June 2015 Issue 105

Fusion Painting is not your typical painting company. As our clients will tell you time and time again, we work really hard to give them a great experience. What sets us apart is our strong commitment to delivering high quality professional painting and decorating, coupled with excellent customer service. We strive to transform living and work spaces through the use...

It's an office furniture emergency. What do you do? Brian Hunter and the team at Dizzy Office Furniture treat every call as though it's an emergency. Working with businesses and watching them grow is very rewarding, says Brian Hunter, managing director of Dizzy Office Furniture. You need a quick response to what ails you whether it's a reception desk to...

The world is changing. People want things now. People want things cheap. However, these are not always the things that we should strive for. Tony Woods, owner of Concrete Benches, is an artisan driven by quality and sustainability. Tony wants to bring back the value in handcrafted items that will last for years to come. While a diesel fitter by...

With more than 150 years of history, Baker Deane & Nutt (BDN) is one of the oldest law firms in Australia; every year in business, we've seen change and progress in our community. BDN's success relies on our ties to the community as well as the expertise of our practitioners to form enduring relationships with our clients. We maintain relationships...

The relationship between business and sport is entrenched from the highest levels (eg the Toyota AFL Premiership; the Emirates Melbourne Cup; the VB Ashes Series) through to small businesses sponsoring local junior teams. Business sponsorship is crucial to modern sport. At the same time, an association with sport is an ideal means for businesses to increase brand recognition. Businesses use...

Employers will transition away from higher levels of temporary and contract roles back to more permanent positions in the year ahead, but Canberrans should not expect big salary increases during this period. According to our 2015 Hays Salary Guide, released early June, 22 per cent of employees can expect a salary increase of three per cent or more in their...

Small Businesses (less than 20 employees) may soon have protection against the imposition of unfair terms within new standard form contracts if proposed legislation is adopted. Protection against an unfair contract term within a standard form contract has been in existence for certain consumer contracts since the Australian Consumer Laws (ACL) were introduced in 2010. Small Businesses does already have...

Have you ever wondered how a parcel makes it to your door, where it came from, who packed it and why it was delivered so quickly (or not!)? Imagine the seller processing and sending hundreds if not thousands of similar orders each day, across vast distances, in the shortest time frame, at the best possible price, using multiple freight carriers....

Directors have indicated their overwhelming support for the need for broad tax reform, and expressed concern that public policy debate in Australia is "poor quality", according to a new survey. The bi-annual Director Sentiment Index compiled by the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD) found that GST reform was the top priority for any comprehensive review of the taxation system...

The internet has become one of the primary means by which businesses can connect with their customers; but when creating or updating your website, the law of copyright should always be a primary consideration if you want to avoid the risk of unexpected liability. Photographs, for example, can very easily be searched and viewed online. However by law, the exclusive...

If you own an investment property, there's every chance you may have had to deal with a rogue tenant - they might not pay their rent on time, they might damage your property, and perhaps worst of all, they could be difficult to evict. How do you deal with these tenants? Here are a few simple tips that could help:...

With rapidly advancing technological change, increasing business reliance on personal identity details and the growth in transient population movement, theft of personal information is becoming increasingly prevalent. As a direct result, over the past few years there has been an increased incidence of identity crime. Identity crime generates significant profits for offenders and causes considerable financial losses to the Australian...

One day, I was watching the Discovery Channel with my four-year-old son Charlie when he asked, "Why does the big fish eat the small one?" Having gone through so many life experiences compared to my son, it seemed like a natural phenomenon because that's just the way things are in business too. Big companies are able to yield more power...

Are you making the most of all the benefits and strategies at your disposal to build your retirement savings? Will you have enough to retire on? Are your other assets working hard enough? Not sure? SIMPLE WAYS TO HELP CREATE YOUR IDEAL RETIREMENT LIFESTYLE 1. Are you taking advantage of super rules to boost your retirement savings? Australian super rules...

Canberra and South East New South Wales have a unique relationship due to our geographic proximity and shared vision for our region. Together we want to build a strong regional economy by creating local jobs, building a world class and accessible tertiary education sector, attracting tourists and encouraging business development and investment. That is why the South East Regional Organisation...

The Canberra Business Chamber commends the ACT Government for providing strategic funding in this year's Budget to stimulate economic activity in the region. It is important the ACT continues to diversify its economy. The $11.75 million for a new business development strategy, Confident and Business Ready, is designed to drive investment, create jobs and encourage innovation. It will build on...