9 smart ways to get the most out of meetings
Veteran financier Ray Dalio has been in every kind of meeting: the good, the bad and the ugly. Here’s how he keeps his meetings focused and productive. In 1974, Ray Dalio founded the hedge fund Bridgewater Associates, and it’s now the world’s largest, managing roughly $160 billion. Here…
Improving your business decision making skills
by Srini Pillay for The Harvard Business Review. We are faced with the need to make decisions every day. Should we bring product A or B to market? Which marketing strategy should we use? Of the choices that we have available, who is the best…
How to build a company where the best ideas win
What if you knew what your coworkers really thought about you and what they were really like? Ray Dalio makes the business case for using radical transparency and algorithmic decision-making to create an idea meritocracy where people can speak up and say what they really…
Fight. Flight. Freeze in Business
The phrase “fight or flight” was coined in the 1920s to describe key behaviour that occurs in the context of a perceived threat. It evolved as a survival mechanism and results in an overwhelming action tendency from humans. Much later in the 70’s a third…
Will Small Business weather a rising minimum wage?
Written by Rob Drower and John Cleghorn, Managing Partners – Prime Strategies Group Most of you will be well aware that the minimum wage rate will increase to $16.50 as of 1 April 2018, a date that many may think rather apt. This is a rise…
Finding time is flying by – and you’re still not having fun?
Article by John Cleghorn, Business Management Consultant & Prime Strategies Group Partner. Here we are in yet another year. Time seems to go by so quickly, doesn’t it? So, for all those SME business owners out there, I have a few questions for you… Are…
5 Ways to prepare for change & engage your team
A great article by the aptly-named Peter Economy for inc.com. Buy-outs, downsizing, staff changes, market changes – there are so many ways a business can transform literally overnight. While these moves often help a company remain competitive, they can also result in profound changes to…
Insights into becoming more resilient
One key business skill that is frequently over-looked is resilience. Being in business is an ever-changing journey, as markets wax and wane and industries evolve with technology – and all businesses face challenges that test the mettle of owners and managers. We liked these 8…
Business Books to help you get ahead In 2018
Entrepreneur published this list of the top 28 books for business professionals to read in 2018. “Reading has been noted as one of the primary habits of ultra-successful people, with magnates like Warren Buffett reading hundreds of pages each day and Bill Gates consuming numerous books…
How the biggest minimum wage rise in a decade will affect you
As you are most likely aware the minimum wage will go up from 1 April 2018. This is the largest minimum wage increase in a decade. Have you thought about how this will affect you and your business? Some SMEs may need to choose between…