business Archives - Page 4 of 4

I was asked to put together some words for Recruitment International and TheBusinessDesk.com a few months back. While adding some new content to my company website I chanced upon this article again. This advice is for anyone considering starting up his or her own business and is an important reminder for anyone currently running an SME.

Be positive and honest
If you have a great business idea, pursue it! You never know where it can take you. Remember to be a doer not a watcher. When we were made redundant in 2009 I was devastated for a couple of days before asking myself: “What am I going to do now?” I knew I was skilled in my sector and I knew I had a great reputation. It seemed clear to me that I should set up on my own and so I approached my now business partner who I trusted and had worked with for several years.

Surround yourself with talented people and keep hold of them
Staff recruitment, retention, training and motivation are all absolutely key to any successful business. Any organisation is only as strong as the staff it employs. Everyone in a business is important and needs to feel fully engaged, on board and valued by their firm. Remember that you need to have some fun too and always reward success. On this topic, we will be hosting a business breakfast event on Emotional Intelligence For Business Success on 13 October. This will cover key reasons why the emotional intelligence and wellbeing of employees is key in every workplace.

Remember that cash is king
It is a brutal fact that even if you have the best business, product or service in the world; without money in your bank account you are unable to pay your suppliers, creditors or staff – let alone yourself!
You need to have a firm but fair approach to cash flow management and a constant eye on your bottom line, all of the time, not just at the end of the month or quarter! You need to scrutinise your debtors and maintain a strong and clear line of communication with your creditors to ensure you and any business partners are always on top of your current cash position.

Truly understand your business
You have to know what makes your business unique and what makes your specific service or product stand out. You should have USPs, which set you apart from your competition such as our unique Triple Point Guarantee. Consider new USPs you can offer and constantly ask yourself: “How is what I am doing now benefiting my business? Is what I am doing now the most effective use of my time?” Remember to work on your business NOT just in it!

Engagement is key
Social media is constantly evolving alongside all methods of communication, branding and marketing. To support your business, you need to constantly and consistently engage with your target audience in a meaningful, educational and non-confrontational way. Your business needs to be synonymous with quality and professionalism. Think about what messages you, your team and your social media channels are communicating about the brand and business.

This article was first published in TheBusinessDesk.com

Astute Recruitment is an accountancy recruitment business specialising in working with SME business owners across Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire.

Its co-founders Sarah Stevenson and Mary Maguire set up the business in 2009 at the height of recession after facing redundancy. Here, Maguire shares the lessons she’s learned running the company during that time.

Be positive and honest
If you have a great business idea, pursue it! You never know where it can take you. Remember to be a doer not a watcher. When we were made redundant in 2009 I was devastated for a couple of days before asking myself: “What am I going to do now?” I knew I was skilled in my sector and I knew I had a great reputation. It seemed clear to me that I should set up on my own and so I approached my now business partner, who I’d worked with for several years and trusted.

Surround yourself with talented people and keep hold of them
Staff recruitment, retention, training and motivation are all absolutely key to a successful business. Any organisation is only as strong as the staff it employs. Everyone in a business is important and need to feel fully engaged, on board and valued by their firm. Remember that you need to have some fun too and always reward success.

Remember: cash is king
It is a brutal fact that even if you have the best business, product or service in the world; without money in your bank account you are unable to pay your suppliers, creditors or staff – let alone yourself.
You need to have a firm but fair approach to cash flow management and a constant eye on your bottom line, all of the time, not just at the end of the month or quarter! You need to scrutinise your debtors and maintain a strong and clear line of communication with your creditors to ensure you and any business partners, are always on top of your current cash position.

Truly understand your business
You have to know what makes your business unique and what makes your specific service or product stand out. You should have USPs which set you apart from your competition such as our unique Triple Point Guarantee. Consider new USPs you can offer and constantly ask yourself: “How is what I am doing now benefiting my business?” “Is what I am doing now is the most effective use of my time?”

Engagement is key
Social media is constantly evolving alongside all methods of communication, branding and marketing. To support your company you need to constantly engage with your target audience in a meaningful, educational and non-confrontational way – your business needs to be synonymous with quality and professionalism. Think about what message you, your team and your social media channels are communicating about the brand and business.

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Mike

16:04 13 Mar 23

Highly recommended! Josh and Sarah have been fantastic at Astute. They've found and placed me in 2 jobs now between them, both really responsive and excellent at keeping you up to speed with things. Very knowledgable about the roles and happy to talk to companies with any queries you have.

C R.

10:45 27 Jan 23

Great agency one of the best ones I've worked with! Liz has been a great help and support in helping me towards a new direction in my career life. She is very attentive and keeps me in the loop at all times! She makes the extra effort to work with my preferred requirements for work and even if it isn't completely attainable she meets me in the middle and does as much as she can to help! Also Liz is very funny might I add 😂 and I'm happy that I can now put a face to the name after all these years! Thank you again Liz for all your help and support! 😊

Christine

10:32 20 Dec 22

Josh and the Astute team was very swift to help me to find roles that matched my profile. They are really reliable and will help through every step of the recruitment process going out of their way to assist and follow up when needed. Could not find a better recruitment agency!

Helen Pinegar

16:19 18 Dec 22

Fantastic recruitment agency.. Josh was extremely enthusiastic, encouraging and clearly knowledgeable about what was needed from both the employee and the employers point of view. Extremely supportive especially in regards to interview preparation and endeavoured to procure feedback promptly. Wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Astute in the future to both candidates and recruiting businesses particularly for the right fit for the role!!!

Lisa Leigh

11:56 30 Nov 22

I have worked as a candidate for Astute and they have been excellent. Super friendly service and professional agents keen to fit the right person to the right job. It has been a pleasure dealing with them and I would happily work for them again in the future. Highly recommend this agency.