To run a business efficiently, most companies, both small
and large, will have several employees to support their processes and ensure
that the quality of their services is high. However, managing employees can be
difficult, and business owners may find that they experience a range of
problems when it comes to ensuring employee happiness and motivation, which are
vital to the success of your business.
1.
Personal Injury Claims
If your business does not have a sufficient health and
safety policy in place to support your employees, you may find yourself on the
receiving end of a personal injury claim made against you. Common workplace
injuries that occur range from slip and falls caused by hazards such as wet
floors and loose wires, as well as office-related injuries such as repetitive
stress injuries like carpel tunnel syndrome. If a personal injury claim is made
by your employee against you, Aston
Knight Solicitors has a history of helping both employees and employers to
negotiate the right solution for them, whether that be in terms of compensation,
or defending themselves in court. If you want to prevent personal injuries in
the workplace, you should create a strict health and safety policy and training
regime for every staff member, which you should refresh on a regular basis and
which should include elements such as the correct way to lift heavy objects.
2.
Motivation Issues
However, for many employees, their issues are less physical,
but, as a business owner, you should be no less aware of these. With a
third of employees feeling unmotivated, motivation issues in the workplace
can occur for a variety of reasons, including a lack of praise or unsuitability
for the job, as well as a lack of promotion. To ensure that you are able to
motivate your employees at all times, you should set up rewards for hard work,
such as seasonal events like summer barbecues or Christmas dinners, to
celebrate your employee’s achievements throughout the year. You should also
consider pay rises and promotions in order to show employees that they are
valued. You could also set up prize schemes for those employees with the best
stats, such as holidays and days out.
3.
Skills Gaps
One of the major problems for managers dealing with employees
is the
skill gap, with many employers struggling to find employees who suit the
needs of their company. However, even if you are unable to find employees on
job boards that match your requirements, it is possible to combat the skills
gap easily. To do this, you should create training schemes for your employees
on a regular basis, as well as invest in exterior training courses or
qualifications, which could boost your employee’s skills and strengthen their
weaknesses. You could also consider investing in personal development by giving
employees an afternoon off regularly to focus on improving skills that they are
interested in, which they can then reinvest into your business.
4.
Human Resource Problems
Along with the skills gap, human resource issues are also
becoming problematic, with many businesses unable to find the amount of staff
that they need for certain tasks. To find a solution to this, you should consider
out-sourcing employees to find the talent or amount of employees you need
for a certain project, especially if they are only needed on a temporary basis.
Unless you
believe that developing AI is a sure way of bringing the events from Terminator
to life, future application of artificial intelligence can be a very
interesting thing. One industry that stands to gain a lot from introducing
aspects of AI is iGaming. Companies are not the only one that will benefit from
it, but players as well, both directly through the use of AI and indirectly
from having a better experience during playing. AI has been a buzz word that
has caused a lot of controversy in the last decade, but so far, we haven’t seen
its impact in any significant way. Some indicators say that it may happen in
the next year or two.
AI in gaming
Use of AI in
gaming isn’t a new thing. Older folks remember Garry Kasparov’s chess battles against a
series of IBM’s computers. First, it was Deep Thought in 1989. Kasparov wiped
the floor with it. The next iteration was called Deep Blue in 1996. Kasparov
won again 4 – 2 but became the first chess world champion who lost a game to a
computer in tournament settings. The next year saw a rematch and the
unthinkable happened. Gary Kasparov, one of the best chess players in history,
lost a match 2.5 – 3.5 to a bunch of electronic circuits and a piece of
cleverly written code. Of course, Kasparov blamed his loss on IBM cheating.
Fast forward 20
years later and it is not even a competition anymore. The current World Chess
Champion, Magnus Carlsen, has an Elo rating of 2845. The most powerful chess computer
program Stockfish 9 has a rating of 3438. Translated into layman terms, it
means that in a hundred matches, Carlsen wouldn’t win a single one. That is how
far we have come.
One of the biggest issues some people have with the iGaming industry
is that it causes addiction and allows players to continue playing even when in
well over their heads. AI can greatly help to curb that trend, by introducing
warnings that could prevent addictive behavior and even force players to play
responsibly. By analyzing game patterns, it can be easy to recognize players
who may develop an addiction and introduce measures to prevent them from it. It
can be quite easy to lose track of both time and money while
playing your favorite online slot games, but with an AI keeping a
watchful eye on you, bad consequences can be avoided.
Fraud Prevention
One of the
biggest concerns of online iGaming companies is fraud prevention and AI can do
wonders in preventing people from cheating. Ironically, the best tool these
cheaters have is AI, so the industry is fighting fire with fire, in a sense.
Cheating in modern online casinos is all about patterns and there is no better
and faster way of detecting hidden patterns than AI. AI-powered fraud
prevention tools can save a lot of money and it is easy to see why more and
more companies are using them. Of course, even more, important is preserving
their reputation. Nobody wants to play in an online casino that has allowed
cheaters to run free, which is a reasonable reaction.
Data processing
is one of the most boring AI applications, but also one of the most powerful
ones. It is also an area where we are seeing a massive use of artificial
intelligence and machine learning today. Analyzing terabytes of data is a task
no human being can accomplish in any reasonable time frame. AI, backed by a
powerful computer, can do it in an afternoon, if not faster. By extrapolating
the results, AI can make meaningful suggestions on playing styles and create
useful feedback to both companies and players.
iGaming has always been at the forefront of technological
advancement and the industry
is keen on developing and applying any new solutions that benefit it. AI is no
exception and many companies have already incorporated it in some form. There
is no reason to doubt that iGaming industry leaders will continue to do so in
the future, benefiting both themselves and their players. Well, at least until
Skynet takes over.
As we all know, most boardrooms want immediate action when a downturn
in business performance occurs. Unfortunately, it’s generally not quite as
simple as that.
Markets are volatile things, particularly nowadays, and it means
pinpointing these downturns can be more difficult than ever before.
This is one of the reasons why accounting companies like 3 Wise Bears are so popular
nowadays. By keeping on top of your accounts, you can at least spot holes a lot
easier – and make things like a PESTLE analysis simpler.
For the purposes of today we are going to focus on external factors
when it comes to running your business. Let’s now take a look at four issues
that often slip by the net when it comes to scrutinizing performance.
The weather
It might be something of a headline-grabber, but you might be
surprised at just how much the weather can impact the performance of a
business.
For example, if a winter is particularly warm, a ski company might
struggle much more than in previous years. Or, if there was a particularly
cloudy and rainy summer, a window blinds company might have similar
difficulties.
To some, this might seem like the easy excuse, but there’s no doubt
that some businesses are affected by the weather much more than others.
The seasonality
In some ways, this is similar to above. However, all businesses have
waves of seasonality, and it’s worth looking at this as a priority before you
dig any deeper into your company’s performance.
To coin an example, for a lot of brands December is a particularly
slow month. This is because people are off work, and generally having downtime.
When one considers the festivities, buying products tends to be at the back of
their mind (at least after the 25th December).
The political factors
Like it or not, politics can play a part as well. We’re not going to
dive too deep into politics, but suffice to say certain legislation is going to
impact some businesses more than others.
If we were to coin a real-life example, it could be with high-interest
loans in the UK. Legislation was passed which meant that companies offering
such a service were under much tighter regulations – and this had severe effects on the way they
operated.
The economy
Finally, let’s leave one of the biggest macro factors until the very
end. Granted, the economy is going to vary between nations, but as a whole it
would be fair to say that it is struggling at the moment .
For most companies, the repercussions are obvious. Customers just
aren’t willing to spend the money that they once were – and they are a lot more
conscious about price than they may have been in the past.
It can mean that companies offering more of a budget service can start
to grab market share, while it can also mean that markets start to shrink. Either
way, this is an external factor which is really difficult to affect.
Do you have aspirations of being an entrepreneur? Many people like the idea of starting their own business ventures, and it is easy to see why as it can be incredibly rewarding to build a successful company from the ground up. As any experienced entrepreneur will tell you, this is no easy feat and it will take much more than a good business idea to succeed. You see many aspiring entrepreneurs make the same mistakes time and time again so it is important to know a few tips which should help you to hit the ground running and hopefully find success in your ventures. Here are a few key tips. Continue reading “Top Tips For Aspiring Entrepreneurs”→
So this week we sat down for a bit of a chat with a former background checks clerk, which is basically just somebody who follows up on the information presented in situations which involve the appointment of professionals. Her job was specifically to make sure employees who are already working for the companies that employed them were sincere in the information they included in their CVs or resumes. A very interesting job indeed, but she had some valuable lessons learned to share with us. Continue reading “Lessons Learned from a Background Checks Clerk”→
As the old saying goes ‘money makes the world go round’ – money affects us all and is at the forefront of our daily lives, so it comes as a surprise that today’s generation of adults are not well equipped at handling their finances. According to a 2018 study, three quarters of Brits are worried about money, with over half of adults in the UK expressing concern that their mental health is suffering as a result. Worryingly, young adults often feel that they have not been educated enough on financial matters at school. So, how do we improve the situation and teach young people how to manage their money? We’re taking an in-depth look into the issue with the help of company liquidation specialists Business Rescue Expert. Continue reading “The absence of financial literacy in schools: Why money matters for future generations”→
Starting a new business can be hard. What can be just as challenging is trying to build a completely new business website that now has to compete against all the other websites that have been live for years and years.
You’re in Business for one reason: Success.
Grow your company, reputation, customers, impact, profits. Grow yourself. This is a community that will help. It will stretch your mind, connect you to fascinating people, and provide some fun along the way. I am so glad you’re here.
-Keith O'Sullivan