Credit where credit’s due: A guide to getting paid
Fast growing firms often face the problem of non-payment. Clients either go bust, or won’t pay for months on end. It is particularly problematic for first-time exporters who have little knowledge of...
View ArticleSix ways to counter your cash flow terrors
Managing cash flow can be one of the terrors for a small business, but there are ways to balance money flowing in and out of your business without suffering financial cardiac arrest – it’s about...
View ArticleSMEs: Going for Gold
Earlier this year SAP conducted some research into the growth strategies of UK SMEs. Whilst 95% of the businesses surveyed cited growth as their number one goal at the moment, two different...
View ArticleCan’t get no satisfaction? Why not become Britain’s next big exporter?
Surprisingly, there was a moment of clarity in the Rolling Stones’ career. After recording their first LP at Regent Sound Studios, London, they sat back, took a long drag of something and decided...
View ArticleHow to get ship-shape, without breaking the bank
We’ve all changed our behaviour in this recession and its aftermath. I, for one, can’t remember the last time I went out to a restaurant without a two-for-one voucher. Doing otherwise now just feels...
View ArticleBreaking up is hard to do: keeping hold of your top performers
Fast-growing firms all have a similar problem: how to hang onto brilliant staff members. You train them up. You spend time mentoring them. You learn to rely on them. And then they get itchy feet and...
View ArticleGet your free Money Guide here!
Handling finances is often tricky business. Particularly for SMEs that are growing fast, sometimes more money can mean more problems. Keeping up with cash-flow, government support schemes,...
View ArticleFull steam ahead: lessons to learn from the Fast Track 100
Brand new businesses, well-known brands, merged companies, fresh faced start-ups and floating heavyweights. They’re all in there. It’s the Fast Track 100; the league table that Sir Richard Branson...
View ArticleThe future as we knew it: A reflection on last year’s SME insight report
“I’m not your average business owner,” admits Chelle McCann of Social Sparkle. “I kind of fell in to this,” she continues modestly down the phone from her hometown, Brighton. Think Bigger is talking...
View ArticleThe acquired taste of SMEs
While mergers and acquisitions have been hushed in recent years, they’re set to make more of stir in the UK this year. There’s plethora of reasons why SMEs might want to become part of or buy another...
View ArticleBudget 2013: Driving SME Growth
Sadly, the Budget had little reference to SMEs. Maybe it’s not a surprise that there’s less emphasis on SMEs compared to 2012. And it wasn’t just Parliament talking less about SMEs but also the...
View ArticleThe Business Bank: much needed finance for SMEs
With a recent SME snub in the budget, it’s about time fast-growth SMEs received a well-deserved shot to the arm. Queue Vince Cable. Thankfully, he’s announced the first phase of the Government’s...
View ArticleInvesting to Grow
A man visits his bank manager and says, “How do I start a small business?” The manager replies, “Start a large one and wait six months.” Jokes aside, running a successful business isn’t easy and...
View ArticleAbout bitcoin: From birth to business
When something is born out of distrust and failure, it’s often both brilliant and flawed. What some people call a revolution others call a backlash. This is the perceived nature of bitcoin. And it is...
View ArticleFinancial stability paves the way to success
Jane Tweddle, financial services principal at SAP UKI highlights the importance of finance as a building block for growth, and what SMEs must consider in order to keep up with the rapidly changing...
View ArticleSave SMEs £1bn, just Make it Cheaper
The credit crunch has had a profound effect on the way we watch our pennies; the age of austerity has slashed disposable incomes in homes and businesses across the UK. It’s not all bad news though;...
View ArticleLooking to break into public sector spending?
Historically, it’s been tough for small to medium sized businesses to break into the public sector. But, with plans to make it easier for SMEs to bid for public sector contracts this is all about to...
View ArticleGrowing places? £15m funding for SMEs
With SMEs facing more challenges than ever, initiatives are being implemented by governments and local councils around the country. We caught up with Emma Gibson from the Thames Valley Berkshire LEP,...
View ArticleGrowing Places? £15m funding for SMEs
With SMEs facing more challenges than ever, initiatives are being implemented by governments and local councils around the country. We caught up with Emma Gibson from the Thames Valley Berkshire LEP,...
View ArticleThree alternative finance options for SMEs
Business lending, particularly for fast-growth SMEs, has been falling for some time now and whether it’ll increase this year is extremely tricky to predict. The latest attempt to stimulate it...
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