Got Employees AND A Home Business? Make Your Home Safe To Work

StrategyDriven Managing Your Business Article |Home Business|Got Employees AND A Home Business? Make Your Home Safe To WorkA lot of business owners work from home these days – it’s a flexible working arrangement, and works out in favor of most modern career minds. And when you’ve got a home business, the world really is your oyster! You create and innovate when at home, and you talk to customers and solve their problems from your own desk, and that really helps to boost your confidence and your business acumen.

But when you get the chance to expand, and bring an employee or two into your home business, a few changes might need to be made. After all, you’ve got liability on your doorstep now, and that means you need to create a space that’s safe for work. But how do you get started with that?

Try to Contain the Footfall

If you’re working out of a residential area, you’re definitely going to want to pay mind to this tip most of all; the neighbors might start getting annoyed about the visitors coming and going all day every day! You might want to start scheduling meetings and hangouts away from your house, and in a nearby cafe or restaurant.

But if you cannot quite manage that on your calendar, you’ll have to make an extra effort to try to contain the amount of people in your home, first of all. How? Only call people in certain days. And also make sure any employees in your home are kept to certain areas – if you don’t want people heading upstairs, make sure it’s cordoned off!

Highlight the Problem Areas

Your home might have a lot of problem areas to it, seeing as you live there, possibly with quite a few family members. There could be a lot of mess, or there could be some repairs that need to be done in your personal time – you need to be sure your employees never run into trouble when coming across these areas. So what can you do? You can highlight them!

Of course, you’re not going to want a professional person to notice just how messy your home might be, but if there’s an element of danger involved, it’s important to do so. For example, if you’re getting your wiring redone, or you’ve got some plumbing issues, taping the area off with a bit of reflective tape will naturally highlight the problem to even the most unobservant of eyes. If you want someone to keep away, use a bold color, especially if you’re going to be working quite late into the evening!

Keep Things Quiet

And finally, try to keep the noise down. Maintain a quiet working environment – try to keep your voices at conversation level and no higher, and always use silent powerpoints and human driven presentations more often than not!

A home business is going to need an extra hand or two, at some point. Make sure you’re ready to accept more and more people into your home on a professional basis. It’ll save the carpet at least!

6 Tools You Need for Your Construction Business

StrategyDriven Managing Your Business Article |Construction Tools|6 Tools You Need for Your Construction BusinessIf you’re working in construction, then you’ll know there are some key tools you just can’t do without. Having quality tools you know you can rely on is a requirement for the job and helps you to carry out your work to the highest standard.

While there are some tools that are an added luxury, there are some that are absolutely essential for the job. When it comes to these tools, make sure you’ve got quality equipment to rely on when you’re out on the job.

Cordless Drill

When you’ve got a cordless drill that serves as an electric screwdriver and can quickly drill holes, you save yourself so much time and hard work. Manually putting in screws with a screwdriver is time consuming and can quickly lead to arm fatigue, but with a cordless drill you can add screws in seconds.

With no cord, your cordless drill is portable and easy to use, and you’ll find the battery life is pretty impressive.

Hand Saw

Everyone should have a hand saw whether they’re in construction or not. It might be a basic piece of kit, but the hand saw is useful in so many situations. From small DIY jobs to big construction jobs, there’s a place for the hand saw.

For small cutting jobs, a high-quality hand saw will save you time and give you a high-quality cut.

Tape Measure

There aren’t many jobs you can complete without a tape measure. Precision is vital in construction and without a tape measure you’re just guessing.

The tape measure is small, lightweight, and easily fits in your pocket, but it’s an invaluable part of your equipment.

Adjustable Spanner

Why have a whole set of spanners when you can get an adjustable spanner that does the same job? The adjustable spanner can easily be adjusted to fit all kinds of nuts and bolts.

An adjustable spanner between 10” and 14” will help you speed through a variety of jobs.

Spirit Level

Where the tape measure is there to make sure you’ve got your measurements right, the spirit level is there to make sure everything is level. There’s no point getting something the right length if it’s sloping when it’s not supposed to be, and the spirit level is an easy way of making sure this isn’t the case.

Of course, you can get digital spirit levels now, but the old-fashioned ones still work great and get the job done.

Adhesives and Sealants

Bonding two things together is often an important part of a construction project and those bonds need to maintain sealing properties, so having the right adhesive or sealant is vitally important.

Depending on what materials you’re working with you will need different types of adhesives or sealants, so it’s important to understand which products you need.

The right sealant will ensure that whatever your constructing is weatherproof, waterproof, or fireproof depending on what you need, and give your job a high-quality finish.

Ecommerce Websites Need To Focus On Quick And Easy Shopping

StrategyDriven Online Marketing and Website Development Article |Ecommerce Website|Ecommerce Websites Need To Focus On Quick And Easy ShoppingEcommerce is the rocketship that doesn’t run out of fuel. Year-on-year, ecommerce continues to grow. It’s the way of the future and it makes perfect sense. One of the best reasons why it makes perfect sense is because it makes shopping easier and quicker. These two things lay in the website design field. Navigation is one thing, but the user experience is going to cater for outright speed. Online customers want an ecommerce website to do one thing above all else and that makes it easy for them to find what they want. That’s it, it’s not complicated. Well, in theory, it’s not but website designs have to be unique and interesting which puts a spanner in the works of UX. There are some rules to follow, which for any ecommerce business will make it easy for customers to search and filter their way to the products they desire.

Optimize suggested searches

At the top of your ecommerce website, you should have a search bar. This is best kept right in the middle of the high bar so it’s clearly in view for every page. As visitors click on the search bar, there should be an automated search suggestion. For example, you’re a retail clothing business, a visitor types the letters ‘jea’, your search bar should immediately suggest things like ‘blue jeans’, ‘jeans for men’, ‘dark denim jeans’, etc. However, the trick is to bind your search bar, suggestions and your cookies to remember each search that an individual has made. This way you can optimize the suggestions to include products or similar products they may have already bought or looked at before.

More options the better

It’s important to understand some customers may only be half sure of what they are looking for. They may be in the business of searching for a new pair of jeans but they don’t know what sort they would like. This makes a suggestion bar kind of limited as there are no visual representations of those suggestions. That’s why a faceted search for bigcommerce is invaluably useful. The search results will show images and prices of the jeans but with a filter option, they can decide to only see jeans in their size, in their desired color, brand, price and category. By seamlessly clicking on each option, they can narrow down their search with the aid of changing visuals to accurately represent their options.

Recovering baskets

Many times consumers don’t have the time or the patience to log into their account and start shopping. Sometimes they’ll just swipe and browse items they are interested in. they might also click ‘add’ or ‘buy’. Since they’re not logged in, if they were to click off the page they would lose their basket. However, with a flexible cookies policy, you can remember the machine or the IP address the basket was made from. Therefore it will remember the same items that were selected when that person does eventually log back in and make the purchase for real this time.

The quicker you can find products for your customers, the easier their shopping experience with you becomes. Focus on optimized search suggestions first to get a feel for what individuals may like. If you need help, get a B2B website designer.

Using a credit card to finance your business

StrategyDriven Managing Your Finances Article |Business Credit Card|Using a credit card to finance your businessEvery company is different, and so every business owner needs to decide which finance options they want to use for daily expenses and longer term investments. Here, we weigh up the pros and cons of using business credit cards.

Many small business owners decide to use credit cards to cover costs, buy stock and seize opportunities. It’s easy to see why – they’re relatively straightforward to apply for and offer a flexible way to access credit quickly. But that’s not to say they’re the best funding option in all scenarios. This article details the ins and outs of using business credit cards, so you can figure out whether they’re right for you.

Generally speaking, there are five reasons to use a business credit card. These include: ensuring your business operations are kept separate from your personal spending, building up a credit profile for your business, managing short-term expenses, keeping on top of cash flow and picking up any rewards offered by the card provider.

What is a business credit card anyway?

In basic terms, a business credit card is similar to a normal consumer credit card – just designed for business use, rather than personal. Once secured, business owners and specific employees are able to use the card, or cards, to pay for things on credit – everything from small one-off costs, to recurring subscriptions and larger invoices.
Any accrued credit will need to be paid back, usually scheduled on a monthly basis, along with any interest that’s built up. Each card is different but most offer a period of free credit – this is often around 56 days. As you can imagine, to get the best out of a business credit card, many business owners use them for short-term expenses that they know they’ll be able to repay in a few weeks.

Can I use a personal credit card to fund my business?

Credit profiles take time to build up, so many new business owners can find that their company has a ‘thin’ file. This means they might not have enough of a credit profile to get a business credit card. In this case, owners sometimes use personal credit cards to fund their businesses.

However, by doing this the owner makes themselves personally liable for the debt incurred. In short, using a personal credit card for business finance means taking on a certain amount of risk. It is possible to use a personal credit card to fund a business, but many choose to upgrade to a business credit card as soon as they can.
What kinds of business use credit cards?

The use of business credit cards is highly common. Companies across all industries and sizes use them for their flexibility, to benefit from rewards and – in some cases – collect air miles. Almost all business credit cards come with the business owner’s or an employee’s name printed on, however, it’s the responsibility of the business to pay monthly bills.

Should you use a business credit card to fund you business?

As we mentioned up top, every business decision-maker should assess their situation according to their unique position. It’s certainly possible to use a business credit card to cover general expenditure and costs. That said, they tend to have five main disadvantages.

One of the key drawbacks is that business credit card suppliers typically don’t offer the scale of finance available through other types of borrowing, such as a business loan. Simply put, loans can give business access to larger sums of finance.

Something else to watch out for is that a number of card providers charge you a fee to withdraw money from a cash machine. That might not be a problem for many, but it’s worth bearing in mind if spending cash is a key component of your operation. Similarly, you may find that the fees you’re charged for foreign transactions are larger than with other options, such as a prepaid debit card with an overseas-focus.

Many business credit cards also come with a recurring annual fee. These are fairly small, but certainly worth checking out before you apply. Finally, unlike personal credit cards, business cards are not protected by the Consumer Trade Act, so the card provider is not obligated by law to protect you in the event of faulty goods or erroneous transactions.

What are the alternatives to a business credit card?

If you’re thinking about applying for a business credit card, you could consider the other finance options available for your business. First off, you could explore charge cards, which work a bit like credit cards. The main difference is that you’ll need to pay off the full amount of money each month, as charge cards don’t extend credit. Credit cards allow you to pay what you owe over time, though will likely charge interest left unpaid.

Beyond that, it could be worth looking into business loans or credit facilities. These enable enterprises to access more substantial amounts of money. Credit cards with high limits are hard to come by, so when requiring significant funds many businesses turn to these types of borrowing.

In summary

As you can see, there’s plenty to consider when thinking about business credit cards or the alternatives. So think about you business situation and try to plan out what kinds of funding will suit your unique situation best. After all, you’re the boss.

The Principles of Agile Planning

StrategyDriven Project Management Article |Principles of Agile|The Principles of Agile Planning

Agile methodology has taken the IT industry by the storm, and now it’s spreading to other sectors.

Many companies have managed to gain an edge tapping into its transformative power. The benefits linked to adoption are indeed many, but there’s just one problem.

Scaling Agile in enterprise-level environments is a daunting task.

There are a bunch of moving parts you need to tie in together. The systems are sophisticated and project environments bigger and more distributed than ever before.

What is more, different teams need to work hand in hand toward shared goals. Even a small misstep can lead to immense problems.

The good news is pioneers and early practitioners have been where you are now. They’ve paved the way and left many proven practices and principles of Agile in their wake.

Here is how to use smart planning to make strides toward greater agility and market success.

Choose Your Scaling Path

As soon as Agile transcends a one-team environment, complex challenges arise.

Conventional Scrum wisdom no longer serves as a reliable guide.

What you need is a structural roadmap for scaling, such as Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe). Each pre-made methodology has its pros and cons when tackling multi-team programs and portfolios. Some, for example, are more prescriptive than others.

Therefore, it would be wise to explore multiple avenues. At the very least, consider Kanban, Large-Scale Scrum (LeSS), SAFe, and Disciplined Agile Delivery. The common thread among them is their lightweight build.

Making this initial choice isn’t an absolute must, but it does tend to make things easier. It narrows down options and streamlines scaling. Go for your own custom-made framework only if you know exactly what you’re doing.

Adopt an Agile Mindset

The next phase of transformation revolves around nurturing the right mindset.

First off, get familiar with basic Agile principles. You have to be quick on your feet and display problem-solving aptitude. The main objective is to respond to change quickly and grow based on the acquired insights.

After all, change is the only constant thing in Agile project management and development. Failure is its inevitable byproduct and you need to learn to embrace it. Make sure top management understands this.

What is more, try to make your business strategies and plans less rigid. This is a way to accommodate changes and make them work to your advantage. After all, your needs and goal are bound to shift down the road, so why not plan ahead of time?

You certainly cannot let unexpected and unforeseen events derail your projects. To avoid this scenario, don’t cut corners or deploy half-measures. Put a well-functioning system in place, which is geared toward learning and evolution.

You can rely on these tips to get the ball rolling and move forward with confidence.

By the Power of the Team

Think of Agile as gradual transformation instead of some big revolutionary moment.

There’s no need to go for a big shake-up that could shatter your organization. You’re better off proceeding step-by-step.

The heavy focus is on the processes of continuous delivery and frequent testing. To set them in motion, first hire the right staff. In other words, assemble teams of individuals ready to work in an Agile way.

To shape their mindset, harness the power of corporate culture.

Most notably, Agile doesn’t go well with rigid, top-down hierarchies. In fact, it entices you to dismantle them. This is just one major hurdle you need to remove from the picture.

So, open the channels of communication and decentralize decision-making. Ensure the utmost level of transparency to establish trust, stimulate ideation, and spur collaboration.

Everyone must be on the same page, practicing Agile on a daily basis.

Master the Art of Incremental Delivery

Agile discourages extensive planning in stages before the projects commence.

The scaling endeavor, however, does include this dimension. There’s really no other way to translate your vision into a functioning set of practices and processes. There are simply too many components that have to fall together seamlessly.

Therefore, come up with a solid plan to break down the big picture into smaller chunks. Set timeframes and milestones that eventually amount to the Minimum Viable Product (MVP).

Namely, you need to initiate a series of iterations (sprints). Each and every iteration is supposed to produce a potentially shippable product increment.

Moreover, align project activities with overarching strategic priorities and business goals. Don’t hesitate to go into detail, but account for the need to adapt. You can take advantage of the rolling wave approach to complete this stage.

Gravitate Around a Consumer-Centric Axis

Ultimately, your success hinges on the ability to deliver real value to customers.

You cannot hope to achieve this without a suitable Product Backlog. The tricky thing is simply having one doesn’t cut it.

You have to engage in its ongoing refinement. This essential task entails prioritization of items according to preset criteria. Ditch vanity metrics and leverage indicators that forward your mission and goals.

While at it, set milestones according to evaluations of the working systems and solutions. It also helps to make backlog decisions a few months in advance. Never let them be a last-minute afterthought.

At the end of the day, you have to experiment to figure out what works and what doesn’t. And only after a series of team-level tests can you start scaling Agile to the whole organization. That’s the way to improve your time-to-market without compromising on product quality.

Adhere to the Core Principles of Agile

Scaling isn’t as simple as expanding what one team is doing to the whole organization.

Your best bet is to rely on fundamental principles of Agile scaling. Start by embracing the Agile mentality and getting buy-in from all employees and stakeholders.

Next off, carefully ponder which scaled method to employ. Rethink your current ways and take into account all your strengths and weaknesses. Do some tailoring and customization to make the most of the Agile framework of choice.
See to it that vital Agile processes coexist with the planning of your business needs and aspirations. Account for continuous change in your strategies. Make sure the practices are uniform across the board.

All your efforts will be a drop in the bucket compared to all the benefits of implementation. You should be able to demolish all the hurdles on the road to market domination.

Feel free to check out our insights section for more actionable tips and advice. More power to you!