It’s hard to think of a cultural change that’s had as pronounced an effect on our modern working lives as the COVID-19 pandemic. Initially, as it caused us to leave our offices and switch to remote work, there was a pervading sense that soon enough we’d be back to our workplaces and typical working days. But, as the crisis rumbled on and we dipped in and out of lockdowns, the idea of working exclusively from an office has become an anachronism. Remote work as a standard practice is here to stay and the future of business lies in the hybrid working model.

In fact, employees now expect hybrid working conditions to such an extent that over half of Australian bosses anticipate employees to be in the office just three days a week moving forward.

Embracing the hybrid model provides a rare opportunity to reset the way your business operates, and while implementing it permanently may seem complex – actually, it isn’t.

Hacking hybrid work to leverage its benefits (flexibility, opportunity for work–life balance) and avoid its pitfalls (blurred work and home boundaries, sedentary working days) is all about capitalising on the strengths of in-person and remote work at the same time.

Successful hybrid work starts with trust

Successful hybrid working is underpinned by a healthy company culture which, according to research, drives performance, offering up to three times greater total returns. Conversely, stats show that 70 percent of transformations fail, largely due to people and culture-related challenges.

A healthy culture is one based on trust, where the company’s expectations, outputs and ways of working are clearly set out for and understood by employees, who are also empowered to deliver on them autonomously.

Yet employees need more than a company or values mission statement for this – which can be nothing more than empty words in a document – they need authenticity. For leaders to model transparency and offer frequent, open communication and access to information.

To put it simply, staying productive while working in a hybrid model is as simple as ensuring everyone understands exactly what needs to be done and to what standard and deadline, then giving the relevant people the space and flexibility to do it.

Set your people up for success

To succeed at the hybrid model, it’s vital that businesses not only communicate clearly to their staff, they must also genuinely listen to what employees need and trust their team.

As business leaders, we need to provide clear direction to help people to understand the why and the what of value creation and then get their insights and input into how we can achieve this. After all, who better to advise than those who are on the front line of what we create and do?

Of course, in these new times, this communication must include advice from our people on how we can better serve them, too. How can we help them create clearer boundaries between work and home, take more breaks, feel more purpose in their work?

Then, in keeping with our healthy culture, we must deliver. The cold hard truth is employees will walk away if they don’t get what they’re promised, with stats from LinkedIn showing a 26 per cent jump in Australian workers moving companies compared with before the pandemic.

Promote a sense of belonging

Research by career coaching platform BetterUp highlights the importance of inclusion and belonging for retention and engagement – emphasising the manager-employee relationship. According to its latest Insights Report, when managers are viewed as inclusive, employees are almost three times more committed to an organisation and have over three times more engagement and job satisfaction.

In a hybrid working model, leaders have a responsibility to create a sense of inclusion and belonging for their teams, key areas of focus to improve this include training, work wellbeing initiatives and internal communications.

Training:

• Businesses need to try to minimise feelings of isolation, starting from remote onboarding practices (which need to be rethought across the board) and continuing through to the day to day
• Employees need a point of contact so they can ask questions when they need to
• Employers need to tap into employees’ desire for development opportunities, asking what it is they want to do and why, which could help create an overlap between individual purpose and professional lives
• Social agility training should be provided, which can help support employees in new ways of working as well as keeping job satisfaction high

Wellbeing at work:

• It’s now the role of employers to set employees up for remote work in an OHS-friendly way. At Brother we partnered with Actevate to ensure everyone had the correct equipment and were sitting correctly while working from home
• Companies need to provide incentives, such as discounts on corporate gym memberships and social events with an active element (always voluntary and never forced)

Internal communications:

• According to the Harvard Business Review, improving employee engagement increases productivity by as much as 22% 
• Internal comms should be filtered through a lens that shows how the company is aligning with and achieving its purpose and how employees’ individual purpose fits into that too. Standard practices such as monthly whole of company updates that share what’s happening and give opportunity for people to connect in small groups create ample opportunity for this
• At Brother our internal comms include newsletters and virtual seminars, which have helped continue to build our culture in and out of lockdowns

Make your technology an enabler

With the right tools for the job people can do anything, and the role of technology in a hybrid infrastructure is to be an enabler.

Everyone has embraced tools that support a decentralised working environment and 52% of Australian businesses say they’ll increase spending on collaboration, communication and productivity technologies over the coming year.

However, if the plan is to increase investment in tech, then that spending has to be strategic so as to not overload employees with too many tools.

Functionality is key and organisations transforming for hybrid work should seek to keep productivity high and burn out low by opting for tech that’s fast, reliable, secure and everyone can access from anywhere – right in the flow of their work.

The key to success here, just like everything else in the hybrid model, is to keep it simple and people-centric. All it needs to do is allow people to communicate, share ideas, collaborate, and even socialise – just like they did in the office.

Andy O’Donnell is a Director (Sales, Product & Marketing) at Brother Australia. With over 16 years in the organisation, Andy has helped to launch countless new products and innovations from Brother, all while supporting the brand’s mission to provide the best ‘at your side’ service to its customers.

Small Business Answers has various guides on technology enablers here.

COVID lockdowns have propelled digital adoption, unleashing a swathe of new tools and services that are finally accessible to smaller companies. It’s an exciting time, levelling the playing field for SMBs. More so with the recognition that we’re never going “back” to how things were pre-pandemic, but new technologies, processes and workplace arrangements are here to stay and form the basis for SMB trends for 2022.

So, what’s in the crystal ball? Here are four key predictions 4 top SMB trends for 2022 :

1. SMBs accessing enterprise-grade tech

Sophisticated platforms that leverage AI and machine learning are no longer the domain of large enterprises. Cloud-based, SaaS solutions are democratising IT. Everyone is “buying up”, with SMBs buying traditionally mid-market and even enterprise-grade products. This means that formerly enterprise-level technology such as ERP is now accessible to smaller businesses. 

SMBs can get in on the action without worrying they’ll be left behind due to a lack of capital to invest in buying solutions outright. Instead, there’s a much lower upfront cost to access the latest ERP technology. It also means they don’t have to worry about the cost of IT support as that’s typically part of the subscription package with SaaS services.

2. Time-stacking meetings

As we’ve moved to Zoom or Microsoft Teams, we’ve just supplanted the meeting with the Virtual Meeting. We’re all tired of this and to be frank it’s tiring. Email has largely been replaced by lots of contextual chats, such as Slack and Teams. The issue is that we don’t always need face-to-face instant feedback in communication. Meetings (physical and virtual) can be replaced with asynchronous messages, videos, and small incremental chats.

Instead of booking a meeting to review a document “when our calendars collide”, businesses will increasingly use real-time collaborative documents where they tag each other in small incremental comments for review. This works great with customer proposals as well. There’s no need to send a long email ever again. Instead, you can send a small document with a Vidyard video of you talking about it. 2022 will see people “time stacking” the necessary, with many actual meetings in small sections of the day while taking the rest of the day to work asynchronously across many channels, many devices, and a wide selection of connections (that are ubiquitous).

3. A major focus on trust

Since COVID, many consumers and businesses have started making online purchases for the first time and/or are buying online more often, and critically the average value of individual transactions (Average Order Values) is rising. Previously, most online purchases were for smaller-ticket items. But now, McKinsey data shows that 70% of B2B decision-makers are open to making new, fully self-serve or remote purchases over $50,000, and 27% would spend more than $500,000.

This level of spending requires high confidence in a vendor. This means having a platform that is reliable and robust, with high-level SOC-2 cyber security. SMBs will increasingly outsource this functionality, partnering with solution providers who can offer near 100% uptime and enterprise-grade cyber security. The beauty of the digital world is that everything can be outsourced as a service, and we’ll see this trend continue as online transactions continue to grow even after lockdowns end.

4. Getting transparency throughout operations

COVID has placed a huge strain on supply chains, starkly revealing inadequacies in internal processes, logistics and fulfilment. Provenance and visibility in fulfilment are becoming vital for consumers, who want to know where a product is from, where it is in the shipping process, or when it’s arriving. Providing this level of transparency has traditionally been hard for SMBs, reliant as most are on a network of different partners (versus retailers – such as Amazon – who own and control the entire end-to-end process).

2022 is the year when everything gets connected and visible. Smart ERP systems will enable different parties to plugin, providing real-time data on the entire process from the warehouse through to the doorstep. Businesses will increasingly integrate disparate systems into a single platform or solution, such as inventory, CRM, accounting, and payroll. Reports will be generated in real-time, allowing businesses to pivot and adapt according to changing market circumstances and volatility, rather than solely pegged to traditional “quarters” and “financial years”.

2022 probably won’t be an easy year. For some SMBs it will be a year of regeneration and regrowth, for others a year of review and readjustment. What it won’t be is “back to normal” or predictable. That’s why moving to solutions and processes that accommodate volatility will be such an overarching trend.

Charlie is the CEO of Wiise and author of the 4 top SMB trends for 2022. With 25+ years of tech experience, including leadership roles at Salesforce, Microsoft and Dropbox, Charlie has also built and mentored several startups through fundraising, product-market fit and scalable go to market activity. 

Australian accounting software provider Reckon (ASX:RKN) is proud to announce their partnership with OZEDI Holdings Pty Ltd, to power Reckon’s newly available eInvoicing solution.

eInvoicing will enable the instant digital exchange of invoices between each party’s accounting software systems, without manual data entry. This will mean quicker turnaround times, improved cash flow, better security, more efficient processing, and greater visibility over the invoicing process.

This new partnership will bring the benefits of eInvoicing to all Reckon One and Reckon Accounts Hosted accounting software customers via OZEDI’s Peppol Access Point – a trusted and highly secure network, at no extra charge to customers.

Reckon CEO Sam Allert commented on the eInvoicing opportunity and the reasons for selecting OZEDI as their dedicated Access Point:

“The widespread use of eInvoicing has the potential to simplify processes and help small businesses get paid faster. The Federal Government and ATO recognise this as demonstrated with their funding drive to accelerate digital transformation across the business sector, as do we. Businesses have been rapidly digitising their processes over the last few years and this has only been accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Allert.

In terms of costs savings, the ATO has estimated that it costs an average of $30 to process a paper invoice and $28 to process an emailed PDF invoice[ii]. With eInvoicing coming in at less than $10.50 per invoice, eInvoicing will be up to three times more cost-effective.

Late invoices are a chief concern for Australian businesses and significantly impact their cash flow and financial security. In fact, research from the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman (ASBFEO), estimates that 53% of invoices are paid late and are an average of 23 days overdue.[iii]

Allert further noted that “Overdue invoices are worth $115 billion, or $52,000 for every small business in Australia, according to the ASBFEO. We believe that the introduction of eInvoicing will help mitigate these late payments and long turnaround times, boosting cash flow and income security for Australian businesses.”

OZEDI CEO Christian Walkerden said he was incredibly proud to partner with Reckon and their range of dynamic products to help bring the benefits of eInvoicing for Reckon customers.

“The best part of our partnership is the fact that Reckon customers can now enable eInvoicing directly through Reckon’s software and they’re ready to send and receive eInvoices. OZEDI’s ability to seamlessly integrate with Reckon’s software means Reckon customers will be able to simply flick a switch and they’re ready to go.

We see ourselves as an extension of the Reckon team, collaborating and adding our expertise to the project, from initial testing and QA, through to the marketing and communication, that’s why OZEDI is more than just an Access Point, we’re a Digital Partner.”

Allert added “We have selected OZEDI as our digital partner to bring our clients a much more efficient and secure way to manage their invoice processing, given they have paved the way for eInvoicing in Australia and New Zealand.

With this solution, all Reckon One and Reckon Accounts Hosted clients can easily enable eInvoicing by simply requesting that eInvoicing be turned on.”

For more information or to enable eInvoicing through Reckon, visit https://www.reckon.com/au/e-invoicing/

Also read Small Business Answers guide to Invoicing

In a survey of more than 500 SMEs across Australia and New Zealand, Findex found:

• Looking back, businesses found the second year of the pandemic more disruptive than the first:
  • A third (32 per cent) said they were “significantly impacted” by the pandemic this year, up from a quarter (25 per cent) in 2020
• Looking forward, business confidence for the year ahead has also dropped:
  • Only two in five (40 per cent) businesses say they feel confident about the future outlook, dropping from 1 in 2 (52 per cent) in 2020
  • However, two thirds (64 per cent) of businesses estimate things will be “back to normal” in six months
• SMEs were reliant on government support this year to survive – and fear for their future – as this support scales back:
  • 7 in 10 businesses said Government economic support packages had been important to the survival of their business
  • 6 in 10 businesses predict that winding back government assistance will have an impact on their business
  • Only a third (30 per cent) of businesses are in the process of developing or implementing business continuity plans (BCPs).

For more information and data, please see the Findex ‘When Worlds Collide: Small Businesses Meet Post-Pandemic Life’ report.

From consideration of flexible working to career development, internal progression and recognition, the competition for attracting and to retain quality talent is tough, and good candidates hold more cards than ever before. And for small businesses failing to meet these new expectations and better understand employee needs, a worldwide trend – known as the Great Resignation or Big Quit – is very much in motion and looming around the corner.

So what can small businesses do to retain quality talent? Well, now’s the time to take action and review your current HR and employee training programmes. Here are four guidelines to help you get ahead of the Great Resignation.

#1 Skills training for the here and now

Not only is having the right skills in place to meet the immediate needs of your business essential but learning new skills and ongoing training also helps employees feel continuously engaged. Readily accessible upskilling courses and tools help to empower employees to learn the way they want to learn, whether they’re out in the field, on the frontline or in front of a desk. In this way, they can take more control of their own learning, development and career paths. Being able to identify and address knowledge gaps to support the skills your employees need in the here and now, helps to keep the workforce driven and inspired.

#2 Take an autonomous approach

As a result of the pandemic, attitudes towards command and control, empowerment and autonomy have shifted, and employee demands for autonomy are even more significant. According to our Autonomy to the People report, over half of respondents (54%) say it is now more important that employees are given choices for when and where they work. A similar number (51%) say that they should have influence over the resources needed to do their job.

We know processes and technology play a crucial role in enabling teams and individuals to establish their ‘workspace’ and work autonomously. So in order to retain, foster and recruit great talent that is fundamental to future success, businesses need to provide an environment that supports this way of working.

#3 Connect staff to your purpose and values

Providing oversight on the business’ purpose and values play a critical role in attracting, motivating and retaining talent. Your employees want to feel a sense of meaning and purpose at work and also need to feel connected to the business as a whole – particularly during what has been an uncertain and precarious time. Measure and share outcomes regularly, whether that be in town hall meetings, on your website, or through your online presence, and really bring your staff on the business’ journey.  Lastly, something as simple as linking your employee reward and recognition program to your business’ values is a great way to remind and reinforce your organisation’s why.

#4 Keep talent engaged from the minute they enter the door

Once you’ve attracted talent, you’ll need a strong onboarding and induction programme. This is possibly the most critical investment you make when it comes to L&D. An astonishing 9 in 10 new hires are prepared to leave within the first month – so it’s vital that their first impression is a good one, and sets a positive tone for what to expect in the future – when it comes to investing in their development, and their employee experience as a whole.

written by John Maley – Head of Human Resources, APAC The Access Group, which is one of the leading providers of business management software to UK, Ireland and Asia Pacific mid-market organisations.

Also read Small Business Answers guide to Creating a positive employee experience.

The impact of extended COVID-19 lockdowns in major Australian cities took its toll on workers in 3Q21 as discretionary effort levels – or willingness to go above and beyond at work – fell to new lows, according to Gartner, Inc.

The survey conducted in between July and September 2021 showed that the proportion of workers displaying high discretionary effort fell to 13.9%, down from 15.6% last quarter and 16.9% year-over-year. Business confidence among employees in Australia also fell by 7.6% from 2Q21.

The proportion of employees actively seeking a new job rose slightly from 22.5% last quarter to 23.4% in 3Q21. While 40.5% of Australian employees surveyed reported high intent to stay with their current employer, the Gartner survey found variability between job functions and industries. For example, only 12% of Australian IT workers showed high intent to stay, pointing to a significant turnover problem.

Aaron McEwan, vice president in the Gartner HR practice, said the data paints a picture of a decline in Australian workforce health and confirms the heavy toll of more than 18 months living and working through a pandemic.

“If there is any doubt that the ‘Great Resignation’ seen in the U.S. is coming to Australia, this data dispels it. It is likely there will be an increase in people leaving their jobs around March next year, once hiring picks up after the summer holidays and annual bonuses are paid,” said McEwan.

Act now to set expectations and retain staff

There is still an opportunity for organisations to get ahead of the problem, by providing clarity to employees before the end of the year on what to expect in 2022. Work-life balance remains the top priority for Australians seeking a new job, and the no. 2 reason for leaving, according to the Gartner survey.

“We’re already seeing organisations pilot innovative solutions like 4-day work weeks, more flexible working arrangements and more comprehensive leave policies including paternal, miscarriage and menstrual leave,” said McEwan.

Manager quality was the top reason employees reported for leaving their role, followed by work-life balance.

“Even when an organisation’s policies allow flexibility, the implementation often still comes down to the employee’s direct manager,” said McEwan. “Workers dissatisfied with their employer’s attitude and policies towards management and flexibility will likely use the holiday period to plan their next career move.”

Compensation is now the no. 3 reason why Australians would leave their current employer. Two years ago, compensation did not appear in the top ten reasons for leaving.

To successfully retain staff, organisations must treat their employees as people, not workers, and invest heavily in re-designing work to be more human-centric, according to Gartner.

Table 1. Labour Market Survey Highlights for Australia, Q3 2021

Source: Gartner (December 2021)

The Gartner Global Labour Market Survey is made up of more than 18,000 employees in 40 countries, including 849 in Australia in Q321. The data above is reflective of market conditions during the quarter.

GBG (AIM:GBG), the global expert in digital identity, helping businesses prevent fraud and meet complex compliance requirements, has released new data showing more than one in four (27%) of Australians would not purchase from a retailer again due to late deliveries for the holidays. Consumers cited damaged trust (15%) and retailers being responsible for delivery timeliness (12%) as the main reasons. 

Despite various reports and forecasts of potential delivery delays and supply chain disruptions leading up to Christmas, 66% of Australians prefer home delivery for their online holiday season purchases, significantly more than those preferring click & collect (24%) or using a pick-up point from a logistics provider (5%).

Many consumers have already begun their shopping to mitigate potential delivery delays. More than a quarter (27%) started their holiday shopping in October, 28% planned to start their gift purchases in November, and 30% will be rushing for presents from the start of December to Christmas Eve. 

Carol Chris, Regional General Manager for GBG in ANZ commented, “Retailers and online merchants need to recognise that a significant portion of online shoppers will not show leniency if their customer experience is sub-par. Delivering secure and frictionless customer experiences at the checkout requires having reliable technology in place that accurately processes purchases and customer information.”

The data highlights consumers will maintain a measured approach to online shopping, though overall consumer confidence is high. This year, despite the ongoing pandemic, 73% of Australians plan to spend as much or more this holiday season in comparison to pre-COVID. A quarter (23%) plan to spend between $251 and 500 in total on gifts this year, and a further quarter (25%) have budgeted between $501 and $1,000.

Chris continued, “The ongoing impacts of the pandemic have not deterred Australians from wanting to ensure this time of year remains the biggest and busiest for their online shopping and holiday gifting needs. As retailers continue their digital transformation journeys to keep up with customer expectations, our Loqate Address solutions have been specifically designed to enable merchants to deliver exceptional experiences to every customer, wherever they are located, by being powered by the most accurate global and regional location data.” 

More key findings from the survey include:

• Consumers will be most influenced to shop more by sales, promotions and discounts (62%), free shipping (53%), and rewards/loyalty programs (36%).
• Post-pandemic, 61% intend to continue the habit generated during the pandemic of focusing on purchasing more essential products.
• 48% of Australians do not plan to travel this holiday season, 16% have travel booked within their state, and 24% intend to travel domestically. 

According to disability employment experts, atWork Australia, Australia’s 4.37 million people living with disability are still facing huge challenges with employment and this issue is depriving businesses of a highly loyal and productive talent pool.

“Hiring a person living with disability shouldn’t be seen as an issue to be overcome, but an opportunity to build stronger teams,” says Debbie Brooks, atWork Australia’s General Manager Partnerships & Stakeholder Engagement. “Hiring a diverse workforce facilitates different methods of communication, collaboration and leadership to balance out working styles and create a fluid and dynamic culture.”

Businesses can play an important role in creating an equal and inclusive workplace, and reap significant benefits from hiring people living with disability. Bringing together different minds, backgrounds, experiences, genders and ages brings together different thought processes to solve more complex problems.

While diverse workplaces benefit minority groups, businesses also stand to gain with a 2018 study showing that companies that prioritise inclusion achieve on average 28% higher revenue, 30% higher profit margins and double the net income. Additionally, on average, they see staff retention go up by 90%, which allows them to focus on their business and not ‘revolving door’ recruitment.

Here, Debbie sheds light on misconceptions with inclusive recruitment and discusses why it’s good for business.

Don’t assume that a person living with disability can’t complete the same tasks as their peers

As a person living with disability, the worst thing you can do is assume that someone isn’t capable of certain things due to their disability. You will be amazed how people can adapt and find new ways to do things.

My advice to employers would be that if they can create a workplace where the person living with disability feels comfortable to ask for help and can have access to the right technology that can best support them, it will allow the person to complete their role to the best of their ability.

It doesn’t cost more to hire someone living with a disability

It is often assumed that employing people living with disability carries additional costs. However, employers should be aware that this isn’t the case. It is clear from research that employing people living with disability costs exactly the same as employing those without^[i].

Employers may be eligible for funding through the Australian Government’s Employment Assistance Fund (EAF) which has been implemented to cover the costs of meeting accessibility requirements for eligible persons. This can include buying equipment and accessing services for people living with disability.

Diversity creates engagement

Inclusive workplaces are likely to be more engaged, motivated and productive, and employees will stay with a diverse business for longer. Opening up recruitment strategies to facilitate the employment of people with disabilities also opens the door to other diverse groups, helping businesses meet HR targets and benefit from accessing the full talent pool.

An inclusive workforce enables better connections with your customers

The Australian Network on Disability says that a workforce that reflects the diversity of the wider community is also likely to lead to greater customer loyalty and satisfaction across industries. A workforce that reflects your customer base, creates a better connection.

By creating a space where all employees have equal access to employment, Australian businesses can access the full talent pool. For more information, please visit https://www.atworkaustralia.com.au/des