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The Real Dragon's Den

Serial Entrepreneur Brad Rosser has worked with some of the best in the business; from Sir Richard Branson to Alan Bond. Now Brad, Australian born, is taking the UK by storm and making his own mark. Besides making the Sunday Times Rich List in 2006, he is also heavily involved in many entrepreneurial ventures and still finds time to mentor young entrepreneurs just starting out in the business. read more

Entrepreneurial Boards: How To Recruit & Retain A Strong Entrepreneurial Board Of Directors

Often, chief executives and HR professionals have questions on how to recruit and motivate new board members. They are unsure of the appropriate: intervals for board meetings, compensation, and diversity of the board’s members. And, there is little research to help companies develop best practices for attracting, retaining, rewarding and drawing value from their entrepreneurial boards. As a way to cogently and concisely answer these questions, the Vell Entrepreneurial Boards Composition Survey identifies trends in boards of directors. We surveyed 150 CEOs, venture capitalists and vice presidents of human resources and board directors from various industries. read more

Becoming A Master Franchisee

For a start, a franchisee is not an employee – even though they work to instructions and would hopefully be selected with as much care, or more, as an employee. They are not customers – even though the formal relationship will start by them buying something from the franchisor and they will continue to be provided with goods and services in return for some sort of payment. They are not partners – whatever the franchisor’s promotional material may say about working together towards a common aim, they are certainly not partners within any legal definition. So they are none of these things but all of these things and would certainly be expected to behave in many of the ways people in these categories do. read more

Conversion Franchising – The Route To Success?

A business which already has a number of outlets (it could be ten, it could be 10,000) may see advantages in converting some or all of them to franchised rather than company-managed outlets. In doing so, the costs and hassle of day-to-day operation are transferred to the franchisee who may or may not be the previous manager. The latter is more motivated to operate profitably because it is their own business. In the current economic climate, this may be a suitable route to business success. read more

An International Affair

Considering whether to grow your business via franchising is one thing, but what about taking it that one step further and expanding abroad. Read on, to see if you have what it takes. read more

Looking To The Future With Franchising

Franchising continues to grow as a method of doing business around the world. Just about any business that operates through a branch network could benefit from considering franchising as a development option. As an operating system, the principle of franchising is simple – it is a means of business growth, facilitated by granting a license to others to sell a product or service. read more

Employers That Follow Best Practice Have Nothing To Fear From Historic European Court Ruling, Says Employers’ Forum On Disability

Employers’ Forum on Disability (EFD) welcomed the European Court of Justice’s ruling on Sharon Coleman’s case, saying it is good news for all employers and employees, not just those affected by disability. Sharon Coleman successfully argued that the law should protect people associated with disability, like the six million carers in the UK. She claims her employers discriminated against her by refusing her request for flexible working to care for her disabled son. read more

Vehicles You Can Drive And How Old You Must Be To Drive Them

The tables list the vehicle category descriptions for driving tests passed after 1 January 1997 and the minimum ages for driving them. All weights refer to maximum authorised mass (MAM) unless stated otherwise. This is the total weight of the vehicle plus the maximum load it can carry. read more

Employers' Forum On Disability Gives Cautious Welcome To Welfare Reform Plans

Employers’ Forum on Disability gave a cautious welcome to the government's Green Paper on welfare reform, particularly the doubling of funding for Access to Work. The welfare reform Green Paper 'No one written off: reforming welfare to reward responsibility' focuses on five key areas of welfare reform, and includes increased funding for projects that will help people into work. read more

Eighty Teams Go Head To Head Raising Money For Water Aid In The Cisco Euro Challenge

Eighty teams from some of the world’s top businesses are going head-to-head in a challenge of fitness, intelligence and strategic thinking in the Cisco Euro Challenge to raise money for WaterAid. This exhilarating event will take place in Sauerland, Germany, 11 – 14 September 2008. read more