Small Business Loans For the Small Business Owner

June 13, 2018 by

In the United States,  small-minority-owned businesses play a significant role in the economy. There are approximately 1 million minority-owned businesses and $254 billion in payroll, an increase of 7% from 2014 to 2015. State government officials want these businesses to succeed because of the importance they play in their local economies.

Funding for some of these businesses is made possible through small business loans that government agencies make available to owners that are unable to secure them through the usual channels. These loans provide critical capital they need to cover payroll or to provide the fuel to start the business.

For these small business owners, an increase in operational costs can affect them significantly.  The constant increase of health care coverage for their employees is a constant source of capital worries.  These loans would allow them to weather the storm or the short deficit they experience due to these expenses.

Through a health insurance survey, small business owners were asked whether health insurance costs are of concern to them. 80% of those business owners said to be afraid of any increase, especially since the trend is an increase of 18% in health care coverage from one year to the next.  They believe an increase of even 10% in health coverage premiums can make it impossible for them to offer their employees any health insurance coverage at all. These loans from state governments would allow them to continue with their business operations without having the constant worry of whether or not they can make payroll that month.

For many small businesses, their competitive edge they need to level the plane field with big companies is their ability to woo and retain talented employees. These businesses offer an array of incentives and other perks that many big companies cannot offer.

One of the many advantages small business owners have over the big firms is the close relationships the small owner can form with their employees. Employees in a small business interact with each other on a more personal level, and that is something many employees look for when looking for a job.

The flexibility small businesses offer their employees is not something to take lightly.  If a small company allows its employees to work from home when there’s an emergency, or a child is sick and they need to care for them, the flexibility is worth something to the employee.

A small company allows more independence and gives their employees more control over their work.  They are not micro-managed every single day or are constantly required to ask permission from upper management if they want to do something outside the “box”.

Small business owners have to think differently if they want to woo and keep talented employees, but it is not impossible to do it if they have the capital to back them up.

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When Hiring An Employee

April 23, 2018 by

The challenges small business owners face are a bit different from the challenges the big guys deal on a daily basis. 

The small business owner has the capability and the luxury to meet and know the employees that work for them.  Some of the challenges a small business owner faces when dealing with employees are whether he/she is challenging their employees and keeping them interested in remaining with the company. 

A bored employee that is not being challenged, or is not utilized well looks for a company that will challenge him.  Research has found that Millennials are one of the groups that expect to be challenged and is not afraid to voice their discontent with the status quo if their skills are not being used. If an employee is happy working for your company, don’t be afraid to ask them for any input as to improvements you can make to the internal culture of the business even though he is happy working there.  If an employee is leaving the company, make it your job to find out why and whether there was anything you could have done differently.

Many companies have great salaries and incentives to lure top talent to their business, and although a great salary is one of the incentives you can use to attract them to your company,  it’s not enough to keep them.

There is a lot of research out there that mention the idea of group collaboration and state the fact that many employees prefer and enjoy the challenge of being part of a team.  While this may be true for many startups, every company is different and the goals they want to achieve are not those of a startup.  As a small business owner, the possibility of change is easier for you.  You can implement change in the company and see it through without looking for approval from the top guys, or even input if the changes are working.

As a business student, you learn that company culture is one of the hardest changes to make, and one of the things hardest to monitor.

Having the right company culture begins by hiring the right people.  It is no longer enough to have the computer skills needed for a job, good interpersonal skills have become a prerequisite for many companies for any position within the organization.

As a small business owner, there are many challenges when hiring employees.  Fortunately for you, the power and control are yours.

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Small Business Issues for 2018

January 11, 2018 by

What are some of the issues, small business owners have to be aware of this 2018?

Business Optimism: According to many analysts, business owner’s optimism should stay steady this year, following the high level carry over from 2017.  If the economy and stock market remain as robust as it has been, business owners are bound to stay optimistic.  And although their optimism about the economy has not translated in an increase in hiring, with the new tax laws breaks many analysts believe this can change.

Taxes and Accounting: The new tax bill should benefit many businesses across different sectors of the economy.  Whether you are a small business owner, have a partnership or a corporation, there are bound to be many tax breaks that you can take and that can alleviate the tax burden this year.

For these tax breaks, you need a tax accountant that has an understanding of your business, your financial situation, and an understanding of the new tax laws in order to take all the tax credits that your business is allowed.

Having a knowledgeable accountant can help your business lift or ameliorate the tax burden your business faces while helping you create a path to a healthier one. Accountants can possibly help you save thousands of dollars in fines from the state or federal government if you are not filing the right forms at the right time.

Sexual harassment: A movement that needed to happen long ago, has taken flight and it does not seem to stop. For many businesses across all areas of commerce, sexual harassment has become an issue owners and management cannot ignore anymore.  Preventing sexual harassment in the workplace has been around businesses for many years now, but doing something about it it’s what’s different now.  Training, informing and having an open conversation with all employees in your organization is too important to ignore, and if you haven’t  done anything about it yet, you must prioritize and make it happen now.

Health Care: Many organizations begin the year by reviewing the health care coverage and retirement plans the business has.  Is it important to do it now?  Health care coverage premiums can skyrocket from year to year, and if your business is not shopping around for better rates and coverage for its employees, then you might be paying more for less coverage this year.

Retirement plans are also an important part of the incentives many organizations employ to retain and to attract talent in their business.  The retirement incentives can make a great employee choose to work in your business because of those extra perks they are getting apart from their salaries. 

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Small Business and Funding

October 4, 2017 by

When the time comes for small business owners to finance a part of their business through a loan, things can get quite complicated.  Many banks – especially for small businesses- look into your personal finances to see if you have the credit and trustworthiness to hand you money. Personal credit scores and ending balances for the month in your checking account means something for the banks, and being aware of that fact can make your chances of getting a loan much greater.

For this and other stories, follow the links below.

The GOP says its business tax plan will help workers and small businesses. It won’t.

Instead, it’s a gift to people with lots of capital.

To understand the business tax provisions in the Trump tax proposals, begin with F. Scott Fitzgerald’s insight that the rich are different from you and me — they have more money.

In particular, they have more capital. (Ever polite, economists call piles of money that have been invested “capital.”) Business tax reform really is an exercise in how we should tax capital income — that is, returns on investments. And because the rich have lots more capital than do you or I, the benefits of the multitrillion-dollar business tax cuts proposed by the Trump administration’s tax “framework” necessarily will be vacuumed up by the most affluent Americans. Business tax reform has only a modest connection to the economic future of working stiffs, and the small connection that does exist is a second-order effect.

Small business jobs hurt as hurricanes close retailers

NEW YORK — Hurricanes that swept the southern U.S. last month shut many retailers and put hiring on hold at small businesses.

That’s the finding of payroll provider ADP, which said Wednesday that its small business customers cut 7,000 jobs during September. Many small and independent retailers in Texas and Florida had to close before and during Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, and many suffered significant damage from wind, rain and flooding. That slowed hiring, and employees at some stores were laid off. The Labor Department reported a jump in applications for unemployment benefits following the storms.

The hurricanes also curtailed overall hiring, ADP said, counting 135,000 new jobs at companies of all sizes, the smallest gain in nearly a year. Without the storm, hiring would likely have been closer to the average monthly pace of 185,000 for the last two years, said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics, which helps compile the ADP reports.

7 Things About Funding Sources that Small Business Owners Don’t Know — But Should

Getting funding for your small business is essential but not always as straightforward as you might think. Here are 7 things about funding sources you might not know about but should.

Small Business Funding Facts

You Need to Keep a Positive Ending Balance

Hanna Kassis works for Segway Financial. He says a small business should not only have money in a bank account before they apply for a loan, but a specific amount at month’s end.

“Lenders want to see that you’ve got a positive ending balance,” he says. “Say you’re anticipating needing a merchant cash advance at the end of the month, go put $500 dollars in your bank account.”

Your Personal Credit Score Affects Your Business Financing

 

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Ohio Healthcare News

June 18, 2013 by

business (7)This is what is happening around Ohio that in some way or another affects the life of many Ohio families and individuals.

67K new businesses in Ohio could launch with health care law

Total number of self-employed Americans could grow by 1.5 million next year. Ohio could add as many as 67,000 new entrepreneurs as a result of the federal government subsidies made available to aspiring business owners through the Affordable Care Act, according to a new report from the Urban Institute.

The number of newly minted entrepreneurs in Ohio would ran fourth nationally behind California, Texas and Florida, and the total number of self-employed Americans could grow by 1.5 million next year when the states open their online marketplaces for health insurance under the health law, the nonpartisan Washington, D.C.-based think tank predicts.

With SAS, Ohio Mutual Insures Better Forecasting, Pricing

Since 2009, Ohio Mutual Insurance Group has used SAS-Analytics to explore price elasticity before making rate changes. Accurate forecasting with SAS enables the company to assess how proposed premium increases will affect renewals at agent and policyholder levels, so it can broaden its insurance lines with less risk.

Claiming $50M impact with lost business, Care Logistics sues two Ohio healthcare networks

Alpharetta-based Care Logistics, a provider of hospital management software and logistics services, is suing two Ohio health care networks, claiming they have cost the company millions of dollars after backing out of several business agreements.

In a case filed this week in U.S. District Court in Atlanta, Care Logistics seeks at least $12 million in damages from the networks, Catholic Health Partners of Cincinnati and Mercy Health Systems of Toledo, plus additional compensation.

 

 

 

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Ohio Business News

June 11, 2013 by

business (5)Storing paper files in offices or warehouses is no longer done -we hope- but, when information in deleted so easily from a computer, we tend to wonder umm……, either way this is what is happening around Ohio this week.

Commercial kitchens: Can we stir up new food processing in Ohio?

In March, I was at a meeting in Champaign County, Ohio, when a woman asked me what I knew about community commercial kitchens.

Not much, I confessed, but enough to think they’re a great option for entrepreneurial small food processors and marketers.

Let’s say you have a great recipe for cheesecakes. You make them for every occasion and even give them as gifts. Pretty soon, people are asking if they could buy them from you.

Ohio women earn 75% of what men make, report says

As local leaders seek to improve the job outlook, national numbers again point to an income disparity between men and women nationally.

The National Women’s Law Center reports women working full-time make 77 cents on the dollar compared to their male counterparts. The center pointed to a disproportionate concentration of women working in minimum wage and tipped occupations.

Cleveland VA office accidentally deletes nearly 500,000 loan documents

The regional Veterans Affairs office in Cleveland says nearly 500,000 electronic home loan documents were accidentally deleted in May.  The VA says the information included active loan files, along with appraisal and grant documents for veterans and service members who qualify for the Specially Adapted Housing. Ohio Republican Senator Rob Portman issued a statement Monday saying that he wants more answers and what the office plans to do about the mistake.

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