Latest Features

Harness Disruptive Ideas

Submitted by YBEZ Editor on Sun, 19/02/2012 - 23:49

An entrepreneur is a risk mitigator, not a risk taker. This is according to the Kauffman Foundation, the organisation responsible for bringing the Global Entrepreneurship Congress (GEC) to Liverpool from 9th to 16th March. The entrepreneur will work out a new way of getting round or just getting along.

Jonathan Ortmans of the Kauffman Foundation spoke to Your Business eZine. He strongly believes that one of the tools of an entrepreneur is what he calls disruptive thinking. Disruptive thinking can lead to the diversity that then results in innovation.

All the world is a stage, an event or a show!

Submitted by YBEZ Editor on Thu, 16/02/2012 - 14:23

Liverpool based Bill Elms Associates Ltd (BEA), are a Marketing and PR Company specialising in the Arts. They began in 2008 and had a flying start. Liverpool was flourishing as European Capital of Culture and as Bill Elms himself says:

“I was inspired by all that happened that Capital of Culture year – it was the right time for us. I left work on the Friday and by the time the office opened on the Monday had 4
clients.”

YBE Branching Out

Submitted by YBEZ Editor on Thu, 16/02/2012 - 12:48

Where: Leaf, Bold Street, Liverpool
When: Tuesday, 21st February, 2012 - 09:00 to 11:00
Price: FREE

The aim of the event is to create an informal atmosphere where you can freely chat about your business and what is going on in the world. The YBE team will be on hand to introduce you to anyone you don't know and to help make your networking experience target specific.

Move Like Jagger

Submitted by YBEZ Editor on Fri, 10/02/2012 - 13:58

In the last 18 months Ali Jagger has built a business from scratch which now provides employment, profit and a glowing future. And Ali’s main driver is that she loves it. It isn’t the industry she works in or what she does that is important, although more on that later, but the way she has created, built and driven her business.

Ali’s mantra is: “You will get nowhere without self belief”. She quotes Henry Ford who said:

“Whether you think you can or if you think you can’t, you are probably right.”

Will Your Business Become an Iconic Brand?

Submitted by YBEZ Editor on Wed, 08/02/2012 - 12:46

Or will it “just” become a stable business providing employment and a secure financial future for its owners?

Your business eZine spoke to Jonathan Ortmans the driver behind the Global Entrepreneur Congress (GEC) - on in Liverpool from 9th to 16th March. He gave a fascinating and personal insight into what the GEC is meant to be for Liverpool, local businesses and the legacy it should leave us.

Blackburne House: Open For Business

Submitted by YBEZ Editor on Mon, 06/02/2012 - 12:33

Blackburne House is a successful and vibrant organisation that has grown from a centre of education for women to being one of the UK’s leading social enterprises. Maire Gollock and Paula Gamester, are responsible for business, education and enterprise within Blackburne House, and they want the business community to know what Blackburne House has to offer. Both Maire and Paula acknowledge that it will take time to change some of the preconceptions held about Blackburne House.

Is money enough of a reward?

Submitted by YBEZ Editor on Wed, 01/02/2012 - 14:58

Pauline Daniels spoke to Your Business eZine Editor Cath Ames.

How are we going to get news out to Liverpool, about Liverpool, without a daily newspaper?

Submitted by YBEZ Editor on Sun, 11/12/2011 - 15:25

Trinity Mirror have announced that the Daily Post is to be produced weekly from January. And it’s not just Liverpool but the whole Merseyside area and North Wales that will be without a daily newspaper.

New Editor for Your Business eZine

Submitted by YBEZ Editor on Sun, 11/12/2011 - 15:22

Cath Ames has become the Editor of Your Business eZine (YBE) our on-line news platform.

YBE has been expanding since May 2011 and now needs a full time editor. Cath will bring her commercial and client care skills to the role of editing news and will also write features for our publication.

Liverpool is the focus for this year’s global entrepreneurship week in the UK

Submitted by Liverpool Vision on Wed, 09/11/2011 - 10:24

• Enterprise celebrated in lead up to Global Entrepreneurship Congress 2012

Liverpool is the focus for this year’s Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW), November 14-21 2011 as the city prepares to be the first ever European host of the Global Entrepreneurship Congress (GEC), in March 2012.

Previous GEC host cities are Kansas City in 2009, Dubai in 2010 and Shanghai in 2011.

Networking collaboration brings together Ubiquity and YBE

Submitted by YBEZ Editor on Mon, 31/10/2011 - 15:34

The networking arm of Your Business eZine (YBE), set up by Emma Dolan, has joined forces in a partnership with North West pr & marketing outfit Ubiquity to collaborate on each other’s popular monthly networking events.

The move will further strengthen both companies’ existing events’ profile that spans 17 years combined, of engaging with mostly North West-based SME and corporate business across a wide range of sectors that includes property, professional services, b2b, technology, the arts, leisure & tourism, retail, education, sport and health.

Presenting and Winning – The Magic of A Young Entrepreneur’s Story

Submitted by Cath Daley on Wed, 19/10/2011 - 12:33

I recently had the privilege of working with a young entrepreneur called Florence Watson. She is an inspirational young woman with a fantasic story that I think we can all learn from ...........

Florence first became involved with The Tiber Project about two years ago when she was just 16. The project is based in Toxteth and is all about young people making a difference in their community.

The Most Common Mistake in Excel

Submitted by Excel Ace on Wed, 12/10/2011 - 08:24

The most common mistake I see with Spreadsheets, is the way they are set up which limits how the information can be manipulated and re-used. Most people set up their Spreadsheets so that they are both functional, but also ‘look good’ so that they can be printed directly as a report.

This greatly hinders the ability to use other functions, such as ‘Pivot Tables’, ‘Linking to other Files’ and use of formula’s. This often results in duplication of work, as the data needs to be re-created to show in a different report.

Listen when they leave

Submitted by Augment on Mon, 10/10/2011 - 08:57

A statistic that we recently read and gasped at is that a mere 5% of UK businesses conduct any form of exit interview or study. The same report highlighted that the vast majority of the 5% also conduct a standard interview with the departing employee, which is led by either the outgoing staff member’s line manager or with HR.

The Bid Presentation Interview-Why It’s Yours To Lose

Submitted by Cath Daley on Sun, 18/09/2011 - 12:36

How would you feel about losing a £26 million contract that you know you should have won?

Or when you don’t win a £7 million one even though you know that you are by far the best company for the job?

Sounds like a nightmare….

But these are just two instances I have come across in the last few weeks where companies have lost multi-million pound contracts, not because their project or service wasn’t good, but because of a poor presentation.

I'm Liverpool - Are you?

Submitted by admin on Thu, 08/09/2011 - 15:49

Following the launch of the It's Liverpool I'm Liverpool some of Liverpool's leading figures lend their support to the campaign.

Bill Kenwright, Chairman, Everton Football Club
"I'm Liverpool - but, I'm forever Everton"

Ian Pollitt, Development Investment/Surveyor, The Peel Group
“We are committed to Liverpool and its regeneration. It’s an incredibly exciting place and a credible investment destination.”

Dilapidation Claims by a Landlord

Submitted by JDB on Mon, 05/09/2011 - 12:07

What is a dilapidations claim? In its simplest form a dilapidations claim is an allegation of breach of contract and as such is actionable in law.

A dilapidations (dilaps) claim by a landlord is where they feel that you (the tenant) have not adequately complied with the requirements of the lease contract, known as covenants.

Is Rude Networking a New Trend in the Recession?

Submitted by Cath Daley on Sun, 04/09/2011 - 12:29

It has been said many times that a great way to grow your business is through networking.

But it seems to me that “rude networking” is on the increase!

(By the way this is not the same thing as sexy networking and has nothing to do with clothing or the lack of it…)

It’s about how rude people are in their conversation. To give you just one example….

Baptism without fire for your new hire

Submitted by Augment on Thu, 18/08/2011 - 10:32

You were inclusive and built a strong psychological contract and you’ve progressed your job offer through acceptance and now to a start date. That’s great, but it’s the financial return from your new employee you really want, so how do you speed that journey? Well employee induction plays a huge factor in making this a success.

Induction is absolutely vital for new starters. Good induction training ensures new starters are engaged, retained within the organisation, and then settled in quickly and happily to a productive role, adding the value you hoped to your organisation.

How to Succeed in Creative Business: David Parrish video

Submitted by LJMU Start-Up N... on Wed, 17/08/2011 - 18:10

Liverpool JMU's Centre for Entrepreneurship (formerly Student Enterprise) has been supporting creative industries graduates into self-employment and freelance work for a number of years now. More than two-thirds of the graduate start-ups that we support and are from the creative sector.

We work closely with highly-respected creative business guru David Parrish of Liverpool Vision/Merseyside ACME/Kin2Kin and the T-Shirts and Suits network and David has produced a new business development video entitled 'How to Succeed in Creative Business'.

Are You Taking Full Advantage of This Free Marketing Opportunity for Your Business?

Submitted by Cath Daley on Wed, 17/08/2011 - 17:12

I was at a business networking event recently where two businesses got the chance to do a 10 min presentation slot each to promote their products and services. Later a bowl came round for business cards and as you’d expect I made sure I put mine in. The idea was that another two would be picked to present at the next meeting. There must have been about 90 businesses represented there that day but only 29 cards ended up in the bowl! I was intrigued to find out why and asked the organizer later. “ Oh, we’ve done quite well today” she said, “ usually we get less than 20.

The importance of Business Planning

Submitted by Woods Squared on Thu, 04/08/2011 - 12:46

In every aspect of our lives the importance of planning is clear to see, so why do so many small business owners not give the same level of importance to planning when it comes to their business?

Just as you would plan your route for a journey you should also plan your route for your business, as without a clear plan of the route you will take, and of where you want that route to take you, how will you know when you have got there?

Getting Yes To Mean Yes

Submitted by Augment on Wed, 27/07/2011 - 11:27

So you’ve gone through a rigorous process and made sure you’ve added to your knowledge about your candidate. You’ve made your decision and put a reasonable offer to your preferred choice of candidate. Now what?

What’s Your Business “WOW” Factor?

Submitted by Cath Daley on Wed, 27/07/2011 - 09:22

I was at the Pier Head in Liverpool at the weekend for the Liverpool “On the Waterfront” event. There were exhibitions, free concerts, street musicians and loads of people having a great time to celebrate 100 years of The Royal Liver Buildings and the opening of the new Museum of Liverpool . The celebrations culminated in a stunning 3D Son et Lumiere presentation.

This was the first time the Czech Republic-based artists The Macula have worked in the UK having already won international acclaim for productions in their native Prague and Dubai.

Tools for the Job – The use of e-Recruitment

Submitted by Augment on Thu, 21/07/2011 - 09:43

In our last blog we talked about the importance of consistency in your recruitment processes, which perhaps is the biggest single defence against possible litigation.

The informed use of technology is a great way to institutionalise your improved process and ensure a level of consistency in the way applicants are managed. Additionally, technology can dramatically reduce your administration overhead by automating much of the up-front data collection and processing. This is especially true when some roles can attract many many applications.