The COVID-19 pandemic has fundamentally changed the nature of how and where we work forever. With no end to remote working in sight and the Great Resignation threatening to sweep across Australia, business leaders need to re-evaluate their strategies to attract and retain valuable people. But what will it take to design and create a more successful, inclusive, and flexible workplace to empower your employees? Here are three key steps to take to ensure that staff remains happy and productive:

1. Set a new purpose 

Many companies have already made physical changes to their offices such as spacing desks further apart, offering hot-desking to decrease density, and instituting new health and safety procedures like additional cleaning and touchless entry.

Now, the harder work begins. Companies must implement changes as to how they use office space. In a world where remote work has proven to be effective and is preferred by many employees, the entire purpose of the office is shifting from individual work to group work. As well as turning the office into an in-person collaboration hub where teams can meet to brainstorm and exchange ideas, it’s also about ensuring that the space is connected to the outside world in a way that includes fully remote workers. 

The key to this new design is in creating an experience that is the same for those in the room and those who aren’t. “Meeting equality” means everyone has the tools they need to be included and empowered to participate. 

Supporting your employees’ workstyle preferences and meeting them where they are after months of extreme work-life challenges is critical for retention, satisfaction, and overall business performance.  

2. Equip staff with the right gear

With some employees remaining permanently remote-only, not everyone will be able to attend in-person collaboration days. Yet there are ways to make work-from-home team members feel like they’re in the office.

For team-wide meetings or important client and customer interactions, companies can equip conference rooms with advanced video conferencing systems, larger screens mounted at eye level, better sound systems, improved lighting, and other small fixes such as light paint colours, conference tables you can drill holes into mount microphones, and light-blocking blinds. It might also make sense to create small sound-proof, fully equipped, and well-lit rooms that employees can reserve for Zooms or Teams on days they’re in the office.

On the home front, remote workers will need better desktop setups including top-quality webcams, microphones, speakers, sound isolation, lighting, and/or headsets. Gone are the days of expecting remote employees to work from their kitchen tables on old laptops. These same desktop tools will be needed for select workstations in the office. 

With most workers away from the office at least a few days a week, businesses should focus on making the less-frequent office experience more meaningful, while bringing the office to employees when they aren’t there.

3. Promote and support employee wellbeing

Businesses also need to ensure that employees feel empowered to switch off. This includes implementing clear policies that show staff they aren’t expected to take calls and emails outside working hours.

Offering employees “recharge days” and ensuring they have resources for their health and wellbeing is also important. Simply checking in regularly with staff to find out how they’re coping is a good idea. Managers need to proactively reach out to workers and offer help and support.

Above all, ensuring that all employees are treated equally and fairly is paramount. There’s a danger that workers become “out of sight, out of mind” when they’re working remotely. Achieving work equity in a hybrid workplace is challenging. But employees need to feel fully seen, heard, and valued. This may mean a rethink of traditional processes, deploying collaboration software and tools to increase collaboration across underrepresented groups and give people more autonomy.

Andy Hurt is Managing Director for Poly ANZ. He leads Poly with a vision of bringing together its extensive range of communications devices and services, offered across any platform of choice, as the leading choice for every kind of workspace.   Andy brings over 30 years of experience across both ANZ and APAC, with a proven track record of driving success for a company’s overall growth and success in the region.

Find helpful guides on HR from Small Business answers here.

In a bid to give small businesses across Australia a much needed Christmas boost, Commonwealth Bank is offering a zero interest business loan and just one simple fee² paid over the life of the loan.

The Business Boost Loan* can provide small businesses with fast access to cash as well as peace of mind, with certainty around repayments and an upfront three month repayment holiday to provide extra support in the lead up to Christmas.   

The two-year unsecured loan is available to eligible existing CBA customers via the bank’s self-service and innovative digital lending platform, BizExpress Online. Customers can complete the application online, receive a real-time credit decision and fast access to funds. A one-off simple fee² is added to the total loan amount and repaid over the life of the loan.

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• Helping SMEs restart and recover
• Businesses backed for recovery
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CBA Group Executive Business Banking, Mike Vacy-Lyle, said eligible business customers may be able to borrow up to $100,000 through the new loan offering.

“Business want simplicity and certainty during what has been a very challenging period. We’ve worked to deliver a unique offering that will provide just that, with no hidden costs, no variable rates, and in fact, no interest rate at all,” Mr Vacy Lyle said.

“We’re giving businesses fast access to cash to help boost their reopening plans. The various restrictions associated with COVID-19 meant many small businesses struggled to generate much revenue over the past few months, and these businesses now need to be able to re-stock and re-hire. Meanwhile, other businesses are looking at expanding or capitalising on pent up customer demand.

“One example of how this meets customer needs, is the gym owner who accessed our zero interest business loan to help them manage a quieter holiday period while preparing for a busier New Year. They told us they had previously been hesitant to take out a loan with a variable interest rate, but felt reassured with the Business Boost loan as they know exactly what they need to pay over the loan period and don’t need to make their first repayment until March 2022 when business will be more consistent.”

As part of the SME Recovery Loan Scheme, the Business Boost Loan is designed to support business customers who have been adversely economically affected by the pandemic and who want to borrow a set amount over a two year loan term.

More than 21,000 Australian businesses have received more than $2.2 billion in funding support made available through the Commonwealth Bank’s Government-backed SME Guarantee Loan Scheme to help them manage the impacts of the pandemic and as the economy reopens to support business resurgence.

Eligible existing customers can now apply for a Business Boost Loan via BizExpress in Netbank or the CommBank app. For more information visit cba.com.au/businessboost

Shopify Inc. (NYSE, TSX: SHOP), a provider of essential internet infrastructure for commerce, announced a record-setting Black Friday with sales of nearly $2.9* billion from the start of Black Friday in New Zealand through the end of Black Friday in California. This represented a 21% increase over Black Friday in 2020 when sales by Shopify merchants surged 75% over 2019 driven by COVID-19 lockdowns and is more than double their sales on Black Friday 2019. Collectively, merchants on Shopify generated peak sales of nearly $3.1 million per minute at 12:02 PM EST on Black Friday, and merchants crossed $1 billion in sales by 4:00 AM EST, four hours earlier than Black Friday in 2020.

“Every year, Black Friday represents one of the largest single-day sales moments for entrepreneurs around the world, and this year it was bigger than ever,” said Harley Finkelstein, President of Shopify. “From in-store retailers to online and even viral TikTok must-haves, these Black Friday sales show that independent businesses are having a massive impact on global commerce. Consumer support of independent brands is at an all-time high.”

2021 Black Friday Australia Highlights**

• Peak sales per minute: Black Friday at 10:00AM AEDT.
• Top selling cities where shoppers made purchases from (in order of highest sales): Melbourne, Sydney, Perth, Brisbane and Adelaide
• Mobile sales: 66% of sales were made on mobile devices versus 34% on desktop, a slight increase from 65% of sales made on mobile and 35% on desktop in 2020.
• Top product categories: Apparel and accessories followed by home & garden and health & beauty and 
• Average cart price: $163.28 AUD, which is up from last year’s Black Friday average of $128.93 AUD.
• 14%: Cross-border orders worldwide on Black Friday as a percentage of total orders, with the most popular cross-border routes being Australia-United States, Australia-New Zealand and Australia-United Kingdom.
• 34%: Growth in POS sales made my Shopify merchants in Australia have grown by 34% from Black Friday in 2020
• 23,000+ globally: Tonnes of carbon removal funded to counteract emissions from the delivery of every order placed on Shopify’s platform on Black Friday. Learn more about how Shopify is eliminating the climate impact of merchant shipments here.

Visit datastories.shopify.com to view Shopify’s annual Black Friday / Cyber Monday Live Globe, which captures global commerce in real-time and demonstrates the impact of Shopify merchants globally.

According to new research from the 2021 Family Business Survey** 83 per cent of all Australian family businesses have experienced some sort of business family conflict during the last 12 months.

In fact, the survey found the most common source of conflict – experienced by one-third of family businesses – was the difficult task of balancing the needs of the family with the needs of the business. Planning for the future was the second major source of conflict.

According to the 2021 Survey, the average Australian Family Business turns over $22 million in annual revenue and employs over 60 people. The industry’s peak body, Family Business Australia, has found the family business sector worth approximately A$4.3 trillion. Family businesses account for 70 per cent of all businesses, and they employ around half of the country’s workforce.

Family businesses operate under unique circumstances where managerial decisions are often made based on responsibilities toward relatives. These common sources of conflict should be resolved in order to provide effective business management and identify growth opportunities, as well as security for employees.

Top 5 Sources of Conflict experienced in Australian Family Businesses:

1. Balancing the needs of the family vs the needs of the business (31 per cent)
2. Future vision, goals and strategy of the business (26 per cent)
3. Family member communication style (24 per cent)
4. Succession-related issues (24 per cent)
5. Managing growth (20 per cent)

Kirsten Taylor-Martin, Partner Private Business, Tax & Advisory at Grant Thornton said: “Guided by years of experience and the knowledge of countless family businesses, an independent facilitator can help to establish the structures and forums to address conflict, but more importantly enables families to have open and honest conversations about the direction of the business – generally preventing conflict and resulting in profits. At Grant Thornton we absolutely work with all family members within the business to make sure everyone’s wants and needs are met, and outcomes are aligned with each of the family member’s objectives to the benefit of the whole family.

“As family member communication style is an issue for a quarter of all Australian family businesses, the introduction of independent facilitation eliminates this concern as each member of the family is heard and understood. In addition, professional management can provide expert guidance on succession planning, managing growth and financial stress.”

Other conflict issues that were high on the list include business survival (16 per cent), remuneration of family members (15 per cent), and competence of family members working in the business (15 per cent). Surprisingly – and despite what popular culture portrays – sibling rivalry was ranked the lowest as a source of conflict at only 5 percent, and this low ranking is consistent with the Family Business Survey findings from previous years. Fortunately, 17 per cent of family businesses experienced little or no conflict during the last 12 months, which is heartening considering the constraints felt by the Covid-19 pandemic.

** The Family Business Survey 2021 was produced by Grant Thornton in partnership with Family Business Australia and Family Business New Zealand (FBANZ), and highlights the advantage transition-ready family businesses have as the economy moves toward COVID recovery. Learn more about the Family Business Survey. 

Also read the Small Business Answers guide to shareholdings and partnerships.

Propps and Settle Easy have partnered up to make house buying easier with a new online Make an offer solution.

At Settle Easy, we’re celebrating our latest partnership with Propps, an exciting new digital offer management solution for the real estate industry.

It’s exciting because we’re huge fans of any business that streamlines the process of buying and selling property and makes things easier for customers and agents.

Propps, the latest independent venture out of 1835i Ventures, the innovation and investment partner of ANZ Banking Group – helps real estate agents manage the process of buyers making offers and alleviates a common headache along the way.

Agents constantly receive offers from buyers in different ways – in person, hardcopy, via phone, email, SMS and even on social media – but these offers are all in different formats. It’s really difficult comparing apples with oranges and keeping track of them all.

The Propps white-labelled ‘Make an Offer’ solution helps agents manage that process and standardise the way offers are submitted so that agents can have transparent conversations with their vendors and properly compare all offers on the table.

Fully integrated with agents’ websites, this proptech solution is really simple and allows agents to include a ‘Make an Offer’ button on their listings and accept legally binding or non-binding offers for that property.

As buyers make their offer through Propps, if they don’t have a conveyancer appointed and would like one, Propps can quickly connect them to a conveyancer via Settle Easy. Of course, agents can opt-out of conveyancing referrals via Propps if they so choose.

Settle Easy and Propps have a lot in common. We both help customers and real estate agents:

● Save time

● Streamline processes

● Take the stress out of buying property

● Provide a secure online environment

● Are available 24/7 – whenever and wherever it suits them.

This new partnership will mean that more customers have access to Settle Easy’s simple online conveyancing – and more Australians will be able to achieve their property goals easier than ever before.

In a move set to drive payments competition in Australia’s Digital Economy, eftpos today announced that the latest stage of its next-generation eftpos online security technology has gone live with several Australian banks, FinTechs and merchants, including Till Payments, Fat Zebra and EFTEX, set to roll out the capability over the next 12 months.

The new eftpos online security capability is a crucial milestone in evolving Australia’s digital payments ecosystem. It brings to life features designed to keep Australians safe in the Digital Economy including two-factor authentication capability for merchants and their customers.

eftpos’ new sovereign debit scheme online follows the Reserve Bank of Australia’s decision in October that Australian banks are expected to offer and promote Least Cost Routing (LCR) online by the end of 2022.

eftpos chief executive Stephen Benton said the support of banks, FinTechs and payments providers like Till Payments, Fat Zebra and EFTEX will help the solution scale quickly in the Australian market next year and provide benefits for merchants and consumers, including LCR.

Mr Benton said eftpos’ extension further into online payments will quickly drive much needed large-scale competition and should place downward pressure on transaction costs.

“This is a tipping point for eftpos, online Australian businesses and the Digital Economy and it is great to have partners like Till Payments, Fat Zebra and EFTEX onboard,” Mr Benton said.  “This is a game-changer for eftpos and Australian retailers because retail is quickly transforming to become an increasingly digital marketplace, accelerated by COVID.  Big economic benefits could flow from increased competition in addition to enhanced payments security.

“Our suite of world-class eCommerce products and services are part of a $100m eftpos funded digital upgrade to deliver the next generation of secure payments technology.”

Before today’s announcement, eftpos was already available online for some Card On File payments where banks have implemented the service for their merchant customers, and Deposits and Withdrawal payments via the Beem It mobile wallet. Since launching the eftpos digital service that enables LCR last year, it has been subject to zero fraud.

Mr Benton said eftpos’ security kit bag now included two-factor authentication (3DS), tokenisation, automated Disputes and Chargebacks and a digital identity solution, connectID, with a new fraud detection engine going live in the coming weeks.

Fat Zebra CEO, Pred Dragila, said being an early adopter of eftpos digital has allowed Fat Zebra to optimise how our customers accept payments online in Australia. “It’s a great step forward by eftpos which gives online merchants access to a powerful network bundled with potentially great economic benefit,” Mr Dragila said.

EFTEX General Manager, Ian Sanford said eftpos’ move to online payments was very welcome news for the thousands of Australian small businesses supported by EFTEX’s enterprise merchant, payment facilitator and payment gateway clients. “This eftpos extension will allow eCommerce merchants to securely send millions of more online payments through eftpos, resulting in substantial payment acceptance cost savings for their business and their customers,” Mr Sanford said.

Till Payments Chief Revenue Officer, Chris Hicks, said being at the forefront of security innovations for eCommerce is an invaluable asset for the organisation and its customers. “Australian consumers and businesses are inherently becoming more vulnerable to fraud as we transition to an increasingly digital existence. We’re excited to be partnering with eftpos to be among the first to deploy the security innovations that will strengthen the viability of our national Digital Economy,” Mr Hicks said.

Learn more in our Small Business Answers guide to accepting credit cards.

As the nation looks towards borders reopening and exceeding vaccine targets, the Intuit Quickbooks Back to Business research reveals small businesses across the country are hopeful about the future, with 81 per cent reporting a level of confidence that they will be operating at pre-pandemic levels within the next six months. 

But despite the encouraging levels of optimism, one in three do not have a plan in place to ensure future success, and two in five are worried about finding enough suitable staff. The research also shows that small businesses are focused on health over wealth, with vaccines at the forefront of what they want from the government, their employees and their customers.

“Aussie small businesses have done it tough over the course of the pandemic, especially those in Melbourne who endured the longest lockdown in the world. We’re thrilled to see the economy starting to recover, and to hear that small businesses feel hopeful about the future,” Lars Leber, Vice President and Country Manager at Intuit QuickBooks Australia said.

“We’ve seen a notable shift in small businesses prioritising the health and wellbeing of their employees, showing how the pandemic has made everyone reconsider what’s most important. They still need the support of the government and Aussie consumers and want to see continued vaccine uptake.” 

Health over wealth

Mandating vaccines and supporting the vaccination efforts is the number one government requirement according to Australian small businesses, with almost half (47 per cent) saying this is their top priority. Following this, was the opening of domestic and international borders (44 per cent), ongoing grants programs (30 per cent), networking opportunities (22 per cent) and training opportunities (21 per cent). 

When asked what support small businesses would like to see from their local community, more than half (55 per cent) said their number one ask of Australians was to get vaccinated. Returning to favourite local small businesses was a close second (51 per cent).

When asked about planning for future success, small businesses are again prioritising wellbeing and health, with 58 per cent saying the mental health and wellbeing of employees and work-life balance were their most important focuses.

The research also reveals that female-led small businesses are significantly more likely than male counterparts to view investing in social media as key to future business success (34 per cent vs 22 per cent). They are also more likely to see social media support of their business from consumers as important for future success (30 per cent vs 19 per cent).

Digital adoption trends

More than one in three small businesses pivoted their business to explore new revenue streams during the pandemic (37 per cent), with most (85 per cent) saying these streams will continue to be an essential part of their business.

Among those who have implemented new technologies or plan to do so, the most common focuses are financial processes (43 per cent), e-commerce/marketing (41 per cent), inventory management (21 per cent), contract management (17 per cent) and human resources (15 per cent).

Female-led small businesses are more likely to have implemented or plan to implement new technology to improve business processes than male-led counterparts (49 per cent vs 39 per cent). They are also more likely to have completed training related to their business during the course of the pandemic, or plan to in the next six months (43 per cent vs 31 per cent).

Advisor support critical

Accountants and bookkeepers continue to play a key role in supporting Australian small businesses, with 70 per cent saying their advisor helped them through the pandemic. One in five small businesses said their business would not have survived if it wasn’t for their accountant or bookkeeper. 

Advisors will also play a key role in future business success, with more than eight in ten (84 per cent) small businesses saying their support will be crucial in getting back to pre-pandemic levels.

“With conditions starting to improve as we approach the end of the year, now is the perfect time to seek out the financial guidance small businesses need to ensure a bright future,” Leber said.

The pandemic bred a wave of opportunistic entrepreneurs and as the impact of COVID-19 begins to lift, it is imperative for the economy that small businesses are not just surviving but are thriving. Quality design is one of the most underestimated business investments. Design has the power to enhance customer experience and increase brand loyalty as it is the main differentiator for businesses in a crowded market.

The team at Vista, the new master brand encompassing Vistaprint, 99designs by Vistaprint, and the recently acquired VistaCreate, have seen growing demand for design, e-commerce, and social media solutions amongst small business owners who have realised that perfecting a brand’s aesthetic is integral, as it becomes the framework for everything from products right down to customer experience.

Bhavani Lee, Art Director at Vista Australia, shares her key tips for small business owners to keep in mind when it comes to design.

Have consistent branding

One of the best ways to build your brand and make your business look professional is to present cohesive branding across all customer touchpoints – whether that’s in-store or online. The logo, fonts, colours, and images that appear on your business cards and flyers should be consistent with what people will see on your website, your social media, and physically in store.

Choosing your brand personality

Each brand has its own unique personality; Is your brand modern or traditional? Casual or sophisticated? If you own a sweet shop, you may choose to have a playful brand personality. A legal consulting firm may need to be more formal. Keeping your target audience in mind is key – things like age, gender, wealth, shopping habits, general attitudes, why they buy your products. Once you’ve collected this information you can begin to match the colour palette, font, tone of voice – all aligning with your ideal demographic.

Curated social media feed

Nowadays, small businesses are often discovered by potential customers via social media. While it’s vital to have a solid online presence that includes a website and local search listings, it’s also important to put effort into curating your social media feed. Focusing on your product imagery can give your feed a clean, professional look and attract potential customers.  You don’t have to be a professional – or even hire one – to take appealing images of your items. Choose a simple one-colour background, stick to your brand’s colour palette, use natural light instead of camera flash and explore some low-cost editing options. You’d be surprised how much you can do with just your smartphone. Remember to also post consistently and mix up your content – using pre-designed templates is a great way to communicate with your customers, whilst maintaining your feed’s aesthetic.

Find design tools that work for your business

Business owners often wear numerous hats in an effort to run their businesses smoothly. So why not take one off and outsource? There are so many options in the design space and it is important to find the service that suits you best. You can find a local graphic designer or use various services on offer such as VistaCreate, a DIY design service that creates professional yet unique branded content. You don’t have to be a whiz at design, you just need to choose the right tool.

Also read Small Business Answers guide to how to get graphic design done.

Poly Studio Kits for Microsoft Teams Rooms on Windows are simple to buy and deploy right out of the box. With an optimised room view and speaker tracking and framing technology, Poly Studio Kits for Microsoft Teams Rooms on Windows deliver an equitable and dynamic meeting experience for everyone. Poly’s Microsoft Teams Rooms solutions on Windows can be paired with new Dell or Lenovo conferencing PCs.

“Meetings are happening everywhere – from conference rooms to personal workspaces and everything in between. People crave equitable and consistent video meeting experiences no matter where they are,” said Andy Hurt, MD, Poly ANZ. “Poly DirectorAI technology intelligently frames in-conference room meeting participants so anyone not in the room can easily track the conversation.”

“Today’s workplace needs have changed. Microsoft Teams Rooms introduces inclusive collaboration experiences through concepts like the front row,” says Albert Kooiman, Microsoft Teams Devices Partner Engineering and Certification. “The new line-up of Poly Room Solutions for Teams Rooms brings users to the forefront of the future of meetings with optimised room views, plus speaker tracking and framing for a more equitable and dynamic meeting experience.”

Often, conference room participants appear small and difficult to hear, or the person close to the camera looks fine. At the same time, the person sitting at the far end of the table seems too small. This means other meeting participants finding the experience to be inequitable, uninviting, or disengaging. Poly’s DirectorAI technology overcomes this disparity and delivers a high-performing meeting experience in any size space.

Poly Studio Kits for Microsoft Teams Rooms come in a variety of configurations and can comfortably equip any meeting room size to deliver an equitable experience for all:

•   Includes Poly Studio P15 and Poly Room PC for Microsoft Teams Room with Dell, or Lenovo
•  Includes Poly Studio USB and Poly Room PC for Microsoft Teams Room with Dell, or Lenovo
• Includes Poly Studio E70, Poly Room PC for Microsoft Teams Room with Dell or Lenovo

Poly has worked alongside Microsoft for over 15 years. It has the broadest portfolio of Teams certified devices available – from its headsets and speakerphone devices to its video conferencing gear.

For more information on Poly’s Solutions for Microsoft Teams, please visit: https://www.poly.com/au/en/solutions/platform/microsoft

For more information on local pricing and availability, please contact certified Poly partners and resellers in Australia.

For more information on Microsoft Teams Rooms on Windows, please visit: https://www.poly.com/au/en/solutions/platform/microsoft/video/teams-rooms-windows