CLEARLY BUSINESS offers the following services:

Serviced Offices, Virtual Offices, Mail Service, Hot Desking, Boardroom, Interview/Meeting Rooms and Training Room.
 

Serviced Offices

Walk in and start work.  Allows you to establish any office in a city location and close to public transport in a professional and friendly environment.  Offices are available on flexible terms from 3 months.  We offer:

Like having your own dedicated office - without being there.  We will take care of your calls, faxes, messages and mail and you'll have access to hot desks, interview, meeting, training and boardrooms at reduced rates.   We offer:

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New Staff and Job Vacancies with ESBEC

Manager, Operations ( Bondi Junction & City )

I am pleased to advise that Nichole Richardson has joined us as Manager, Operations. At last I can step back from all the operational side of the organisation. Nichole comes to us with a wealth of experience of the operations of a Business Enterprise Centre, having held a similar position at Botany BEC and for the past 12 months as Executive Officer of the Business Enterprise Association NSW.

I hope you will join with me in welcoming Nichole aboard . With the expansion of our services associated with the successful tender for the Sydney Business Advisory Service we have the following positions vacant:

The new Sydney Business Advisory Service

The Eastern Suburbs BEC has been providing a free business advisory service on behalf of the Department of State and Regional Development for over 14 years.

As a result of our recent successful tender the service will be provided under the above program and will be extended to include the Local Government Areas of : Ashfield, Burwood, Bankstown, Canada Bay, Canterbury, Leichhardt, Marrickville, Randwick, South Sydney, City of Sydney, Waverley and Woollahra.

Under this program we will be offering free and confidential business advisory service training workshops (see our training calendar) and access to information.

Services will be delivered both from our office in Bondi Junction and our Sydney city Location, Level 19, 323 Castlereagh Street, City (near Central).

The Sydney Business Advisory Service can be contacted on 1300 650 038

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Australia Post Small Business Awards NSW/ACT

I recently attended the Awards dinner at the Novotel at Sans Souci. It was a great night with over 300 attendees. It was good to see small business getting together to celebrate the success of the finalist and network with each other .

The night was MC'd by Amanda Keller who, as usual, was at her witty best. Judging for this award must have been difficult. However from the finalists & winners I believe that they did a great job.

A record number of over 400 submissions were received and I am told that a high number came from the Eastern Suburbs.
See the winners

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Yellow Pages Innovation Grant Awards - local business finalist!

We are pleased to report that one of our local small business operators, Dean McEvoy from Paddington, was a finalist in the Yellow Pages Business Ideas Grants with his business Booking Angel.

Booking Angel provides an online reservation system that improves and increases bookings for restaurants by converting online bookings entered in a web form to an automated voice message that restaurant staff can confirm or reject by pressing the keys on their phone. Online bookings can be confirmed almost instantly. The system can operate in any industry where a booking, appointment or order is made.

The gala lunch for the grants was recently held in Melbourne. Read about the finalists at http://about.sensis.com.au/big/

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Legal Corner - Running Your Business through a Partnership

Here is another great legal tip from business lawyer Peter Townsend:

Are you using or considering using a partnership to operate your business?

If so, it is essential that you have a partnership agreement in place from day one. A well drafted partnership agreement will set the rules for:

a. how the partnership will run;

b. how decisions of the partnership are made and how responsibility is to be apportioned for those decisions;

c. how the profits of the partnership are to be divided;

d. how partners get out of the partnership.

They say partnerships are a bit like a marriage. It's all rosy until the relationship falls apart. The partnership agreement sets the rules for the relationship and will ensure that the parties involved can fall back on strategies that they all agreed suited them at the outset to help them negotiate and work through any difficulties.

For more information visit www.petertownsend.com.au

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UPCOMING TRAINING AND EVENTS

Need a comprehensive Business Plan? Start 2005 in the right direction!

On offer now - commencing 22nd November 2004

Are you at that stage in your business where you need a comprehensive Business Plan?

We are offering a limited number of places to join our Certificate IV in Business Management (Small Business Management, Code BSB40401) which will commence late November, take a break over Christmas and resume February 2005.

You will have a business plan by the end of March 2005. Yes, it's a lot of work but what a way to start the year!

This program is the same certificate on offer through TAFE, however we offer it with a practical business focus over a six month period. More details can be found on our Training Calendar. 

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Focus Groups - A great opportunity to have your say!

Some of you may know Linda Hailey who is a popular consultant and author on small business marketing. However, you may not know that she is a great supporter of Sydney BAS/ESBEC and has been a Board member for around six years.

Linda is currently working on her next book which is all about the phases small businesses go through and how that can affect the way we cope with business challenges. She has asked for our help to find a number of business owners to participate in a series of "focus groups".

The focus group sessions which will take around an hour and a half will be held at Sydney BAS offices (level 19/323 Castlereagh St Sydney) from 6.00 - 7.30pm on the 1st, 8th, 15th and 16th of November.

The discussion will be chaired by Linda who will simply be asking questions about the key issues for you, along with the opportunities and challenges you face in your business. This is a great opportunity to participate in some research and hear what other businesses like yours are experiencing. Who knows, you might even get a mention in the book!

Linda is looking for participants that have been in business for specific lengths of time. These are 18 months to 2 years, 4 years, 7 years and 10 years.

Business owners who have been in business for 18 mths/2 years will meet on Monday the 1st November.
Business owners who have been in business around 4 years will meet on Monday the 8th November.
Business owners who have been in business around 7 years will meet on Monday the 15th November.
Business owners who have been in business around 10 years will meet on Tuesday the 16th November.

Linda needs between eight and twelve participants for each session. If you would like to take part in this research please contact Linda's assistant Shan Lawson direct on 0417 657064 or email her at shan@avls.com.au

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Home-Based Business Programs 2005

As you are aware we have been very supportive of the federal government's Home-Based Business Series of seminars around Australia. I note that as an election pledge we can expect to see a lot more initiatives from the federal government to support this sector. We will be tracking this and keeping you informed.

I am also a member of the Home-Based Business Segment Partnership being run by the Australian Taxation Office. This forum will go over a period of twelve months.

I am pleased to advise that on behalf of the New South Wales State & Regional Development we are offering the  Home-Based Business Action Programs which provide opportunities to experienced home-based business operators to expand and improve their business.

The programs equip operators with the essential tools and expertise to strategically plan their business direction.

The following programs are offered:

Business Planning (Commencing 3rd February 2005)

Marketing (Commencing 17th March 2005)

Better Systems (Commencing 19th May 2005)

Home-based business operators can participate in more than one program if available in their local area. The programs include:

A series of four three-hour extensive workshops that examine up-to-date business concepts and planning tools;

A three-hour intensive group review clinic that provides opportunities to apply the business tools and promotes shared learning.
Programs are outcome-focused, involve take-home activities and team support structures and provide networking opportunities.

The program will be offered out of our city office. See our Training Calendar for further details. 

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Mentoring Programs 2005 and our latest Case Studies

Need to take that next step but not sure how? Take a look at the following mentor programs:


The Stepping Up Program - Helping Small Businesses Grow

The Eastern Suburbs BEC is hopeful of  being able to offer the NSW Department Of State & Regional Development "Stepping Up program" through it's Sydney Office in 2005. In anticipation of this we are now taking expression of interest from participants.

The program which links small business owners across New South Wales to build profits, jobs and exports.  It provides an opportunity to acquire new skills and develop growth plans and strategies, to better equip business owners to face the many challenges that today's highly competitive and rapidly changing global marketplace presents.

The  Stepping Up Program:

provides established business owners committed to growing their business with access to an experienced business person, who assists to develop a profitable growth pathway for the business;

recognises that after start-up, the next critical phase comes when a business owner has to decide how and when to commit resources to expansion.  This is when a "voice of experience" can be invaluable, particularly a person with no conflict or vested interest.

offers long-lasting skills, networking with other business owners and access to an experienced business person to focus the issues and plans that will make a difference.

Business owners who are accepted into the Stepping Up Program will participate in a business development program which is typically three to four months in length.

Components of this program are:

Workshops

Mentoring

What Will it Cost YOU?

Natasha@easternsuburbsbec.com.au .

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Women in Business Mentor Program

Our last Women in Business Mentor Program, delivered on behalf of the NSW Department of State & Regional Development, finished in August and was a great success - click on the links below to read about some of the participants' experiences of the program.

Case Study: A Virtual Lifesaver
Case Study: Embody - Holistic Healing

We are hopeful that we will be in a position to offer this program again in 2005. To place your name on a list to receive application details please email natasha@easternsuburbsbec.com.au with the email subject "WIB Mentor Program".

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Business Skills Training workshops

These workshops are being offered on an ongoing basis at the City, Inner West, Bondi Junction, Bankstown and Canada Bay locations.

Legal issues for managing your business

This workshop would benefit those looking at commencing a business or those already in business.

It aims to address the legal issues facing a business, such as business structures, employing staff, contracts, insurance and OH&S requirements and customer protection legislation.

Marketing and Sales: You are Your Business

Designed to provide an overview of marketing and selling concepts, including new technology, and to assist participants evaluate their markets to develop a marketing plan.

Participants will learn the importance of service expectations and repeat business, building relationships with customers, and how to promote their business and make sales (including the use of the internet and e-commerce).

Operating your business from Home

This workshop aims to provide participants with an overview of the key factors of operating a home-based business.

It addresses the benefits and problems faced by home-based businesses and examines the requirements and qualities needed to make a home-based business succeed.

Financial Statements and Talking Business

In this workshop participants will gain tools for analysing their financial reports to improve their business.

The workshop aims to improve the technical literacy of participants, allowing them to confidently discuss their business and financial issues with their banks and accountant.

Participants will learn about the main financial management concepts that need to be understood when analysing financial records and in discussion with accountants and banks.

Also check out our Business Planning & Starting a New Business workshops.

For more details and to book online please go to our Training Calendar. 



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