Articles

Home Articles Page 222
Business news, features for entrepreneurs and small business, comment, resources and reviews | Articles

Mark Saba, 2009 Anthill 30under30 winner

Mark Saba may not speak your language, but he sure has a lot of mates who do. His startup, Connect Language Services (CLS), works with 4,000 interpreters and translators globally to provide multicultural communication solutions to major Australian corporations and government organisations.

When and where to outsource your business functions

One of the most important skills a business leader can develop is being able to identify what to undertake in-house and what to outsource. As Dean Morelli explains, if you know where your company truly adds value, then outsourcing other functions of the business frees you up to add even more value.

Preparing for US venture capital: Due diligence is a two-way street

In part five of our series on the capital raising cultures in Australia and the US, San Francisco-based Steve Anderson explores how Australian entrepreneurs can best prepare for securing US venture capital.

Why Chief Coffee Drinker is my most important entrepreneurial role

An ex-colleague of mine, the least entrepreneurial person I have ever met, gave me the best piece of entrepreneurial advice I have ever received. She told me just as I was starting mag nation that my most important job would be having a coffee with five random people every week. I smiled politely and filed this one in the back pocket. She was right, though. When I have lived by this rule, my business has progressed. When I have ignored it, we have stagnated.

Sheesh, Rupert, would a subscription model KILL you?

The truly anarchical nature of the internet (despite attempts to control it) precludes the concept of the captive audience. Now, it’s a buyers’ market – and we have so very many options. Big media take note.

Man-size me

Since 1941 Kleenex have actually understood what it is that hits to the core of being a man who buys tissues. The one thing that is a symbol of unadorned manliness – huge, enormous, large, big and gargantuan-sized tissues that come in massive boxes. In recent months, other consumer brands seem to have caught on.

Glen Riverstone, 2009 Anthill 30under30 winner

Glen Riverstone is the embodiment of an inventor-turned-entrepreneur. Faced with a personal problem, he invented a device to solve it, commercialised the product and exported to 13 countries around the world - all within the space of eleven months.

Sydney researchers develop energy-efficient model for cloud computing

A breakthrough by researchers at the University of Sydney is set to harmonise two of today's hottest emerging trends: cloud computing and energy efficiency.

We Gen Ys need more dollars and sense (here’s how)

It has become obvious to me over the past few years spent presenting at universities that an understanding of basic financial principles is not taught anywhere throughout the traditional education system. This leaves us Gen Ys, again, with the responsibility of educating ourselves. Or going bankrupt.

‘Throwing the book’ at the legal profession (Part 2)

This series by contributing authors Gene Stark and Jeremy Samuel ponders why law firms aren’t better at marketing themselves. This second instalment explores misconceptions about branding and why law firms tend to play from the same tired corporate playbook.

iPhone app review: TripIt

The travel category of apps is the premium space on the iPhone app store - the Paris end, if you will. Although the more pricey apps reside here, they might make the difference between a great or average trip, missing or catching a flight, so it’s worth considering forking out the coin.

Obama’s knife edge: from Messiah to spammer

How frequently can you email someone before you become a spammer? This is a question that has plunged Barak Obama’s spinners into a dive. This is a warning light for businesses, too. Even the mighty can slip if they don’t handle their online marketing with finesse.

Obama's knife edge: from Messiah to spammer

How frequently can you email someone before you become a spammer? This is a question that has plunged Barak Obama’s spinners into a dive. This is a warning light for businesses, too. Even the mighty can slip if they don’t handle their online marketing with finesse.

Campbell King, 2009 Anthill 30under30 winner

If copycat competitors are badges of honour for entrepreneurs, Campbell King had won three of them within the first six months of operation with his startup, Kegs on Legs.

Great scientific achievements by women in history

The fields of science and technology are undeniably dominated by men. However, the contributions of women in these areas has been overlooked and underestimated throughout history. At the recent 2009 Women in Technology (WiT) Awards presentation, WiT President and i.lab CEO Anne-Marie Birkill delivered a keynote address in which she lauded the little-known achievements of female scientists and technologists, and called for greater acknowledgement and support for women today. Here is an edited extract from Birkill’s speech.

uberVU returns with improved online conversation tracking

Last week we discovered that the uberVU team has been hard at work transforming the product based on the initial feedback received from private beta testers. And the public beta version is now live.

When seeking investment, preparation is everything

In part four of our series on the capital raising cultures in Australia and the US, San Francisco-based Steve Anderson explores how Australian and New Zealand entrepreneurs can best prepare for securing local investors.

Man invoices consumer brands for wasting his time. So far, four have paid.

Take Paul McCruddon, a London-based blogger and digital strategist at Imagination Digital who grew weary of brands believing that his time was less valuable than their own and decided to take matters into his own hands.

Can you remember the first time you used a computer?

Do you remember the first time you used computers? If you're under 30 that's like saying, "Do you remember the first time you drew breath," so obviously I'm talking to my older demographic. If the experience was not traumatic, you are a rare specimen, indeed.

Peter Henderson, 2009 Anthill 30under30 winner

Jumping ship to work with a larger, market-leading competitor was a disruptive change. The realisation that his entrepreneurial skills would be best utilised growing their business, rather than his own, did not come naturally for Peter Henderson, one of the few genuine "intrapreneurs" in this year's crop of 30under30.
Subscribe to the Newsletter Over 30K subscribers

FREE BUSINESS TOOLS

Strategic Alliances with Simone Novello [FREE INFOGRAPHIC]

Have you heard the often touted claim that the average lifespan of a business is two years? Have you ever wondered why that is? Often, it’s because, in the rush and intensity of starting up, business owners get caught up in day-to-day op-erations and overlook fast growth opportunities, like strategic partnerships. In this FREE INFOGRAPHIC, Simone Novello helps to answer your three most common questions about how to harness the power of... FRIENDS WITH BENEFITS.

FREE BUSINESS TOOL

How to expand into New Markets with Elsita Meyer-Brandt [CHEAT SHEET]

Most organisations begin with aspirations to start local, then grow global. But, in reality, very few ever take the big leap into new markets. In this Cheat Sheet, Elsita Meyer-Brandt, Head of Market Expansion and International Marketing for Eventbrite, shares five rules to help organisations, just like yours, expand into new markets.

INFOGRAPHICS

New Zealand’s Xero eyes US IPO, further disruption as subscribers increase...

Xero recently held its annual meeting in Wellington, during which the company revealed some interesting details about its future. As has been widely suspected, the...

OPINIONS & ADVICE