Tag: Business

  • The Strategic CFO: 6 Steps to Become a Trusted Advisor to the CFO

    Nowadays, Chief Financial Officers aren’t just keeping track of income and expenses; they’re processing this information to understand how best to grow the business. This valued capability is increasingly sought by large enterprises and is quickly becoming table stakes at midsize companies, as well.

    The challenge for many tactical finance directors seeking to become strategic CFO is time. “Finance is often up to its ears in manual repetitive tasks that bog down the function,” explains Sandy Cockrell, global leader and U.S. national managing partner of Deloitte’s CFO Program.

    In working with hundreds of CFOs and studying best practices at top performing organizations, Senior Executive Network has identified six imperatives (with specific action items) to help tactical CFOs become strategic CFOs, transforming the position into a forward-thinking strategic adviser:

    1. Drive Strategy
    2. Allocate Capital Resources
    3. Lead M&A Due Diligence and Post-Transaction Integration
    4. Enhance Profits
    5. Champion New Technologies
    6. Assess Risks and Implement Controls

    To Read Full Report by Chief Executive Network, Click HERE

  • Evolving Forward: The Indivisible System

    How systems thinking, focused intention and trust are essential for our future

    Meatpacking plants are a microcosm of what we are all experiencing right now—the indivisible system. As the contextual environment more aggressively imposes itself into our everyday world, the resources we used to call upon, while necessary, are insufficient to get us through this real crisis. The leaders at meatpacking plants must operate on all cylinders and become agile sense-makers of their environment to address the needs of their workforce, the needs of the communities they operate in, and the needs of the world’s food supply. This is not the time to think about themselves, their professional development or their personal assessment results. They are in chaos and complexity, and the leadership strategies previously applied will no longer work. There is no going back, there is only evolving forward.

    “The concept of emotional intelligence (EI) is a 101 course for leadership right now.” This spot-on statement was made this past week at CCI Consulting’s monthly virtual Executive Coach Café— something that has been taking place for much longer than the pandemic. We were, like so many others in the industry, discussing coaching strategies that are particularly important to help leaders right now; some of whom are dealing with bottom-line crises resulting in their businesses precariously perched on the brink of insolvency. Other leaders are navigating the needs of virtual staff and the mechanics of returning to a face-to-face office environment while simultaneously adjusting to the legal issues involved with protecting their employees. Whatever the particular situation, the workforce is in dire need of help and support.

    But the statement made about Emotional Intelligence, or EI or EQ, has never rung truer than it does today because EI is not new. Most leaders already know about the 1995 book, “Emotional Intelligence,” by Daniel Goleman even if they haven’t read it or put its guidance into practice. Some are even aware of the 1990 John Mayer and Peter Salovey article that first used the term emotional intelligence, or the seminal work of Howard Gardner and Reuven Bar-On in the 1980s that dug into multiple intelligences and the psychological well-being and drivers of success outside of IQ and academic or hard-skill proficiencies.

    One does not turn on the EI switch and suddenly develop the capacity to marry self-awareness and the awareness of others any more than after one reads a book or listens to a TED talk and suddenly becomes attuned to the needs of psychological safety, authenticity or courage. All of these concepts require leaders—and all of us for that matter—to zero in on the foundation that allows these concepts to turn into everyday actions that move the needle on interpersonal effectiveness and leadership strength.

    Our society needs interpersonal effectiveness and leadership strength now more than ever. But, more important than that, we need to shift our perspective to the indivisible system we live in. To do that, we need to turn up the volume on the foundational skills of systems thinking, focused intention and trust.

    Consider these scenarios:

    Pre-pandemic: The office reception area was always sparkling, but the building scheduled individual offices and cubicles to be cleaned on a bi-monthly basis.

    Upon reopening: Your direct report walks into the office environment and wonders privately if the building manager allocated the proper resources to procure the ethanol or cleaning solutions necessary to disinfect their cubicle space or thinks that perhaps they diluted materials in favor of cost savings. They say nothing because at least they still have a job.

    Pre-pandemic: Your Asian American lab manager received an award for facilitating a successful clinical trial.

    Upon reopening: On her way to work, your Asian American lab manager was harassed and called names for bringing the novel coronavirus to America. When she came into the office, she said nothing and moved quietly to her workstation wondering if anyone at work felt the same way.

    Pre-pandemic: A key member of the senior leadership team launched a new initiative, setting the stage to acquire a competitor.

    Upon reopening: With schools still closed and summer camp postponed, that same key member was distracted by family concerns and schedules, as well as figuring out coverage for staff, and the acquisition opportunity was not only missed but they experienced a hostile takeover.

    If we peel back the surface…if we move deeper than the mechanical needs of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), social distancing, work schedules and remote technology, we will see that these things are simply tools. And who uses the tools? People. It is the experience of people that matter more right now than ever before.

    The three foundational concepts that can help to move all of us forward require strategies that involve:

    Systems Thinking – None of us likes to think of ourselves as living in a bubble and now, more than ever, we see how siloed thinking causes unnecessary conflicts and contributes to misinformation and delayed decision-making. Systems thinking is not new, but its perspective is enjoying a resurgence. People everywhere are noticing its value when addressing complexity and the VUCA environment. As we move through the current pandemic, it is critical to call on a systems perspective to help organizations and people adapt to change. Russell Ackoff defined a system as, “a whole, which cannot be divided into independent parts…the essential properties of any system, the properties that define a system, are properties of the whole which none of its parts have.” When adopting a systems mindset, we see that our internal or operating environment (yes, our bubble or our organization) exists within a transactional or stakeholder environment where we act and interact with those around us, beyond which exists in our contextual or global environment.

    To be a true systems thinker requires consideration that the changes taking place in this contextual environment place pressures that cause changes in behavior of the stakeholders in the transactional environment. And, as changes in the transactional environment take place, they naturally place pressures on the internal and operational environment of the organization.

    Ah…the pandemic. But not just the pandemic.

    Change is not linear, and we are seeing in real time that what we are experiencing around the globe requires us to address the contextual environment of the pandemic and the economy but, more importantly, the changes we need to make FOR people. Leaders must accelerate considerations for how technology and digital productivity can enhance and not replace workers. Leaders must address shifting ways of generating business value through agility, innovation and new customer strategies. And how about where our employees come from? Entire categories of people are impacted when geopolitical and economic powers shift, but more so when the well-being of people and purpose of work dramatically change.

    Re-envisioning work as opposed to returning “back” to the way things once were is the new mission- critical competency leaders must embrace now.

    Focused Intention – The game has changed and our global existence has come into sharp focus because we now understand that even if we work hard, develop ourselves to be at our best, provide opportunities for others, and focus on our mission and values, there are still things we cannot control. The word intention often brings to mind a goal or target, such as we find when we have good intentions. However, our good intentions don’t always have the intended impact with either people or outcomes. There has never been a better time to take a step back and think about the kind of person you want to be…how you want to show up as a leader, friend, colleague, parent and citizen. Then, if you are honest with yourself and solicit feedback from others, is this the person you are today? Is there a gap you can fill?

    There are those who choose activities that quiet the mind or activate the soul. Whatever you choose is not really at issue. What is at issue is that you place focused attention on your intentions and exercise behaviors that support them, reflect on how you did, and adjust where needed. Hopefully, your intentions are supportive to those around you.

    Trust – At the core of everything is trusting the “other” person, but also ensuring they trust you. Without trust, we cannot communicate; without communication, there is no trust. If we choose to widen our perspective and allow greater transparency in the system, we must open ourselves up to the ideas of others and fill the gaps of understanding to make sense of our global system. During times of uncertainty and fear, people need to feel grounded that their leaders and organization are reliable and have one another’s back. Recognizing our own assumptions and biases are a good start here. Are we making assumptions that those around us are not interested in remaining healthy and alive? Are others making the right assumptions about us? In a way, it is the same as wearing masks right now: I wear a mask because I care about you and want you to wear one as an expression of how much you care about me.

    Begin by treating everyone—and I mean everyone—with complete positive regard. And, if you can’t, ask yourself how to approach the other with curiosity and kindness. Learn how they are experiencing everything right now. Learn how they are struggling and laughing and tell them about how you are experiencing things right now. Together, and through courageous and caring conversations, it will be easier to build an environment where people reconnect with one another after we reduce our distance, where we all begin to challenge our own limiting beliefs, and where we can co-create whatever our future has in store.

    There are many important leadership tools out there, but without thinking in systems, intention and trust, everything else falls flat. Together we lead.

    Author: Adena Johnston, D. Mgt. MCEC Vice President and Practice Leader, Talent Development

  • Four Strategic Priorities for the Post-COVID-19 World

    To build resilience going forward, the first question to answer is not, “What’s in it for me?” but “What if?”

    By now, everyone knows that the shattering impact of COVID-19 has brought on a business crisis without precedent in recent memory. On one level, though, the pandemic represents nothing new. For years, we have been hearing and talking about the impending “VUCA” (volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity) world. Over and over again, we were told to prepare for seismic change that was sure to arrive, to boost agility in anticipation of abrupt, profound disruption. COVID-19 was a misfortune long foreseen; only the dates and other specific details were missing.

    Regardless, the pandemic will fundamentally reshape how we do business from now on. Even if lockdowns end soon and the virus is staunchly suppressed never to return, its effect will linger. Now that the whole world has experienced the VUCA that only emerging markets used to face, it can never again be treated as an abstraction.

    So when business leaders share with me how their business strategies will likely change in the post-virus period, many say they’ll continue with initiatives they’ve already started, such as digitalisation or social responsibility, but faster and with higher intensity. I have to point out to them that this might not be enough. Some of their key strategic priorities will have to be modified in a radical way.

    To start, the basic purpose of business strategy is to steer companies towards sustainable sources of growth and profit. There are many tried-and-true frameworks for guiding strategy, e.g. Michael Porter’s five forces, which allows firms to orient their competitive position according to coordinates of threat and power. For decades, this classic way of thinking has provided a useful lens for analysing strategic moves of players within an industry. It no doubt remains relevant today. However, Porter’s neat chessboard does not account for whipping winds (think pandemics, political revolutions, climate change events such as the Australian bushfires) that may kick up suddenly and blow away the pieces. Anticipating the disruptive events that live outside Porter’s framework will be a major part of business strategy going forward.

    I see four new priorities that strategists will need to put on their radar for the years to come.

    1. Aim for survivability and resilience before economic efficiency

    It would seem meaningless to talk about an efficient dead organisation. In the post-COVID-19 world, contingency planning should be built into every link of the value chain to ensure survival. Instead of structuring partnerships on the basis of leverage and getting the better end of the deal whenever possible, firms will have to be much more strategic in choosing which alliances are essential, and which are transactional. Rather than “What’s in it for me?”, the first question ought to be “What if?” It may be necessary to forego some of the most lucrative partnerships in favour of those that can withstand a missed shipment or delayed payment here or there when fate intervenes.

    To increase reliability, therefore, redundancy will trump efficiency with regard to critical resources. Investing too much in one partner, supplier or market can be as bad an idea as betting your life savings on one horse. For example, many major multinationals may be regretting their decision to rely so heavily on China as the pandemic exposes fissures in the nation’s prosperous façade. Apple and Foxconn’s joined-at-the-hip relationship is causing trouble for both companies, amid a vicious cycle of COVID-19 factory shutdowns and declining demand for premium smartphones. The uncertainty will only intensify as the rivalry between the US and China continues to escalate. (More about politics below.)

    IKEA is an example of how a major company can balance long-term loyalty with diversification in the supply chain. The company deliberately maintains a large number of moderate-size suppliers worldwide, helping them improve production quality. It engages in nurturing, long-term relationships rather than squeezing every last cent.

    2. Quantify and plan for ecological and environmental threats rather than just describe them

    Today, many executives and analysts talk about various types of threats in a descriptive way, with very little in-depth forethought about how to deal with them should they arise. The good old concept of scenario planning is still with us, but very few businesses seem to practise it in a systematic and thorough way. Moreover, conventional risk assessment typically omits threats with no known probability distribution function, such as environmental devastation and sudden increases in refugee flows. And today’s businesses, already overwhelmed with “clear and present” business challenges, are hard-pressed to devote attention to what they consider low-probability events.

    But recent history shows that extreme upheavals are far from rare. In the last century, the world has experienced at least five dangerous virus attacks, from the pandemic of 1918 that infected about one-third of the global population to COVID-19 in the present. There were also at least two devastating nuclear reactor meltdowns, two world wars and several near-misses, numerous earthquakes and tsunamis, countless regional armed conflicts that threatened supply of essential goods. Climate change, overpopulation and rising worldwide inequality have only increased the likelihood of these threats occurring again in the future.

    Businesses should thus dedicate more resources to quantify various types of threats although there is no broad consensus on the best way to do this. The main goal is not to be accurate, but to train the organisation to plan for various “unimaginable” events. What does not get measured does not get done, as many business executives often claim. Thus, deep qualitative analysis and scenario planning should be complemented with a number of computer-assisted algorithms providing data and various simulation models. Leaders will have to learn their way around AI and machine-learning tools – such as heat mapping algorithms that can quantify political risks based on social-media sentiment analysis – in the course of strategic decision making.

    3. Build a strong organisational immune system rather than maximise short-term profits

    When it comes to measuring and anticipating threats, technology is an important part of the package, but it can’t overcome a deep-seated antipathy to hard truths. In the business world to come, advantage will belong to firms that convey bad news upwards quickly rather than flinching from it.

    Companies that can spot problems when they look small, learn from them and build preventive measures rapidly possess what I would call a strong organisational immune system. Just as our white blood cells identify and destroy invader cells early before they wreak havoc in our bodies, companies need long, sensitive feelers and hyper-responsive capability at all levels of the organisation to stay in the pink of health.

    The downfall of Nokia’s smartphone business is a perfect example of how immune-compromised organisations collapse from within. Well before the iPhone came along, a “culture of fear” had set in at the Finnish firm. Senior and middle managers had developed a poisonous habit of sugarcoating and avoiding the serious problems with their devices and proprietary OS. Nokia had ample time and resources to develop a competitive response to the iPhone, but those advantages were squandered as toxic internal politics left management spinning its wheels.

    It should be said that some top managers believe that using fear will lead to higher economic performance by reducing organisational complacency and inertia. This might have worked reasonably well in a fully controllable and predictable environment in which it is impossible for people to report good news only and hide bad news as long as they can. In today’s volatile context, however, it will result in priceless early warning signs going unheeded.

    According to some observers, a Nokia-like scenario may have been behind China’s delayed response to COVID-19, stemming from long-standing misalignment between the central Communist Party authorities in Beijing and local officials, who knew of the virus in its early stages but lacked incentive to report it quickly. The result – massive human and economic harm – speaks to the high costs of complacency in this new world. Under the revived Nokia, the new board sought to build an organisational culture based on the following motto: “No news is bad news; bad news is good news; good news is no news.”

    4. Integrate government politics rather than focusing only on business economics

    Globalisation had a good run. The notion that the world is flat – unencumbered travels, international business deals, outsourcing to the lowest-cost countries, trade deals, etc. – had few high-powered detractors for several decades leading up to the 2008 financial crisis. Ever since the advent of Brexit and the Trump presidency, however, the idea of business without borders has been on the retreat. As I write this, international air travel is all but frozen entirely, and global supply chains have been chopped to bits. Nation-states, already making a comeback before COVID-19, will likely increase their leverage over multinational businesses in the months and years to come.

    Beyond national security, firms in sectors deemed “essential” to national public welfare – covering a wide range of sectors from food to medical supply, machinery and electronics equipment, transportation and energy – will be the first to feel the pressure to localise. Governments have learned the hard way that it can be dangerous to depend on foreign trade for items that make or break crisis response, such as the reactive agents that are key to COVID-19 testing or even low-tech medical gowns and face masks. They will be keen to maintain or rebuild these precious supply chains on their own soil. This could carry significant implications for businesses that seek overseas expansion. Firms should expect even more severe and close governmental scrutiny and rejection of their proposed joint ventures, mergers and acquisitions, R&D collaborations, even in non-defence related sectors.

    This seeming adversity could create big opportunity for some firms that integrate government politics into their business strategies. For one, homegrown innovation capability will be valued by national governments and benefit from higher economic and regulatory support. Additionally, rising patriotism – creating “good” jobs for your own people – could benefit these firms in their own countries, much like Alibaba and Tencent and Baidu have profited in part from relatively low foreign competition in China.

    What’s bigger than Big Business?

    You may have already noticed some interrelationships between these four priorities. Indeed, in the post-COVID-19 world, these four levers typically operate in combination, rather than in isolation.

    Broadly speaking, strategy after COVID-19 will be less about beating your economic competitors, and more about how businesses can contribute to combating a larger, shared enemy, like climate change, pandemics or perhaps socio-political woes such as inequality. There’s nothing new about this. The US in World War II, for example, saw tremendous cooperative effort between businesses, as well as between the private and public sectors. The COVID-19 “new normal” may actually be a return to an older equilibrium between business and society, and wide stakeholder collaboration.

    It will hopefully serve as a meaningful wake-up call for societies and businesses to take bold, radical actions that could propel humanity to a superior quality of life.

    Author: Quy Nguyen Huy is the Solvay Chaired Professor of Technological Innovation and a Professor of Strategic Management at INSEAD. He is also a director of the Strategy Execution Programme, part of INSEAD’s suite of Executive Education programmes.

    Acknowledgment: I am grateful for feedback from INSEAD Knowledge managing editor Benjamin Kessler, as well as strategy professors Guoli Chen, Felipe Monteiro, Daniel Simonovich, Phebo Wibbens and Christoph Zott.

  • Is Your Business Ready for the Post-Shutdown ‘New Normal’?

    If you lived through the trauma of 9-11, you know that the way we do some things –such as travel – changed forever. The reality of doing business post-COVID-19 will be no different, and its reach will be far more impactful.

    Unlike the sudden shutdown, reopening may happen gradually and with various caveats, such as wearing masks, moving work spaces further apart and checking employee temperatures at the beginning of the work day. Regardless of what government and health guidelines require or suggest, now is the time to prepare for doing business in the new world of coronavirus, which likely will be with us for many months – or perhaps years – to come.

    As you plan for re-entry, evaluate your current practices during the shutdown and consider which are applicable when you re-open. Create workflows that consider the following questions:

    Questions to Ask Yourself and Team

    1) What changes have the virus forced upon you?
    2) What processes are you doing differently? Which are working? Why? Which are not working? Why not?
    3) How is the virus and shutdown affecting each product or service? Are there special considerations for some and not others?
    4) How are you communicating with employees? Is it the same? Different? Better? Worse?
    5) How are you keeping your team engaged and motivated?
    6) What is causing your and your team’s stress? How are you handling it?
    7) What innovations has your team developed during the crisis that could be implemented post-shutdown?
    8) How well have you – and team members – handled change? Have new “stars” emerged who showed greater leadership?
    9) Has remote working been a positive experience? Should you continue it at some level in
    the future?
    10) Has providing flex-time hours been a positive experience? Should you continue it?

    Working through these questions and developing new “rules” for each scenario will help you anticipate your business life in the future. Depending on the size and type of business, you may need to consider different procedures for each division, department or individual employees.

    Once you have evaluated your situation and developed your plan for the various scenarios, you may want to consider reopening your business in phases on a priority basis. Here is one possible re-entry schedule:

    3 Phases to Work Through

     Phase One: Return employees onsite who aren’t able to effectively or efficiently work remotely because they don’t have all the necessary tools or need to be more
    closely managed.

     Phase Two: Employees working well from home are returned onsite as needed and work on a flexible schedule.

     Phase Three: Employees working extremely well at home can continue working remotely longer, or they may never need to come into the office daily.

    While this unplanned shutdown has been painful and will require us to work differently, it is providing an opportunity to reassess business practices and make changes that will create a more positive company culture. With the right changes, your team can become more productive, and your business can become more profitable.

    For More Information

    About the Author: Shelley Smith is a company culture curator, author and president of Premier Rapport www.premierrapport.com. Culture isn’t built in a day; it’s built every day.

  • How To Survive A Toxic Workplace And Shift The Company Culture Before It’s Too Late

    Executives often understand the importance of goals and solid business strategies. However, many fall short in understanding, embracing and shifting the culture to meet or exceed those goals.

    In the following white paper and the accompanying book, How To Shift Your Company Culture, I address and layout the methods I designed through my years of working in corporate America and in my business with clients.

    The white paper includes all my methods, processes, survey explanation and client results. For most businesses, employees are the largest line item in the budget and the number one differentiator in the business over competitors. The company culture can make or break the overall success (profitability) of an organization. The culture is made up of its people, those people are the culture.

    I hope leaders use this white paper to help teams shift their companies’ culture in the direction they envision to achieve their goals. As my tagline says, Culture Matters.

    Shelley D. Smith is the CEO of Premier Rapport, Inc. and also a best-selling author, consultant and highly sought-after speaker.

    Her experiences over the past 35+ years have earned her a reputation as “The Culture Curator.”

    Forward thinking organizations use her I.M.P.A.C.T. Leadership Model to help them shape the culture they’ve envisioned, increase profitability, decrease employee turnover and retain top talent.

    If you’re like other business leaders who still believe in the people and the mission of your organization, I’m sure you’ll find all the information written by Shelley D. Smith to be helpful.

    To access this comprehensive overview of how to remove the contaminants that pollute peace of mind, productivity and profits, visit the title below:

    How To Survive A Toxic Workplace And Shift The Company Culture Before It’s Too Late.

    Shelley D. Smith encourages everyone that she can answer any questions that arise while reading the book.

    Shelley can be reached at shelley@premierrapport.com.

  • EMPLOYMENT ENGLISH LAW UPDATE – CORONA VIRUS

    Introduction

    The government has recently announced financial support for employers/employees and selfemployed individuals whose businesses are unable to operate during the coronavirus lockdown subject to certain conditions. This update sets out the main details of each scheme.

    Employers/Employees

    Corona Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) – furlough leave
    The CJRS provides support to employers whose employees are unable to work because the business is unable to operate due to the coronavirus lockdown. For example, restaurants, retail and leisure which were closed by government order.

    The CJRS enables employers to be reimbursed for 80% of employees’ wages subject to a
    maximum cap of £2,500 per month (plus employers’ national insurance and minimum auto enrolment pension contribution) provided employees were employed before 19 March 2020 (previously 1 March but changed on 15 April 2020).

    Employers can choose to pay the additional 20% of wages (which will not be reimbursed) but there is no obligation to do so

    How do Employers apply?

    To qualify, employers have to put employees on ‘furlough leave’, i.e leave of absence due to
    the (temporary) shutdown of the business. Employees cannot do any work for their employer while they are on furlough leave, so employees on reduced or shortened hours would not qualify.

    Employees have to agree to furlough leave but, as the alternative could be redundancy,
    employees will most likely agree. Under the CJRS, the furlough leave agreement must be in writing and also as the 20% wages reduction and absence leave is a variation to the employee’s contract. The minimum period of furlough leave is 3 weeks and it is possible to rotate staff if some work is available.

    Once the employees are on furlough leave then the employer pays their 80% wages in the
    normal payroll with the tax and NI deductions (on 80%) and then applies for reimbursement from the government through an online portal system due to be available by the end of April.

    The government has suggested that if employers cannot afford to pay the employees, they will be able to do so through the Government Loan Scheme.

    The online portal is administered by HMRC using existing PAYE records. Claims can be
    backdated to 1 March provided employees were unable to work during this period.
    © Grower Freeman 2020

    Does it apply to all employees?

    Yes, all employees are covered including full-time, part-time and zero hours workers provided they are on PAYE. Agency staff on PAYE can be furloughed by their agency. Employees who were made redundant in February 2020 and now before 19 March due to the corona virus can be reinstated and claims backdated to 1 March.

    From the latest HMRC guidance, employees on sick leave can be furloughed and vice versa. However, this should not be abused by using furlough pay to top up small amounts of SSP for short term absences

    Employees on maternity leave do not qualify but are still entitled to Statutory Maternity Pay.

    What happens at the end of the three-month scheme?

    Depending on the state of the business, employers can either retain the employees, putting them back on full wages or make them redundant. It is also possible to make employees redundant while on furlough leave. However, the furlough scheme is intended to avoid redundancies during the lockdown period and hopefully save jobs.

    Can employees do any other work whilst on Furlough Leave?

    Employees cannot do any paid work either for their employer or any other employer unless
    there is an existing agreement. They can do voluntary work (unpaid) and, if the employe
    requires them to do training during furlough leave, then they are entitled to be paid the
    national minimum/ living wage.

    Statutory Sick Pay For anyone suffering from Covid-19 or who are self-isolating or shielding others, SSP will be paid on the first day of absence rather than the fourth day. Small to medium sized employers will also be reimbursed for the full amount of SSP rather than having to pay it themselves.

    SSP is minimal – £95.85 per week from 6th April. There is, however, now the option to furlough staff instead, if appropriate

    SSP only applies to employees but self-employed people can also make a claim for universal credit or contributory employment and support allowance.

    Holiday Leave

    The Working Time Regulations have been amended to allow employees/ workers to carry over four weeks of holiday leave to the next two leave years if it was not reasonably practicable to use holiday leave due to the coronavirus pandemic.

    Self-employed

    The government rescue package for the self-employed (individuals and members of a
    partnership) comprises the following:

    • A new self-employed income support scheme will pay self-employed people a taxable grant worth 80% of average monthly income, capped at £2,500 per month © Grower Freeman 2020
    • Income will be calculated by taking the average of income over the last three years from HMRC records.
    • Self-employed people can claim these grants and continue to work in their business (so it is not the same as furlough leave where employees are unable to work for their employer).
    • The scheme is only open to those with trading profits of up to £50k and who make the majority of their income from self-employment.
    • It only applies to those who have submitted a Tax Return for 2019 (this is to minimise fraud).
    • However, those who have only just set up a business or who did not submit their Tax Return by 31.01.2020 can still submit a Tax Return for 2019 for a further four weeks from 26th March 2020.

    How do Self-Employed people apply for this?

    The scheme will not be up and running until the end of June. Unlike the CJRS no application is required. Instead, HMRC will contact eligible self-employed people directly inviting them to fill out an online form and, if approved, will then pay the grant direct into their bank account. Similar to the CJRS, the scheme will only be open for three months from 1st March to end of June but, as it will not be in operation until the end of June, it is not going to provide immediate support

    Other help for the self-employed

    Tax payments due on 31st July 2020 can be put back to 31st January 2021 and VAT Returns can be deferred to 31st March 2021.

    Comment

    The government’s financial support packages during the coronavirus lockdown and the speed with which they have been introduced is unprecedented but these are unprecedented times. It remains to be seen how the schemes will work in practice. Various legal issues have already been addressed in the government’s latest guidance updates and doubtless, more will follow

    Website links:

    https://www.gov.uk/guidance/claim-a-grant-through-the-coronavirus-covid-19-self-employment-income-support-scheme

    Contact details:

    This update was produced by Tessa Fry, Head of Employment at Grower Freeman. For further information or advice, please contact Tessa Fry at tessa@growerfreeman.co.uk -or- 020 7563 5477.

    Disclaimer – This update is intended to provide readers with information on recent legal developments. It should not be construed as legal advice or guidance on a particular matter.

    Publisher/Author Info:

    Grower Freeman
    Ivor House
    25-26 Ivor Place
    London NW1 6HR
    T: +44 (0)20 7723 30
    E: tessa@growerfreeman.co.uk
    W: www.growerfreeman.co.uk

    To View Original Published PDF by Tessa Fry of Grower Freeman, Click HERE

  • If You’re So Smart, Why Aren’t You Rich?

    New research suggests personality has a larger effect on success than IQ.

    How much is a child’s future success determined by innate intelligence? Economist James Heckman says it’s not what people think. He likes to ask educated non-scientists—especially politicians and policy makers—how much of the difference between people’s incomes can be tied to IQ. Most guess around 25 percent, even 50 percent, he says. But the data suggest a much smaller influence: about 1 or 2 percent.

    So if IQ is only a minor factor in success, what is it that separates the low earners from the high ones? Or, as the saying goes: If you’re so smart, why aren’t you rich?

    Science doesn’t have a definitive answer, although luck certainly plays a role. But another key factor is personality, according to a paper Heckman co-authored in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. He found financial success was correlated with conscientiousness, a personality trait marked by diligence, perseverance and self-discipline.

    To reach that conclusion, he and colleagues examined four different data sets, which, between them, included IQ scores, standardized test results, grades and personality assessments for thousands of people in the U.K., the U.S. and the Netherlands. Some of the data sets followed people over decades, tracking not just income but criminal records, body mass index and self-reported life satisfaction.

    The study found that grades and achievement-test results were markedly better predictors of adult success than raw IQ scores. That might seem surprising—after all, don’t they all measure the same thing? Not quite. Grades reflect not just intelligence but also what Heckman calls “non-cognitive skills,” such as perseverance, good study habits and the ability to collaborate—in other words, conscientiousness. To a lesser extent, the same is true of test scores. Personality counts.

    Heckman, who shared a Nobel Prize in 2000 and is founder of the University of Chicago’s Center for the Economics of Human Development, believes success hinges not just on innate ability but on skills that can be taught. His own research suggests childhood interventions can be helpful, and that conscientiousness is more malleable than IQ. Openness—a broad trait that includes curiosity—is also connected to test scores and grades.

    IQ still matters, of course. Someone with an IQ of 70 isn’t going to be able to do things that are easy for a person with an IQ of 190. But Heckman says many people fail to break into the job market because they lack skills that aren’t measured on intelligence tests. They don’t understand how to behave with courtesy in job interviews. They may show up late or fail to dress properly. Or on the job, they make it obvious they’ll do no more than the minimum, if that.

    John Eric Humphries, a co-author of the paper, says he hoped their work could help clarify the complicated, often misunderstood notion of ability. Even IQ tests, which were designed to assess innate problem-solving capabilities, appear to measure more than just smarts. In a 2011 study, University of Pennsylvania psychologist Angela Duckworth found that IQ scores also reflected test-takers’ motivation and effort. Diligent, motivated kids will work harder to answer tough questions than equally intelligent but lazier ones.

    Teaching personality or character traits in school wouldn’t be easy. For one thing it’s not always clear whether more of a trait is always better. The higher the better for IQ, and perhaps for conscientiousness as well. But personality researchers have suggested the middle ground is best for other traits — you don’t want to be so introverted that you can’t speak up, or so extroverted that you can’t shut up and listen.

    What does any of this have to do with economics? “Our ultimate goal is to improve human well-being,” Heckman says, and a major determinant of well-being comes down to skills.

    A newer study published in the journal Nature Human Behaviour focused on the flip side of success: hardship. After following some 1,000 New Zealanders for more than 30 years, researchers concluded that tests of language, behavioral skills and cognitive abilities taken when children were just three years old could predict who was most likely to need welfare, commit crimes, or become chronically ill.

    The lead author of that paper, Duke University psychologist Terrie Moffitt, says she hopes the results would foster compassion and help, not stigma. Her results also suggested that helping people improve certain kinds of skills before they’re out of diapers would benefit everyone.

    Faye Flam is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist. She has written for the Economist, the New York Times, the Washington Post, Psychology Today, Science and other publications. She has a degree in geophysics from the California Institute of Technology. This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners. For more columns from Bloomberg Opinion, visit http://www.bloomberg.com/opinion.

  • The Human Skills We Need For An Unpredictable World

    The more we rely on technology to make us efficient, the fewer skills we have to confront the unexpected, says writer and entrepreneur Margaret Heffernan. She shares why we need less tech and more messy human skills — imagination, humility, bravery — to solve problems in an unpredictable age. “We are brave enough to invent things we’ve never seen before,” she says. “We can make any future we choose.”

    Original article appears in: TED Talks Ideas worth spreading: https://www.ted.com/talks/margaret_heffernan_the_human_skills_we_need_in_an_unpredictable_world/transcript?utm_source=newsletter_weekly_2019-08-02&utm_campaign=newsletter_weekly&utm_medium=email&utm_content=top_left_button#t-4855

  • The Self Disruptive Leader

  • Referral Marketing for Beginners: The Power of Referral Programs

    March 25, 2019

    When it comes to small business marketing, trust is by far the most valuable currency. Driving web traffic and increasing brand awareness are great goals, but there’s nothing more impactful than engendering trust in your business. This can be achieved in a number of ways, but word-of-mouth consistently produces the best results. Indeed, 92 percent of customers say they are inclined to trust “earned” media like word-of-mouth and personal recommendations. Referral marketing is the simplest and most effective way to generate this invaluable buzz, so take a look at what you need to know to get started.

    What Is Referral Marketing?

    There’s no question that word-of-mouth is a powerful force. Plenty of businesses have succeeded largely on the strength of word-of-mouth marketing. In-person recommendations generate over five times more sales than paid marketing efforts, making them a holy grail of advertising. Unfortunately, most businesses can’t afford to simply sit back and wait for these recommendations to happen organically. The solution, then, is referral marketing.

    In its most basic form, referral marketing simply means offering some kind of incentive to encourage satisfied customers to spread the word about your business. Why is this necessary? While 83 percent of customers are willing to spread the word about great products or services, just 29 percent actually do so on their own. Offering a referral program can tap into that remaining 54 percent and lead to a huge increase in your word-of-mouth recommendations. It’s a simple strategy that can produce serious growth, but it’s not right for every situation.

    Is Referral Marketing Right for Your Business?

    An effective referral marketing campaign requires that a business has a few things in place. The first requirement is a truly excellent product or service. After all, few customers are going to suggest a subpar product to their family and friends. Even worse, offering a referral program for something that doesn’t meet expectations can backfire in a serious way. Good reviews for your offerings, positive feedback from customers and unsolicited referrals are all good signs that referral marketing is a fit for your business.

    Another prerequisite is excellent customer support. This serves a few important purposes. The first is to ensure that your business can adequately handle an influx of new customers. It’s no guarantee, but a referral program can sometimes bring in a major increase in traffic. Can your company handle this increase appropriately? The second factor is to make sure that each new customer has as good an experience as the person who made the recommendation. A single referral doesn’t do much good, but a negative experience can stop the chain before it even begins. The best campaigns rely on each referred customer subsequently bringing even more referrals on board.

    The Basics of Creating a Referral Program

    The first step in building a referral program is defining the goals you’d like to achieve. What would constitute a success for your campaign? For some businesses, it may involve hitting a specific sales figure in a certain time frame. For others, it may be more important to bring on a particular number of new customers. Perhaps the most important factor for your industry is building greater trust and recognition. No matter what success looks like to you, it’s important to be specific and set tangible targets that can be used to track your progress later on.

    The next task is to choose the right incentives. In some cases, simply thanking your customers and asking them to spread the word if they’re satisfied is enough to jump-start the process. In other cases, it’s best to offer a reward to help spur your customers into action. Take a look at what your competitors are doing and consider which incentives are appropriate for your industry. Popular options include the following:

    • Priority service
    • Credits or cash back on purchases
    • Access to exclusive deals and discounts
    • Free or upgraded shipping

    Promote, Refine and Refocus

    Once you’ve determined your goals and settled on incentives, the key to success is building awareness of your program. As with incentives, the right approach to promotion may vary depending on your industry and the goods or services you offer. Reaching out to existing customers with an invitational email is almost always a great place to start. A prominent call to action on your website is usually an effective approach as well. It’s also a good idea to incorporate your referral program into your newsletter. Recent studies have shown that 90 percent of people who are prompted to subscribe to a newsletter opt to do so.

    After the program has been launched, it’s important to track the results and adapt your approach as necessary. Unfortunately, it sometimes takes some trial and error to hit upon the most effective combination of incentives and promotional strategies for your industry and customer base. Regularly refining your approach and refocusing your long-term aims will help you maximize your returns. Utilize the metrics that are most important to you to track your success. Consider requesting feedback from customers to gauge their response to your program and use this information to shape any changes moving forward.

    The modern hyperconnected, media-saturated world has given businesses more avenues for marketing than ever before. Nonetheless, word-of-mouth is undoubtedly still king. In fact, it’s the primary motivating factor behind a staggering 50 percent of all purchasing decisions. The most successful small businesses capitalize on this and turn satisfied customers into true allies. With small business referral programs, you can engender trust, give back to the customers who fuel your success and open up new opportunities for strong and sustainable growth.

    Original Article Appears: https://www.hiscox.com/blog/referral-marketing-for-beginners-the-power-of-referral-programs?utm_campaign=D%20-%20Customer%20Newsletter%20-%20May%202019_vB%20F&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua