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The pains caused by a recession can be brutal and most of us dread the thought. A recession can mean massive layoffs, fewer jobs and wages frozen, which means consumers spend less and in turn worsening the economic slowdown. If we look at the effects of the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) of 2008, between December 2008 and December 2010, about 1.8 million small businesses closed. According to Investopedia one decade…  Read more

As small business operators emerge post COVID, there are some important business questions to ask. These questions will help determine whether your business model is working and if there are additional changes you want to make to protect your business through future economic downturns or volatility. Will you remain the same old caterpillar or a change and improve like a butterfly? 1. What worked and what didn’t work in my…  Read more

You run a business, you take a risk. The aim is generally to provide income to support your lifestyle and family and freedom to be your own boss. For too many business owners, their business is a harder task master than any boss they have ever reported to. We know there is a better way… Too many businesses fall over or fail to achieve their potential because the owner has…  Read more

Good news! This week the government announced that the Instant Asset Write-off has been extended for six months, taking the initiative to 31 December 2020. Australian businesses with less than $500 million annual turnover will be able to take advantage of the write-off and invest in assets to support their business. This government initiative is designed to help the economy reopen and boost economic growth. The instant asset write-off applies…  Read more

Image from The Spirit Business If you’re like many business owners you’re probably astounded by how the world changed in a very short time, and now it seems to have changed all over again! While we can all hope that the pandemic is a once-in-a-lifetime scenario, the truth is there is a lot in life and in business that is uncertain, and there is a great deal we can learn…  Read more

Your “war chest” is the financial reserve your business has built up. Your war chest helps you take advantage of opportunities or cover unexpected costs or emergencies such as the current Covid pandemic. Building a cash reserve when finances are tight, however, can be difficult. You need money to continue running your business while attempting to keep your reserve account healthy. To begin you should download a cashflow scenario planner…  Read more

A market update from joint venture partner Knight Financial Advisors To say it has been a volatile month in markets would be an understatement. From their recent highs to recent lows US shares have fallen 13%, Eurozone shares have lost 16%, Japanese shares have fallen 14% and Australian shares have lost 13%. Emergency central bank intervention saw bond yields plunge to new record lows in the US and Australia. Commodity…  Read more

Risk management should be central to every business. At Porters CA – Chartered Accountants we see two key imperatives – (A) achieve your goals; (B) manage the risk of not achieving your goals. Simple really. Invest in solutions that will improve your business performance and resilience in all cases such as remote working capability, duplicate supply options, multiple unrelated revenue streams, strong client communication channels, robust funding arrangements, documented operating…  Read more

Join the small business train. You’re working all hours, making sales, invoicing clients but it seems that all of us ask the same question, “Where does all the money go?” When you own a small business, it’s vital you understand how money flows into and out. At a basic level, you need to know where your income comes from and what your expenses are. At a deeper level, knowing how…  Read more

Small business owners can enjoy diversity and job satisfaction by being involved in all aspects of their business. Involvement in all areas of your business allows you to use a variety of skills which challenge you and keep work interesting. Very few operators however, enjoy doing the books. Many business owners do their own bookkeeping under the assumption they will save money. Time spent on the books is less time delivering…  Read more

When you run your own trade business, your life involves long days on job sites managing projects, staff and clients. Often we see successful business operators working so hard they find no time for invoicing and bookkeeping. Thanks to a variety of online software companies, running your business is now a lot easier. You can efficiently manage your projects, employees, finances and records on your computer, tablet, or mobile phone.…  Read more

With Christmas at hand it is time to think about payroll and staff leave over the Christmas break. Getting ready now will take some of the stress out of payroll over this period. Are you closed over Christmas? Do your staff need to put in leave requests for this period? If so get them in early to help with smooth processing. Discuss expectations with your staff. Those who don’t have…  Read more

With the implementation of single touch payroll, the ATO has real time data of wages paid, super due and receipts by super funds. This means now more than ever Superannuation must be paid on time. We’ve helped many small businesses implement systems to embrace single touch payroll by moving to cloud accounting with Xero or MYOB and gaining the additional benefits of time, knowledge and control of their business. The ATO…  Read more

There are some things in life that go together well and others that definitely do not. Business and personal finances are in the category of items that should not be mixed. Although it may seem like a headache to keep them separate—who wants to manage all those bank accounts?—your life will be greatly simplified once you separate your personal and your business finances, especially your expenses. Paperwork and taxes will…  Read more

Small business owners know that to find a loyal customer base, you have to stand out from your competitors. One of the best, and easiest, ways to do that is to have outstanding customer service. How you treat your customers reflects on your entire business. Your customers deserve to be treated well. They are supporting your business. Many small business owners focus a lot of attention on their products and…  Read more

Advice from the desk of Simon Terry I have been helping clients recently with commercial leases they can’t afford, in premises they don’t need, for leases we didn’t discuss, locked in place by personal guarantees. So I have put together 10 tips of dos and don’ts: 1. Personal guarantees – don’t do it.  Accountants create business structures to minimise personal risk so don’t undo our hard work. 2. How well…  Read more

Every manager has habits that make them incredibly effective as well as issues that their employees wish they would change. The problem is that many employees won’t tell their manager what those weaknesses are, often out of fear of retaliation. So while managers conduct employee performance reviews pointing out areas for staff improvement, sometimes the manager’s own weaknesses go unaddressed. Porters Director Simon Terry recently acknowledged a staff member for…  Read more

To many people, financial planning sounds like something for the very rich. The wealthiest people take their piles of money to someone who tells them where to invest it so they can make even more money. The rest of us just focus on saving what we can while paying off debt and hoping we don’t lose our jobs before we’re financially stable. In fact, financial planning is about having long-term…  Read more

You’ve got a great idea for a business, and now you want to get it off the ground and take it to market. This is a very exciting time, but there’s quite a bit you need to think about before you can launch. We offer resources to help you get started. Follow our seven day program to:  Determine if you can make any money Prove you can beat the competition…  Read more

Taking steps to ensure your customers pay promptly should be a key priority for your business. When clients consistently pay on time, you are able to pay your vendors, suppliers, and employees on time and you’ll have an up to date view on the profitability of your business. This requires that you also implementing strategies to support prompt payment and make it easy for customers to pay as soon as the bill comes in. Provide…  Read more