Savvy Tips for Business Travel

Corporate Business Solutions  is recognized in the small business industry for using our expertise, experience and education to access the information that is often necessary for growth in small and medium – size businesses.  We help overhaul a business, including implementing accounting systems, information systems, organizing employees and improving productivity, which often results in maximum success.

We know that travel is required for many business leaders today.  Work travel is often welcomed, but it can also be daunting and tedious. For those with business travel on their upcoming schedules, we have fun tips that may help with your travel experience: 

1. Get elite status: Nothing beats having being an elite member of an airline insofar as travel goes as the perks are just great: Faster lines, free seat upgrades, first class upgrades, the ability to use their lounge in the airport, etc. You can do this by obtaining and using a frequent flier mileage number as well as getting an airline credit card. 
2. Invest in a great four-wheeled rollaway: Not only is checking bags is for amateurs, but a great rolling bag makes travel so much easier since a rollaway with four wheels can stand without you having to touch it, thus freeing your hands.
3. Purchase noise cancelling headphones: Although they are not cheap, they are worth it. Being able to shut out loud neighbors, a crying baby or engine noise when you are seated above the wing can be critical to your comfort. 
4. Skip car rental insurance: Not only does your normal auto insurance probably cover any problem you may have with your rental, but often your credit card does too.
5. Download helpful apps: There are many great apps available that make travel easier, and here are some of the most popular:

• TripIt - Turns flights, hotel, and car reservations into a simple itinerary. Additionally, the app allows you to get flight status, driving directions, and more.
• SeatGuru - Gives you detailed airline seat analysis, comments about seats which have limited recline, less legroom, bad windows, etc.
• TripAdvisor- When going to a new city, these crowdsourcing reviews of hotels, restaurants and more are invaluable. TripAdvisor is the world’s second-most-popular travel app (Google Earth is #1); it is estimated that it is downloaded 25 times per minute.

To learn more about us and / or to schedule your appointment with the business experts at Corporate Business Solutions, call us today at 877-357-9366.

Managing Employee Time Off During the Holiday Season

Corporate Business Solutions is a leading business consulting firm that works with businesses that have a minimum of 10 employees and $1 million in revenue. We offer the critical information that is often necessary for growth in the small and medium – size business marketplace.

Business owners often struggle with the influx in requested employee vacation time during the holiday season.  In fact, at no other time of the year do companies have to field multiple requests for time off. If handled poorly, this could hurt the business at an otherwise busy time of year – not to mention it can hinder your culture and brand.

To prevent potential problems you may have this year, we have general tips to help manage employee holiday time off:

1. Be organized - Many industrial businesses have their holiday schedule planned well in advance, and there’s no reason why a small business can’t do the same.  Send workplace emails and hold a brief discussion early in the year to help avoid any last minute challenges. 
2. Keep seasonal workers– When managing a business that is busier during the holiday season, or you realize many staff members will be gone during one specific time, a helpful option is to keep seasonal workers that you can utilize when you need extra help. It’s also a good idea to keep in contact with these part-timers through the year so you’ll know their availability in advance. 
3. Offer holiday pay - Money may be the main objective for many employees, even if it means they won’t be with their family during the holidays. Therefore, offering a holiday pay differential can keep your business staffed.  However, this practice should be part of the company’s structure and not something you offer just to entice an employee not to take off.  
4. Introduce a vacation blackout period - For some businesses, particularly retail, the holidays are the busiest time of year. This usually means the location needs a full staff, and often extra help. If your business falls into this category, a way to prevent employees from taking off is to have a blackout period where no one can take off.
5. Let employees work at home. These days pretty much everybody has a laptop, iPad or smartphone that enables them to work remotely. If your staff doesn’t have to be on site, letting them work at home during the holidays can be a productive way to get things done without having to bring in additional staff. 

To learn more about us and / or to schedule your appointment with the business experts at Corporate Business Solutions, call us today at 877-357-9366.

Tips to Begin a New Workplace Procedure

Corporate Business Solutions is recognized for our exceptional ability to create and implement new policies and procedures that help small and medium – size businesses thrive and grow in their respected industries.  

Common workplace policies may include:

• code of conduct
• recruitment policy
• internet and email policy
• mobile phone policy
• social media policy
• non-smoking policy
• drug and alcohol policy
• health and safety policy
• anti-discrimination and harassment policy

If you’ve already established the need of a new policy in your business, here are tips that may help you ensure a successful implementation:

1. Management support - It is crucial to have management support for the implementation or modification of a policy, especially where policies relate to employee behavior. The endorsement and modeling of the behavior by managers and supervisors will encourage staff to take the policies seriously. While management support for a policy is an important first step before actively seeking employee feedback on a proposed policy, the idea for the policy and some of its details may in fact come from staff.
2. Consult with staff - Involve staff in developing and implementing workplace policies to promote stronger awareness, understanding and ownership of the outcome. Staff involvement also helps to determine how and when the policies might apply, and can assist in identifying possible unintentional outcomes of the policy.
3. Define the terms of the policy- Be very specific. Define key terms used in the policy at the beginning so that employees understand what is meant. You may wish to include specific examples to illustrate problem areas or unacceptable types of behaviors.
4. Publicize the new policies - To be effective, policies need to be publicized and provided to all existing and new employees. Policies should be written so it can be easily understood by all employees. Ensure all staff understand what the policies mean, how to comply with the policies and the implications of not complying.
5. Training and regular referral- The policies may be explained to staff through information and/or training sessions, at staff meetings and during induction sessions for new staff. They should also be reiterated and discussed with staff regularly at staff meetings to ensure they remain relevant. Copies of policies should be easily accessible. 
6. Implementation- It is important that policies are applied consistently throughout the workplace. A breach of a policy should be dealt with promptly and according to the procedures set out in the policy. The consequence of the breach should also suit the severity of the breach – whether it be a warning, disciplinary action or dismissal.
7. Evaluate and review - Review policies regularly to ensure they are current and in line with any changes. Where policies are significantly changed they should be re-issued to all staff and the changes explained to them to ensure they understand the new directions. These changes should also be widely publicized.

To learn more about us and / or to schedule your complimentary appointment with the business experts at Corporate Business Solutions, call us at 877-357-9366.

Tips to Help Eliminate Business Failure

Corporate Business Solutions has the expertise to help small and medium – size business access valuable information that is often necessary to achieve success in the business arena.  By understanding critical business necessities, it is easier to avoid failure in business. 

Here are important factors that can greatly affect the growth of any business: 

1. Leadership: Dysfunctional leadership in your business will trickle down and affect every aspect of your operation, from financial management to employee morale, and once productivity is hindered, failure looms large on the horizon. Do whatever you can to enhance your leadership skills and knowledge of the industry. 
2. Brand recognition: Your brand is the image your customers recognize and associate with your business. Your brand identity, including your logo, tagline, colors and all the visible aesthetics and business philosophies that represent your company should be supported by your value proposition. It should separate you from the pack and present your individual perspective to your customers. 
3. Customers: A successful business keeps its eye on the trending values and interests of its existing and potential customers. Survey customers and find out what their interests are and keep abreast of changes and trends using customer relationship management (CRM) tools. Effective use of CRM can help keep your business from failing.
4. Finances: Use professional business accounting software to keep records of all financial transactions, including all expenditures and revenues received, and use this information to generate not only profit and loss statements, but critical variable reports that tracks the financial trends in the business to show important variances from week to week, month to month, and year to year. This is valuable information that you need to run your business, know where you stand at all times, keep it operating in the black and know where you need to make changes.  If you lack skill in financial management, consider hiring a tax advisor and professional bookkeeper or certified public accountant to help manage your financial affairs.

To learn more about us and / or to schedule your complimentary appointment with the business experts at Corporate Business Solutions, call us at 877-357-9366.

Tips for Starting a Wholesale Business

The team at Corporate Business Solutions is renowned for their expertise in many industries, including the wholesale business. 

Starting a wholesale business may be easier than you think. There are several different types of wholesale business that you could start, some of which can be run entirely over the internet without pre-purchasing stock. Ultimately, you may be able to start a wholesale business quickly, easily and with little or no capital investment.

If you’re looking to start a wholesale business, we have general tips that may help you: 

1. Identify the industry you want to be in - It's generally advantageous to have knowledge of the industry before starting a business and often easier to get started if you know the products, manufacturers and retailers that you'll be working with. If you are considering starting a wholesale business in a new industry you should research industries of interest and contact potential suppliers for product information, terms and pricing. Ideally you should look to sell products that you feel passionate about and believe in, within a market that is not over-saturated and too competitive.

2. Recognize your market – You must determine who you will sell to. Consider these factors:

• What will be your customer demographic be?
• Where will they be located geographically?
• Will you need to ship goods or operate on a drop-ship basis with your suppliers?
• If you have to ship goods, how much will it cost you?

3. Review competition - Check out the wholesalers your new business would compete with. The less competition your new wholesale business has the easier it will be for you to break into the market and capture the business you will need to sustain long-term success for your venture. .  

To learn more about us and / or to schedule your complimentary appointment with the business experts at Corporate Business Solutions, call us at 877-357-9366.

Tips to Help Improve the Employee Review Process

At Corporate Business Solutions , we have the expertise to help your small to medium – size business access the knowledge that is often needed to achieve success.  

In order to maintain a positive workplace, we recognize that employees must be cohesive while working towards similar goals. One way that business owners can help streamline this is to implement and / or improve upon their employee reviews and make them into an effective communication, goal setting and development tool for their workforce.  

Here are five tips that business owners can use to help improve their employee review process:

1. Use the review document at least quarterly to assess employee progress. The review document is a useful discussion starter since it provides a running record of employee performance discussions all year. It also offers a picture of the employee's accomplishments and progress throughout the year.​
2. Provide feedback to employees regularly - not just in the annual review.  Employees like regular feedback and effective business owners take time every day for employee feedback. 
3. Engage the employees in a two-way discussion whenever their performance is the topic. You can improve the review process by involving the employee in the discussion all year long. Then the official review is just an extension of the normal performance discussion.
4. Improve reviews by using an employee self-appraisal prior to the review. This way, you can also see the employee’s feedback on their progress and struggles. 
5. Set goals in a way that reinforces the employee's ability to plan and implement the steps necessary to reach the goal. The review must support and strengthen the employee's empowerment, his or her ability to chart the course to successful accomplishments. 

To learn more about us and / or to schedule your complimentary appointment with the business experts at Corporate Business Solutions, call us at 877-357-9366.

Determining a Fitting Charity to Partner With

The business experts at Corporate Business Solutions know firsthand that small businesses looking to be philanthropic have many options today. Our business experts can help business owners navigate the world of charity. 

If your business is looking to establish a new corporate giving program, we have some tips that may help you determine a fitting charity to partner with:

1. Research charities: 

• Identify what factors are important to you and your business, such as the environment, education, animal welfare, children, etc. 
• Decide if you want to partner with a charity that does work in a specific area, including your neighborhood, region, the nation or internationally.
• Determine if you want to support a large or small charity, a new or an old one.
• Review the mission. Are their goals in line with the goals of your philanthropic endeavors?

1. Evaluate your list of charities:

• Check a charity's legitimacy. Does the IRS recognize the organization as tax exempt? If the organization is faith-based, you can ask to see its official listing in a directory for its denomination.
• Obtain the facts. A reputable organization will define its mission and programs clearly, have measurable goals and use concrete criteria to describe its achievements.
• Be sure to compare charities that do the same kind of work, especially if you're looking at their finances. The type of work a charity does can affect its operating costs dramatically.
• Avoid charities that won't share information or pressure you. Reputable nonprofits will discuss their programs and finances and are willing to send you literature about their work or direct you to a Website.

To learn more and / or to schedule your complimentary appointment with the experts at Corporate Business Solutions, call us at 877-357-9366.