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Welcome back to our Weekly Digest. Read on for the latest updates and some ideas to help us all move forward. WA Border Reopening After 697 days, Western Australia has finally reopened its borders. From 12: 01am Thursday, a long list of new restrictions is expected to stay in place for four weeks. Strong Economic Growth at the End of 2021 The economy has reported its equal-best quarter of growth…  Read more

Traditionally, employers have relied on giving employees raises as a way to retain their staff and reward them for being hard-working and loyal. Raises can get expensive, and there is often an upper limit for what you can offer when it comes to increasing salaries and wages. Keeping your employees happy makes business sense. You want to keep your good employees, and it costs money to find, hire and train…  Read more

Welcome back to our Weekly Digest. Read on for the latest updates and some ideas to help us all move forward. Australia Welcomes Back International Tourists After almost two years, vaccinated international tourists and business travelers began arriving in Australia with few restrictions. Prime Minister Scott Morrison said 1.2 million people had visas to enter Australia with 56 international flights due to touch down in the first 24 hours of…  Read more

It’s no secret that data loss can be a costly nightmare for a small business, with recent estimates citing the total cost of data breaches exceeding $2.1 trillion by 2019. Unfortunately, cyber attackers increasingly target small businesses because they are less likely to have security protection in place. Accidental loss or loss due to a natural disaster can be just as harmful to a business, with recovery efforts and delays…  Read more

Welcome back to our Weekly Digest. Read on for the latest updates and some ideas to help us all move forward. Booster Shots Now Required To Be Fully Vaccinated Australians will need to receive booster shots to be considered fully vaccinated against COVID-19, although authorities said foreign travellers will continue to need only two shots to enter the country. If you haven’t received a booster within six months of your…  Read more

When things are hectic, most small business owners wish they could find a way to get more than 24 hours into a day. Often, your ‘to-do’ list can get so long that you feel you never get to put as much attention into every task as you would like. It can also mean more time in the office or dealing with work issues after-hours – cutting into your free time…  Read more

Welcome back to our Weekly Digest. Read on for the latest updates and some ideas to help us all move forward. Borders to Reopen to International Travel The borders will be reopened to vaccinated tourists and other visa holders from 21 February. Unvaccinated travellers who have a medical reason for not getting inoculated will need to apply for a travel exemption and will be required to quarantine at a hotel.…  Read more

Looking for simple ways to cut costs? These tips will help you make a noticeable difference to your bottom line. 1. Reduce staff costs Without a doubt, having someone to help deal with routine tasks can greatly improve productivity. The rub is that hired help is often too expensive for small business owners. Internships can be a real win-win: a student gets hands-on experience assisting you with marketing, accounting or…  Read more

Welcome back to our Weekly Digest. Read on for the latest updates and some ideas to help us all move forward. NSW Unveils $1 Billion Support Package for Businesses The New South Wales government has unveiled a $1 billion support package for small- and medium-sized businesses hit by the Omicron outbreak. However, the payment will be capped at half of what was offered during the Delta wave in 2021, after…  Read more

If you’ve just started working with Xero, it is normal to make a few mistakes while you’re learning. We see mistakes that are quite common – and unfortunately costly – so you should be aware of them if you want to get the most out of Xero’s powerful cloud accounting system. 1. Not connecting all the bank and credit card accounts dedicated for your business Make sure that you keep…  Read more

Welcome back to our Weekly Digest. Read on for the latest updates and some ideas to help us all move forward. WA Cancels Plan to Reopen Borders on 5 February All states and territories, except Western Australia, have reopened their internal borders despite a record surge in cases. Last Thursday, WA Premier Mark McGowan made a shock announcement that the reopening of borders, which was originally set on 5 February,…  Read more

Many small business owners think they’re saving money by handling their financials themselves. While it’s a real asset to learn bookkeeping basics, cash flow management and your tax obligations, hiring an accountant to oversee your finances has many benefits. Leaving your books to a pro will free up time so you can focus on serving your clients and implementing plans for growth. Here are a few ways an accounting professional…  Read more

Welcome back to our Weekly Digest. Read on for the latest updates and some ideas to help us all move forward.    Should You Mix or Match Your Booster Dose? In Australia, Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines are recommended as booster shots, regardless of which vaccine you had for your first two doses. Some research has indicated that “mixing and matching” vaccines could give your immune system a bigger boost.…  Read more

So you’ve set up your business and sold some products and services. Now, you have to send an invoice to collect your payment. But what should you include on your invoices in order to get paid faster? Even if you’ve been running your business for a while, you might be missing other information that you should include. So here is a step-by-step guide on what to include on your invoices.…  Read more

Welcome back to our Weekly Digest. Read on for the latest updates and some ideas to help us all move forward.    Pandemic Leave Disaster Payment People who are forced out of work to isolate due to being infected or being a close contact are eligible for the Pandemic Leave Disaster Payment. You are also eligible if you are caring for a child under 16 years old who is a…  Read more

As another year winds down, it’s a good time to reflect on your recent business successes – and consider what you’d like to achieve in the coming twelve to fifteen months. These tips can help you with the process of making plans to help guide your business to greater success. Set priorities Entrepreneurs are typically highly creative and optimistic; as a result, they often have difficulty narrowing down their ideas…  Read more

Welcome back to our Weekly Digest. We hope you and your family have all had a great time during the festivities! Read on for the latest updates and some ideas to help you have a great start into the new year. COVID-19 Vaccination Info Kiosks COVID-19 vaccination information kiosks are now open in shopping centres and at events in New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia to help…  Read more

New Year resolutions – we’ve all made them, and broken them − often before the end of January. There’s something about New Year celebrations that makes us yearn for a fresh start, but is there a way to make that desire for change more permanent? Here’s a twist that can make your resolutions more durable, more beneficial and less prone to that embarrassing quick fade. Align goals to your business…  Read more

The turn of the year usually prompts most people to think about some business planning for the year ahead. Here are some tips to make the planning more productive. Get your team involved Business planning works best when it’s a team effort. Involve your key staff and your advisors, such as your accountant, your mentor (if you have one), and others who can contribute meaningfully to the planning, such as…  Read more

Welcome back to our Weekly Digest. Read on for the latest updates and some ideas to help us all move forward. This is the last weekly digest for the year. We hope you have a relaxing holiday break and we’ll be back with more updates in the New Year. Government Rules Out Lockdowns Despite Omicron Surge Prime Minister Scott Morrison said Australia must move past “the heavy hand of government”…  Read more