Business Butler

5 Top Tips to create a happy working environment A happy working environment is key to having a successful business. Happier employees will be more creative, innovative and motivated in their roles. This will help develop a stronger cohesive team, great for staff retention and essential for businesses performance.  There are many methods of ensuring your business develops a positive working environment, here are 5 of our favourite tips to help develop a happier working environment. 1.       Make work fulfilling.  Everyone wants to feel like what they’re doing at work matters.  For any business, ensuring all employees work is noticed creates satisfaction. This will help an employee to be motivated to achieve in their role, as their efforts have a positive impact on the business. In order to enforce work fulfilment all employees must understand their purpose. 2.       Consistently deliver praise ...

Working in a coworking space can have great benefits for you and your business, however to make it work for everyone sharing the space it’s important that all parties are conscientious of others. In an environment that can change day to day with people hotdesking, hosting meetings or working part-time, the rules of workplace behaviour may not necessarily be clear. Every coworking space will have different versions of etiquette rules which you need to follow, but we have put together a general list of do’s and don’ts to ensure a courteous workplace etiquette is established wherever you’re working… Do’s: Clean up after yourself Wipe any surfaces you use especially in kitchen areas and ensure your area it tidy when you leave, many coworking spaces will have lockers, make use of these! Be prepared Bring all the office supplies you may need with you so you don’t have to interrupt others. If you do have to borrow something, make sure you return it when you’re done. Be friendl...

Coworking is becoming an increasingly popular option for small businesses and freelancers, but why should you consider coworking rather than working from home? Check out these advantages to find out if coworking is the right option for you and your business... 1) Join a community Working from home can be very isolating and you may go for days at a time without any face to face contact, working in a shared office space allows you to join a community of likeminded people in a similar situation to you, have people to chat to and socialise. 2) Create a work-life balance Whilst working from home can be great, the lines between your work life and your home life often become blurred. Hotdesking in a coworking space can allow you to create some separation between work and home. 3) Use professional meeting spaces One of the key benefits of coworking is that many spaces have dedicated meeting rooms that can be used. Inviting clients or prospects to a meeting room shows pr...

It’s been announced that the University of South Wales, the Welsh Government and Thales, a global technology firm, are collaborating to create a £20m cyber centre. The National Digital Exploitation Centre (NDEC) which will be in Ebbw Vale, will be part of the Tech Valleys programme . The Welsh Government has committed £100m of funding to the programme which aims to create 1,500 jobs in the long-run. The centre, the first facility of its kind in Wales, aims to provide SMEs and micro businesses with facilities to both test and develop their digital innovations. The university will be running an advanced cyber institute at the centre, providing a base for academic research alongside a digital education centre designed to enable SMEs, schools and individuals to develop their skills and be able to protect themselves online. Construction is due to commence in spring 2019 with Thales having already moved into a project office at the site in Ebbw Vale. The cyber centre will help W...

With political and economic uncertainty and ever changing technology, all UK businesses are facing a tough time and running a small business can be particularly challenging. Many businesses are struggling to survive and further challenges lie ahead. Amid a changing business landscape it’s key that small businesses are successful in overcoming challenges and avoiding mistakes others have made in the past. Key challenges that need to be considered by those running small businesses are… Recruiting and retaining employees Recruiting and retaining employees can often be costly and time consuming for small businesses. Writing contracts, conducting interviews, training employees and ensuring all necessary HR processes and policies are in place are amongst the requirements for businesses and can be challenging, especially when resources are limited. Regulation and compliance One challenge when running a small business is ensuring compliance with government regulations. Am...