Business Challenges Ahead
Business challenges ahead! Headlines of inflation and economic troubles fills our news. The above is from Businesstimes. We have seen headwind coming our way including oil price, food price, housing rental, COE prices etc are increasing at a rate we have never seen before.
We just walked out of Covid restrictions, and into a new and challenging world.
Here are some challenges we will be facing:
1. Employment cost to increase (since inflation, employees are asking for more)
2. Business cost to increase from transportation, freight, cloud subscriptions, rental, utilities etc
3. Direct cost of goods as well as production cost to increase
With these increase all the the same time, we are again force to rethink business structures, operational efficiencies as as current facilities, practices and norms.
Email above is from DBS telling us our traditional way of payment via cheque is no long in favour. Charges will start soon for cheque deposits, while we know most banks has already started charging cheque clearance. Have you started doing internet banking in replacement of physical writing of cheques as payments? Are you still receiving cheque payments from customers? Even electronic payments are not spared. These charges will eat into business profits.
Moving ahead, what can small business do to improve?
1. Increase sales revenue by increasing price in tandem with the economy (can your customers accept it gracefully?)
2. Lower cost and expenses which we have many to work on
3. Produce more by being more efficient?
Business owners will have a lot to think about. Let us come together and face these challenges together as SMEs. Alone we are really small, but together we can fare better.
Here are some of the areas to improve with efficiency:
- Adopt technology that make us more efficient (do more with less time and effort)
- Use our human resource efficiently (outsource non-core activities)
- Be agile to movements and changes, like from cheques to online payment adoptions
Technology that helps us more efficiency:
1. Accounting solutions that speeds up our invoice, reporting, search, payment processes, as well as statutory reporting
2. Cloud drive that allow us to be operating anywhere and anytime
3. Use of barcode or RFID for inventory management to speed up work with good accuracy
4. Use of cloud phone system to provide better communication to customers
Outsource of non-core functions to external:
- Accounting and payroll requires special knowledge and tools can be outsource to external vendors to assist
- Administrative or non-physical work that can perform from outside office can employ virtual assistance including disadvantage individuals or part time house-wives that can enable more flexible work arrangements
- Sharing of resources including office spaces, technological solutions as well as manpower may work among trusted business partners
We too can come together to brainstorm and share our ideas to bounce off with you. Do give us a call for a non-obligation chat to explore how we can ride through this storm together.
Contact us or whatsapp us at +65 65898878 Now!
