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4 Risks Your Business Faces and How to Avoid Them

“If you run a small business then you need to do what you can to avoid risk as much as possible. If you don’t, then you may find that you end up setting your business up for failure and this is the last thing you need.”

Buffer

To focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money and Business/Entrepreneurship. While starting a business can be one of the most rewarding things your can do, there are risks involved. Understanding those on the front end can increase the chances of your long-term success. The following contributed post is entitled, 4 Risks Your Business Faces and How to Avoid Them.

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If you run a small business then you need to do what you can to avoid risk as much as possible. If you don’t, then you may find that you end up setting your business up for failure and this is the last thing you need.

Security and Fraud

Some of the risks you may face include data branches, cyberattacks and embezzlement. Intellectual property theft is also a major issue. These are examples of how security risks are growing for businesses. The volume of online transactions and trends such as remote work are pushing remote processes onto the cloud. Although there are some technical aspects to this, the risk level usually comes down to processes that are managed by humans. You need to make sure that you have rigorous protocols in place so that you can make sure that everyone has a solid understanding of the data they are handling, and how to keep it safe. If you can educate your team, then you’ll reduce a lot of risk.

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Compliance Risk

Are you familiar with the laws that you have to follow? The legal landscape is changing all the time. Laws that relate to taxes, occupational health, equipment certification and more, are always being updated. If you are ignorant to things like this then you won’t have a valid defense. The nature of your business could change over time as well. This brings a new set of risks and compliance regulations that you have to meet. If you are expanding your team and if you are hiring new people then you will probably need to comply with new laws. If your company has moved from offline sales to online sales then you will need to comply with new data security laws as well as privacy protection.

Operational Risk

Operational risks can be internal, external or both. Some examples include a natural disaster that could damage your physical premises or your equipment. You may also experience a server outage that causes tech problems for your team. The power going out can also cause disruptions, so it is imperative that you do what you can here to tackle risks like this. One thing you can do here is outline any proactive measures you can take right now, while also having a backup plan, should things go wrong. If you can do this then things will work in your favor.

Financial Risk

Financial risk is often caused by several factors. This could include market movements, foreign exchange rates, price fluctuations and more. If you want to help yourself here then you need to ease cash flow issues while taking out insurance from an insurance broker. Diversifying your income is also a good idea, as it helps you mitigate economic risk while also limiting the amount of loans you may need to take on.

Of course, navigating the business world can be difficult, but there are things you can do to try and limit your risk while ensuring that you get the most out of your business venture.

Mitigate Investment Risks As A Business

Two of the focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money and Business/Entrepreneurship. As a business owner you must think about mitigating risks. Learning to mitigate risks will assure that your doors stay open. The following contributed post is entitled, Mitigate Investment Risks As A Business.

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Investment is very important when hoping to grow as a business, as any mid-tier business owner would know. But it’s not only making investments that requires forethought, rather securing the quality of those investments is everything, and this should be considered in advance.

But how can you achieve this most important of goals? As a firm, you likely have so many more variables to keep track of that managing your investments, forecasting likely results, and learning how to properly diversify your portfolio can be a very hard ask. Where to begin with such an intensive responsibility?

Well, we believe we have some answers that may aid you on your journey. Mitigating investment risks as a business is often your most important, most affecting step. After all, it’s amazing to see the opportunity in something, but this must always be leashed by your ability to forecast and manage the pitfalls. If you can achieve that, you’ll be in good stead for positive future results.

Without further ado, let’s move into the advice:

Commercial Estate Brokerages

When hoping to find the best commercial real estate to invest in, or if investing in it and wishing to take good care of your new asset, finding an excellent commercial real estate brokerage can be a great idea. Not only can they help you manage and forecast upcoming events or pricing fluctuations that may result in a better or more worthy investment, but they can also help you manage the property on your books with clear and concise predictors. This helps you not only find the best investment, but carefully protect it as the years go by.

Forecast Results

It’s important to forecast the results of your investment and the knock-on effects they may have. For instance, investing in precious metals as of the moment is likely a strong predictor of stability, but that’s not always the case depending on the size of investment and where the diminishing returns may be. Using cost pattern analysis and past valuations of a particular investment, you may be able to predict a future value. This is why big tech companies often invest or outright acquire smaller startups that seem to be succeeding in a novel idea, they are both acquiring the potential value of said company and nullifying a future competitor. Investments are always regulated by time, for better or worse.

Set Defined Guidelines

Set defined guidelines about what level of risk you are willing to accept. For some, this may mean making a loss on a certain project for years, because ultimately the utility will be worth it. This is the difference between finding a new office space or renovating and extended part of your currently owned building. When you set the guidelines for the risks and timelines you’re willing to accept, you will ultimately feel more comfortable in taking on risk, as it will have been planned from the offset.

With this advice, we hope you can mitigate investment risks as a business, time and time again.

Business Safety 101: The Risk Areas In Any Organisation

Two of the key focuses of my blog are Financial Literacy/Money and Business/Entrepreneurship. In any business, employee safety is a major concern for production and simply keeping the doors open. What are the risk areas for organizations? The following contributed post is entitled; Business Safety 101: The Risk Areas In Any Organisation.

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Business owners around the world often find the safety measures they have to take within their company to be very frustrating. Even down to the smallest parts of your organisation, you have to keep a constant watch over your employees and customers, ensuring that they are always safe and secure. Of course, though, when you have loads of other work on your plate, it isn’t exactly easy to cover all of the areas which are important. To help you out with this, this post will be exploring some of the major safety concerns which a lot of businesses have to deal with, along with giving you some ideas to make it easier to manage this for yourself.

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Electricals

Everyone knows how dangerous electricity can be, with exposure to this element often causing death or serious injuries. Modern companies are filled with machines which use this resource, though, making it impossible to keep people away from it. Instead, to make sure that everyone is safe, having regular tests conducted on your electricals will often be mandatory. Failing to do this could result in huge fines if you get caught, and even worse consequences if someone actually gets hurt. To help with this, there are a lot of companies out there which will offer subscription services for their tests, making it possible to put the work into someone else’s capable hands.

Obstacles

Wires, boxes, and even wet floors all make for challenging obstacles in a business environment. Unlike at home, where these issues probably won’t matter so much, people in the workplace tend to have other things on their minds. This makes a cable going across the floors go from something to watch out for to a problem which could cost your company a fortune. To get around this, everyone working for you should be trained to put things away properly, along with being basic hazard awareness skills. Of course, along with this, you may have to modify your spaces a little bit to make sure that nothing is in the way.

Vehicles

A lot of companies have to use vehicles to get their work done, with this sort of resource being very useful for a huge range of different jobs. With so much that can go wrong on a machine like this, though, they can end up becoming very dangerous over time, making it crucial that you have regular tests performed to make sure that your fleet is up to standard. Along with this, resources like rubber coatings and safety tape can also be very useful, and you can read more here to figure out just how much they could help you. To make sure that no one is put into the line of fire, your drivers should have the proper training to operate a vehicle for business.

Hygiene

While some people are more fussy than others, there are very strict rules in most places which dictate how clean a business space has to be. When it comes to areas like toilets, this will be very important, with daily cleans being essential, and some companies choosing to go even further than this. Failing to follow the rules in this area could lead to employees or customers suffering with some nasty illnesses. If they are able to prove that your business is at fault, they will be able to take legal action, and this is never good for a growing company. Thankfully, there are loads of cleaning companies around which offer services which can handle all of this for you, ensuring that your place is always at its cleanest.

Air Quality

Hygiene goes beyond cleaning, though. Along with this, you also have to think about the risks which can’t be seen, like gases and pathogens in the air. The latter can be solved with simple air filters which will kill bacteria before they are able to get into the bodies of the people on your property. When it comes to gas, though, you will need to take some extra steps. Detectors can be great when it comes to noticing chemicals like carbon monoxide, giving you an early warning before levels become dangerous. Along with this, it could be worth having machines like your boiler checked to make sure that it isn’t going to start leaking any time soon.

Criminals

There will always be people who you want to keep out of your business, and risk is a big part of this. When it comes to an office, it should only be your employees and a select group of your clients which can gain access. Other people should have to go through an entry procedure, with electronic locks preventing them from gaining access to the wrong parts of the building. In public buildings, like stores, you may need to hire some security team members to keep things safe. Nowadays, there are loads of techy gadgets which can help with this, leaving you with no excuse for having a company which is unsafe.

The Buildings Themselves

When you’re focused on all of the small areas of business safety, it can be easy to ignore the areas which are right in your face. You buildings, for example, can pose a tremendous risk to employees and customers, and they don’t often make it obvious when they are having problems. Having a ceiling collapse could hurt people very badly, with loads of issues like this being common in older structures. To solve this, it will be worth having a surveyor to check the place every couple of years. While they may not find anything, they won’t miss anything, either, keeping your place free from risk.

This sort of field is one which a lot of business owners resent. It feels bad having to spend money just in case something goes wrong, and a lot of the rules you have to follow seem over the top. In reality, though, keeping people safe is a serious business. Some parts of the world pose more risks than others, but it will be worth doing as much as possible wherever you are.