturing of the IsoKing desk range. On top of this over the past 3 months Stagekings has raised over $41,000 for Support Act – the Heart and Hand of Australian Music, through the sales of the desks.”

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 30 June 2020

You may have been distracted by a couple of international crisis’ in the past few months but here we are again; end of financial year! Hopefully 2020 will keep moving this quickly so we can get back to some semblance of normal small business life but in the meantime your requirements haven’t changed as a small business.

Single Touch Payroll reporting, super obligations, BAS deadlines and wrapping up your end of financial year finances and still there, whether you’ve bounced back from this weird economy or not.

One positive aspect of experiencing a slow down is we can all focus a little more on your admin and bookkeeping and what the EOFY requirements are from the ATO.

Joining us today is Andrew Watson, the Assistant Commissioner in charge of Small Business Experience, Small Business, at the Australian Tax Office. He’s going to share with us what the ATO expects, supports and how they assist if you’re one of the many many businesses experiencing hardship.

Welcome back to the show Andrew.

Topics we’ll be covering:

What should small businesses do to prepare for Tax time 2020?
- Record keeping and who’s responsible for this?
- Increase in digitising of document and record keeping - recording and reporting are getting faster
  - Mention of e-invoicing
  - How does e-commerce feed into this? Digitised businesses are more likely to keep on top of their obligations
  - New developments in the business platform
- Typical errors we in EOFY processes inc - apportioning incorrectly business/private especially home office expenses
- How is this different due to covid.
- STP Finalisation - how is this different from the old payment summary for the first time
- Instant asset write-off timings - installed and ready to use rather than when it was ordered and paid for - beware of self assessment. The affect of the supply chain changes
- Give examples
- Shout out to bookkeepers & accountants for their help with bringing the legislation to small business
What do small businesses need to know about the stimulus packages and EOFY?
- Coding the stimulus measures on your tax return - Jobkeeper / Cashflow boost credits / talk to your accountant about the state based payments
What if a small business is impacted by multiple disasters (i.e. bushfires, COVID-19, and drought)?
- ATO relief and support thats available - deferments, PAYGI drop to NIL but bear in mind you can’t amend once the next quarter’s BAS is generated
- Switching from quarterly to monthly
- Debt relief
- If they’re not happy with the service then escalate, and of course
So how do businesses access this assistance? Through the Business Portal? I’ve heard about myGovID changes. Do Businesses need to use myGOVID to access the Business Portal?
- Extension to availabilities of the ATO - giving 1800 number out, which is for tailored, specialised support and available indefinitely at the moment. Struggling with different issues like losing homes, losing records
- Changes to MyGovID system

To find out more go to their website: www.ato.gov.au

About our Speaker:

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 23 June 2020

But what about the ideal location, B2B details, demographic, political persuasion, customs and habits, and social media use? This would be great info to help with your marketing strategy but where can you find it?

Luckily there’s a government department who are real boffins when it comes to collecting, analysing and delivering this sort of data right into your lap.

Its there for the taking and today we welcome John Shepherd the General Manager, Industry Statistics Division at ABS to explain how and why we should tap into this goldmine of data.

Welcome back to the show John.

Topics we’ll be covering:

The ABS has been doing a lot of new and interesting things recently.

What sort of changes has the ABS made in response to COVID-19?

Here John will highlight some changes (ie Rapid surveys, modifying work programs)

What is the ABS hoping to achieve with these changes? (eg collecting data from small businesses owners, getting a pulse on Australia to understand how they are being affected)

Here John will highlight some key findings from the COVID19 surveys, general impacts on small businesses and how the info has been helping decision making

The ABS collect data from a range of businesses. Can you run through the processes with how it’s done with small businesses?

John will be highlighting and running through the following:

How ABS collects data (ie: Sending out letters with login codes, what it looks like)
Letting businesses know how they can find out if the letter is legitimate
Detailing why it is important for small businesses to complete surveys – this includes touching on sampling, provider burden
Answering the questions “Do I have to do this?”

What insights does ABS data provide about small businesses?

This is where John can highlight some findings that ABS data highlights from various surveys including:

CABEE (Counts of Australia Businesses, including Entries and Exits)
COVID
Business indicators
Other relevant surveys

What sort of data and statistics are available for small businesses to use?

Here John can go over high-level info that ABS collects and how small businesses can use it, which will include things like:

High level overview of what data ABS collects – ie demographic, business
Give “high level” examples of how businesses use data – CPI for to adjust for inflation etc
Overview of where small businesses can find more info – ie on website (including points of interest), social media
Then go into detail about HOW small businesses can use the data through “data story examples”

To find out more go to their website: www.abs.gov.au

All about the ABS - https://www.abs.gov.au/about?OpenDocument&ref=topBar
ABS response to COVID-19 - https://www.abs.gov.au/websitedbs/D3310114.nsf/home/ABS%20responds%20to%20COVID-19.
A handy calendar that lists statistical releases for the coming six months - https://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/webpages/ABS+Release+Calendar

Our Guest: John Shepherd

John is a passionate Movember ambassador and fundraiser for men’s health initiatives.

John holds a Masters of Taxation from the University of NSW and is based in Canberra.

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 23 June 2020

Last time we ran a show all about top tech products it was hugely popular so we’ve invited a TechHead back to Small Biz Matters to learn what his favourite tech products are for 2020.

Tech is there to support your business through improved productivity, efficiency and right now, work remotely. But you can waste a lot of time testing out time wasting tech too.

In the words of Ferris Bueller “The world moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop to take a look around once in a while, you could miss it.” So, time to bring in Carl Robertson, the Sales & Marketing Director for Cat Rugged Phones, to share some industry knowledge on the best tech products to help you with remote working.

Welcome back to the show Carl.

Topics we’ll be covering:

In today’s environment, what are top 5 Tech Products you’re using right now to improve efficiency, productivity and save time working remotely?
- Cloud Based Computing.
  - Office Suites - Microsoft Office Suite or G Suite
  - Accounting Software
  - Book Keeping Apps
  - Customer Relationship Marketing Tools
- Team Communication Tool
  - Skype
  - Slack
  - Google Meet
  - Pragli
  - Zoom
- Note Taking Apps
  - Evernote
  - OneNote
  - Google Keep
  - Rocketbook cloud connected notebooks for pen and paper users
- Smartphones
  - Choose a device that matches your work and lifestyle
  - Look for well known brands sold through reputable channels
  - Warranty and commitment to security updates
- Video-based education
  - YouTube
  - Businesses should be making videos to become the authority
- How to research technology products before buying
  - Product websites
  - Google Reviews
  - YouTube Videos
  - Facebook Pages
  - Expert Reviews
- What are the essentials for a tech savvy home office?
  - Mobile Phone reception. If it is poor look at enabling Voice over WiFi on your device.
  - Good Internet - check if you are in an NBN supported area. If your office is in an area of the house you can look at wifi boosters
  - Dedicated Workstation with Printer/Scanner/Tools of the Trade set up
- Do you have any recommendations around cyber-security?

About our speaker:

Carl is the Sales & Marketing Director for Australia and New Zealand for Bullitt Mobile, the manufacturer of Caterpillar Rugged Mobile Phones. Carl is a technology professional with over 10 years experience in telecommunications and consumer electronics and has launched multiple brands and new technologies to market.

Cat Rugged Phones are phones that are built for tough environments. Cat Phones are innovative, strong devices that won’t let you down in tough situations. Durability is at the heart of every Cat product and Cat Phones are no exception.

To find out more go to their website: www.catphones.com

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 16 June 2020

So do you remember when you first started a business and everybody was telling you it would be a really good idea to find your niche? And now we find ourselves in this weird world where we suddenly been asked to pivot away from that!

So what exactly does that mean? Do you have to throw your original business idea out with the bathwater and start over? Or is it a matter of lateral thinking and tapping into new skills you never thought you had! It could be an opportunity to find a new passion.

Today we are joined by Stu Lloyd, an expert in pivoting; he’s even written a book on it! He’s going to be sharing with us some excellent ideas on how to tap into your own potential and perhaps shifting your business in a new, more positive direction.

Welcome to the show Stu.

Topics we’ll be covering:

It’s a crisis and a recession. Should small business owners and entrepreneurs be panicking, or what can they do?
Pivoting is a buzzword in this crisis, but what does it actually look like in practice?
Any good examples of small Aussie businesses pivoting successfully?
Where and how do small business owners start with pivotting?

To find out more go to:

Website - www.hotheads-innovation.com

LinkedIn – Stu LloydStoryteller

Twitter: @RealStuLloyd

About our guest:

Born in Zimbabwe, Australian citizen Stu recently celebrated 30 years at the intersection of creativity and commerce.

As an advertising guy with a psychology background, he was a creative director for agencies such as Ogilvy& Mather, Saatchi & Saatchi, Bates, etc, before co-founding integrated agency, LloydMartin, in Singapore, which he successfully built up into a $20 million dollar company and sold it to US-listed group DraftFCB.

Apart from a psychology and mass communications degree from Macquarie University, Stu has certifications in Neuro-science and Neuro-marketing from Copenhagen Business School.

He has published 13 books that have sold over 100,000 copies, on topics such as questioning skills, entrepreneurial mindset, and disruptive challenging (plus travel, military history, etc).

Little known fact: he was once contracted to Warner Music as a songwriter. (Taylor Swift had little need to be nervous!)

Stu was a founding lecturer at the Singapore Institute of Advertising, has addressed a UN WTO forum on innovation and trends, and MC’d a TEDx event on Creativity & Collaboration.

As Chief Hothead @Hotheads Innovation, Stu helps Fortune 500 companies like Citibank, Adidas, Pfizer, DaimlerBenz, Cargill, GE, Intel, etc to turbocharge their creative thinking skills and innovation capability.

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 16 June 2020

I’ve heard way too many times in the last few weeks of small business owners heavily discounting their rates simply because they were delivering their services online. So I asked myself, why was this occurring? You still have to prepare, research and deliver the same skills, experience and content. Nothing has changed apart from the vehicle of delivery.

Sure, budgets are being slashed all over the place and many of our corporate clients are running scared for their own J O B s and asking for temporary discounts for services. But why are we so quick to accept? Is it because we are used to discounting as soon as we are asked? Or is it that we’ve had our own self worth devalued in this covid world.

In the studio we welcome Tim Hoopmann, Founder of Spinn Business Solutions & Beyond Blue Speaker who is once again share his wealth of knowledge and experience to help us navigate this weird world.

Welcome back to the show Tim.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Valuing your online content as much as the delivery in person - tips on having that conversation with clients and collaborators
- I will start here and talk about the importance of strong self-worth and how this increases your confidence.
- Understanding the different way you may now be delivering your services and the impact this will have on your clients.
- Online will often mean it is recorded and available ongoing
- Be clear upfront with clients
  - firstly on their expectations and their budget. How have things changed for them?
  - Secondly how your business has been impacted and that your fees have not changed
  - Often there is pressure to discount in this challenging environment
- All these conversations are easier when you have a strong sense of self worth.
- That's not easy and it’s important to focus on your mental health to ensure you are as resilient as possible
Losing your content and licencing issues
- remember that when a presentation is recorded you lose control of who has access to that; so in fact you should charge more since this grows the audience!
- How will they be using your content now that it is online?
- What control will you have over it once it is recorded and distributed
- Have the difficult conversion up front and do no assume that their ideas are in line with yours
- Letter of engagement and clarify of terms and conditions is vital
- g - clients ask of Tim his hourly rate
But on the other hand everyone is expecting a discount and the reality is budgets are not what they used to be. Are we all expected to tow the discount line, or will some of us thrive in this environment where others fail?
- Everyone is experiencing financial hardship differently
- We all need to be honest and upfront on the impact it has had on our business and those around us
- Some have been impacted severely while others are doing very well.
- Before providing a discount a better understanding is required of each business situation
Resources available on Beyond Blue & Headsup website
- Beyond blue for support if you are struggling wiht mental health. Plus lots of COVID19 support information around work and teams
- Headsup for resources for business - including all levels within the organisation.

To find out more go to their website: https://www.headsup.org.au/healthy-workplaces/for-small-businesses

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 9 June 2020

It’s been a brand new world where we collaborate, communicate and interrelate with everyone from family members to key stakeholders in our business on a screen. Those of us who’ve moved quickly to adapt to online meetings are fine but there are probably practical things you can implement to make it a better experience for the person you’re interacting to.

From the tech you use to the background to how you present. Ask yourself, what professional impression does your audience leave with after this online encounter? Yes being online clunky and impersonal but there are tricks you can easily use to engage on a more personal level with the person sitting at the other end?

Who better than to give advice on presenting online that a professional master of Ceremonies. For years Greg Ward has been moderating the content of hundreds of events from week long conferences to round table discussions. He’s funny and entertaining but importantly he’s ENGAGING. And now with taking his own business completely online he’s here to share his secrets.

Welcome to the show Greg.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Top strategies to improve your online meetings
- Tech - what simple devices can a small business owner use to improve their audio and visual
- Noise
- Dress & background - why are these important?
- First impressions - how to introduce yourself to the attendee (waiting rooms, your name on the screen, other)
What about taking it to the next level - is there really a difference between what you use and the typical small business owner can use?
What has this massive change meant to your own industry - that of events?
- Adapting to online
- Is this change going to continue?
- The ongoing impact to small business community not being able to learn, participate and network at events in the near future.

To find out more go to their website: www.gregwardspeaker.com

About Greg:

How you present yourself on screen has a significant impact on the effect you wish to achieve – and in this brave new world, the truth is, you don’t know, what you don’t know. With the move to working from home, and with the challenges of effective remote connection, Greg Ward (Vice-President Professional Speakers Association NZ, MC of the Year, Entertainer of the Year, World Class Speaker Awardee, ) wants you to know what he knows: That with a few simple modifications to your physical environment and online setup, and a focus on how you sound and appear on camera, you can make a profound impact in how you and your message is perceived.

Bio: With more than 20 years at the forefront of conferences and events, Greg Ward is a keynote speaker, virtual & live event MC and in-demand corporate performer.

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 9 June 2020

Small business, with all it’s adaptability and pivotability were generally able to move quickly to our new cosy, home based locations to run our businesses. But did any of us realise this would throw up a whole truckload of problems which we would need help with? Bandwidth management, cybersecurity and adapting the ways we collaborate are just some of the problems universally faced by small business with the shift to remote working.

How do I maximise my internet accessibility from home? Am I more vulnerable to cyberhackers in this new location? And does this change my relationship with key stakeholders like employees, contractors and clients?

CISCO has been supporting small businesses for years with these issues but they too had to evolve at full speed to keep up with the pace of this change, working alongside businesses to understand their needs and how to solve them.

Luke Power brings with him a deep understanding of SMBs as the Head of Small Business Aust & NZ at Cisco and he’s here to share with us some practical strategies which will help you move past these remote working problems and get back to what you do best.

Welcome to the show Luke.

Topics we’ll be covering:

The evolution of tech - tech has up until now been about solving individual problems. Now it’s all about moving forward and tech leading the way to help them grow. Now big companies have had to pivot to understand the entire platform which needs to be offered.
Now it’s all about Collaboration. How do SMBs communicate internally and with their clients?
- They’re on the run, how do they use the tech platforms to solve their problems?
- COVID meant everyone had to scramble to get organised to work from home. Banking, hardware, internet connection
How did CISCO quickly adapt? How did the enquiries change? Essentially, they behaved like a small business.
Bandwidth management - what are the simple controls and infrastructure you can implement to ensure there are systems in place
- Well managed network - updating your legacy technology. Prioritise your computer over other devices
- Learn how to manage your device online when offsite
- Think about where your wireless technology is located
- The reality the tech and platform has improved compared to a couple of years ago
- Example is a mesh network which allows for better coverage
Cybersecurity - Have we seen an increase in cybercrime activity? Mobile devices, reduced focused, remote working has increased our vulnerability. BUT we’ve learned a lot in the last few years
- The fact is Firewalls are not good enough because other users have access.
- Visibility is crucial Two step authenticators (e.g. Duo)
- Has there been a shift in the way small business is being attacked? No, it’s all about the data. Ransomware is still a large risk.
- Look into data loss prevention
- Cyber hygiene - are you using the same laptop as others in the household? Be aware
Collaboration - what’s some of the advice you’re giving the small business
- Take a step back and ask yourself how can I be more efficient and collaborate better? Think about the new customer journeys. Reflect on how you’re communicating with them?
- Who exactly do you collaborate with in my business circle? Go through each of the pathways and map it out?

About Luke Power

Luke Power is the Head of Small Business & Distribution of Australia and New Zealand.

As part of his role, Luke is accountable for the overall vision, strategy and operations of Cisco’s high-growth Small Business segment within Australia and New Zealand. Ultimately, working to deliver the best technology solutions to small businesses, with Cisco’s IT solutions that are secure, simple and flexible.

Luke has worked as a Sales Leader for 20 years, starting his career in a local computer store helping people with their IT issues, and since with experience from companies such as Intel Security, Avaya, Nortel Networks, Cisco Systems, Acer and Silicon Computers.

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 2 June 2020

Do you know what FOREX stands for? Do you watch the Australian Dollar go up and down and not truly understand what it means? Do you think your small business is unaffected by minor fluctuations in the Aussie Dollar?

Think again.

Even those of us who DON’T have an e-commerce site or deal with international clients or corporates paying invoices in USD, are affected by changes to the dollar. Without realising it you’re actually having an effect as an exporter importer. How? Think about your suppliers - digital subscriptions paid in USD, goods or services bought on ebay or those clients you sell to overseas … it all adds up to changes which can potentially have big impact on your cash flow.

So let’s really find out how the foreign exchange rate (that’s FOREX) affects your small business and what you need to know to keep an eye on it. Rylan Dawes is the VP of FX for Airwallex and he’s here to teach us all we need to know about FOREX.

Welcome to the show Rylan.

Topics we’ll be covering:

What is foreign exchange risk, and what are some of the ways small businesses mitigate that?
- Forex is simply when you conduct a business across borders. The risk happens when the exchange rate changes between when you make the transaction and when the funds are settled.
- Small business need to be aware of things like
  - lag times
  - Invoice dates
- This has a huge cash flow impact
What types of products should small business know about to mitigate risk
- Broadly how do
- Banks (traditional) vs other, newer options
An example of volatility has been the the FX market in COVID-19?
- Why does small business need to keep an eye on that volatility?
  - You can make a loss in a matter of days when there is extreme volatility
  - Purchases included like software subscriptions - subscription creep
- Jan - lowest level of volatility and within 2 weeks, a spike not seen since GFC
- How do you keep an eye on that volatility?
  - Examples of tools - price alerts to buy FX to offset the volatility in costs from FX movements
  - It works on both directions - sales and marketing
- What is the impact of currency volatility on small businesses today?
- What is your advice to small businesses who do not have any dedicated finance teams or large finance teams to still be kept educated on FX movements? Who can you have on your side to support you?
  - STRATEGY:
  - Be aware of what you buy and sell in other currencies
  - Be prepared if you have a large transaction coming up in say, 30days time
  - Educate yourself in the tools you can use (alerts about exchange rates at a certain rate)
  - Establish if you’ve got any natural hedges (revenues or costs in USD). Rather than converting all of these immediately
    - Reduce the FX risk but you may have additional costs with moving money around
    - And that’s when you should seek the help of an expert...

Rylan Dawes Bio

Joined Airwallex: 2017

Role: Responsible for end-to-end provision of FX product, including internal risk management

Biography:

Deakin University graduate (BComm/BA, Finance / International Relations)
Joined Airwallex was as a product manager in April 2017, promoted to VP – FX Product in January 2018
Previously employed by ANZ as a Senior Business Analyst and has FX experience with Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs

Areas of expertise and insight:

FX
Risk management
Fintech product delivery
Financial markets
Customer experience and integration management

Overview of Airwallex

Airwallex was founded in Melbourne, Australia in 2015 with a simple goal - to push the boundaries of global financial services capabilities in an increasingly borderless world. Airwallex has since secured over $360 million USD in external funding, supported by top-tier investors including Tencent, Sequoia Capital China, DST Global, Hillhouse Capital, Horizons Ventures, ANZi Ventures, Square Peg Capital, Gobi Partners and Salesforce Ventures. The company’s core strength lies in its proprietary tech-driven infrastructure to enable low-cost, high-speed and transparent international collections and payments (accessible via API), its business account and borderless card which helps businesses grow both domestically and internationally. Airwallex has grown to over 420 employees across 10 international offices (Melbourne, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Beijing, Singapore, London, San Francisco, Tokyo, and Bangalore).

To find out more go to their website: www.airwallex.com

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 2 June 2020

Australia’s response to the pandemic has been one of the most effective in the world. But ironically that success shows us how broken is our democracy. Today we’re in conversation with Jeremy Goff, an expert in Strategy, Communication & Investor Relations and he’s here for what’s likely to be a robust chat about the two main flaws in our democracy revealed by the Covid response - and the impact on small and medium businesses.….

Welcome to the show Jeremy.

Topics we’ll be covering:

The first flaw is ideology - in particular the cult of the budget surplus. When people’s lives depended on it in the pandemic, that went straight out the window because - as any householder with a mortgage will tell you - debt is good if it’s helping you invest in your future. But the pandemic response has been the exception. Throughout the last 23 years of economic growth there hasn’t been nearly enough government investment in creating the industries we need to support small business innovation.

If governments had invested much more in supporting clean energy enterprises over the last twenty years, a regional port like Eden on the NSW far south coast could have become home to new sectors like wave power generation manufacturing. The flow on effects of an industry like that can be massive for a wide range of small businesses from welding and electrical engineering to services like catering, hospitality and facilities maintenance. But today those jobs are nowhere to be seen.

The second big flaw in our democracy is the power of big business - in particular the coal and gas industries. As the Podcast Hot Mess reported just last week, for over thirty years those industries have deliberately muddied the waters by funding false scientific research to throw doubt on the science of climate change. They also currently have three former executives as senior staff in the PMs office. This has slowed or stalled sensible, rational market based responses to ever growing climatic impacts on human society.

The results for many small businesses across Australia will be dramatic. We’ll start to feel them in the next decade, with more profound effects by 2040. There will be lower commercial fish stocks for our commercial fishers, longer more frequent droughts for our farmers, and the probable disappearance of meaningful winter snow in the alpine regions. All of that is devastating for small businesses across those regions.

What can we do about it?

Ban all corporate political donations.
Disclose all individual donations in real time
Mandate that all parliamentary staffers paid for with public money must be career public servants. If you want a career political apparatchik you pay for it with Party funds.

You can chat to Jeremy more via his LinkedIn page - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeremy-goff-a08b7332/

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 26 May 2020

Setting up an e-commerce website can be daunting so many online businesses start by using a marketplace or an online platform to do it all for them. But like all things Internet, the list of choices for this service grow by the day.

So how do you choose the best option for you and your business? What questions should you need to ask so you can hit the ground running with online sales? And are there any Australian options out there who do good?

This week we learn about a new app called Sipora which is taking on the Buy Now Pay Later culture head on by encouraging saving whilst spending and supporting small business along the way. Plus an added bonus; it’s an Australian concept.

How does it all work? We chat to the founder Jonathan Despinidic to find out more.

Welcome to the show Jonathan.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Sipora offers a different type of platform for small business to sell their goods and services – what are some top tips you can give for them when they engage with online platforms generally?
- What should a small business be looking for in the contracts they sign?
- What’s a reasonable expectation for the marketing of your products?
One aspect of platforms is the issue of transparency in the relationship with small business? What should they be on the lookout for
- Contracts & fine print
To stand on their own small business needs to replicate the power of larger platforms and their marketing. Is this where platforms like Sipora; smaller niche platforms; offer that without all the costs associated with the Big Boys?
What are the concerns of small business when it comes to selling online on someone else’s platform?
- Banking connections concerns,
- Cybersecurity
What is a round-up app and what makes Sipora different?

To find out more go to their website: https://www.sipora.com.au/

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 26 May 2020

With the scenario all of humanity has been living for the past few months it can feel for many of us like time is the enemy. We’re waiting for it all to end, biding our time, counting down the days… till life can return to normal.

So what if you regained some control over time and better still, used it as a tool in your small business to better understand how it operates? Monitoring time can help you determine more than simply productivity. Staffing, finances even your business planning relies on you understanding how you and other key stakeholders in your business operate under the regime of time.

So let’s start tracking time to get better at running our businesses.

Today we welcome Jared Armstrong; founder of MinuteDock a simple yet effective tool used worldwide by all sorts of businesses to track time. He’s going to share with us some top tips on why time can be your friend and how it can be a powerful tool in understanding your business.

Welcome to the show Jared.

Time is so important when running a business

Topics we’ll be covering:

Broadly your small business journey and what led you to start your own business
- Running lean & building relationship with clients as well as positioning as a global software company. What has it
Tracking time. Why is it more important than ever to understand where your time is going?
- Firstly what do you want to get out of it
- Fee based models vs time based - you need the data first before making the decision. This helps you make decisions like outsourcing, employee numbers, or a software solution
- How do you have that conversation with your employees and contractors with “monitoring them”
- Are you going to monitor client work only or backend processes - should you be
- Proof for R&D claims - this tool is perfect
- What are the statistics around recording mechanism and productivity of yourself
Does time tracking work for other small businesses like tradies and hospitality?
- Different products for different requirements > you’re tracking is job management time not productivity
- General attendance and arriving on time to

To find out more go to their website: https://minutedock.com/

Jared’s Bio:

Jared is the Founder & CEO of MinuteDock, a time tracking solution for professional services firms. Based out of Wellington, New Zealand, he has a long background in software development. Being keenly interested in small businesses (having started a few!), Jared loves thinking deeply about how to make business tick as efficiently as possible - and understanding the tool & process innovations that can help make that happen.

About MinuteDock:

MinuteDock provides a powerful, flexible and smart time tracking tool to help professional services businesses record, manage and bill their working time.

MinuteDock was formed in 2009 under the core principle that time is one of the most valuable resources a business has, and that understanding the use of time within your business can contribute significantly to effective administration, growth, and profitability. With this core idea in mind, we set out to create a web-based service which would allow professional services to have a streamlined, easy to use way to effectively track and understand how their work time is being spent towards particular tasks, projects or clients.

Today, MinuteDock has developed into a service trusted by businesses large and small all over the world. We are the one highest rated time tracking apps available for accounting software platforms like Xero & QuickBooks, with a small but dedicated team working hard to provide individualised customer support to our range of unique clients.

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 19 May 2020

You know how you’re always saying you never have the time to really nail your processes and procedures? Well, this “weird” and “unusual” time we find ourselves living through has gifted you and your staff just that - time. So now you have the perfect opportunity, whilst your business is on hold, to examine, finesse, and refine the back-end of your business - that thing that helps you get from A to B each and every day.

So what does that analysis of your processes involve? Where should you start? And what do you need to prioritise when it comes to procedures? Is it more important to look at the client’s journey or the way you interact with them?

Well, here to help us today is an entrepreneur in the business education world… Dale Beaumont.

Some would argue that Dale Beaumont is obsessed with getting the back end of your business right. He is a Business Growth Expert & Author of 16 Best-Selling Books and the founder of the hugely successful Business Blueprint Program. And more than this he is extremely generous with his time and knowledge.

Welcome to the show Dale.

Topics we’ll be covering:

As a small business owner where do you start?
Mind Map - get it out of your head
- Butcher paper!
- Chronological / attacking a problem solving it or starting what works very well
- Catching yourself doing something time and time again?
- What’s repetitive tasks can be removed
What are the typical mistakes which slow down your ability to develop processes and procedures?
- No one can do it as well as I can
- It’s faster if I do it myself
Method - make a video and get someone to transcribe & make it usable for others
- How do you find the best process driven staff to assist & what Q’s should you ask to attract that sort of talent.
- At what point do you expand to include processes as part of growth?
What’s your best way to store these systems - Bolt-ons
- Google Sites
- Share point
- Asana / Trello
- CRM system

To find out more go to their website: https://businessblueprint.com.au/

Dale Beaumont’s Bio

Dale Beaumont is an Award-Winning Technology Entrepreneur, International Speaker and the Author of 19 Best-Selling books.

Dale started his first business at 19 and has been building companies ever since. One of those companies is now a multimillion dollar enterprise, which has enabled Dale to become an Investor, Philanthropist and to step foot in 85 countries.

Dale has been featured in Forbes, The Huffington Post, Business Insider, Gizmodo and GQ, just to name a few.

With a passion to give back, Dale’s goal is to help more than one million entrepreneurs around the world with Bizversity – a revolutionary product, which gives you direct access to ‘The World’s Best Business Training. Anywhere, Anytime.’

Best described as the ‘Netflix for Business’, Bizversity gives you exclusive access to thousands of videos, which have been produced by leading business experts from around the globe.

Now, to share his knowledge and secrets to business success, please welcome Dale Beaumont…

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 19 May 2020

Incubators, accelerators, startup hubs. They seem to be popping up all over the place. Some are independant and others available through university programs. So what exactly are they and how do they give businesses the edge when starting out?

Are they just for the techpreneurs who innovate in the digital world, or are other industries and sectors involved too?

Today on the program we are joined by the CEO of Fishburners, Nicole O’Brien. Fishburners is a not for profit enterprise dedicated to “making the hardest thing you’ve ever done easier by providing the best facilities, resources, education, support and community of like-minded people to connect with and learn from.”

Welcome to the show Nicole.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Why are startups so important to building a better Australia?
- How do you define a startup - is it a matter of being young or at the beginning of your small business journey?
Why is Community central to startup success?
- How do organisations like Fishburners nourish a community with such a diverse range of startups in their community?
What is the future of communities in Australia, post pandemic? (How do they differ from co-working spaces?)
- What are your top tips for continuing to collaborate & network when the face-to-face option is no longer there?
What makes Fishburners different?
What do we have to look forward to coming out of Australian startups over the next 5 years?

To find out more go to their website: https://fishburners.org/

Nicole O’Brien BIO

Nicole is a social enterprise leader with a passion for improving lives and communities.

As CEO of Fishburners, Australia’s

largest startup community and coworking space, Nicole leads a space for

aspiring tech entrepreneurs to learn and communicate. The community has grown

to more than 850 members and 400 startups, across its offices in Sydney, and

Brisbane and Fishburners virtual platform. Fishburners works closely with

partnerships including Google for Startups, Jobs for NSW, Brisbane City

Council, UTS, Optus and Chartered Accountants ANZ. High-profile

alumni include: Koala, GoCatch, DesignCrowd, Code Camp, Tinybeans, Madpaws,

Jayride, GradConnection and Hyper Anna.

Nicole’s career working with social

enterprises in the not for profit sector began in 1989 at the Australian

Conservation Foundation where she positively impacted on growing green

consumerism whilst building the ACF’s revenue base. A trip to Asia followed

with the opportunity to work on an Australian Aid project in Cambodia working

with the Khmer Journalists association as a business Development Advisor to

support the establishment of a free press. An exciting and optimistic time

following the first Democratic elections in Cambodia and there was a lot to

achieve, this led to work with the United Nations Development Program as a

Communications Consultant and the Shandwick Group as a PR Executive working for

the Cambodian Government.

Back in Australia Nicole worked for Team

Publications, a start up with a new approach to organisational learning where

she was charged with taking a range of management coaching tools to market.

This was followed by a role as Marketing Manager for the women’s and youth

titles. Following this period in publishing, Nicole’s passion for making a

difference took over and she spent the next 10 years transforming the social

enterprises of YWCA NSW and repositioning the organisation to be recognised for

the critical support it provided to women and their families.

More recently, Nicole has been using her

well-honed leadership, governance, financial, people, marketing and

entrepreneurial skills to ensure that ACON Health continues to be the leading

health promotion organisation providing opportunities for its community to live

their healthiest lives.

Nicole holds a Bachelor of Arts in

Education and Social Policy, Post Graduate in Marketing, Masters of Business

Administration and is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company

Directors. She is mother to 15 year old Isabella and 9 year old Lachlan.

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 12 May 2020

Whether it’s face to face or digital, first impressions matter. There are a multitude of times in our professional lives (or personal for that matter) where we can be judged in an instant. It’s not mean; it's just human nature. Interviews, pitching, networking, speaking, meeting and bumping into other colleagues means at any point in time you need to be in control of your image before the beholder does it for you.

So how do you want to be remembered after the first impression presents itself? What can you do to ensure that you come across exactly as intended? Your dress, your presentation, your voice… it all adds up.

And all those same rules apply in this weird digital world in which we operate as professionals right now.

Jennifer Austin is an image expert on visual presentation and first impression management. In her role asis image consultant, coach, trainer, lecturer and speaker she regularly helps individuals and businesses to make the most of that first impression moment, whether its online or in person.

Welcome to the show Jennifer.

Topics we’ll be covering:

What are some of the first impressions which matter to business - it’s basically what people will see first so let’s talk about that. It’s about trust, credibility - it’s irrational but it’s the reality.

Style & dress - it’s not just about wearing brands it’s about clothing being a
- Suitable for the audience - think about this first
- Dressing for your age
- The elephant in the room - the reality is we ARE being judged. Don’t wear distracting clothing
Grooming (hair, makeup, nails), colours, makeup matter!
Posture emulates confidence and competence
- Body language (posture & handshake) - that is a big first impressions - Broadly your small business journey and what led you to start your own business
- Eye contact!!

How long does it take to undo the damage a bad impressions can make?

good news , think of it like this , having a strong first impression is like a shortcut to success. Because a great first impression will make it easier to build rapport, pitch yourself, make a personal effective connections. And all you have to do is master those first 20 seconds. if you master the first 20 seconds of any interaction, it makes the next 20 mins easier without the first impression you have to work way harder to make a lasting impact.

Thin Slicing Methodology - explain in terms of judgement
7 meetings theory and next time prepare
- We are our harshest judge - use that to analyse

Why is body language so important?

Basen on research by

Know your audience & how formal you’ve got to be
- Eye contact
- Posture
- Handshaking
- Facial expression

Organising your wardrobe depending on the event your attending

Business meeting - Research the person you’re meeting, go up a notch
Networking - don’t blend in! How can you stand out? Have a statement piece (what’s that?)
- What’s the best opener you suggest to those who are nervous about people’s perception
Presentations - what about the stage?
- It’s about credibility
- Fine line between looking feminine and too corporate
- Avoid prints because they can overpower the face.
Pitching - is that the same as presentations, know what industry / sector you’re talking to
Male vs female - how do you talk to the male clients?

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 5 May 2020

Business Survival Guide ~ Helping businesses survive & thrive in these uncertain times

With special guest Wayne Wanders, the Real CFO

Can you remember the last time your business was impacted in the way it has been in the last 2 months? Or how fast and furious the impact on the whole economy; therefore your clients, suppliers, stakeholders, connections (basically everyone) have been affected?

The biggest question of all, were you ready for this?

We didn’t have a crystal ball but if you and your business lived through the GFC or had a major downturn did you take that experience and learn from it, creating a form of preparedness which might have helped? Well, you probably didn’t have the right person with you to recognise this experience or help you learn from their’s.

Wayne Wanders is a virtual CFO who brings with him 35 years as a certified accountant and decades of experience with real businesses at every stage of their lifecycle. He doesn’t just gift advice he rolls up his sleeves and works alongside the businesses to understand how their businesses work and get back in control.

Welcome to the show Wayne.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Decisions around staff

Remember for most businesses your staff is your most important asset. You need to make sure you look after them, otherwise when the economy turns, they may leave you and you can’t deliver when the opportunity is there.
Key decisions you can make around your staff include:
- Identify those staff that support your existing customers and those who don’t.
- For those staff that are not supporting your existing customers, determine what you can do to reduce costs. Do you really need this position? Can they work less days or take a commensurate pay cut? Do they have leave they can take?
- what can be done to make them more effective?
- If you are cutting salaries, make sure you are taking less as well. Staff won’t like if they are the only ones with reduced incomes
Just remember:
- Just be aware that inefficient and ineffective staff are often outputs of inefficient and ineffective systems and processes. In this scenario, don’t forget one of the golden rules which is, challenge all business assumptions and ask if the business can be done another way.
- It is always easier to change processes in slow times than rush times. In rush times people take shortcuts, which may hurt in the longer run. In slow times people have the time to implement the change properly and things run smoother afterwards.

Decisions around expenses

Key rules:
- Don’t be petty, unfair or unreasonable with your staff.
- Make sure decisions do not adversely impact your existing customers
Look at the list of items you are spending money on, don’t forget those pesky direct debits.
Can you now do that meeting via Skype saving on travel?
What suppliers can you go to and re-negotiate prices.
If you carry stock, what can you do to reduce stock levels? (slow moving stock- get cash by selling at a discount and don’t reorder in the short term.)
Can you use a credit card to extend payment terms?.
Can you extend payment terms with your supplier?
Can you short term lease some equipment rather than buying it?

Looking after your existing customers

Unless you are in a recession proof industry you may need to let go of any ambition for short term growth and instead focus on avoiding collapsing and calling in the administrator. Do, focus on is your existing customers. Generally, the second biggest asset of your business!
It is cheaper to keep an existing customer than win a new customer.
If you need to cut costs, make sure it does not adversely impact your existing customers.
If at all possible, do something to improve the benefits you provide to your existing customers. Maybe it is better customer service. Maybe you have been able to reduce some costs and you pass some of this onto your customers.
Tell your customers what you are doing to help them!
Now if you do this well, when the economy turns, you are ready to restart your growth with your existing loyal customer base. And you can take advantage of the opportunities presented by other competitors not servicing their clients properly, and possibly not even surviving.

To find out more go to their website: www.arealcfo.com.au

Leaning from the expats : HIghlIghting the basic mistooks your copy

With special guest Adam Zuchetti, journalist and copy expert!

Are you a wordsmith?

One skill many small businesses lack is the ability to sing our own praises. And it means that our website, our social media posts and any copy we write lacks that which it is intended - to advertise us. It also means that your grant funding applications, attempts to win business awards or attract positive media coverage might fall short of highlighting your achievements and you miss out because you’re not fantastic at constructing sentences oozing with your own praises.

Here’s a question: If you read the copy on your website, would grammatical errors jump out at you like they would your reader, who might think that’s unprofessional? Similarly, can you sit down and answer several questions about your successes and your journey?

Or, are you like many businesses, not so crash hot at the word thingy.

Well, today on Small Biz Matters we’re going to learn from an expert - Adam Zuchetti is a freelance journalist and copywriter, with over 13 years’ experience across business, real estate and personal finance. He was the long-time editor of My Business – one of Australia’s longest-running publications for small and medium businesses – and host of its podcasts, webcasts and the high-profile My Business Awards. Adam also recently launched into business for himself, co-founding personalised pet subscription and gifting business Paws N’ All (so he knows all about starting from scratch like the rest of us!)

Welcome to the show Adam.

Topics we’ll be covering:

What should be your process when creating a written piece of content (journalism)
- Common mistake is to start at the beginning. But what do you want to achieve: what’s your purpose for writing this? Is this marketing? Is it social to be shared? Is it an award submission? Is it a government briefing/proposal? Look at the end messaging first and what result you hope it generates for you, then work backwards.
- Plot out with your main bullet points such as research, an interview, testimonials & key messages
- Think about the tone you want to use. Government should be formal, but marketing can vary depending on the type of customer you want to attract and whether you offer a premium, discount or mid-level type of service. Social media is generally quite conversational and often uses abbreviations.
- For digital texts, take a look at your SEO too - that’s search engine optimisation, or how easy it is for Google to find you. You may have dedicated keywords or keyphrases that you should incorporate into your copy & headings, or hashtags to include on social media.
- Be flexible - You have an idea of what YOU want but the research, or the info from another person might be a real nugget you need to allow to develop
- Then write your heading and especially your opening paragraph LAST.
When working with a journalist for the purposes of PR, what do you suggest is a good way to approach them to suggest a piece of content? Few key tips:
- Target the right media. You’d be surprised as a business journalist the number of pitches I receive about home decorating tips! It’s exactly the same as customers coming to your restaurant looking to buy light globes and hammers, for example. I’d also say that, just like any type of content you create, it will depend on what you’re hoping to achieve. Local media - radio, newspapers, newsletters, community Facebook groups etc - can be great for reaching out to customers; industry media can position you as a technical expert/innovator in your field’ small business media are always looking for stories that inspire others or demonstrate learnings that others can follow.
- Pitch it at a time you’re available to talk. I once received a great pitch about a really topical news subject, but when I tried contacting the business owner for an interview, it turned out he was away on holiday for 2 weeks with no phone access. So story didn’t run, and they’d wasted the spending on PR.
- If you’re offering a customer as a case study, prep them first on what to expect and what you’d like them to convey. (e.g. example of the real estate agent & grieving widower)
- I always recommend you set up a Google Alert - that way you can track what is being said about you and your business online. This will email you a list of links to posts or articles that mention you - and not just media articles, but things like customer reviews too!
- Finally, remember that a journalist is a person just like you! We’re not the devil out to get you. And we may just become a new customer of yours if you show us the same level of honesty, friendliness and integrity that you show other customers!
Grant writing - What are the typical mistakes you see which can see people making in the places where they really should be:
- Autocorrect issues, apps which help you write - e.g. Volvo incident on Twitter
- Typos are such easy mistakes to fix but can really work against you/make you look cheap & nasty and not attentive to detail “e.g. manging director”. I’ve even seen someone spell the name of their own business wrong!
- Make sure you answer the question - even if it seems like it’s the same question worded differently. And answer it fully - you have failed if your reader is left with more questions than answers or has to look elsewhere to fill gaps in their knowledge.
- Copy & paste is the devil - looks lazy, particularly bad if you’re positioning yourself as a leader in your field.
- Rushed applications. This isn’t school leaving your assignment until the night before - rushed copy shows through, and again, it’s not a good look.
- Waffling is never good. Have your key points, deliver them concisely and back it up with supporting evidence.
Is it really obvious as an award judge when other people are writing a submission for you?
- It can be, but that’s why professional writers exist! You can also use someone who knows you as a person. Want those first-hand insights, experiences, stories, anecdotes to make your story come to life.
- Marketing speak can stand out and work against you - it’s basically just the pushy salesperson in written form.
- But on the flipside, I’ve seen business leaders win awards where the submission was entirely written by their staff - that demonstrates just how valued their leadership is!
- At the end of the day, think about who’s reading it: a bored judge won’t be inspired to give you the gong, and a government official won’t be inclined to give you grant funding if you’re not saying more than is already available on your website.
Is there a disconnect between what you’re writing and what’s being read & how do you fix
- Get someone else to read and critique - ask them what are you trying to say? Even in the media industry, we have this level of secondary oversight through sub-editors.
- Industry jargon. Your customer/reader/whoever may not understand what you’re talking about, even though you understand it inside out.
- Third or first person - more empowering & trustworthy to use I/us/we. We is great too, as it gives the warm and fuzzy feeling of being part of a community, versus the more dictatorial reception of I say this, you do this.
- Can you make it personal? Asking “How can we help you?” sounds rhetorical or hollow, but “how can we help you, Alexi?” is very direct and almost demands a response.
- Don’t forget about your team and how they can contribute - integrating customer FAQs & feedback to make it real-world relatable (PLUS if your customer-facing staff receive the same FAQs, why not build content around that? You’ll pick up new traffic on Google and new followers on social media; you can also improve your website to (better) answer these questions etc.
Using this copy for other purposes:
- A grant application can be a great tool for adapting your business plan - risk mitigation, marketing, finances, supply chain, route to market etc.
- It can really be team-building to create content together - everyone has different insights/backgrounds/contributions they can make, which will make your content/award submission/grant proposal much richer & more thorough. And your staff will appreciate being able to contribute.
- Social media is a great testing ground - one technique is delivering a piece of content 5 different ways/on 5 different days & see where you get the best response. Is time of day important for example? Do some words/images work much better than others? The immediate feedback is so valuable. E.g. story of breastfeeding mothers and 2am was a major peak in views.

To find out more go to Adam’s website: www.adamzuchetti.com

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 28 April 2020

Is your industry in a downturn? (Join the club)...

But when it turns around, are you ready to hit the ground running?

Small Biz Matters is here to help you pirouette, pivot, adapt and revolutionise your business with two thought leaders from the Events and Real Estate industries. Two worlds turned upside down these past few weeks.They’re going to share with us two great examples which ANY business can learn from on how to adapt quickly using technology, out-of-the-box thinking and a bit of hard work.

A self-confessed real estate tragic, first we chat to Daniel Gunning who has taken his wealth of industry experience in commercial real estate and developed a strategy which any business could turn into a very different revenue stream.

Then Event Industry heavyweight Luli Adeyemo teaches us how Best Case Scenario flipped an event from traditional face to face to online in under 2 weeks whilst still maintaining the mantra that Content is King.

Welcome to the show Daniel.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Can you share insights into the current issues small businesses are facing when it comes to the under-utilisation of business space?
There's always been an issue of under-utilised/unused business space, which represents a loss for businesses -many pay rent for space that they are not using to its fullest. But up until now that was quite an unseen loss, and one they could afford. With the current lockdown that issue has become top of mind, with unused space a prominent loss and threat to many businesses' survival around Australia.
There is going to be a complete recalibration of how businesses operate, not only following the lifting of the lockdown measures but in the longer term. The transition period post-lockdown will be long, and new working and operating habits created, with flexible working and flexible business operations levels becoming the new normal.
I will be key for businesses of any type to learn how to optimise space and create extra revenues via a better space utilisation.
Why and how should small businesses rethink their use of space to adapt to a new world order, a new business reality?
Changes to the market, new rules and adapt
There's an opportunity for businesses to reduce their footprint, and adapt to an increasingly risk heavy environment and increasingly a new world order where markets, economies and Government-led directives change a very rapid pace
Building resilience means becoming flexible, scaling up and down - including with physical business space - almost on demand to adapt to constant changes from the market or to face crises like Covid, bushfires. etc.
Small businesses can build resilience and better balance their 'Rent to Revenue' ratio by both saving and making extra money with a better utilisation of space.
What can businesses do now, in preparation for that new reality and transition period post lockdown?
For many industries, the road to recovery is going to be long. Businesses cannot afford to sit on space they pay a rent for but that is underutilised. Right now is a very important phase for all small businesses, in particular in industries affected by the lockdown (i.e retail, hospitality, arts & culture,...). Now is the time to PREPARE the return back to a 'new normal'
Businesses need to start thinking of new creative ways to use and optimise their space, either by renting that space out to others (i.e sole traders, other companies), or by even thinking of the creation of new services out of that space
The idea is to foster more flexibility, and build a win-win scenario where someone in need can find cheap and flexible ways to use space, on-demand, while allowing the company woning the space to create extra revenue without needing extra investments
Now is the time to invest in the technologies and digital platforms that will allow that scaling up and down and that flexibility that the business and economic world now requires

4.What are ways businesses, in particular in industries such as retail, hospitality, as well as for sole traders to use their space differently, to think more creatively and create new services?

Examples of new services that can be created while social distancing restrictions are still in place : transform parking into drive-ins for cinemas, locations for live streaming for health and well being activities and retail, ghost kitchens for home delivery services, locations to park food trucks, retail/food drive through, delivery services, home delivered cocktails.
Examples of ways to create win-win scenarios where an unused space can be rented out on demand by the hour, day or week (i.e a sole trader needing an office or just a desk 5h/week - they can get access to a great office space cheap, while the renting company can make an easy extra revenue) - The most common under utilised space in an office is usually the board room and unoccupied desks, car parking spaces. An example of a win/ win scenario is a business offering their boardroom and unused desk in the office to a sole trader for an agreed amount of time per week. alternatively, a company may operate their business between the hours of 8am - 5:30pm each day, the can rent there office to another business who may deal in international markets and they can use the office between the hours of 6pm to 9pm at night or they may rent there office out the a small business that rents there office from them on Saturday and Sunday when the other business is closed.
Examples of ways the hospitality & retail industries can reach out to a corporate clientele by offering corporate packages during non-peak hours - Food and cocktail delivery packages, group retail sales via live streaming. Once self-isolation measures will be lifted, some restaurants and cafes can transform into mini coworking centres, rent out some of their tables/space to sole traders and freelancers, cafes closed at night can offer their space for corporate team building events, etc.

To find out more go to their website: https://spacenow.com/

About Daniel Gunning:

Daniel has Real Estate in his DNA with he and his family being prominent figures in Australia’s real estate industry, he has acted as director of commercial real estate group, Gunning Real Estate.

Currently CEO of Spacenow, he brings over a decade of commercial real estate experience to the Spacenow team having worked in all facets of property; property management, consultancy, transactional, managing sales teams, business operations and management.

Throughout his career he has worked on both sides of commercial real estate as representatives for buyers/tenants and for vendors/property owners in all types of real estate; Industrial/Retail/Commercial/hospitality which provides a thorough understanding of the pain points in workspaces and how they can adapt to new flexible real estate requirement within industries.

Welcome to the show Luli.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Why in your experience is it important to remember that regardless of the platform - online or in person - content is always king?
Should you lower your expectations for an online event in terms of attendance and retention?
- Have you got any tips on how to keep your audience engaged throughout? Is this different to the face-to-face model?
- What tools do we have at our disposal (polls, breakout rooms, ways to engage the audience?)
Does the prep change? Do you need to train your speakers, experts and panellists for this new online version?
- How is this different?
- Does the brief include lighting in their homes, presentation (such as clothing) and HOW they need to address the online audience?
Why is a professional moderator so important when conducting events online?

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 21 April 2020

Anyone else sick of hearing about Stimulus Packages? I promise this is the last one. (I really HOPE it is the last one). Today on Small Biz Matters we welcome a true expert in their fields and the State Government explaining in clear language what you can access and how to do it.

The Minister for Small Business joins us to explain what NSW is offering as its latest stimulus measure for small business and puts some definitions around how it will be fairly distributed. Now that the ATO has everything up and running for JobKeeper the incredibly hard working Matthew Addison, Chair of the ICB is here to help you understand the HOW to access and then correct way to distribute the $1500 a fortnight to your employees.

Strap on your thinking caps peeps; its another jam-packed show.

Learn LIVE Tues morning 9am on Triple H 100.1FM or later podcast on iTunes or via http://www.smallbizmatters.com.au

Welcome to the show Minister Tudehope:

In this role tell me what experiences and expertise you bring with you to best support small business in NSW?
Tell us a little about the various support programs and mechanisms in place to support small business currently? In particular the newly announced NSW Govt Small Business Stimulus package
What do you recognise as the main issues facing small businesses in NSW in the next 12 months and how are you going to support these emerging concerns?
One of the selling points of Liberal policy is “cutting red tape” and one of the issues we are talking about on Small Biz Matters is the confusion around employee vs contractor which can be confusing at best. Are you aware there are 5 different (federal & state) calculator tools across the 5 pieces of legislation? Are there any plans for the NSW government to work with Federal Govt to simplify this process so small business can confidently get this right across all pieces of legislation?
Cashflow is time and time again raised as the number one problem Small Biz faces. And they are at near breaking point when it comes to payment times. Are you aware that according to the latest figures over $55B is paid late to small businesses in Australia from bug business every year? What is the NSW government doing to combat this problem of the little guys bankrolling big business?

About the NSW Minister for Finance and Small Business The Hon. Damien Tudehope MLC

Damien resides in the Hills District and grew up in the Moss Vale area before attending the University of Sydney, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Laws in 1978.

Prior to being elected to the NSW Parliament, Damien was a partner in his own law firm, O’Hara and Company Solicitors, for thirty years. Damien has also been a small business owner, primarily in the childcare sector and was the Chief of Staff to the former Attorney-General Greg Smith.

Damien was elected to the seat of Epping in 2015 with the second highest primary vote in the history of the electorate.

In March 2019, Damien was elected to the Legislative Council and was appointed as the Minister of Finance and Small Business.

Welcome to the show again Matthew:

INTERVIEW #2 - Trust Your Bookkeeper in times of Crisis… We unpack Stimulus with a true expert. Matthew Addison, Director, Institute of Certified Bookkeepers

Let's start with explaining each of the Federal Govt support mechanisms and broadly how they are going to support small businesses
- Cash Flow Stimulus for employers — round 1 & 2
- Jobkeeper o Instant Asset Write-off
- Access to Super
- SME Guarantee Scheme — loans
- Commercial Rental Relief
With each new "round" of stimulus measure are they adding on to the previous version in terms of what they offer?
What info are we now waiting for, or is everything in place for small business to start reporting and opting in?
What have bookkeepers seen as the main points of confusion?
As the head of a professional association, would you like to see more appreciation from the federal parliament for all the additional work bookkeepers are delivering for their clients and in unpacking this for the federal govt?
Why is more important than ever to engage with a qualified bookkeeper to support your business?
- Be wary of the ATO having the power to through, data collection, look out for businesses trying to rort the system.

To find out more go to their website: https://www.nsw.gov.au/your-government/ministers/minister-for-finance-and-small-business/

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 14 April 2020

The Government has announced a $130 billion JobKeeper payment to help keep more Australians in jobs and support businesses affected by the significant economic impact caused by the Coronavirus. Around 6 million workers will receive a fortnightly payment of $1,500 (before tax) through their employer. It’s intention is to ensure employees and employers remain connected and promises to assist businesses restart quickly when the crisis is over.

We’re all about answering your questions here on Small Biz Matters.

Many of you want to know about the timing of the stimulus package, the amount you can expect and the mechanisms the government will be using to ensure the right businesses get the right amount. Will it be fair? Will it take a long time? And of course the HOW will it work?

We have a powerhouse line-up today: Kate Carnell is the Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman fighting for small business and some may argue responsible for many of the stimulus measures and later at 9:30am, Deborah Jenkins is Deputy Commissioner with the ATO - the agency responsible for administering and distributing the funds to you, the small business owner.

Questions for Kate Carnell:

Many small businesses have swiftly pivoted their roles and responsibilities in recent weeks. No doubt you’ve been doing the same as head of ASBFEO; why is the role of advocate for small businesses in Australia more important than ever? Generally who do you engage with and has this changed? Who do you work closely with?
When these big decisions are made on behalf of small business; who is at the table and what role does ASBFEO play?
What sort of queries is your office getting from small businesses as they seek support? Have these changed?
What do you believe will be the focus to support small business in the next 1-2months in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic?

Questions for Deborah Jenkins:

What is the ATO doing to support businesses experiencing a downturn or difficulties as a result of COVID19?
How does the cash flow boost work (generally)
Who is eligible for the cash flow boost? What about sole traders?
Tell me about the timing of the cash flow boost? What about those businesses who have a lodgment deferral in place due to the bushfires etc
What can you tell me about JobKeeper?
What should small biz do who are overwhelmed / need support / need more time to lodge / pay / mental health issues?
Can small businesses get early access to their super?
Tell me more about the extension to the Instant Asset Write-Off

Deborah Jenkins is Deputy Commissioner, Small Business at the ATO. As part of this role she has responsibility for management of the Goods and Service Tax (GST) product for the ATO and the ATO’s Black Economy program of work.

Deborah and her team work in partnership with tax practitioners, business, industry bodies and other organisations to create an environment that supports sustainable and viable small business to thrive.

Across the ATO she has responsibility for the small business experience, as well as engaging with, educating, assisting and guiding taxpayers through contemporary products and tailored services. She has a strong focus on making it easy for small businesses to operate using digital products and services.

She was previously Assistant Commissioner, Indirect Tax looking after GST interpretative assistance and financial services risk.

Prior to joining the ATO, Deborah was a partner at a large advisory firm where she advised domestic and international clients across all industries on GST related matters.

A passionate and dedicated professional, Deborah has previously been named as one of the International Tax Review Leaders for Australia. She also has multinational experience through her work in both New Zealand and Europe. In New Zealand she worked for both the public and private sectors.

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 7 April 2020

Working conditions have never been in such a state of flux. Across every country, industry, sector, structure, you name it; we’ve adapted like never before. Between laying off employees and re-hiring in a hurry, madly setting up correctly aligned remote workstations, equipment purchasing for staff, tech challenges... it is, as always, small businesses who lead from the front when it comes to flexibility.

But somewhere in there we all need to remember that our employees are actually HUMANS and not just chess pieces who need to adapt immediately to our needs.

So now more than ever it’s important for businesses to engage on a personal level with their workforce. To make sure you understand their needs as humans as well as your responsibilities as an employer.

Andrea Dzumla has across multiple companies, encouraged a diverse workforce which ticks all the eclectic boxes. Through a unique management style and genuine connections he’s managed to understand the individuality of his employees and adapt these relationships to the new remote workplace world we all now live in.

Welcome to the show Andreas.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Can you describe the unique nature of the Longtail UX workforce you’ve had in the past and why supporting diversity is so important as an employer?
- In what ways have you supported that diversity in a regular workplace environment?
What sort of strategies did you use to support the diversity of those you employed? And in a practical way how did you implement this?
How can these be adapted to support small business with employees who has adapted to working remotely?
- How can you keep your workers busy and know what they’re doing?
You’ve had a lot of experience working in the environment of fast paced start-ups. Is that concept dead right now? With the economy stagnating do we expect growth to stagnate as well? And how can we as business owners nourish growth in our own business at this difficult time?
Funding announcement InvesTech - there is investment out there and the practical way you

To find out more go to their website: https://longtailux.com/

About Longtail UX

Longtail UX has invented an entirely new way to make website content available and discoverable to users. Its patented technology aims to answer each user’s questions and to connect customers to the most relevant products, services and any other information from across the website in just one click.

By creating scalable landing pages for every long tail keyword related to a company’s product, the technology delivers a perfect match for every keyword searched by potential customers. As well as boosting traffic and conversions, the technology also ensures SEO investments are 100% measurable, providing detailed analytics that demonstrate results down to the individual keyword level.

Longtail UX was founded by Andreas Dzumla and Will Santow. Andreas is an ex-Googler and Dentsu Aegis Network agency GM. Will has more than 25 years of experience as a successful business owner and entrepreneur.

Next up for Longtail UX is the release of its new product - ‘Google SOS’ (‘Google Shopping Ads on-page Suggestions') which will allow online retailers to increase return on ad spend on Google Shopping Ads 20-30%, by creating landing pages that show multiple products related to the search, rather than just single items, as is currently the case with traditional Shopping Ads.

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 31 March 2020

So much stimulation, but so much confusion.

Despite most of the major government agencies (and many great accounting & bookkeeping practices) publishing really clear summaries there is still a lot of unknowns. What is available? Which of the options applies to me, and how and importantly WHEN can I access it?

There’s lots of treats on offer from the Lazy Susan of Government Support so how does a small business owner make sense of it all?

Who better to take us carefully and sensibly through this maze than Kylie Parker, Accountant & Director at Lotus Accountants | Author of Planning Plan B | Xero Alumni | Co-Founder AccounTEK Global AND internationally sought after speaker on all things accounting.

Welcome to the show Kylie.

Topics we’ll be covering:

We’re onto round three of stimulus package so there’s a lot of misunderstandings as we all scramble to understand what the latest version means to us as small businesses. Can you take us through the latest stimulus package which was just released?
Obviously the latest package is just an addition, an enhancement of the other former policies. As well as what has been offered lately, what else is available:
- Employers
- Those employing apprentices
- Sole traders
- What about Trusts?
How will the business receive these funds and when?
What should businesses and accountants & bookkeepers be wary of. Obviously safeguards are in place to ensure no one is taking advantage. What might businesses think they can get away with and how is the ATO going to catch you out?
Now obviously extending the life of ANY loan has consequences. What should businesses be aware of before they request deferring a loan by 6 months?

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 31 March 2020

Welcome to the show Jillian.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Broadly speaking when running a business, how important is it to make sure your LinkedIn profile is current and relevant no matter what business you’re in?
- Why is LI more important to B2B businesses? Why niche in that platform?
- How to stay relevant and top of mind in a world of social media noise?
Marketing isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach, what are your top tips on posting to LinkedIn
- Peak times & timing (first few mins are so important)
- Posts vs articles vs comments
- Where does LinkedIn Live fit into all of this?
Secret Squirrel Algorhythms… how can we learn the matrix?
- Why is reciprocity so important?
What should we avoid?
- Why are fake profiles dangerous for you and your business and how do we spot them?
How do we build a LinkedIn network of followers and how do you find the balance between numbers and genuine connections?

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 24 March 2020

It’s the question on every business owner, the workforce and student’s lips across the country. Will the NBN infrastructure cope?…. Is it an essential service by definition so we can be assured of service when setting up? And what are some practical strategies we can implement at home to keep it running at the highest possible capacity?

With literally everyone accessing online everything we need the reassurance that the NBN will stand up to the test. This week we welcome on Small Biz Matters Paul Tyler the Chief Customer Officer for Business at nbn Australia who will talk us through the strategies already in place to support small businesses to connect and stay connected to the NBN in these challenging times.

Welcome to the show Paul.

Topics we’ll be covering:

In a nutshell, is our internet Infrastructure ready for millions of Australian workers and students to start to use the internet all at once? Are there going to be certain geographical areas experiencing more issues?
- Please supply stats on increase in bandwidth load, the max capacity of the network
What contingencies are NBN putting in place as demand increases? What is nbn business broadband, how does it work? Can you get it at home?
Have you seen more people racing to get connected? Is the NBN considered an essential service? So, if I have technician booked to connect me to the NBN can I be assured there will be enough skilled workers to get me up and running?
Upload speed starts to become a bigger factor as we work at home. We are no longer just receiving data as we stream content but also need to send lots of data between home and work (For example a video production company will be uploading gigs rather than megabytes between locations) and of course a whole lot more live-streaming from everyone everywhere… how will this be managed, can upload speeds be increased beyond what is currently available?
You may have seen Telstra CEO Andy Penn say last week on 7.30 advised not having everyone stuck at home using the internet at the same time. Given that things have ramped up and now everyone is working & studying from home, are there any realistic practical ways we can limit our impact all at once?
Given this radical and very fast change in how we use our network, does this change how the NBN plans for the future?
- Is it worth adding fibre to the premises rather than fttn to increase speed, and whether ISPs are limiting bandwidth for commercial reasons eg contention ratios

To find out more go to their website: https://www.nbnco.com.au/business

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 17 March 2020

The concept of Leadership is a bit topical … but for all the wrong reasons in the current climate. But focussing ourselves back on small business owners being life-long learners, let’s learn about how to develop leadership skills.

So what does it mean to be a real leader in your small business? Is it possible to learn these practical skills quickly or does it take years of real-life experience in order to lead from the front?

Who better to ask for advice than the CEO of the Leadership Institute, Dana Lightbody. The institute’s aim is to create a singular point of contact for all leaders, regardless of industry. It can be lonely at the top but regardless of what industry you are in; leadership is universal.

Welcome to the show Dana.

Topics we’ll be covering:

How do you define true leadership?
Tell the listeners about your career journey and why you’re passionate about supporting women in leadership positions?
In terms of leadership do you think a gender gap exists in reality or is it more of a hangover from the 1990s?
What do you think it takes in the current climate to become a true leader?
- practical strategies to improve your leadership skill set for both small businesses and corporate
- Is the evolution a slow one or does it take an opportunity to present itself which you grab onto and run with it?

(Dana to include stats when talking through these points.

Talk about the upcoming Empowered Woman event on 26 March 2020.

To find out more go to their website: https://www.theleadershipinstitute.com.au/

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 10 March 2020

Small Business owners know there’s no such thing as an overnight success; it takes years of long hours, sacrifice and crappy two-minute noodle meals. So when you and your close friend have this idea and you know it’s got huge potential, how do you launch it from inception to a viable business, access funding for growth and then take on the world? And what happens when the horse bolts and you need to hold back on growth that’s too fast?

Importantly, you need self f belief, solid strategy and to surround yourself with great people you know will guide you in the right direction. Plus in a partnership (with a mate, no less) you need a foundation of trust and “squaring the ledger” with one another and those around you.

Today we learn from Finder - an Australian EntrepreTech Success Story.

One half of the founding team is Fred Schebesta Entrepreneur, speaker, author, Blockchain Australia Fellow, AFR Young Rich Lister 2019 who joins us today to share his fascinating journey and what’s in store for Australia success stories like Finder as they take the next, global step.

Welcome to the show Fred.

Topics we’ll be covering:

The partnership and business relationship has stood the test of time and lasted over many years between you and Frank; what’s your secret to partnering with a friend and making it a success?
From the material that’s out there about Finder.com and the journey, it seems to be all about being part of a team. As you grow exponentially how do you keep the team culture positive through the ups and downs?
- How has your role as Founder evolved?
One aspect of business you’ve kept in your strategic planning has been to “square the ledger” with one another. What does that mean to you in the partnership and do you continue to integrate that into your team’s values set?
A typical mantra you use is “Building a business or exercising a tactic” Talk us though why an innovative business should be aware of this concept?
Growth can sometimes be too fast and overwhelm business owners. What are your practical tips for avoiding burnout and knowing when you’re “pushing the envelope”
What were some of the pivotal points in the growth of Finder.com and did you really see them as important at the time?
Fred, you have a unique view of funding – you don’t believe in Unicorns but rather a Phoenix. Can you explain that to the listeners – especially those who want to succeed in the fast-paced Fintech industry.

To find out more go to their website: https://www.finder.com.au/

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 3 March 2020

So… we’ve all probably got a bunch of smallish concerns using up valuable brain space at the moment. There’s the BAS which was completed (hopefully) only last week, the fires which ravaged many of our fellow business owners, the economy is tanking, there’s no such things as imports from China right now… oh, and a little tiny virus scaring the bejesus out of all of us.

So we brought in an expert to talk you through some practical strategies (that’s what the show is all about) to foresee, identify and mitigate the risks of this potential threat.

Welcome to the show Daniel.

Topics we’ll be covering:

So Daniel, without creating panic and making us think too much about armageddon how can a typical small business owner break down this potential threat into strategies which are achievable and mitigate risk?
What industries would be hardest hit in terms of the risk the virus could pose?
What are some of the problems we need to consider?
How do we go about prioritising these?
- Staff?
- Premises?
- Stock?
If security is about mitigating risks what strategies do you suggest to lessen the risk to your business
- Breakdown into home-based businesses
- Retail
- Serviced based businesses
- Construction
Is insurance a factor here, or is it too immediate a threat to be thinking of what damage might be done?

To find out more go to their website: https://www.calamity.com.au/

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 3 March 2020

One of the greatest challenges when starting a business, or indeed all stages of growing a business is knowing what to charge.

Goods are easier to price - you compare your service and quality standards with that of your competition, test the market and off you go - but services can be tricky. Even industries where there are clear standards based on experience, qualifications and work, valuing yourself within that range isn’t always clear cut.

Do you aim for the middle of the pack? Do you start cheaper and then gradually increase your price or is it sometimes a race for the bottom?

In particular there’s 50% of us which probably undervalue ourselves and that’s females - particularly in the services industry. In celebration of International Women’s Day an expert in growth strategy joins us. Dr Abbie Grace is here to share some strategies you can implement to see your own value and then pitch to exactly the right type of client what you’re worth.

Welcome to the show Abbie.

Topics we’ll be covering:

What’s your background and why are you so passionate about supporting small business?
There are three steps to charging what you’re worth: Choosing the right niche, packaging the services you sell and then set your fees
How does identity play into what kind of fees you charge, and even the kind of business you have?
You have to present your services so you sell on the value of the outcome created NOT on the time it takes you to deliver.
You set your fees based on the intersection of how much your client values the outcome, the value created AND how much they can afford.
- The psychology and the conversation
- Distancing yourself

To find out more go to her website: www.oneextrazero.com

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 25 February 2020

The small business community has been in turmoil in recent months. Between extreme weather events across the country, the bushfire devastation and the fallout for surrounding communities and now the Coronavirus and the impact on imports and exports there would be few businesses and humans behind them, unaffected.

Well, help is at hand. Whilst other agencies can be slow to act and have any impact, the ATO, thanks to it’s high level access to our data and real time information on businesses, can act quickly. With extended deadlines, payment plans and extended support the administrators of our tax system are doing their best to keep you IN business.

Here to update us on the supports which are ALREADY in place for small business and recent improvements to the way we engage with them is the ATO’s Deputy Commissioner Andrew Watson.

Welcome to the show Andrew.

Topics we’ll be covering:

The ongoing bushfires and natural disasters will and have had an impact on small businesses – what advice do you have for them?
- Ongoing support the ATO offers for natural disasters, and that we apply auto two month deferral to postcodes (clients should call if they’re unsure)
- In fact it is an whole of government approach to support, incl grants, as well as the deferrals already in place.
- How long will this support be in place?
Software update: The old fashioned and clumsy AUSkey is retiring and being replaced by MyGovID and RAM – what ARE these and why is it happening?
- The WHEN: End of March deadline - is this a real deadline and what happens if we fail to meet the deadline. Are we locked out?
- The WHY this is happening - what are you being asked from queries and what’s the response?
- The WHO - does this apply to everyone?
- Real life examples on what the improvements will likely be for businesses and the ATO
Single Touch Payroll update - Most small businesses will be well underway, but for those who aren’t, what can be done?
- Reminder that businesses have/are transitioned, and to call us if they need assistance
- That this year will be the first time some businesses lodge the annual return this way, what will change at EOFY for reporting and documents to staff?
- What if I’m the only employee? Does this apply to me?
E-Invoicing – what is it, and what does this mean for small businesses?
- Reduced payment times, cost to produce
- When is this likely to impact small business?
Recognising your business’ success - When you see a good business thriving, what are some of the hallmarks of that?
Running a small business can be stressful, what are your suggestions to small business owners listening to this?
- How to get help from the ATO and other government organisations
- Signing up to newsletter
- Extended hours for phone support
- Phone-back option
- Payment plans

To find out more go to their website: www.ato.gov.au

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 18 February 2020

Did you know in 2018 the Modern Slavery Act came into affect for all businesses over $100M profit? It means they must report on the people and materials in their supply chains to prove they are not involved in what’s termed modern slavery. Whether it be working conditions, where your raw materials come from, or worse, it’s not something any business needs on their record.

So, it may not relevant to us now but we in small business know it won’t be long before this piece of legislation is coming for us too.

But what if I told you that you can opt in? Having this tick of approval might help you get that lucrative corporate or govt contract. Or really prove you’re as socially conscious as you claim. So understanding and mitigating the risks in your supply chain is ethically important.

So what is the 2018 Modern Slavery Act, the process for reporting and how is it now and into the future going to affect small businesses in Australia? Stephen and Sarah Morse already have decades of experience in this industry, some not so positive but are putting all of this into supporting businesses to understand the Act, be compliant and decrease their exposure to the Modern Slavery trade.

Welcome to the show Stephen & Sarah.

Topics we’ll be covering:

What is the act and how does it affect small business in terms of compliance?
- Tendering process is where the majority of transparency needs to be shown
- Mandatories - affects $100 gross profit, dept home affairs administrators, approx 3000 entities at moment but likely to expand
  - These entities (or those who wish to opt in) have to report every year.
  - Guidelines include 7 steps, how have you investigated and consulted to mediate the risk, what KPIs are you putting in place. Reasonable steps are the expectation.
  - The trickle down affect will mean all suppliers (inc small business) need to demonstrate compliance (opt-in) to maintain and tender.
  - transparency (explore their supply chain risk and exposure
Why is it beneficial for a small business to opt in (see it as an opportunity, remain competitive, tenders for govt and corporate & consumer pressures)
- What could you do to show leadership & how is this helping globally
- Attracting new talent, making it part of your DNA, KPIs
- Engaging with NGOs who are working in this space - examples, share value partnerships, the 1% theory
- It’s not just about compliance
Broadly your small business journey and what led you to start this business and why you’re passionate about supporting small business
- Healthcare & Humanitarian backgrounds, Christian mission support
- Own faith convictions around poverty, justice & investigations in Spain & Europe free movements into different areas, porous borders, geopolitical factors,
- Taught English to business
- Completed a PHD examining socioeconomic factors of people trafficking
- Upon return to Aust we were going to return to Aust, but the campaign fell apart due to family circumstances
- Clean start, but keeping in touch with networks for modern slavery
Talk to the legislation - how did it come about and who did they consult with?
- Legal professors, chambers
- Politically driven to happen before Federal legislation
The global market in which we work, how does this impact small business supply chains
- What is the slave trade - definitions, inproving wages, workplace health & safety, access to healthcare, education, the broader community
How to engage with an expert as a small business and what can you expect them to do to help you?
- Stephen & sarah - gaps analysis, risk assessment in the supply chain
What are some of the ways we can, as business consumers, make those decisions
- Recommended orgs which have business supplies

To find out more go to their website: www.unchained.net.au

Sarah Morse, Founder and Director

With over twenty years of global leadership experience, Sarah’s work draws upon lessons learnt while leading teams in humanitarian work internationally, and as a cancer nurse in Australia.

Since the age of 17, when she visited Africa for the first time, Sarah has learned life's richest lessons from some of the world's poorest people. She is passionate about combatting modern slavery, having worked with survivors of human trafficking in Spain.

Dr Stephen Morse, Founder and CEO

With over twenty-five years' global leadership experience, Stephen brings an engaging and refreshing perspective to fight against modern slavery.

Known for his depth of insight, unique perspective and engaging presence, Stephen draws upon lessons learnt from his practical experience as a leader, and also his work in academic research on the socio-economic dynamics that undergird modern slavery. He also uses his cross-cultural leadership experience to help develop critical skills in a global marketplace.

Unchained Business Services

Unchained was founded by Stephen and Sarah in 2018. They inspire Australian companies to leaders in combatting modern slavery through their keynotes and masterclasses, and through the Readiness Framework, where they help companies to implement the Modern Slavery Act. Through this postive engagement, Stephen and Sarah encourage companies to go beyond compliance, to invest in those communities where slavery exists.

Profits from Unchained will go towards supporting the work of social enterprises that are part of the Freedom Business Alliance. These businesses train and employ modern slavery survivors in skills that are ethical, marketable and transferable.

Unchained have a team of specialists in supply chain management and procurement to help your small business identify the risk of modern slavery in your supply chain and operations, and develop an improvement strategy that will make you more competitve in the market, and attrative to an emerging purpose-led workforce.

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 11 February 2020

It’s a significant business milestone when you can finally say my business is entirely paper free. Imagine the freedom when everything is in one place and accessible anywhere in the world? Every piece of relevant financial data at your fingertips. How do you get to that point? Where do you start to head down that liberating path? And what are the pitfalls to avoid along the way when it comes to cloud based software?

Today’s Small Biz Matters we welcome to the show by Luis Sanchez, who is the Managing Director of ReceiptBank in Australia who will share with us not only some excellent starting points for those still drowning in filing but also some top strategic thinking & advice for the FUTURE of this exciting FinTech company.

Welcome to the show Luis.

Topics we’ll be covering:

What does the reality of going paper free mean for a small business?
- Getting time back (family) marriage
- Most time doing admin is at night when time family
- Statistics - % time spent on dealing with receipts
  - The benefit to saving you money with your accounting & bookkeeping fees
- Space – 25% commercial rental space with paper!
- The positives and negatives...
Recent events are another good reason to go paperless and have everything in the cloud
What’s the process?
- Getting started - asking financial institutions to stop mailing you stuff!
- Auto-forwarding to a cloud place
- Do you have to rename every document? (talk about search functionality here and how far it’s come)
- Adding on the go
Why is it a good idea for Audit purposes?
- Not missing tax deductions as a chance to reduce your tax debt
- Set & forget
- The feeling of being able to find anything within a few minutes
- The Marie Kondo- joy of tidying up
  - Does this folder spark joy? If not get rid of it!
- Fading receipts
What are the options? Google Drive / Dropbox / Products like RB
- Power of search functionality now from PDFs and JPGs is coming
- What does getting in the cloud actually mean?
- Financial services legislation and why it’s good to engage with products which meet this standard
- What should you expect from a good piece of receipting software?
  - Online security
  - Disaster recovery
  - How to protect yourself
- The 3-2-1 system of backups

To find out more go to their website: https://receipt-bank.com/au

=================================

Luis is a Harvard-educated MBA who brings over 20 years of global experience with several multinationals including JP Morgan, General Mills, Visa and Intuit. Ten years ago, Luis moved his focus to accountants and bookkeepers. He spent seven years with Intuit in America, doubling the size of their accounting business before joining Intuit Australia in 2016 as Marketing Director. In 2 years, Luis tripled the Intuit Australia business from 53k customers to 161k customers. He joined Receipt Bank in October of 2018.

As the General Manager for Receipt Bank Australia, Luis now works closely with the Receipt Bank global leadership team to shape Receipt Bank’s strategy, scale operations and bring the benefits of real-time accounting to thousands more businesses. “Over the last 8 years, I’ve seen firsthand how the right tools can make or break a business. That’s why it’s been so inspiring to see how Receipt Bank has enabled accountants, bookkeepers and their clients focus on what matters. Thousands of firms can now spend more time helping their customers, instead of just dealing with paperwork,” Sanchez explains.

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 4 February 2020

Cash flow is King, we all know that. But interestingly, the son of Cash Flow is Prince Invoice - the door to getting paid. But many owners can get this important part of business wrong and lose valuable time and money having to chase payments unnecessarily.

As the saying goes, ‘turnover is vanity, profit is sanity’. Even if sales are brilliant, without the cash flowing back into the business, the outcome can be disastrous.

So how can you make sure that your invoice IS paid on time AND, you don’t feel like the ‘bad guy’... you maintain your relationship with your clients at the same time?

Today we welcome Jan Reeves, author of an Amazon #1 best seller, Get Paid!! ‘The 5 Steps to Getting Your Invoices Paid on Time, Every time. Jan is going to share with us her path that led her to run her own very profitable small business, write her book and some fantastic top tips on how to get paid faster.

Welcome to the show Jan.

Topics we’ll be covering:

What’s your background and what led you to write the book and educate small businesses all about getting paid faster
- 25 years working in credit control in corporate getting customers to pay as fast as possible - by the due date or before. First 10 years with a v successful organisation. Brilliant at customer service. Then I took that to other corporates struggling in the cash flow area.
- I started my own business in recruitment specialising in accounts receivable personnel for corporate businesses
- BUT I didn’t know about running a business myself - I almost went broke because I forgot to ‘mind the gap between invoicing and getting paid.
- Why I wrote the book: After I sold my business, I realised that one of the reasons why it was so profitable was that we got paid on time, so I never had to worry about cash flow - I just got on with selling. We were like a sales/cash machine.
You believe getting paid is all about customer service - what lessons did you learn from running your own business
- How to get paid AND maintain great relationships - to do it well, recruitment is all about building relationships. With strong relationships there's lots of repeat business which makes the business more profitable
Why don’t organisations pay on time?
- The misconceptions. MYTHS
- Over 50% don’t get paid because the invoice is actually incorrect, the client waits for you to call!
5-step process - practical tips
- Setting up clients correctly through onboarding process - what the client wants to see on the invoice. CHECK your invoices - make it easy for your clients to pay you.
- Choosing the right clients who will actually pay you! Ask for references. What’s the difference of who can pay and who won’t pay - how to recognise the difference?
  - Build a relationship with the accounts person. It’s not as simple as sending an invoice. Give them a call (easily disguised as customer service)
  - So the invoice goes out correctly. Half the battle.
  - Then use a customer service call to check that it’s fine - right place, right person.
  - If there’s a problem, your invoice won’t get paid until it’s fixed so own it. Doesn’t matter who made the error.
  - And then keep on top of it...

To find out more go to their website: https://janreeves.com/

Brief bio

Jan Reeves: Author, Business Builder and Cash Flow Coach

Jan is living proof that you can run a profitable small business. Jan owned and managed one of the most profitable small businesses in Australia. Most of her competitors had profits of under 10%, many with just 3 or 4%. Jan’s recruitment company achieved 24%!

Strong cash-flow and high profitability can make a MASSIVE difference to the value of any small business. Having sold her business for a record sum, Jan now shares her proven GET PAID! systems and strategies with other business owners via her Amazon #1 best-selling book ‘GET PAID! and Self Study Masterclass.

Now all small business owners can see how easy it really is to get paid on time, increase their cash flow, profit and business value.

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 4 February 2020

There aren’t too many of us who, in our early 30’s could’ve said we had founded a successful, world renowned social enterprise, travelled to a third world country multiple times & been inspired in business, had billionaire mentors, and then had it all crashing down around us, only to pick ourselves up & spoken publicly all over the world about that journey.

But Adam Long certainly can. He’s earned the title as the Ethical CEO through all these challenges.

A powerhouse of the social enterprise world. Adam Long is cofounder of Conscious Step: Socks That Fight Poverty, the founding CEO of Smarter Drafter, and as The Ethical CEO finds revenue for businesses that matter, such as Humanitix - a name synonymous with doing good in the events world. He’s going to share with us his journey - and it is not always warm and fuzzies smooth sailing in the not for profit sector.

Welcome to the show Adam.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Adam’s Experience

Industrial design student pushing back against the structured education at uni & arguing that the resolution to the problems they posed wasn’t a “thing” but changes in policy, social constraints are the solution.
The Boxing Day Tsunami triggered many years of depression. To cope with the depression, Adam started volunteering with Rotary and then Engineers Without Borders in the Philippines.
You met Jacobia, a little girl in the village in which Adam was volunteering, who wasn’t in school. Her story showed you that small things can make a big difference.
Adam’s first attempt to change the world was a sustainable 3D-printing business called BeeHive, founded with investment from Small Giants, the family office of Daniel Almagor (who founded Engineers Without Borders). Adam discovered that he didn’t have the skills to run a business – and it ran out of money in under 12 months. Adam had to let go two people on Xmas eve, the negativity around the feeling of losing your own and someone else’s money was awful. We are lucky for the support network in Australia (i.e. Centrelink), which gives us a chance to fail – and try again.

So what is impact investing?

Looking for “shareholder value” that actually matches to values, rather than just a financial return. Business is the vehicle for social change.
What’s the difference between social enterprise & NFP?
- Self sufficiency vs dependency on donations
- Examples – Conscious Step & Humanitix
- Journey of Conscious Step – idea, testing, from Glebe markets in Sydney to being worn by Matt Damon, Al Gore and Jane Goodall.

Learning from Adam

How can you be sure the self-sustaining model of your social enterprise is working?
- The business model matters – the social impact has to be inherent in the operations of the business, not something that happens only when the organisation makes a profit. Profit can be “made to disappear”, so social impact must be made an operating cost. For example, Conscious Step donates to charities for every pair of socks made (not sold – it’s up to Conscious Step to recover the funds).
What are some of the mistakes you made along the way that made you stray from your path?
- Knowing what skills you’re lacking and who to engage with others to help, teach or be that person – for Adam it was marketing and learned lots of different businesses and different models

So you want to start a social enterprise? Start Up Top Tips

A social enterprise is no different to running any other business. People won’t buy your product just because it’s ethical. It needs to be the same quality, or better, and it needs to be the same price, or better. It’s why Humanitix is succeeding.
Address root causes. You don’t want a business that is dependent on the problem staying a problem, or oppressed people staying oppressed.
Make outrageous asks everyday – that’s how Humanitix partnered with Canva and Atlassian.

Adam continues to work with businesses that matter on their strategy and marketing.

To find out more go to his website: TheEthicalCEO.com

And if you want to use his staff discount to buy socks from Conscious Step, use the code “ADAMSENTME”.

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 28 January 2020

One of the main hurdles to starting any business these days is a website and the whole process of going online. We all know it has to happen but it can be long and onerous and expensive if you don’t have the time or expertise to do it yourself.

It can also be daunting if you have no experience with digital marketing and a brand new idea where there are no examples to follow.

But here to help is Suzanne Mitchell, the Marketing Director from GoDaddy who will give us some inside knowledge on navigating the maze of online marketing, discuss the changing patterns of behaviour of Australian small business online and share with us some interesting facts from their recent research into a growth sector in small businesses - the disgruntled employee...

Welcome to the show Suzanne.

Topics we’ll be covering:

The website landscape is evolving, what has GoDaddy noticed about the changing patterns of behaviour in small business in Australia over the last 5 years?
- Are entrepreneurs still “buying up” multiple domains as a form of protecting their name and IP or are they using other marketing tools to own their name?
- In your opinion are small businesses better at positioning themselves online as the experts, or do we still have more to learn from corporates?
What are your top tips to improve the functionality of a small business website and accessing your ideal clients?
What about the tools available to improve digital marketing?
Tell us about the recent white paper which explored the entrepreneurial spirit of Aussie workers & what does this mean for small businesses?
- One third of workers were interested in setting up their own businesses
- Is there a correlation between this and the likelihood of these workers becoming entrepreneurs? (there was a distinct shift towards a younger demographic)
- But 62% said it was too expensive to start a new business - why do you think this was?
- What can we do to support our employees’ who are dissatisfied?

To find out more go to their website: https://au.godaddy.com/

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 21 January 2020

The future, sustainability and social enterprise go hand in hand but what is often missing from this equation when starting a business is long term profitability. You can’t sustain a business on goodwill alone and even if you are able to tap into all the kindness out there you’ll eventually run out of customers or steam. So how can you find that perfect balance and Profit for Purpose?

Sure, it’s easy to put sustainability in the too-hard, the I-don’t-know-how or I-don’t-know-how baskets - but can we really afford to do that now?

Today you listeners are in for a treat. You’ll learn that through hard work, perseverance and a passion this balance can be found. We are joined on Small Biz Matters by Paul Frasca - a giant in the sustainability world. In 2015 he and his partner Ewelina Soroko founded Sustainable Salons dedicated to reducing waste in hair salons - the industry where he first started. He’s an international speaker; who remarkably never uses notes on stage and listening to him inspires.

He’s not afraid to speak his mind on the future of not only his industry but all of small business and is passionate about sustainability being the non-negotiable driving force.

Welcome to the show Paul.

Topics we’ll be covering:

How did you start this 'hairy' business :)
In your experience as a leader in the small business world; why do you think there is such a huge movement towards sustainability and social enterprise? Where do you believe this momentum is coming from?
How does Sustainable Salons work and what practical tips can you give other small business to become more sustainable?
In general, why do you think it’s important that small businesses join a professional association and collaborate together within an industry?
How can everyday people support the sustainable salons movement?

To find out more go to their website: https://sustainablesalons.org/

PAUL FRASCA

CO-FOUNDER & MANAGING DIRECTOR

Paul Frasca started his hairdressing career at the age of 11. He was a salon owner by the age of 19. Winning a prestigious Hairdressing Award took him to Europe where he styled an elite clientele for the next decade.

His passion for sustainability started when he lived in Amsterdam where he met his partner Ewelina Soroko, a passionate environmentalist.

Their travels brought them to Australia where they researched salon waste and discovered that hairdressers send one million kilos of aluminium foils to landfill every year. That was the catalyst to start Refoil, the industry’s first sustainably-minded foiling concept and recycled foil product. But their commitment to making salon waste history was only just beginning.

In 2015 the pair started an innovative resource recovery program called Sustainable Salons. Designed especially for the salon environment, Sustainable Salons collects up to 95% of the salon’s waste bin and repurposes it for environmental and community benefit, while rewarding the salon. The program has been awarded Best Business Service of the year in 2016 at the Australian Hair Industry Awards and Best Business Performance of the year at the Hair Expo Awards. Sustainable Salons was also presented with the Special Recognition Award at the 2017 Australian Hair Industry Awards and became finalist at the Victorian Premier’s Sustainability Awards the same year.

Paul’s role as Managing Director takes him all around Australia and New Zealand speaking to audiences in the waste management, hair, beauty, fashion, hospitality, medical and education industries, all interested in learning how to adopt a more sustainable approach in their everyday lives and businesses.

Paul also volunteers his time as a board director for The Australian Hairdressing Council where he is responsible for improving the industry’s environmental practices.

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 14 January 2020

In all this sadness and concern over the current and ongoing crisis facing Australia, it’s reassuring to know Small Business has on our side an advocacy group in COSBOA (the Council for Small Business Organisations Australia). The upheaval for SMBs caused by the catastrophic conditions in a huge area of South Eastern Australia should not be underestimated and whilst those in the political space may argue about whether or not the climate changes (which are undeniable) are caused by human impact or natural causes the change is here. There can be no more debate that drought, is here. The most devastating fires since records began, are here. Climate change, is here. The question only remains, what are we going to do about it?

Welcome to the show Mark McKenzie, Chairman of COSBOA.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Let’s remind the listeners again of the role of COSBOA and why as the peak advocacy group for small business in Australia you are perfectly positioned to relay the impact on small businesses of these recent climate changes to the Australian Government?
- Small business is a barometer of the economy both locally and nationally
- How do your members – the professional associations & their members – communicate their concerns to you as an organisation
- What are your top line objectives for 2020?
Those of us fortunate to live in the cities around Australia may not really understand what impact these fires are having on Small business in regional Australia. Sure, we might have to pay more for food but we can largely continue on unimpeded with our own businesses. In the real world what have been the impacts of drought and these massive fires?
In your report as the Chairman of COSBOA you state you’d like to see the Australian Government “promoting actions that support the capacity of our population to adapt to the new reality created by climate change.” In terms of policy, what would you see change in the short term for support?
- Rethinking water management
- Energy usage
- Industrial relations law
What are COSBOA’s suggestions for 2020 and beyond of other support for small business in these changing times? Does this support look like grants to boost certain sectors of the economy, a loosening of regulations & red tape, or changes to procurement processes?

To find out more go to their website /www.cosboa.org.au and to read their 2020 vision https://www.cosboa.org.au/post/what-do-we-want-from-2020-and-beyond

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 7 January 2020

This week we welcome a pair of inspiring young female entrepreneurs who, after growing up in a semi-rural part of greater Sydney; took that life experience and founded Aggie Global, a social business connecting small farmers to big markets in developing countries via an ecommerce platform.

Social enterprise isn’t necessarily a new concept in small business but it has been wholeheartedly embraced as a way to find a balance between income and inspiration by the millennial generation. As they begin their entrepreneurial journeys they are hungry to find meaning in what they are achieving and giving back to the global community in which they operate. But how do you make sure what you’re doing is financially viable and not just going to burn out your good will?

Lisa & Zoe Paisley are here today to share with us their story of building a business from the ground and the heart up.

Welcome to the show Zoe & Lisa.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Questions:

Tell us about your Agritech business and where the idea first came from?

We are the cofounders of Aggie Global, a social business connecting small farmers to big markets in developing countries via an ecommerce platform.

Lisa and I have always been exposed to agriculture, having cats, dogs, horses and chickens on our family place since we were kids. At high school we studied agriculture and were even given a plot of land to grow fresh veggies. When it came to choosing what to study at university, we both wanted to do something that would make positive impact. And at the end of the day, we all need to eat, so agriculture was a no brainer.

We also love to travel and be outdoors. So we did work placements across Australia and the world where we found that we loved working in agricultural development because it could have massive positive social impact for farmers in developing countries. This is why we started Aggie Global, to make positive social change by connecting farmers to new markets which boosts their income and addresses poverty.

Since then, we have worked in Fiji for 3 years, and found that the tourism industry is importing $30m AUD worth of food into the country every year, yet the majority of Fijian farmers live in poverty. This disconnect is what Aggie Global is addressing.

By connecting local farmers to local hotels and restaurants, farmers are increasing their income by 5x the national average and saved buyers up to 6x the amount of money spent on food.

Aggie Global showcases what local food is available and when via an ecommerce platform. Having this one-stop shop to buy local food, saves a hotel procurement officers hours of time, reducing the procurement process from months down to minutes.

How, in your opinion, are social enterprise businesses changing the world for the better?

Social businesses can have huge positive impact in the communities in which they work.

Social enterprises are a hybrid of positive social impact and sustainable business models, which means they can adapt quickly and scale out internationally when built well.

By being a business, the impact is not determined by donations or grants, but is self-sustaining from the sale of its products or services. All profits are generally used to move the business forward and drive further positive impact.

We believe social businesses are crucial for the key social challenges being faced around the world. Poverty, food security, equality and climate change all need to be addressed from multiple angles and social businesses are bringing a new way to address these issues

For example, there is a cafe in Sydney that employs refugees. By employeeing these refuges it helps them get on their feet in a new country where their previous work experience may no longer be valid.

The growing social business movement means that long term impact can occur and vulnerable individuals are less reliant on aid or government funding when it is needed.

Social businesses, especially start ups can adapt to changing conditions quickly. Businesses can leverage technology to address real problems and reach a wider audience. This is why the growing social business movement has taken hold because of how adaptable yet tailored this approach can be and is why Aggie Global has taken this approach.

In practical ways, what are some of the mistakes you’ve made with setting up this type of social enterprise business which others can learn from?

Our biggest mistakes are intertwined. The first two are 1) not trusting our gut and 2) not making a decision quick enough.

In start-up world you’ll constantly hear “fail hard and fast” and “learn from those mistakes.'' This was something we didn’t do so well to begin with.

Initially, Aggie Global was going to be this really cool app that would do all these amazing things, like identify crop diseases from a single photo. We had talked with customers and had thought this would be an amazing thing that would use AI and have a huge impact for farming communities. But when we actually looked into it further, the app itself had no impact and farmers weren’t interested in using it. So after a year of finding app developers and finally getting an app released, we had to call it off and loose some great team members.

We knew from the start that that idea was a mammoth job but we wanted to get something out in the market and start collecting data. Which meant we were ignoring our gut and what our customers were saying, meaning we didn’t call off app development early enough.

So another lesson here is know your customers and learn from them quickly. Also don’t be married to the solution. See what is actually happening and not what you want to be happening, so constantly question and evaluate your findings and take away your expectations and what you want.

The last thing is specific to Aggie Global, rather than businesses as a whole, but its Fiji Time. We literally have to be knocking down doors to see people when we need to, inorder to be effectively moving the business forward. Getting outside and talking with farmers, partners and government bodies, have been the biggest drivers for our business.

To find out more go to their website: www.aggieglobal.com

Or connect with Lisa and Zoe on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisa-paisley-60b49917a/, https://www.linkedin.com/in/zoe-paisley-07049917a and https://www.linkedin.com/company/14543921/

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 17 December 2019

In this competitive, global commercial world where small business operates and are celebrated for our resilience and innovation, some can be left behind and feel isolated from our small business community.

If you offer a unique proposition or do not fit neatly into a professional association you may continue to go under-represented and lack the advocacy that a larger group can offer.

So who do you turn to for this voice to represent and advocate? Locally of course there are some wonderful Chambers of Commerce but on the national stage (where legislation and decisions which directly affect your business are made) the Australian Chamber of Commerce is there for you.

This week we will talk about what they can offer you as a small business. James Pearson is their CEO, and the Leader of Australia's largest business advocacy network.

Welcome to the show James.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Tell the listeners about the Australian Chamber of Commerce & Industry and how this body supports small business? Is it a lobby group, advocacy or information portal?
Do you only work with businesses and regulators at the federal level or also local and state agencies?
Do you work with other small business interest groups like COSBOA or state chambers?
What sort of positive impact has lobbying by the Chamber had for small business; can you give examples where this sort of impact has really made a difference?
In the next 5-10 years what do you believe will be the main issues facing small business in Australia and what do you plan to do to support them?

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 10 December 2019

“Ah Millennials, what ARE we to do with you?” It’s a sentiment quite openly discussed in small business circles; accompanied with the inevitable eyeroll when mentioning the hardship of finding the “right people” for your business …. They lack work ethic, they haven’t experienced hardship, they need to go through what we did to REALLY understand what it means to be in business…. All thoughts openly expressed by us in small business (and yet, not thought of as discriminatory - a thought for another time, perhaps?)

But before you taint everyone from a generation with the same brush and completely forget what it was like to experience jobseeking for the first time at their age; let’s get a real perspective in this. Let’s learn what it’s like for the Millennials to work in small business or BECOME small business.

With a background in HR across corporate, small business and learning & development, Amy Smith, a Millennial workforce specialist trains the trainers in the corporate world on how to better engage and retain their millennial workers. Let’s learn her secrets!

Welcome to the show Amy.

Topics we’ll be covering:

How have you positioned yourself as the expert in your field

Strategic HR & Industrial relations management
International experience then a big role in YMCA HR management
- casualised workforce, regional experience, high volume, high turnover
Across compliance and HR, very intense – in the end had to make over 250 staff within one month … redundant. Coaching came in that fallout – What do I do now?
- Difference between regional & city
In the small business space you supported small business in a role where you utilised LinkedIn to start up a CEO roundtable SME groups

So what can you expect from a Millennial in your business

For generations younger people wanting to better the generations before them
With IT brings choice – options out there to start their own business
They’re happy to start their own business if they’re not content in what your providing them
They’re fighting an uphill battle because their portrayal in the media
- Entitlement / lazy
If there’s a simpler way to do it – they’ll look for it. Efficiency is important.
- Immediacy of product, instant gratification
- It’s going to be worse in the next generation

Job acceptance, role definition, expectations:

Selling the role – (stats on desiring career development, why they choose one career over another, flexibility)

If you’re not talking about job development, the WHY… why not>
They know the market rate, they know their value (websites) after that its why am I here?
Trust is important – Don’t paint just a rosy picture. Millennials have a higher sensitivity to this. Be transparent (like what you won’t enjoy), role longevity & growth
- They will research your workplace culture - If you are trying to hire Millennials you need to showcase this online

In the role:

Being open to the solutions Millennials can provide:
They grew up with tech, they have more experience than you and seeing things in a different way, apps
Watch those assumptions! Have the mentality of getting the work done is the target. Not the time it makes to do it. Just because you can’t see them physically doing the work doesn’t mean its not getting done. They might be doing it remotely…
Millennials are driven to making an impact. They need purpose as the motivator. WHY am I doing this? How does this help you the boss, the business, society as a whole? Highlight

In reality, in your opinion where is the real disconnect between the generation that is hiring

Technology – hinderance or enabler?
Having to “earn your stripes”
“This is the way it’s always been done”
“Hoarding information” – working autonomously or collaboratively

To find out more about Amy find ehr on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amylaurensmith/

Amy Smith – Founder at Aligned Tribe

Short BIO:

Amy Smith is the Founder of Aligned Tribe which specialises in helping organisations to ‘bridge the generation gap’ to attract, engage and retain their nextGen leaders and remain competitive in the rapid changing world of work. Amy started her first business at the young age of 12 and by age 23 she was working across the globe helping businesses of all sizes to optimize their talent and business development strategies. Amy has worked ‘behind the scenes’ supporting former CEOs of companies circa $5Mil-100Mil+ to grow their own portfolio careers in the executive recruitment/coaching space and has worked with brands such as HSBC, YMCA, Open Colleges and the Executive Connection (TEC). She is a member of the Directors Institute Next Generation Board of Directors and regularly advises organisations as a specialist on leading and managing Millennials and Generation Z in the workplace.

Amy also supports young people in their careers through her coaching, career workshops and online career management programs. When she’s not working, you will find her on the ski slopes when there’s even a glimpse of snow and enjoying some smashed avocado on toast with friends at brunch on the weekend, like a true Millennial.

Where to find Amy

Email: amy@alignedtribe.com

Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amylaurensmith/

Website: www.alignedtribe.com

Facebook page: Aligned Tribe

Access the latest ‘non traditional’ career insights in the Aligned Tribe private FB community ‘Career Accelerators’ here: http://bit.ly/careeraccelerators

Instagram: @alignedtribe

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 3 December 2019

Superannuation - firstly it’s not your money and secondly if you get it right; there’s no need for us to get involved. That’s the message the ATO is trying to get across to small business. If you pay the correct amount, to the right place, at the right time... there’s nothing to worry about. But if you miss the deadline or the you haven’t checked all the details then the headache isn’t worth it.

Are you aware of the deadlines and what that means for super payments? Did you know you still need to meet those deadlines if you’re an employee? Did you know your payment is late if it bounces back? Super doesn’t have to be an administrative headache if you know what your obligations are. Plus there’s plenty of places to get help, advice and support small business it’s just a matter of knowing where to look

The when, the how and the what of super obligations for small business is all explained in this interview with the Alexi Boyd from Small Biz Matters and John Ford, the Assistant Commissioner for Risk & Strategy - Employer Obligations at the Australian Tax Office.

Welcome to the show John.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Can you give us an overview of super for employers?
- What is super and why does it exist
- The SG super is actually just about the relationship between employer & employee and there is no need for ATO to be involved until things unravel
- Why do we have super guarantee, retirement income and live a healthy lifestyle
I see that you have developed an easy six step checklist to make sure employers have their SG sorted. Can you take me through the six steps?
- Check you’re paying super to all eligible workers
  - Employee SG super, when you start paying super, how it‘s calculated & what constitutes super applicable ordinary time earnings. When ATO gets involved it becomes all Salary & wages
- Check you’re paying the right amount
  - check your calculations & systems for 9.5% if you’re still using old spreadsheets
- Check you’re paying on time
  - deadlines, time lag between authorising the payment & clearing house making payment & when the money actually hits the super fund
- Check you’re paying to the right place
  - details are all correct, processing with inducting employees & making sure the super choice form completed (due diligence)
  - Discussion - Is this the same as the letter from your super fund? Gathering the right info from employees
- Check you’re paying the right way – what is a clearing house?
  - What does the ATO provide as an alternative? (ATO SBSCH)
- Check you’re keeping accurate records
  - what constitutes accurate reporting?
  - STP
Most employers do the right thing, but there are always those few that do not. What is the ATO doing to level the playing field?
- Link to STP data and why it’s in place?
- Employer payment amount and times vs what the super fund. Chat about the data coming from Super funds – is it solid?
- What impact does 4-5 days late every quarter have on the long term retirement income.
A number of changes aimed at protecting employees' superannuation entitlements have recently become law. Can you tell us more about this?
- Talk to recent changes.

About John Ford:

John Ford is an Assistant Commissioner, who has been has been with the ATO since 1998. He has held senior roles in a number of business lines including Superannuation, Private Groups and High Wealth Individuals, Goods and Services Tax, and Small Business.

John is currently the leader of the ATO’s Risk and Strategy – Employer obligations portfolio. In this role he is responsible for the ATO’s approach to ensuring that employers are engaged with meeting their Superannuation Guarantee, Fringe Benefits Tax and Pay as You Go Withholding obligations. A key component that John is seeking from the work he leads is to be increasingly driven and transparent in what the ATO is seeing and how the ATO intends to respond to help employers to meet their obligations.

To find out more go to their website:

Resources

Super guarantee employer obligations course - https://www.ato.gov.au/Business/Super-for-employers/Working-out-if-you-have-to-pay-super/Super-guarantee-employer-obligations-course/
Brochure - ‘Paying super is an important part of being an employer’ https://www.ato.gov.au/superquickcheck
Video - https://www.ato.gov.au/Business/Super-for-employers/
Super guarantee client health check - https://www.ato.gov.au/business/super-for-employers/in-detail/super-guarantee-client-health-check/

Tools and Calculators

To work out who you have to pay use the Super Guarantee Eligibility Tool
Some contractors, even if they have their own ABN may be eligible for super. To check, use the Employee/Contractor Decision Tool
To work out how much super you must contribute for your eligible workers use the Superannuation guarantee (SG) contributions calculator

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 26 November 2019

We talk a lot on the program about surrounding ourselves with good advisors. We develop good relationships with financial and marketing advisors but why is it legal counsel, which is so important, is left until you really, really need it?

One aspect which is often neglected when setting up a business is that of contractual law. And too many times small business relies on a handshake or good faith as the basis for those contractual relationships and it’s here we can come undone!

Today we are in conversation with Ursula Hogben, co-founder of LegalVision & co-founder of Zero Emissions Sydney North Incorporated now assisting in sustainable development. She's going to help us to learn about the importance of good legal counsel and NOT when you need it most.

Welcome to the show Ursula.

Intro

A corporate and capital raising lawyer at Baker McKenzie, then a Director at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, for 15 years
A co-founder of LegalVision, an innovative fast-growing tech-based law firm for 5 years
Ursula now assists sustainable development businesses, and is the co-founder of Zero Emissions Sydney North Incorporated, to accelerate our transition to net zero emissions

3 areas:

The importance of key contracts for a business
The importance of protecting intellectual property
A recent innovative sustainable development project in our area – the 4 Pines community solar project
The importance of key contracts for a business

Why are any legal contracts needed?

Legal contracts are an investment in the smooth running and growth of your business.

What are the key types of contracts required?

(i) Your website

(ii) Your clients or customers

(iii) Your company’s interaction with third parties – eg Manufacturer, Distributor

(iv) Your employees and contractors

(i) Website contracts

What are website contracts, why needed?

Privacy Policy: If your business has an annual turnover of over $3 million, or if you are a small business with an annual turnover of $3 million or less and you meet certain criteria, you are legally required to have a Privacy Policy. Even if the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) does not apply to your business, it is prudent to have a Privacy Policy in place so that your customers are clear on what personal information you are collecting about them and how you will use and disclose it.

Website Terms of Use: To protect your website IP. To explain your content is not advice, and you cannot be sued for it.

(ii) Clients or customers contracts

Why do you need these, doesn’t the consumer law cover this?

Once you operate a business, you establish a legal relationship with your clients or customers, even if you do not have anything in writing. The consumer law applies, and this generally protects and benefits the client.

One key reason for you to have written terms, is to add terms that benefit your business. For example, a client can obtain a refund if a product is faulty. You can specify what is permissible use, and what is not permissible use. For example, a water resistant phone cannot be fully submerged in water.

Another is to provide clarity. You can set out the circumstances for refunds or exchange, and the procedure. It is worth noting that there is no legal requirement to refund or exchange for change of mind, However many shops do including online clothes shops. They specify the address, the need to include all packaging and tags, and the requirement for goods to be unworn.

What are the two primary client and customer legal documents?

(i) Client agreements - primarily used for service-based businesses.

(ii) Sales Terms and Conditions - primarily used for goods-based businesses including e-commerce stores, retail stores, and manufacturers

Client Agreements outline details of the services you are providing and the manner at which you will be providing these services.

Details of the scope of work;
Timeline;
Pricing and Invoicing;
Indemnity and liability;
Warranties and consumer guarantees; and
Dispute resolution

Sales Terms and Conditions common clauses in include:

Product details;
Delivery (particularly for online-based businesses or businesses that sell big-ticket items such as fridges, furniture, etc.);
Payment terms;
Consumer warranties and Australian Consumer Law provisions; and
Refunds and returns.

(iii) Your company’s interaction with third parties – eg Manufacturer, Distributor

What are some examples and why are these needed?

Manufacturing: The Manufacturing Agreement is the legal document used to engage a manufacturer to produce your goods. The Manufacturing Agreement should cover the entire process, from the specifics of the design and the material to be used, up to costs, payment and delivery. Key issues include protecting intellectual property, quality control, and time-frames for delivery.

Distribution: A distribution agreement governs the relationship between suppliers or manufacturers and distributors. Suppliers or manufacturers engage these distributors to sell their products at a retail or wholesale level. Some businesses appoint a distributor as a vehicle to get their products to the market. Others appoint a distributor to benefit from their expertise, or to share customer lists and market contacts. Key issues include Exclusive or non-exclusive, for an area and/or products (Eg franchises can only sell the franchisors products), minimum performance clause (eg minimum sales) and Competition

(iv) Your employees and contractors

How do you determine the nature of the relationship and the terms and conditions at which a worker will provide services?

Businesses can either have workers on board as employees or contractors.

An employee works in your business and is part of your business. A contractor is running their own business

Employees

If you are an employee, you may be employed on a fixed-term, permanent or casual basis. The Fair Work Act (2009) (Cth) governs the employment relationship and includes the National Employment Standards that ensures every employee has access to the basic entitlements.

An employment agreement includes:

Remuneration;
Leave entitlements;
Hours of work;
Redundancy entitlements;
Position description and
Dismissal and probationary provisions

Contractors

Contractors differ from employees as they are not covered by the Fair Work Act, and they are typically individuals providing their services to your business, whatever that might be. There are penalties for “sham contracting” arrangements where you hire the person as a contractor, but the nature of their engagement is really that of an employee.

A contractors’ agreement includes:

Scope of work
Timeframe
Payment
Termination

The importance of protecting intellectual property

What is intellectual property?

Intellectual property (IP) is a term that is applied broadly to something that is created, invented, designed or written by an individual. IP is sometimes referred to as ‘property of the mind’, which is a good way of thinking about it. It is not tangible property like land, which is known as ‘real property’, but it is still an asset that belongs to the creator, as it can be sold, transferred or leased, and it is certainly worth protecting.

The overall rule is that there is no protection for an idea – only the expression of that idea.

Sourdough bread example

Is there any automatic protection?

In Australia, businesses do not need to register copyright as it automatically subsists in original work such as music or paintings. Copyright protection lasts for 70 years after the creator’s death.

However, copyright does not offer comprehensive protection of IP under the law, for example it doesn’t prevent others from creating a similar version of your work. You can further protect your intellectual property by registering for a trademark or patent.

Trade Marks Trade marks are used for branding – business names, product names, logos or taglines. You can register signs or symbols that distinguish your goods and services from the goods and services of other traders. Trade marks, in Australia, can be renewed in 10 year blocks indefinitely. Examples: Confectionary giant Cadbury has controversially obtained a trade mark registration for a shade of purple.

Patents

Patents are granted in relation to the function of inventions or processes that are novel, whereas designs are registered over the look and feel over new products.

4 Pines Community Solar Project

Tell us about a recent project that benefitted a company and the community?

4 Pines Brewing Company installed rooftop solar panels. 100 kW solar system to supply renewable electricity to their brewery, pack line, and office spaces in Brookvale. This is the first step towards 4 Pines being run on 100% renewable electricity by 2025.

What is unusual about this?

The solar project was 100% funded by a community of investors, 4 Pines employees, friends and Northern Beaches locals.

The not-for-profit community energy group ClearSky Solar Investments will set up a Fixed Unit Trust through which community members can invest. 4 Pines will pay for the solar electricity generated for ten years post installation and this revenue stream will repay the community investors with an attractive rate of return.

A ClearSky Trust is legally restricted to just 20 investors who would have needed to invest almost $6,000 each to raise the $116,000 cost of the installation. This hurdle was overcome when Pingala Co-operative stepped in and agreed to become the principal investor in the ClearSky trust, taking on responsibility for raising 75% of the capital. Pingala will do this by offering $250 shares, with a maximum of 4 shares per person.

A set of legal agreements between ClearSky and Smart Commercial solar will ensure that solar generation revenue gets distributed to unit holders in the ClearSky Trust and Pingala will use its share to pay a dividend to the Pingala shareholders.

What are the returns?

Pingala Co-operative aims to provide a return of between 5% and 8%. Dividends will be paid annually to each investor.

To find out more go to their website: www.jimmyhalfpenny.com.au

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 19 November 2019

What is it about successful Fintech companies that makes their evolution so exciting and inspiring? Is it because in an industry of stale, boring business models anything new is considered innovative and so we find it fascinating? Or is it because of that fabulous term, Unicorn?

That being said, no one can argue that FinTech companies solving the problems of small business is a refreshing change to the dinosaur behaviour of Finance. Take GoCardless for example who recently launched the first global network for recurring payments. They describe it as a totally new way of collecting international payments without the hassle and admin. It means you can now collect international recurring payments through one bank account.

Here to share with us a unique journey from idea to global company is the CEO and Founder of GoCardless, Hiroki Takeuchi.

Welcome to the show Hiroki.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Tell the listeners about your personal GoCardless journey and the problems you’re trying to solve for Small Businesses around the world
As a Fintech company what comparisons between entering the Australian market and somewhere like the US?
Why are payment terms such a pain point for small businesses all over the world and how do solutions like GoCardless support them?
Why are advisors the best partners for payment services?
What solutions are out there for cashflow problems and what has changed in the Fintech space that has made companies like GoCardless so successful in recent years?

To find out more go to their website: https://gocardless.com

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 12 November 2019

As a small business owner we all wear many hats but there’s one hat out there, for lots of small businesses, that REALLY doesn’t fit. And that’s the bookkeeping hat.

So with the evolution of cloud accounting, AI and better data entry automation do I really need a bookkeeper? Well, last time I checked the compliance side of running a small business in Australia isn’t going away. In fact, with GST, STP, Super Regulation and Fair work mandatories, I don’t think the red tape beast is dying anytime soon. Plus do you really know HOW to get the most out of all that efficient software or should you really have some help along the way?

So who’s the best advisor to wear this compliance, data entry, regulation hat on behalf? A qualified BAS agent, that’s who. Here to tell us why is Matthew Addison, the Executive Chairman & Director, Institute of Certified Bookkeepers who has for many years been the champion of the industry and the small business champion too. Let’s find out how…

Welcome to the show Matthew.

Topics we’ll be covering:

How has the emergence of technology affected small business’ record keeping, requirements and the way you comply with tax law when running a business
Tell us about the role of the bookkeeper and the bookkeeping community and how it has evolved over time?
- Payroll
- Super compliance
- Bookkeeping
- GST
Does a good bookkeeper offer an advisory service as well as bookkeeping?
Why is it so important for any organisation to join a professional network and association? What sort of advice and service does a good professional org offer any small business?
What does ICB do to represent BAS Agents, bookkeepers and to life the standard of bookkeeping in Australia?
- Representing to government, regulators, policy makers, Tax Practitioners Board
- Constantly assessing the members
- Advocacy, consultation and collaborating role of ICB
Why is a good bookkeeper in the perfect position to understand the be a great advisor for every small business?
What do you see for the future of the BAS Agent and Bookkeeping industry?

To find out more go to their website: https://www.icb.org.au/About/Welcome

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd from Boyd Office Management Services Date: 5 November 2019

Sustainability in your small business is more than just a buzz word. There are other factors to being sustainable. One could argue you actually need to be first economically sustainable to have the capital and funds to then be environmentally and socially sustainable. And so, what does that even mean?

One government funded program we can all access is the Better Business Partnership. Through a tailored, strategic program of education and practical suggestions your business can achieve true sustainability - of the economic, social AND environmental kind.

Here to tell us more about the BBP program and all it can do to improve, grow and sustain your business is it’s Program Coordinator, Amanda Choy. She has over over 20 years experience in the both corporate and legal spheres, as a transformative leader and change agent and she’s here to help you change your business for the better.

Welcome to the show Amanda.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Introduction about Better Business Partnership
- Online sustainability assessment tool supporting local businesses to help them thrive through sustainability
- How is it funded
- Where it is available in Sydney?
How businesses are chosen to be part of the program
The three levels
- Business & economic sustainability
- Environmental sustainability
- Social sustainability
Spread out amongst those three levels are 9 areas of assessment:
- Procurement & purchasing
  - Sustainable & social (ethical) sourcing, supply chains
- Business health - setup/startup or established. The WHY, the Mission, The purpose and linking that to business growth & marketing strategy
- Community, staff
- Energy Water Waste
- Sustainable transport
- Bye Bye Plastic
The link with other Govt programs
- Biz Connect & Netstripes
- BBP connecting with rebates, advice support
  - Give examples
- How does the overall program help the general small business community as a whole?
  - Creating a sustainable business, better business being more attractive to your clients
  - Networking events which lead to B2B opportunities
  - Examples of local businesses who have accessed the program
- What is the circular economy and how can we tap into that?
- How does my business access the support?

To find out more go to their website: http://www.bbp.org.au/

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd from Boyd Office Management Services Date: 29 October 2019

Back in July, I interviewed Kate Carnell, Lielette Calleja, Director of All That Counts and Peter Langham, CEO of Scottish Pacific who collectively launched the new Business Funding Guide. It was refreshing to see industry heavyweights Scottish Pacific using their data collected from years of small business reporting for the power of good. When the office of the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman noticed a trend they decided to work with Scottish Pacific to develop a framework to support small business in becoming financially fit.

It’s a great guide; assisting small business to understand the how, the why and the practical strategies to prepare for funding applications – no matter the funding you’re seeking.

So what is the Small Business Funding Guide and how can it help my business to access much needed capital injection?

Today we bring together three experts in their fields to help you the small business owner to understand what a guide like this one can do to educate you about being financially fit, the different types of small business funding out there and what it can do to really grow your business.

Lielette Calleja from All That Counts is a seasoned finance professional and accounting advisor who knows at the front line what it’s like to see business rise and fall. David Rose is here from Scottish PAcific to tell us about how and why the guide came about and we also welcome Harry Grewal, the co-founder of Hiller’s Transport to share with our listeners the journey he’s been on as a hugely successful small business owner.

Welcome to the show Harry, Lielette & David.

Topics we’ll be covering:

David, tell us about how this funding document came together and why you’ve partnered with Kate Carnell’s office to deliver this guide
- About the Guide
- Why Kate’s office?
- What Scottish Pacific’s research into small business funding was telling you about the collective needs of small business?
- Why partner with business advisors to get this message out?
Lielette, you often ride the waves with small business owners and can see first hand what a lack of funding expertise and access to capital can do to
- In practical terms, what does it mean for a business to be financially fit?
- How do you as the business advisor deliver this guide?
- In your opinion what can this guide deliver to the typical small business owner
Harry, tell us about your small business journey and what a guide like this would have meant to your business as you were growing
- Did you always consider yourself to be financially fit?
- What’s the best advice you can give a small business growing too fast?
- What’s the biggest mistake you made when in a growth phase?
All
- When is the best time to seek funding?
- When should you NOT be seeking funding?
- Why is it important to be mindful of your mental health fitness in this process?

To find out more go to their websites: https://www.asbfeo.gov.au/resources/business-funding-guide

BIOS:

David Rose is a senior member of Scottish Pacific’s executive team. Since arriving in Australia from London, David has more than 25 years of experience in the Australian financial services sector and has held senior management roles with Commonwealth Bank Group (CBA), National Australia Bank and PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Prior to joining Scottish Pacific in November 2016, David was Head of Finance for the Technology and Operations Division of CBA and before that was CFO for Bankwest Retail during their national expansion.

David holds a Bachelor of Science from Manchester University in the UK and is a qualified ACA and member of Chartered Accountants England and Wales.

Lielette Calleja is the 2019 Accountants Daily Editor's Choice Winner & a Small Business Accounting Advisor with All That Counts.

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd from Boyd Office Management Services Date: 22 October 2019

What better way to support small business month than to actually listen to the triumphs, failures and the journey from one of Australia’s success stories in the food & beverage industry.

Tom Griffith is not only the founder of one of Emma & Toms Foods (an all-Australian success story supporting Australian fruit, vegetable and botanical producers and use their products as often as they can) but also a fiercely outspoken advocate for all small businesses out there. He’s got power in his legacy of a great Australian company and a voice for small business we all need to hear.

Welcome to the show Tom.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Tell us about your small business journey and why you’re passionate about supporting and speaking for small business?

Who are the experts and tools you surround yourself with as you grow?

What cash flow is tight how do you choose between the best

Advice on having with integrity

Longevity of supply relationships
Paying over award
Behaving with integrity

What would you like to see Federal and State Government do to support small business better?

Concessions around small business
Paying taxes through our nose, no recognition through the stock market
Capital gains concession are very successful to drive business growth in UK – why isn’t that being considered?
Better consultation with businesses on the ground – what does that look lie?
Supporting the sectors rather than individual businesses

Let’s talk about your sector of food & beverage and an example of where Govt supports small business…. And it backfires?

Return and earn – what’s the impact on small business?
- new product, new batch, new bar codes, new packaging
- The whole system isn’t transparent
- Who earns it the 10c and where does it go??
- The reality this is a good example of where small business 90 days is bankrolling large business

To find out more go to their website: https://emmaandtom.com/

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd from Boyd Office Management Services Date: 15 October 2019

So what is a remote worker and how do you as a small business owner tap into the wealth of talent right here in Australia? The NBN is being rolled out across more and more remote communities, and with this brings opportunity for talented, highly skilled workforce to tap into the so-called shortage in the Australian small business community.

There’s a matchmaker in all of this and her name is Jo Palmer… For those who don’t know about Jo Palmer, she’s the Founder of pointer Remote Roles and a rural powerhouse who’s passionate about remote developing a relationship between the city and bush through onshoring (a word she’ll explain later).

Welcome to the show Jo.

Firstly can I congratulate you for being awarded the Australian National Rural Women’s Award - a title well deserved!

Topics we’ll be covering:

Tell us about your experience which led you to love the bush and the power of remote working
- What is it like to work really remotely; is it lonely? Quiet? Inspiring? Tough? Is it harder being so far away?
Aside from the financial benefits why is it important for professionals in rural areas to stay connected with work?
- Technical understanding needs to evolve
- Remaining connected with professional development requirements
- Maintaining relationships and skillsets
As a champion of connecting remote professionals with companies based in the major cities; how do you change the mindset that its all too hard to hire remotely? What are the main mindset changes you need to change?
- THE MYTHS:
  - What are the typical barriers you face - technical misunderstanding, connectivity, education
  - The timezone differences are really going to affect my ability to communicate with my team.
- THE SOLUTIONS
  - The reality of NBN improvements
  - Increased flexibility for both parties
  - A lot of online certification platforms to stay in the game
- What are the advantages of working with a remote worker for the employer?
  - Regional understanding/Geodiversity
  - Lower costs for the out of city location
  - Statistically lower staff turnover
  - Accessing a different pool of talent
  - Lower commuting times = higher productivity & happier employees
- What are the advantages to their community?
  - Stimulating the local economy
  - Improved mental health for the worker and their family
  - Contributing to the drought-proofing of the economy
- Being a remote worker may Assisting those who may be remotely working due to physical impairments - is it the same process to pair them up with an employer?
  - What environmental/infrastructure changes affect your ability to reach the right workers out in the community?
    - Drought/NBN/floods

To find out more go to their website: https://www.pointerremoteroles.com.au/

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd from Boyd Office Management Services Date: 8 October 2019

Generally when presenting and someone combines the terms artificial intelligence and jobs into one sentence (particularly in certain sectors) people run for the exits. For years and across numerous industries we’ve associated AI with robots taking our jobs, downsizing staff numbers and general misery to small business. And for some people, Terminator.

But over the last few years the fear has turned into curiosity and now, excitement. Hope that for most of us and our businesses technology might actually support, enable and ramp up the efficiency in our business to help us get back to what we love.

Today’s guest is Jeremy Biggs; an expert in Intelligent Process Automation & Customer Relationship Management (CRM). And we’re going to learn how to make AI and tech our friend to enable and empower us as humans, not simply take over.

Welcome to the show Jeremy.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Empowering humans, helping humanity with technology enablement - what we see in the world already:

Common examples on how Technology already helps you be more productive with your time
- Technology enablement for health
  - Fitbits and step-counters
  - Future enablement through body sensors: Example Advanced health sensors Ketogenics– burning fats instead of sugars – knowing when your body is doing what & switching between the two. This goes into everything from hydration to the correct balance of nutrients for optimal living.
  - I also think that this ties into technology enabled shopping - Using Google/Alexa to create shopping lists that automatically ship groceries to your door means that we will shop on purpose.
  - Not so far off future will be fridges ordering the best food to meet your specific nutrition.
- IN the workplace we already have tons of technology enablement that helps us do more with less. The Simplest example would be to Access to email and digital workplaces:
  - Work remotely, from home or anywhere - this means less travel time to (Sales reps example)
  - Significant benefit to environment (less paper = less trees used)
  - More time to spend with Family & doing the things we love
  - Addresses a big issue in Australia around skills shortage

Technology for efficiency & building happy teams, the age of in individual

Empower people with tools and systems at the lowest common denominator, understand the pain points and scale up to management.
The priority for businesses is to enable people with systems and tools that help to save time and drive more value for the company. This is not done by the carrot and stick method - but rather one of empowerment so that an individual enjoys a happier work environment and the financial rewards for the business are a by-product of positive business culture. TEAM PERSONAL GROWTH & ACHIEVEMENTS = COMPANY GROWTH
Help staff achieve personal goals - technology enables advanced remote learning, time freed from work hours invested into development.
Avril Henry - If individuals aligned with a business culture - then they are more likely to grow (Keynote last quarter)
Example of a Sales Rep - using tech to capture all data onsite (note: voice to text for data capture)
80 / 20 RULE - The minority of work delivers 80% off the output - we can use AI and advanced technology to assist with the mundane.

The future: how technology enablement enables human potential for your business

At the core - Data is the new Gold for business, Put your customer in the centre! You need to aggregate everything into a central core of information. No matter what your industry the future of the world is moving more and more to a global economy. For you to leverage this opportunity you will need to be able to connect into multiple systems that will help take you to a larger audience
Unique client information is another critical step when investing into innovation. As an example if you run a plumbing business and recorded all the houses with tree root problems for a period of time then you can do predictive sales calls on houses that are likely to require roots to be cleared out in the future. Secondly, you can also leverage this data in a Joint Venture with an Arborist to manage tree growth.
Acquisitions historically are driven by the Net Profit multiple, but when you consider that the purchaser is looking for a future value return on investment the Data layer and access to a larger market becomes more of a priority and can increase the business valuation.
Connecting to international markets = all data led. Ultimately I see a future where we are connected to a more global market that will help the redistribution of wealth in the world.

Barriers to technology adoption

Cash - businesses should be investing 20% of Net Profit into innovation
- Government programs (R&D, EMDG, EP Program etc…)
- More cash from efficient operations driven by innovation
Skills shortage - another reason to leverage technology
- Unemployment rate currently at 5.2% - could drop towards 4%
- International talent

Practical tips

Setup a CRM - automate customer data capture, emails, texts, calls, onsite images, videos… (Really cost effective Core data repository)
Schedule recurring tasksS to stay ontop of important dates (Birthdays)
Go digital - change to paperless (use CRM data to populate forms & contracts, use digital signature)
Build a Key Performance dashboard - customer insights, days to complete work
Net Promoter Score: Internal & External - make this public (Google reviews)

Efficient use of using technology & down time! (A good and bad side)

The challenge is that we are fixed in a connected world with the average household now having over 18+ internet connected devices. This number is likely to grow.
Impact of technology on sleep cycles
Impact to kids - ipad, antisocial behavior
Bottom line: we should technology to empower ourselves and others to our best potential but always remember to take time away to connect with family, friends and enjoy life.

Alexi Extra questions:

What do you see happening at government level to enable innovation, are businesses embracing the tools available?
What are some of the other barriers to technology adoption?
Outside What are some of the other priorities from small business?
1. Where would you say technology adoption and innovation rank?

To find out more go to their website: https://karroo.com.au/

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd from Boyd Office Management Services Date: 1 October 2019

Small business can be an incredible ride: exhilarating, rewarding, fulfilling, exhausting, challenging, and sometimes depressing. How do you ride the highs and lows without completely burning out?

October is both Small Business and Mental Health month and today we’re combining both of these to bring you a very special program to give you, the small business owner, some strategies and support when you’re going through tough times.

In the studio we welcome Tim Hoopmann, Founder of Spinn Business Solutions & Beyond Blue Speaker & Patrice O’Brien, General Manager Workplace, Partnerships & Engagement for Beyond Blue. They are going to share where you can get help and what to do if you’re in a position to help other small business owners.

There are some great resources produced by the team at Beyond Blue and Tim, our regular guest on mental health for small business will share his own experiences and how he’s supported others.

Welcome to the show Tim & Patrice.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Why is Beyond Blue looking to support mental health for small business?
- Info about broadly why Beyond Blue feels this is an aspect of mental health which needs attention
Why are small business owners developing a high level of psychological distress?
- The current pressures of being a small business owner in Australia currently
- What are the trends behind this and why is it rising?
Why target small business advisors?
- What are some of the signs advisers should look out for?
- What are some things business advisors can do?
What are some things small business owners can do to improve their mental health?
- What are the signs you might be under stress - at home or at work
- Tips on how you can know learn and understand your triggers
- How to seek help and where to go (leading into the below point)
Tell us about the Beyond Blu e's Free Mental Health Guide for Small Business Advisors
- About the Small Business Campaign

How to use it as an advisor

To find out more go to their website: https://www.headsup.org.au/healthy-workplaces/for-small-businesses

Also see Ahead for Business - https://aheadforbusiness.org.au/. This is a great website/app which has been developed by a NSW mental health organisation called Everymind. It is a great complement to the new Beyond Blue guide for advisors

Bios:

Tim Hoopmann – Founder of Spinn Business Solutions

Patrice O’Brien, General Manager Workplace, Partnerships and Engagement

The General Manager Workplace, Partnerships & Engagement is the executive leader of both beyondblue's Workplace program and Partnerships & Community Engagement program. The Workplace program aims to create mentally healthy workplaces across Australia by reducing the stigma associated with mental health issues, improving business leaders' capacity to create mentally healthy workplaces and providing information and resources to managers and frontline employees. The beyondblue Partnerships and Community Engagement Program focuses on promoting mental health in the Australian community through beyondblue’s corporate and community partners, events, and through beyondblue’s ambassadors, speakers and volunteers.

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd from Boyd Office Management Services Date: 24 September 2019

It’s the curse of the small business owner. We always leave ourselves till last when running a business. Our families, employees, clients and even the community are often at the forefront of our minds whilst our health and wellbeing languishes in the background. And yet we are told so many times in our lives that we can’t help others without first helping ourselves.

We all know we feel better when we exercise regularly and no one can possibly argue that physical fitness is directly linked to mental health and yet with so much focus around small business mental health at the moment are well really making that connection? What we need are practical targets (beyond counting steps) to meet those personal targets to get back into the swing of things?

David Bowman is a small business owner himself. He owns several Step Into Life businesses and was recently awarded the Step into Life State Ambassador of the year. He’s passionate about inspiring every individual in the local community to take responsibility for their own health and fitness and to be a role model for their family and circle of friends. He is passionate about helping small business owners feel healthy and well and today brings us his expertise and practical suggestions for being healthier, fitter and therefore happier small business owners.

Welcome to the show David.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Why is it so important for we as small business owners to look after our own health, fitness and wellness when running a business
- Link to mental health
- Looking after yourself before others
It’s not just about counting steps. What are your top tips for staying Fit and Well for small business owners?
- Healthier Ways to look after your physical fitness during the working day
- Regular Stretching, changing positions, avoiding remaining static when working
What is a healthy level “regular” exercise for a typical small business owner outside of the office
- Different ages, stages of life
- What to do if you’re already feeling like it’s too late?
How can a personal trainer help you to get back into good practice when it comes to your physical health and where do you start?

About David:

Hi there, my name is David Bowman, head trainer and owner at Step into Life Lindfield and Turramurra.

6 years ago, I decided to escape the corporate world. Being a little older than 30, my challenge was to find what could I do that was going to provide meaningful, rewarding work.

I’d had some success with weight loss, having started walking and then jogging in my mid 40’s. What I quickly realised was that, even as an older person, it was possible to train safely and get fit from a very low fitness base. I also became aware of how awesome it was to feel and look healthy again and the positive difference that the commitment to my health made to my overall outlook on life.

So, I made the decision to become a qualified personal trainer. Having delivered over 6000 sessions, what’s amazed and inspired me is the number of fantastic people who’ve joined our wonderful fitness community, the varied backgrounds they come from, the different ages of people I’ve trained the different challenges they’ve faced and overcome, and the many ways I’ve been able to help them improve their physical and mental health outcomes through tailoring fitness programs to help them achieve their fitness and health goals.

If you’d like to find out more, I’d love to hear from you. Perhaps you’d like to try our Free Fun Fitness Week, where you ease your way into your new fitness journey, try our different programs and see for yourself if our fitness community is a great fit for you.

To find out more go to their website:

http://www.stepintolife.com.au/locations/australia/NSW/lindfield

http://www.stepintolife.com.au/locations/australia/NSW/turramurra

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd from Boyd Office Management Services Date: 10 September 2019

One aspect of running a small business we should but generally don’t think about is succession planning. We run our business on a day to day level; struggling to think ahead to our so-called 5 year plan (what’s a 5yr plan, I hear you ask). So the thought of thinking about the end is very much a foreign concept. But with a bit of strategic thinking and of course practical strategies we hope today’s show will help you understand the How To rather than the I’m Not Thinking About That Ever in this delicate small business topic.

Michael Kerr is a senior business development strategist,spending a career driving & delivering tangible change for start-ups, large & small corporations, by contributing expertise in business development, business relationship management, project management, commercial evaluation, financial analysis & strategic consulting.

Welcome to the show Michael.

Topics we’ll be covering:

What is the outlook for SME owners selling or thinking of selling in the years ahead?
Is Business Exit Planning all it’s cracked up to be? What difference does it make to your sale prospects? Can you sell without formal Business Exit Planning?
An overview of the different ‘exit options’;
- Selling with a broker, to
- DIY, to
- Selling to staff or competitors, to
- Bringing in a business partner and exiting in stages
Who is buying businesses? And why it is important to understand why they all have different reasons for buying and how you as a seller can use this to your advantage
Is it a good time for employers to become employers by buying a business?
How do potential business buyers find and buy the right business? Where do you find businesses to buy?

Further notes: * The retirement plans of many baby-boomer business owners are at risk from relying on (1) a really outdated process and (2) their traditional, trusted advisors for selling SME's. * Most owners will only ever sell one business - easy to understand why it often goes wrong * The traditional Business Broking Approach (i.e. list, prepare (minimally only), advertise and wait) has been the default method for owners to sell * Owners (and many trusted, traditional but out of date advisors) assume that this approach still works * IT might for cafes, retail, hospitality etc businesses BUT not for the hundreds of thousands of other professional, scientific, technical, financial, insurance, IT, manufacturing, wholesale etc businesses * The cost to owner’s of not getting out is both; + Time - wasted years (i.e. have to stay running the business and putting off post business life plans), and + Money - less or no retirement dollars * For sale planning Owners need to switch their thinking from months to many years (easily 5 years) * And, other than a straight sale Owners need to actively consider and understand alternative ‘exits’; + staff buy-outs (and vendor finance), + progressive sales (sell down over time), + partial sales (sell 1 part of multi-part business) + merger’s (1 + 1 = 3 maybe) + downsizing (scaling back) + employing a General Manager * Owners need to be ready for unplanned approaches to merge, to sell

Issues * Traditional, trusted advisors not necessarily who you need for a sale but often the default advisor * Owner’s too busy running the business so ‘outsource’ and/or underinvest in what’s needed to sell well * With near full employment and finance constraints who is buying?

Data * 2m + small & medium enterprises (private businesses) comprised of; + 5-19 employees - 180K + 1-4 employees - 560K + 0 employees - 1.2M * 70% owned by baby boomers (last of whom turned 50 recently) * Many (up to 75% by one estimate) plan to sell in next 10 years * PWC 2017; + 83% still don't have a succession plan + &0% of business transfers fail * Biggest ‘business for sale’ listing site has only 20K advertised businesses – however a large percentage (over ⅔’s) are retail, hospitality, franchise - a small percentage of those businesses

Some ‘insider’ observations * Many 0 employee businesses are saleable with preparation * Many small businesses don’t have large profits BUT are still valuable and saleable * Owner’s need to take more ownership of / role in the sale process * Owner’s need to invest in good advice and preparation now for an ROI (comprising an increased prospect for selling, a higher price and a quicker sale timeframe) * Owner’s and their advisors will get better outcomes by looking at their own business through the eyes of a buyer * Every buyer, if they had to put in an offer based on the same information, would put a different value on any business * Small business valuation more art than science * The start-up culture (which BTW I think is great) combined with low start up costs does result in some wannabe business owners completely overlooking less glamorous existing businesses as an option for business ownership * Owners and advisors completely underestimate how complex and emotionally taxing a business sale is * Owners assume micro / small business sales are less complex than medium / bigger business sales - this is completely wrong * Too many assume selling a business is like selling a house * If I’m a business buyer there are many good opportunities - rather than look at the business for sale listing sites ring Owners directly - you’ll uncover many more good opportunities

To find out more go to their website: https://www.kerrcapital.com.au/

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd from Boyd Office Management Services Date: 27 August 2019

For years Geoff Anderson, video producer and best selling author has watched the video industry develop from an advertising medium only accessible to the corporates to one which any micro, small and large business can utilise in their marketing arsenal. The introduction of powerful video camera capabilities in our hand-held devices has meant anyone can produce high res, quality videos to showcase their products & services.

So why is it we are not all doing it? If the social media gods prioritise video content above all else why are not we making the most of these mini-personal computers and running around offering our thoughts and expertise daily?

Well, for starters we don't wear the hat of video marketing experts. Geoff Anderson has just launched his second book called Watch Me Now, leveraging videos to maximise your return on investment where he clearly points out that a Video is worthless if no one sees it.And he is here to teach us about not only producing great video content yourself, but how to engage with an expert to take it to the next level AND importantly how to make sure it is SEEN.

Welcome to the show Geoff.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Tell me a little about your small business journey (including your book) and why you’re passionate about educating small businesses
Why it’s crucial for small business to understand the power of video for their marketing strategy
- Not just marketing tool but also communications tool for positioning yourself as an expert
- Using video content to educate your audience - but WHO is the audience and what are you hoping to achieve from the video content?
Top tips for producing video content
- Do’s and Dont’s for shooting
- Audio is VERY important
- When do you invest in the right equipment
- When SHOULD you engage with a professional rather than trying to DIY (Casual, Community, Commercial content)
How can video content be used?
- Like all forms of marketing measuring the metrics/diagnostics on your website is key (Be clear on why you are making the video - the purpose -what should you be measuring - views, downloads, donations, ticket sales, web visits??)
- Don’t bury the website on “page 5” where no one will notice it
- Add it as a link in your email signature!
- Where SHOULD you showcase the video and what platform is best?
What are some examples in your experience of when small business has really leveraged video to promote their business in a really different way (Edward Zia - 3 x videos a day - quick and easy, effective, driving audience to his products) (Law firms repurposing content from live events) (5 x mistakes, How to, rapport) (Brigidine - personalised welcome video) (Ravenswood - school tours - live audience - strong conversion, emotional connection)

To find out more go to his website: http://geoffanderson.com.au

Producing a great video is step one. Step two is making sure people watch and engage with your video. Watch Me Now outlines how to ensure your video resonates with your audience and the different ways you can get it in front of the right people.

A videos is worthless if no one sees it. Watch Me Now provides a framework on how to maximise the engagement and views of your videos. Knowing how to distribute your video and engage your audience is the essential step that is missing for far too many videos.

Watch Me Now explores how to think strategically about videos so that they are effective. Learn how to guide your viewers to take the next step in your engagement strategy.Watch Me Now will show you how to leverage your video productions across the various platforms that are freely available and the best practice when posting on social media.

In today’s business world, understanding and mastering video is an essential step to creating effective online engagement.

Watch Me Now explains how to maximise the power and impact of your videos.

Cian McLoughlin, Keynote presenter, Best selling author & Award winning blogger

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd from Boyd Office Management Services Date: 13 August 2019

Today’s show is all about how to attract and retain talent to your small business. When hiring, (particularly our first employee), small business tends to get bogged down in WHAT you want this person to DO instead of thinking HOW am I going to get the right person who can start the DOING, then GROW the role into something more. And so, particularly with the younger generation, you’re ultimately competing for their talent with other, bigger businesses.

But that’s no reason to feel like you CAN’T compete or you DON’T have anything to offer.

Why does small business sometimes fail to compete for that talent? Is the issue our portrayal in the media? Or is it US who are stuck in the mentality that we are offering the candidate the same experience we had where we had to work from the ground up; “climb the ladder” and earn our stripes.

Well, the reality is your potential employees aren’t seeing the so called opportunities you’re offering. They’re seeing a Job.

This week we chat to Ingrid Amoils & Jake Andrew from Bamboo Associates who, between them have corporate, start up and advisory experience to help listeners take the leap of faith and attract and retain the right candidate.

Welcome to the show Ingrid & Jake.

Topics we’ll be covering:

Before you approach candidates consider this…

To succeed, be clear on why your business exists, and what you aim to achieve. Have a clear purpose. If you are clear then you can recruit people who buy into your purpose, and so also feel passionate about the business, and will deliver fantastic customer experience.
Get clarity on what kind of team you need to achieve that. Know what values (or behaviours) you want and look for in a candidate.
Consider the essentials skills and knowledge you need, and which are really only nice- to-have. (Focus on skills, as these are often harder to train.) Communicate your plan to train skills and knowledge (business and industry).
Describe the exciting opportunity and the role you offer the candidate.
Determine clear business priorities, and explain how the role fits into the bigger picture.
Be authentic and honest. Show the opportunity is real. Your messages should reflect reality.

Look at the recruitment process from the candidates point of view:

Small biz is often perceived as the riskier option.
Candidates often believe they have more options in a corporate role to learn, grow and move around the company.
However, in recent years candidates are increasingly open to smaller business, new ways of working and new types of careers. This is particularly true of younger employees.
Plus the jobs market has changed – your ideal candidate may well not actually stay with your business for life. You might need to rethink the role, processes and training, if your new recruit is to work for you for a shorter time.
Remember that candidates often learn fast – consider what you do to develop them, inspire them, and how you need to think differently about the role.

What could small business do better to attract top quality candidates?

Deal with this challenge proactively and confidently. Accurately state your size and type of business. Build trust from the beginning by being authentic.
A good or bad hire can make a big difference to your overall business. Get it right. Recruitment is a significant investment of your time and money. It impacts your team and customers. So plan it carefully to make it a successful hire.
Sell the business
- Industry, macro trends - explain why that is good for someone’s career
- Purpose, what you aim to achieve
- Describe the team and how you work
- Clear priorities
Sell the role
- Exposure to the whole business - deeper understanding through direct contact with every aspect of the company, not compartmentalised
- Make an impact - the candidate will not be a small part of a huge machine
- Flexibility - greater freedom, potential to personalise
- Diversity - range of tasks, more stimulation, greater variety
Small businesses are often in niche industries, and you might want candidates with specialist knowledge. If so, you need to be proactive. (LinkedIn or SEEK databases, recruiters etc.) Build a pipeline of potential candidates through networking and communicating to your particular community, long in advance of any hire.
If recruiting is difficult through candidate shortage, recognise the reality that you as business owner needs to be in sales mode. You need to sell the opportunity in a more compelling way.
Ensure you map the recruitment and on-boarding process. Create a good impression. Keep good candidates engaged. Help them succeed when they start, and add value fast.

To find out more go to their website: bambooassociates.com.au

Bamboo helps ambitious business owners grow and thrive. They help overcome challenges like how to:

sharpen your competitive edge
focus on what really matters
grow in a sustainable way
prepare for succession or eventual sale of your business
and of course, attract and retain a high calibre team

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd from Boyd Office Management Services Date: 6 August 2019

The Launch of ASBFEO & Scottish Pacific’s FitsME Essential Guide to Business Funding

On 29th Jul 19 Small Biz Matters interviewed Kate Carnell, the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman, Lielette Calleja, Director of All That Counts and Peter Langham, CEO of Scottish Pacific who collectively launched the new Business Funding Guide.

It was refreshing to see industry heavyweights Scottish Pacific using their data collected from years of small business reporting for the power of good. When the office of the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman noticed a trend they decided to work with Scottish Pacific to develop a framework to support small business in becoming financially fit. It’s a great guide; assisting small business to understand the how, the why and the practical strategies to prepare for funding applications – no matter the funding you’re seeking. With the advice of seasoned finance professionals like Lielette Calleja the guide supports small businesses to have solid knowledge of their business’ performance and be prepared for growth. In particular the funding decision flowchart is an incredibly affective tool to understanding the complexities of small business finance.

As ASBFEO’s media release stated: The biggest barrier to small business growth is access to finance. Small businesses have been feeling the brunt of the credit crunch as lenders tighten their requirements in the wake of the Banking Royal Commission. That’s why it’s so important for small businesses to understand the range of finance providers in the market and to take the steps necessary to become ‘finance fit’ so they can prove their credit worthiness to the lender of their choice. The Business Funding Guide is an industry-first publication that aims to support small businesses in their pursuit of growth and success, through their trusted advisers.

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Small Biz Matters – a half hour program each week where you can work ON your business rather than IN it. with Alexi Boyd from Boyd Office Management Services Date: 30 July 2019

It is probable if you run a business in the construction industry that you are aware of TPAR (Tax Payment Reporting System) as part of your annual reporting requirements for the ATO. But what if you are in the courier or cleaning industries - have you heard of it? And this is your official heads up for security and IT...

No doubt if you have got a great bookkeeper you’re all over it. But for the remaining 95% of small businesses... are you aware of what this reporting requirement is, how to be compliant and why this is in place?

Well, today we welcome the Marcus Chew, Director – Small Business, Australian Taxation Office who looks after this aspect of reporting to the ATO to chat about why it’s in place and how you can ensure you are compliant.

Welcome to the show Marcus.

Topics we’ll be covering:

What is the taxable payments reporting system (TPRS) and why is the ATO looking after this?
- Little background about why its in place and why
Why has it been brought in? (talk about how it is part of the black economy) and what’s the bigger picture and what problem is the ATO trying to solve?
What industries have to do the report and what are the plans into the future?
How can businesses getting ready for TPRS? What’s involved; a step by step as to the requirements the ATO expects from businesses?
- Third party resources - ATO online services for sole traders & individuals, MyGov
- Others apps & software to help you
What resources are available – from the ATO and also your local accountant, bookkeeper. The importance of engaging with a TPB accredited professional
- Professional associations

To find out more go to their website: https://www.ato.gov.au/Business/Reports-and-returns/Taxable-payments-annual-report/

Marcus Chew, Director – Small Business, Australian Taxation Office Bio

Marcus leads the Taxable Payments Reporting System (TPRS) management team at the ATO, which has responsibility for the administration and expansion of TPRS.

Marcus’s role is diverse and involves working closely with industry groups, tax professionals, small businesses and their advocates to make meeting TPRS obligations as straight forward as possible.

Marcus started in the ATO in 1999, and has been a Director across roles in risk management, strategy development, data management, measurement and evaluation, as well as working as an economist in Transfer Pricing. Marcus has also worked for the International Monetary Fund on assignment in the Middle East focused on risk management.

When not swimming in all things TPRS, Marcus enjoys spending time travelling with his young family, training in Muay Thai and is a huge fan of the NBA.

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