What is a millennial? 

Millennials are a group of people who have reached adulthood around 2000. Speaking as one myself, they have high expectations of technology, having always had use of the internet and generically speaking tend to adopt to new technology quickly compared to previous generations. 

According to *Deloitte's 2016 Millennial Survey, in general they express little loyalty to their current employers, and values overtake a need for leadership-skill development.

So what are the millennials looking for in a job role?

• They choose organisations to work for that share their personal values
• Flexible working, better work/life balance
• Have a desire to succeed
• Prefer a Flat structure over hierarchy

Generation Z (the new kids on the block)

The Generation Z are a group who are not aware of a world outside the internet. Born after 1995, they are used to getting everything instantly but still they're a social group, with their lives played out through social media.

Generation Z Career expectations?

Generally speaking, they want to make their hobby their job, they believe in their own network getting them opportunities over qualifications and like the millennials don't believe in a hierarchy at work. 

The fundamental elements remain the same as the millennials, with values and flexible working remaining high on the list. This doesn't mean however they do not want to be successful. 

Further reading;

* http://www2.deloitte.com/global/en/pages/about-deloitte/articles/millennialsurvey.html 

Post By Caroline

Please note, all our content is for general guideline only, every case is different and we would recommend speaking to us before taking any action as a result of the content. The content was correct at the time it was published.

After the success of last year's exhibition, Cooper Curtis are thrilled to be exhibiting again at this year's Recruitment Agency Expo at Birmingham NEC on 28th and 29th September.

Come and say hello to Caroline and myself at stand D29 opposite Theatre 2 for freebies and information on how we can support your recruitment business. 

Entry to the show is free and there are plenty of useful seminars and recruitment suppliers attending over the two day event. 

We look forward to seeing you there!

Post by Brian

Vs

When it comes to making your bookkeeping as streamlined as possible, there are new technologies popping up all the time. It is sometimes difficult to decide which one will be right for your business when they claim they are all singing all dancing. 

The main two 'firms of the future' applications we have encountered are 'Receipt Bank' and 'Expensify' which appear to be the market leaders at this present time. Although they are both apps to simply take a picture of a receipt, they slightly differ depending on what type of business you are. With both services having OCR detection technology, designed to eliminate time entering manual information. 

I have summarised the main features of the two applications below which may influence your decision.  If you do have any queries however, please do not hesitate to contact me. 

Receipt Bank

Set up in 2010 to relieve the administrative burden placed on small businesses Receipt Bank; 

• Integrates with most cloud accounting such as Xero & Quickbooks
• Is useful if you are a business processing a lot of purchase invoices and receipts
• Takes pictures of your Invoices and receipts and submit through the app.
• The receipts sit on the cloud
• Offers a 14 day free trial

Conclusion

Easy to use app that can create various reports. Multi mode function allows you to take a picture of multiple invoices and receipts at once. It does take a while for the OCR detection to process the information once the picture has been taken, but I haven't encountered many hiccups with the result. I do think it is quicker to categorise the information yourself rather than wait for it to finish and double check all the information.

Overall if used consistently, this does reduce time a business can potentially spend on bookkeeping.

Vs

Expensify

As the name suggests this app is more geared towards expense reporting as opposed to sales and purchase receipts like Receipt Bank. It is; 

• Good if you need your employees or contractors to send in a picture of their expenses. 
• Need to reconcile company credit cards on a monthly basis
• Require approvals for submitted expenses
• Good if you require expense policy enforcement
• Offers a 30 day free trial
• Most users of Expensify are in the IT & Service Industries
• Receipts are retained on the central cloud
• Integrates with most Cloud and accounting packages

I find this app very user friendly, and facilitates several expenses reports to be creates at once as well as 'buik' adding expenses. As with Receipt Bank, I find the 'smartscan' facility does take a while to pull the information together, and sometimes it is easier to categorise photos instantly yourself. 

Conclusion

Both apps are very user friendly, With any of these apps, the onus is placed on the business owner to post up their receipts regularly. The advantage of course is a business gains a real time insight into how it is performing and their advisor can look at ways to enhance profitability. 

If you would like more information about bookkeeping solutions, contact Caroline on 0845 3031144 or email caroline@coopercurtis.co.uk. 

Post by Caroline

Please note, all our content is for general guideline only, every case is different and we would recommend speaking to us before taking any action as a result of the content. The content was correct at the time it was published.

I am delighted to announce that Cooper Curtis has been accepted as a Recruitment Service Provider for TEAM, (The Employment Agent Movement) the UK's largest network of independent recruiters. 

We are looking forward to sharing industry knowledge with our fellow members and attending meetings through TEAM's regular networking events. 

We like TEAM's ethos 'nice people to do business with' because we like to think that's how our clients see us and is why I believe our new partnership will work well. 

To see Cooper Curtis on TEAM's website or to find out more about the benefits in becoming a member;

Post by Brian 

 Are you thinking of purchasing a pool car rather than going down the expensive company car route? It is possible, but if these strict conditions are met a business can escape a taxable benefit for their employees (and employers NIC!).... 

1/ The Pool car is made available to and used by more than 1 employee.

2/ It is made available by reason of the employee’s employment.

3/ The car was not used by 1 employee at the exclusion of others.

4/ In the case of each of those employees, any private use of the car made by the employee was merely incidental to the employee's other use of the car in that year (60% as a rule of thumb) such as a short diversion to shops on way to, or from work premises.

5/ The car was not normally kept overnight on or in the vicinity of any residential premises where any of the employees was residing, except while being kept overnight on premises occupied by the person making the car available to them. (Eg setting off early to a business meeting.)

If any of the above conditions aren’t met, this will be classed as a company car and taxable benefit on each employee.

Do you have a query on pool cars? Contact Brian or Caroline on 0845 303 1144 or email info@coopercurtis.co.uk. 

Please note, all our content is for general guideline only, every case is different and we would recommend speaking to us before taking any action as a result of the content. The content was correct at the time it was published.

Don't leave your head in the clouds, only your Accounts! 

You may already be aware as a business owner that regular digital accounts submissions from most business unless very small (TBC) will be mandatory from 2020. Are you still working from spreadsheets? Or even pen and paper? Or are you unsure if the cloud accounting solution you are currently using is the right one for you?

Now is the time to be thinking about change! 

When choosing the right cloud accounting solution for your business, you may want to know; 

• Can i get a running report on how my business is performing?
• Can I access my accounts info on my phone and tablet?
• Can I print/email professional looking invoices?
• Can I produce repeat or draft bills?
• Will it save me money in the long run?

• Will I get ongoing business performance support from my Accountant?

Cooper Curtis can get the right systems in place for your business, and provide business support through regular, in-year, face to face meetings.

Call 0845 303 1144 or email to arrange a free, no obligation consultation or to discuss how cloud accounting solutions can help your business grow.

Please note, all our content is for general guideline only, every case is different and we would recommend speaking to us before taking any action as a result of the content. The content was correct at the time it was published.