Outsourcing is the future

Some might see this as a bold statement, but with a recent CBI survey predicting a skills shortage and Microsoft starting a new venture in outsourced solutions for companies, isn’t it time you took a look at the options?

In recent years outsourcing to many has meant dealing with a foreign call centre which has given the concept a bad name, but in reality the majority of firms providing an outsourced facility are professional highly motivated organisations.

The lack of skilled workers as identified in the CBI survey poses a real issue for businesses – either you can afford to pay the inflated salaries the staff demand, or you accept a poor substitute, potentially to the detriment of your business.

So what are the alternatives?

The outsourcing industry really started around the IT sector, as in the majority of instances most businesses did not need a full time technical person and therefore did not want to pay for the privilege. This has now evolved so that even the largest corporates worldwide who could have an ‘in-house’ team utilise the services of an outsourcing company. Why? Because it is cheaper!

It is no longer just IT that you can outsource, for example, here at Paper Mountain Solutions one of our key areas of expertise is financial management. So for our clients we handle their bookkeeping, produce VAT returns, look after the credit control and produce management accounts. The team here specialise in that field, so they handle it efficiently which makes it cheaper for you.

To some the idea of outsourcing leaves them feeling they will lose control. In this modern age of communication however, you gain control by ensuring reporting designed for your requirements is put in place so you are always up to date.

To discuss how outsourcing could help you business, contact Paul Smalley, MD of Paper Mountain Solutions on 0844 826 0579.

How do I grow this business?

An interesting point that many business owners and entrepreneurs have pondered over the years – how do I get to that next level?

Well fear not, Robert Craven has written an article on the subject – click here to read it.

The basis of the article is something that we instil in our clients, as by adopting the outsourcing model, the business owner is left to focus on income generation and take strategic decisions.

Robert’s initial comment is about how do you get from 100,000 to 1 million and then 10 million. One of our clients over the space of a few years went from £200,000 to 1.3 million.

What did we do? Apart from handling the sales process, dealing directly with suppliers and customers, as well as the bookkeeping, we also produced detailed monthly management accounts and held meetings where focus was turned to strategic decisions. The results speak for themselves.

To discuss how we can help your business, contact Paul Smalley on 0844 826 0579.

Risk free expansion opportunity

According to a report published by the Chartered Management Institute, the recession has created a toxic environment for businesses, with most UK managers still feeling insecure about the future and struggling to regain a competitive footing.

It has to be said this is not very positive, but what if you were presented with an option to grab opportunities in a risk free way? Would you be interested?

Well, that is exactly what Paper Mountain Solutions provides!

By ensuring that you only pay for the service time that you utilise with Paper Mountain Solutions, you can be sure you are only paying for someone to be productive for you. If things slow down, fine – use us a bit less. If it really takes off – use us a bit more.

Paper Mountain Solutions offers businesses the opportunity to outsource their bookkeeping, credit control, sales process, administration and more. You focus on income generation while we report to you so you know how your business is performing. Armed with that information you can take strategic decisions and focus on growth.

So take that risk free expansion opportunity and contact Paul Smalley on 0844 826 0579 to see how Paper Mountain Solutions can help your business.

Another success story, after the initial failure

In this weekend’s Sunday Times, Rachel Bridge wrote an article about Gavin Wheeldon of Applied Language Solutions – to read the full article click here.

At the age of 22 Gavin had, on paper, a successful business yet on the advice of his accountant the company was closed. Why? Because the business was not collecting cash fast enough and they were experiencing bad debt.

Many businesses face the same issue, and in 2008 it is believed that as many as 4,000 companies failed due to cash flow issues from debtors not paying them.

One of the key aspects Paper Mountain Solutions has found working with entrepreneurs is their ability to have great business ideas and develop them. We then provide them with the support so they can focus on that development. It is too late for the 4,000 who failed in 2008, but one of the services we provide is credit control.

My biggest mistake – some entrepreneurs come clean

In a previous blog I made reference to the fact that being an entrepreneur can be a lonely one, but we can make mistakes too.

Some of those mistakes can be real howlers, but the best thing is to learn from them and move on. As an entrepreneur we are pretty resolute in our decision making and drive to succeed – we are all human though!

Here is a link (click here) to an article published by Growing Business where some very successful entrepreneurs have come clean about some mistakes they have made.

We are constantly learning to make ourselves better at business and our companies stronger. Enjoy the read.

Volcanic ash affects more than just airline and tourism industries ability to trade

Now the school holidays are coming to an end, many businesses expected the return of key personnel following their break away. However, with the continued disruption to air travel, tens of thousands of holiday makers remain stranded.

This brings into question for many companies what their contingencies are for key personnel? Whilst this is a natural phenomena that will pass, what would happen if that key member of staff was unable to ever return to work?

For most large businesses they have the options of shifting staff around to provide ‘cover’. For smaller organisations no such luxury exists and therefore such eventualities could have a catastrophic impact on the business.

At Paper Mountain Solutions we work very closely with our clients so we know the intricacies and workings of their business completely. That means the business owner can actually choose to walk away from the business for a holiday safe in the knowledge there is a team running their company while they are away.

But what about Paper Mountain Solution’s contingencies? Well, we do not assign one or two people to work with our clients, but a team of six. That means if we have a member of staff away from the holiday, the rest of the team can handle any query. We also have a full disaster recovery plan for the business.

So what can small businesses do? Now is the time to act while this issue is in the headlines – if you don’t do it now, it will be too late the next time you have to think about it.

Contact Paul Smalley at Paper Mountain Solutions to see how we can help you safeguard your business through outsourcing.

Some entrepreneurial inspiration.

Rachel Bridge of The Sunday Times has written an article on Rob Law of Magmatic – he is the designer of the Trunki, which some may remember from Dragon’s Den where Theo Paphitis broke the strap!

You would have thought with publicity like that on the BBC there would be no going back.

Rob’s story in many ways highlights the really tough parts of being an entrepreneur that often don’t get told – the setbacks that need to be overcome before success is eventually realised.

Being an entrepreneur can be a tough and lonely business, which is why we spend so much time talking to our clients. Along with the work Paper Mountain Solutions does for them, they value having someone to bounce ideas and thoughts off, and suddenly it is not so lonely anymore.

To read the article on The Sunday Times website, click here.

1/3 of tenants living in illegal accommodation.

In a recent survey of just over 1,000 tenants, it transpired that a third of them were living in properties where the gas certificate had expired. Landlords are legally required to have an annual gas safety check and provide a copy of the certificate to the tenants for their records.

Whilst many professional landlords may be aware of their legal obligations, the boom in the buy-to-let market has seen a significant growth in new landlords who may not know their legal responsibilities.

The administration of running a portfolio of properties can be very demanding, ensuring that relevant certificates and insurances are up to date, let alone tenancy contracts.

At Paper Mountain Solutions we have a team who have extensive knowledge in working with the residential letting market, from reconciling rent receipts to finding tenants to ensuring compliance with legal requirements, we know the industry.

Whether you own a couple of properties or even a couple of hundred, we have had the experience over the years in handling such portfolios.

To find our more about the how Paper Mountain Solutions may be able to help you with your portfolio, contact Managing Director Paul Smalley on 0844 826 0579 or paul@papermountainsolutions.co.uk.

Problems being paid? You are not alone, but we can help!

In an article published by the BBC yesterday (http://bit.ly/diKqhL), the problem of late paying customers was highlighted. This affects a huge number of businesses, and it is only by sticking to strict credit control procedures can you keep on top of your debtors.

In the article, the FSB claimed that 4,000 businesses failed as a direct result of late payments in 2008.

Strict credit control is one of the key aspects that Paper Mountain Solutions deliver for our clients, and we wrote about a procedure to implement in a newsletter published earlier this year (http://bit.ly/9iFtX9).

If you would like to guidance on how to improve your credit control, contact Paul Smalley on 0844 826 0579 or via email at paul@papermountainsolutions.co.uk.