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People & Team
Article
A flexible working policy helped us attract top talent
When you’re competing for top talent, a flexible working policy can set you apart from the rest. Here’s how inniAccounts made it work for them.
Embrace workplace flexibility
Sales & Growth
Article
We beat a failing market by talking our customers’ language
Starting a business when your competitors are failing can be daunting, but Forbes Burton beat the odds by adopting a customer-first approach.
Shape your language to fit customers
Planning
Article
We chose stories over advice to get the most out of our business mentors
HR firm CharlieHR recognised it would need outside help to continue growing the business, in particular growth strategy insight from business mentors.
Develop external contacts
Leadership & Strategy
Article
Our company values meant something different to everyone
Fordway learned that its company values meant something different to each employee. Here's how they got staff involved in updating and designing new ones.
Create meaningful vision and values
Leadership & Strategy
Article
I broke with tradition to keep our family business alive
How do you make changes to a 300-year old family business? Carefully. This is how cider company Aspall brought in a fresh perspective.
Challenge the status quo
Planning
Article
Our office location restricted growth, so we invested in our firm’s future
The prospect of moving your business to a new site can feel daunting, but Diamond Interiors saw it as an investment in their future.
Invest in future goals
Sales & Growth
Article
We had to hire local talent to expand successfully
When Vuealta started global growth planning the amount of information available was overwhelming. It's solution was to invest in local support and talent.
Prepare for expansion
Leadership & Strategy
Article
Our cross-training programme has upskilled the team and boosted retention
Encouraging staff to mentor each other helped The Stag Company cope with staff absences and boost team morale.
Develop an internal training programme
Planning
Article
My technology failed because I didn’t think big enough
When Formula Botanica realised early on that its technology wasn’t keeping pace with growth it put in place a plan that would provide peace of mind.
Invest in new technology
Leadership & Strategy
Article
Creating an acronym for our values made them memorable
How do you communicate your values effectively as you grow? Sheffield Sustainable Kitchens found a way to keep them at the forefront.
Codify your values
Sales & Growth
Article
We used customer feedback to prioritise our marketing spend
With so many marketing channels available, it’s hard to know where to invest. Bury-based security firm Expert Security let customer feedback guide them.
Set a customer feedback strategy
Leadership & Strategy
Article
Working with a mentor transformed my approach to staff management
How do you turn things around when your staff lack motivation? For Tutor House founder Alex Dyer, a mentor was crucial to getting his business back on track.
Seek neutral advice
Leadership & Strategy
Article
As the company grew, we stopped talking about our business values
Accountancy firm The Wow Company found that as the company grew, the visibility of company values suffered and it began hiring what looked good on paper.
Communicate vision and values
Planning
Article
Non-revenue targets enabled us to scale our values
A lot of businesses see customer satisfaction ratings plummet as they expand. ImpraGas was determined not to let that happen. Read how they used target-setting to get there.
Create non-revenue targets
Article
We overhauled how we handled staff requests to fight innovation inertia
Fast Web Media needed to re-engage employees in innovation process after frustration had set in and staff had become fed up with the rate of progress.
Sales & Growth
Article
We identified a target audience and found a global market to tackle seasonality
Cocofina found it challenging to maintain consistent sales throughout the year because of its issues with seasonality – sales suffered in the winter.
Identify target markets
People & Team
Article
We created a bespoke training programme to invest in employee development
When expensive external training proved too generic for staff needs, Tommies Childcare developed its own programme.
Define the skills needed
Planning
Article
We took a risk and changed business direction
To succeed in a new market, Natterbox needed to create fresh goals and ensure staff were invested enough to buy into them across the different departments.
Ensure employees buy in to targets
Digital Readiness
Article
We used external agencies to build a luxury ecommerce giant
Leather retailer Maxwell Scott found it challenging to transition its door-to-door business into a digital success, turning to external agencies for help.
Collaborate externally
Digital Readiness
Article
Using a spreadsheet to manage stock was not working anymore
Cheeky Chompers relied on Excel to manage stock, manufacturing and customer orders. This made for a complex supply chain and was hard to keep on top of.
Digitise your supply chain
People & Team
Article
Our positive performance reviews helped quadruple business revenue
Birmingham-based virtual assistant service Time Etc realised it had developed a culture of low performance and hardworking staff had become demoralised.
Review staff performance twice per year
Leadership & Strategy
Article
Our business is global, but managing a team working remotely is tough
As Formula Botanica has grown it has struggled to find people who won’t “wither” working remotely across England, Belgium, Slovakia and Brazil.
Support your employees
Sales & Growth
Article
We lost sight of how important managing customers proactively is
When customer issues started slipping under the radar, Arthur Online took a proactive approach to their customer service.
Manage customers proactively
People & Team
Article
Our investment in company culture motivates our 300-strong team
How do you keep service consistent when you have 300 staff across 11 sites? London-based cafe Grind focuses on hiring people who are already brand ambassadors.
Develop hiring processes that maintain motivation