Why productivity matters
Productive companies get more out of what they’ve got, enabling them to increase their profits, pay higher wages and invest in their future. More productive businesses mean a more prosperous country. Discover why productivity matters below.
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Sales & Growth
Article
Taking control of your marketing strategy – and reaping the benefits
It’s hard to win new customers and grow without a marketing strategy, but how do you decide who best to tell your story?
Marketing & Sales
People & Team
Article
What happens when you think you’ve hired the wrong person?
If you discover you have hired the wrong person should you cut ties or take time to mould them into the worker you need?
Talent development
Leadership & Strategy
Article
Customer feedback keeps Polhawn Fort ahead of trends
Sarah Turpitt, General Manager of the Polhawn Fort stays ahead of the trends by listening to customer feedback and collaborating with local producers.
Leadership Behaviours
Leadership & Strategy
Article
How leadership skills programmes helped founders find focus
Two tech founders pursued executive education to improve their leadership skills. Learning from experts and peers proved to be an invaluable experience.
Leadership Behaviours
Digital Readiness
Article
It’s The Small Things: Graze CEO Anthony Fletcher
From humble beginnings to 500 staff, Graze is an amazing British business story. CEO Anthony Fletcher talks about the small decisions being made each day.
Develop the use of business data
People & Team
Article
From the coal face: Questioning the CEO about revenue expenditure
When a receptionist asked her CEO how the £172,000 they’d made last month was spent it prompted a closer at the company’s revenue expenditure and a resulting saving of 12 per cent the following month.
Performance management
Video
Why business mentoring is more than just a talking shop
With over 200 pairings through our Mentoring for Growth programme now made, Be the Business looked at how business mentoring is more than just an opportunity to shoot the breeze and share anecdotes – it provides the kind of advice and guidance key to sustainable growth.
Planning
Article
We’re looking at ways to completely restructure the business
The coronavirus lockdown has been eye-opening for Catherine Connor, co-founder of Lovingly Artisan, who is now eyeing a restructure.
Change your mindset around future planning
People & Team
Article
Getting the best out of a workforce means not pigeonholing staff
Giving employees specific titles, roles and tasks may be tempting from an operations point of view, but by not pigeonholing staff two particular businesses have unlocked creativity and cultivated a collaborative approach to working.
Talent development
Leadership & Strategy
Article
A business mentor re-united our family firm behind the same vision
With the third generation at family firm Carrs Pasties not finding things straightforward, mentoring turned out to be the experience-based support needed.
External Collaboration
Leadership & Strategy
Article
How to become a disruptive leader in a family business
We spoke with Barry Leahey MBE about what it means to be a disruptive leader – especially when you’re at the helm of a family business.
Leadership Behaviours
Sales & Growth
Article
How to do business in China: Expert advice for British businesses
International business expert David Nicholls takes a look at doing business in…
Expanding & Exporting
Digital Readiness
Article
How Facebook Live cookery sessions are putting one business on the map
When coronavirus threatened their business, The Cooking Shed turned to Facebook Live and connected with some surprising new customers.
Collaborative tools & analytics
People & Team
Article
Coronavirus: How to reduce your workforce in a controlled way
The coronavirus outbreak has made the prospect of job losses and the need to reduce your workforce immediate. Here's how to do it in a delicate way.
People & Team
Article
Consider the effect of personal problems
If an employee is struggling at work, then consider that their personal problems could be a contributing factor for a drop in productivity says Julia Mitchell, Managing Director at Toast PR.
Performance management
Digital Readiness
Video
VIDEO: Why easyJet embraces a curious, not critical approach
Eager to uncover how it can better serve its diverse customer base, easyJet ancillary revenue director Andrew Middleton explained how the airline is iterating and evolving through constant feedback.
Collaborative tools & analytics
Sales & Growth
Article
Exporting into unusual countries can open up unexpected doors
Doing business successfully to one unusual export country can lead to opportunities in others.
Expanding & Exporting
People & Team
Article
Tried and tested approaches to deal with staff missing targets
Be the Business spoke to three forward-thinking SMEs about the strategies employed to both identify when staff are missing targets, and get them back on track.
Performance management
Leadership & Strategy
Article
Hibernating SMEs work out how to get going again
The challenges and opportunities for SMEs hibernating since the coronavirus pandemic forced doors to close are numerous. We look at how to tackle them.
Leadership Behaviours
People & Team
Article
We reward hard work with an equity stake
Opinium has taken a different route rewarding its best performing employees with an equity stake in the business, believing it is a more effective way of recognising effort.
Motivation
Leadership & Strategy
Article
A look at why productivity really matters for UK businesses
While many in the small and medium-sized business (SME) community might associate productivity with manufacturing and "output per hour", there are a number of less direct contributing factors.
Leadership Behaviours
People & Team
Article
The big business practices that have helped small tech firms succeed
Big business practices like Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) and self-management can drive rapid growth in small tech businesses.
Talent development
Sales & Growth
Article
Productivity is getting more out of each day – and not busting a gut doing it
Chiltern Brewery's Tom Jenkinson is taking a less is more approach to productivity, streamlining the business and sharing responsibility around the whole operation.
Prepare for expansion
Leadership & Strategy
Article
The different interpretations of vision and values in business
They're discussed a lot in terms of their importance in setting a successful strategy, but interpretations of vision and values are often unique to each company and leader. Be the Business digs a little deeper.
Vision & Values