As workplaces continue to mutate into a mixture of designated buildings and makeshift home offices, productivity has become increasingly difficult to monitor as the focus shifts away from simple benchmarks such as hours logged. One of the most reliable and feasible measurements we have is to self-assess our own productivity throughout the workday, which includes […]

In case you have noticed, there is no turning back! As businesses resume out of lockdown, they are facing the “new normal”. For those of us operating in a business-to-business (B2B) context, this will be characterised by: -Increased number of decision-makers.-Purchased decisions made by consensus.-Tighter budgets.-Highly demanding, risk-averse buyers.-Selling virtually. Unlike the pandemic, these conditions […]

Meet the “savvy” high-schoolers who created a booming e-commerce platform during COVID-19 This has not been an easy year to launch a new business. But, three high school students from Strathcona Girls Grammar have done just that. And, after a successful soft launch, they’re preparing for growth. Pre-COVID-19, aspiring entrepreneurs Audrey Hillard, Kate Henry and […]

The National Preparedness Week, 31 August – 6 September 2020, an initiative of the Australian Red Cross, helps individuals and businesses plan for emergencies. Australian Red Cross, Chief Executive Officer, Judy Slatyer said, “What we know from working in disasters for over 100 years, is being prepared can make an emergency less stressful, give people […]

The coronavirus continues to hurt the wellbeing of each and everyone one of us, affecting everyday life and the global economy. Office shutdowns have been ordered by governments and many businesses are now working with an entirely remote workforce for the first time. Keeping productivity as high as possible and eliminating IT-led outages is going […]

More than a decade ago, my co-founder Tim Molloy and I were selling neckties across a few locations in Melbourne and Sydney. We had quality stock and it was a high-margin product, so for a few years, we did really well out of it. Then, thanks to a combination of changing fashion (where officewear trended […]

In a factory in Sydney’s south, Merna Taouk is bundling up fresh crumpets which will be packed and shipped directly to someone’s doorstep. She wears (She’s wearing) her signature headscarf, resembling the logo which adorns the packaging of her eponymous crumpet brand. While Ms Taouk’s likeness is instantly recognisable, her business looks very different than […]

One of the changes borne out of the COVID-19 pandemic is increased mindfulness about cleanliness and sanitation to help stem the spread of the disease. With most people having become neat freaks over the past few months, businesses make sure to keep their premises clean to avoid violating health regulations and facing possible liability in […]